I have been left extremely frustrated and mislead, in my discussions with Emirates Skywards staff regarding, the MBNA companion ticket. I qualified for through spending £150/yr (Card fee) and over £15,000 this past year.
Looking to fly from the UK to Sydney, they could not even advise me of a time in the year (or provide a past example), where it was cheaper than buying two economy saver tickets. They even tried to give me a date 10mths in advance, but then found the return segment was not available until 3months later, and on top of that it was still cheaper to buy 2 x Saver tickets, than use the "free companion ticket".
Will definitely be cancelling the card asap, and avoiding any promotions from Emirates.