Originally Posted by
mitwg
+1
While on technical terms the change seem bad, I don't think it is such a material loss to be honest, as far as lounge access is concerned.
SL means the most you'd ever fly is still less than 60k miles a year, which means in long haul terms you are at the airport for less than 12 flights a year (thats assuming 5000 miles on average in Y). Remembering that this is the high end estimate, where on the other spectrum, if an SL is 'just' hitting the 30k each year that's just 6 flights each year at the airport with CX. If you have a habit of flying other OW carriers (where SLs don't get access in the first place I understand?), then this number of actual flights drops even further.
So with that in mind, I'd say its still pretty good if you are getting say 4 lounge vouchers out of the 6~12 flights each year and this is very generous compared to other OW carriers (not even looking at QR here).
The only people that will suffer a lot are the intra-asia flyers that maintain SL based on club sectors, where the amount of lounge passes will no where near match the 20~40 sectors required. However on the flipside, lounge access is less important for shorter flights as there's less of a need to 'freshen up' to enjoy two hours of flying vs. 12 hours.
+1. I guess this is perhapse one of the ways CX is looking at to reduce lounge crowding? I personally (not being SL) think that 4 vouchers are quite generous compared to any other carriers. I remember back in my QF SL days I really cherished the one and only voucher I got each year.
However, another problem araise. Assuming that the vouchers aren't limited to the use of the member and is only valid when traveling on CX flights. There is no effective way of controlling the bartering or selling of those vouchers. If SLs end up getting vouchers, GOs and DMs would be at a disadvantage because those vouchers can be used by anyone without having to be traveling with the member, but GO and DM doesn't get that benefit.