Originally Posted by
britflyer1976
(1) What is your home airport? HAM / BRU
(2) What types of fares do you usually buy ? (C, F, Y, etc.) Varies due to company policy: K, L, Y - discounted up to full fare economy.
(3) How many miles do you usually fly each year? Not sure yet. Many segments likely
(4) Do you have any kind of status at present? No
(5) What is most important to you in a FFP? lounge access, good award redemption, priority services
(6) Which routes do you fly most often: European - HAM-BRU and HAM-LON
(7) Preferred Airlines: Brussels Airlines, LH, BA
(8) Do you travel for work or pleasure? Both. Choice usually Check&Go on Brussels. Otherwise BA/LH economy as available.
My OH is relocating to Hamburg and will be making regular trips back to Brussels - on average every 2-3 weeks. Also occasional trips to London. Some will be work and some personal. At the moment it looks likely that the vast majority of the flights will be with Brussels Airlines. When travelling for work she is usually required to travel on the lowest fare, Check&Go, occasionally Light&Relax. Due to the regularity of travel it may be possible to build up segments quickly.
I've already run through the forums and checked the programs but not so easy to find a clear decision on which S* would be best. It looks like either M&M or A3, but maybe another is better?
So far see some pros and cons:
Miles&More: Pro: Status miles for the largest range of booking classes. Can qualify on segments. Con: However runs on calendar year so would likely lose the benefit of the initial flurry of travel in the next 3 months due to relocation, advance trips etc.
Aegean: Con: Earning excludes some of the Economy booking classes that she is required to use. Pro: Lower earning levels required for status. Counts over a full year period. Con: No possibility to earn based on segments.
Anyone able to help me to see things clearer? Thanks!
If you fly that often but your routes are that short, you should definitely use Miles and More. You need 30 segments on Lufthansa group (including Brussels) airlines to earn *S, which on LH group flights will give you almost everything partner *G would. You'll get priority everything, and even lounge access. But again, those benefits only apply to LH group flights if you're a *S with M&M.
LH group flights are otherwise tough to credit to other programs, as the cheap economy fares earn 0-25% in most programs. So I would stick with M&M under your patterns.