Originally Posted by
ithacxa
On a related note, does anyone know how the new BIS mode of counting miles towards MM status will play out? Will BE seats count towards it? More interestingly for me, how will DL count miles for MM status for when one rides their partners at the lowest main cabin (but not basic economy) class? The price difference, for example, between China Air and Korean Air to certain parts of SEAsia makes me wonder. Thanks.
I would assume that DL BE fares (E class) will not count towards MM status just as they don't count now. KE doesn't look to even have any "Light" fare offerings from what I can see (at least on TPAC flights). AF/KL Light fares don't have a separate booking class unlike DL E fares. They just have regular coach classes and credit like regular coach classes (like DL BE fares, AF/KL Light fares have a 'B' in second to the last character of fare basis code which identifies them as Light fares). VS uses a separate booking class for it's Light fares (T), but DL still currently provides credit for them (including in 2024) unlike DL E fares.
VS Light fares, like DL BE fares, are dual inventory fares and have a separate underlying coach class for the first letter of the fare basis code. The particular Light fare you end up with will depend on inventory availabliity in those underlying coach class fare buckets, but the fares ultimately all book into the T booking class regardless of the underlying coach class on fare. Since AF/KL don't have a separate booking class for their Light fares, the booking class is just the same the coach class letter that is the first letter of the fare basis code for the Light fare (and the particular Light fare you get will again depend on bucket availability in those coach classes).