Put all aspects into balance not simply question what I would prefer between the two. When the spend required to go up to SEN entitles you to the benefits for a shorter period than under the old programme my choice would be to rather save resources and enjoy a last full 2 years FTL cycle.

Alright, I wasn’t precise enough with that wording although I had shared what my situation was. It’s the case of those FTLs who advance to SEN right at the start of the new programme. And similarly, there could have been the case of SEN advancing to HON Circle.

Example.:

Traveller FS: qualified for FTL in 2022 and 2023. They qualified for SEN in 2024. With the transition to the new system, they get to be FTL in 2023 and 2024 while in 2025 they are SEN and again FTL in 2026 (assuming they stop chasing any status in 2025). If there was no transition, they would have been FTL in 2023 and 2024 then SEN for 2025 and 2026 and FTL again for 2027.

Traveller S: qualified for SEN in 2022 and 2023. They continued to hit SEN threshold (or wiser if they didn’t) in 2024. With the transition to the new system, they get to be SEN in 2023 and 2024 plus one more 2-year cycle of SEN throughout 2025 and 2026 and again FTL in 2027 (for comparability here assuming as well they stop chasing any status in 2025). If there was no transition, they would have identically retained their SEN up to the end of 2026 and FTL in 2027.

Traveller F: qualified for FTL in 2022 and 2023. They continued to hit FTL threshold (or wiser if they didn’t) in 2024. With the transition to the new system, they get to be FTL in 2023 and 2024 plus one more 2-year cycle of FTL throughout 2025 and 2026 (for comparability here assuming as well they stop chasing any status in 2025). If there was no transition, they would have identically retained their FTL up to and including 2026

So former FTLs under the old programme but fresh SENs under the new program (like Traveller FS) are worse off during transition than long running SEN members (Traveller S). Traveller FS doesn’t get any recognition for their activity in 2023 which doesn’t happen with a Traveller S.
Traveller FS is also worse off than Traveller F or Traveller S from a benefit/spend standpoint. Comparing to Traveller F it enjoys the same number of FTL years (partially thanks to the soft landing) and one additional SEN but bearing the additional cost of one SEN qualification year. The spend for a SEN qualification done at the right moment (that is not on the first year of the new programme) returns alone the benefit of one SEN plus one FTL year. Sadly, traveller FS got the assurance in an email from M&M they’d not lose what they earned under the old programme, but the fine print of the story was completely hidden away from them. So, they fell into the trap and qualified for a higher status in 2024.
And finally comparing to Traveller S there is a higher spend for Traveller FS if they wanted to enjoy the same length of SEN under the new programme. If M&M’s argument for it is Traveller’s S legacy, then they shouldn’t entirely forsake Traveller’s FS legacy either.

“Well understood” for readers of this thread maybe which I joined only last year. All they said through the official channels was there would be a “fair” transition. I’ve just proved Traveller FS didn’t have it as fair as F and S.
Were they anywhere clearly describing the rules for status roll-over and specifically what happens with those silly enough to qualify for a higher status during the first year of the new programme and who still had benefits from the past? They kept quiet including when I wrote them. If they hadn’t done it, they would have lost some revenue from “saturated” travellers heading to the competition in 2024.

Possibly the agent that confirmed I’d get them was a begginer. For my awareness, if you or someone else saved the provisions for eVoucher valid before Jan-2024 please share.