Originally Posted by
jlfor4
Hi, and thank you for providing such a comprehensive thread. I've done a lot of reading but can't work out the best FF program for my family's circumstances. Here are my responses:
1. What is most important to you in a frequent flyer program (FFP)?
>>> Reply: flight class upgrades, lounge access
2. How many miles do you usually fly each year? How many flights/sectors?
less than 25000 miles, 50000+ miles and 20-25 flights, etc.
>>> Reply: 30,000 miles per person. We are a family of five, so points/status credit pooling would be valuable. Around 3-5 flights per year across Australia, Middle East and Europe
3. What fare class do you usually buy?
first, business, premium economy, economy
>>> Reply: Economy and then try to upgrade. The next two years will be buying Business for the long haul, economy between Jordan and Europe
4. Are you able to choose your airlines and/or class of service? Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
>>> Reply: Varied. Flights between Australia and Amman and around the Middle East cannot be chosen. The rest is travel for pleasure and so airline/class can be chosen
5. Which routes do you fly most often?
transatlantic, domestic USA, intra-Asia, etc.
>>> Reply: Over the next two years we will be living in Jordan and we will fly to and from Australia 4 times. We will also fly Amman-London, and Amman-Rome. My husband will fly from Amman to other Middle Eastern countries 3-4 times a year
6. What is your home airport?
>>> Reply: Over the next two years it will be Queen Alia Airport (Amman, Jordan). After that, Canberra airport, Australia
7. Do you have status in any FFP? What is it? How miles do you have banked in each FFP, if any?
>>> Reply: Mainly points in Virgin Australia (400,000), and Qantas (140,000) whcih option to transfer 500,000 Qantas points from family member. Previous status in both which has expired.
8. What are your preferred airlines, if any?
Hoping to find that here
Welcome to FlyerTalk!
At this site, you can see a list of all airlines serving AMM, and their destinations. Since Royal Jordanian -- a oneworld member -- flies to most major European cities (including London and Rome), you would probably want to seek status in a oneworld airline's frequent-flyer program. You would need at least mid-tier elite status (oneworld Sapphire) to get lounge access when flying in Economy Class on a oneworld carrier.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quee...tional_Airport
I don't know which oneworld program would be easiest to get oneworld Sapphire status for the flying pattern you've described. Some programs are based on spend, these days; others are based on a combination of miles flown and fare class.
If there would be at least two Business Class roundtrips between AMM and SYD between April 1 and March 31 of any given year, crediting those oneworld flights to the Iberia Plus program would get oneworld Sapphire status. That status would get you lounge access, but not free upgrades (except, perhaps, on Iberia, which I doubt you would be flying). Iberia's frequent-flyer currency is Avios, which can be freely transferred to BA and QR.
Here's an article from a few years ago about the benefit of crediting long-haul Business Class flights on oneworld carriers to the Iberia Plus program:
https://insideflyer.co.uk/2019/03/qa...f-iberia-plus/
("WHY QATAR AIRWAYS BUSINESS CLASS REGULARS MIGHT BE BETTER OFF WITH IBERIA PLUS")
But I would also investigate how to attain status in RJ's program, and in QF's, too.