cooleddie

I don't value the eupgrades as much as I value IKK and SQ free redemptions. I also value worldwide lounge access. You chase for E50K or SE100K or you don't chase at all.

Transpacificflyer

I stopped worrying about status last year. Like a large number of customers, status gives me nothing that I want or need.

1. I much prefer the cost savings of $1,000 to $2,000 on my long hauls provided by alternative carriers to AC. KLM/AF/DL/CX have their strengths and weaknesses when compared to AC, but the cost savings are so good, that the AC FF points are worthless in comparison. It looks like a win-win situation. AC gets my space to sell to someone who doesn't care or doesn't know any better, and I give my business to a company that seems to want my business.

2. I fly business when on a long haul, so the lounge access, check-in and baggage benefits are already extended.

2. On my short haul domestics, I have had bad experience when using upgrades, so I stopped worrying about the fare class. I don't care if I am in J for flights under 3 hours. AC domestic J and the lounges are nothing special. Paid Domestic J is not a good value proposition.

3. West Jet and Porter are lovely alternatives to AC on my domestic routes and I like the savings. However, I am starting to prefer the AC option out of Billy Bishop now. The empty seats are a nice alternative to the packed Porter flights.

I expect that I am not alone. AC works for some people and that's wonderful. AC can take its sham FF status, its Rouge, its dismal F&B and cabin ambience, its miserable employees and its arrogant management and keep chasing the low end demographic. Folks like me will go where we are wanted and appreciated. AC and its FT fans can say goodbye and good riddance to people like me. Meanwhile, I'll keep the after tax $5,000+ savings per annum in airfare (12 months to date).

Wpgjetse

I have never chased status, but I would agree, these 2 bench marks are the most important.

Symmetre

Could not care less about status. Whatever legitimate perks you lose (like lounge access) you can easily replace with a credit card. Fly with whoever's cheapest and you save more than enough mney to offset those "valuable" Errorplan miles, which are worth basically nothing anyway.

Dorian

I no longer 'chase' status as I always make SE without trying.

That being said I do now go out of my way to credit to Qatar and a few others. My locked thread on it no longer being worth it to credit to AC past 100k explains it all.

Dorian

Ya, like he's sitting in the CEO's office asking every stat on demand to post here.

rehoult

25K - $300
35K - $500
50K - $800
75K - $1200
SE - $5000 min

This year as SE:
- YYC-Europe x5 PE->J upgrades = min $500 value per
- NA upgrades x6 Y->J upgrade = $200-500 value per, depending on fare class
- 100K bonus miles = $2,000 value
- YYC-Europe x3 r/t No YQ = $2,400 cash savings (entire family to Paris for Christmas)
- Concierge help on many, many occasions
- Miles earned via CC (400K+ / year) are worth at least twice as much due to IKK

There are many SE who won't get the same benefits from it that I do. A large part of it for me is the increased value of CC miles due to IKK seat availability, combined with the no YQ. Alone, those make SE worth it to me. Add is the flight benefits and it's a no brainer. But if I didn't have that level of CC earning and a family to use the IKK/No YQ on, it would be a much harder value proposition.

nowinyow

Stopped chasing Aeroplan/AC status altogether.

0 AC flight miles earned in 2015
0 flight segments credited to AC in 2015
(I think I'm silver with AE credit card spend.....whatever...)

From SE to a Kettle in relatively short order.

I did value SE status. What I liked: priority lines, upgrades, lounge access. I appreciated the other benefits but rarely used them.

What I learned this year is how much I don't miss YYZ and YUL. I'm not dissin' YYZ or YUL, but when chasing AC status from YOW, there are going to be a lot of connections; especially considering most of my flights are into the US. Flying to and from YOW always meant a second round of security screening when the connection city was YYZ or YUL then into the US. Quite often, another connection might be required as well. Arriving into YOW, passing through Customs/Immigration is a breeze over YYZ/YUL

What I prefer over AC Status is now is I fly out of YOW to one of several US hubs, then connect if necessary. Yes, I've got *Gold with UA now. Might even make 1K.

AC status was fine when I thought it was convenient. I've learned now the cost of attaining status when based from outside an AC hub requires far more effort and time than I was prepared to give them.

Frequentlander

Yup! You are indeed not alone. After MANY years of SE, I took my $$ elsewhere this year and won't make even minimum status on AC. Metal requirements were the initial driver for me to make the switch and I found that the dark (i.e. non-AC) side is in fact the easier path. Spreadsheet is telling me that I've saved (my clients) $4300 thus far this year by making the switch away from AC - based on cost per distance.

Wpgjetse

I would disagree with you if you don't have to chase status. CC don't help in bad weather, but status does. Being SE, Aeroplan miles have great value.

Wpgjetse

How did you save your clients $4300, if you were mostly flying non AC metal. You said yourself, AC metal requirements were the main reason for leaving aeroplan/altitude.

worldtraveller73

Left last year and no looking back.

It's pretty easy to get business class for personal travel using a buy miles method or an aeroplan branded credit card and I've just sucked it up for business trips in economy.

Frankly, I'm happier.

Frequentlander

By flying other (less expensive) non *A carriers......in another FF program. ie actively not flying AC.

KenHamer

For me the magic number was always $10,000. And in 2008 I put that to the test.

In early December 2008 I was stuck at about 60K miles, after having taken a 5 month holiday earlier in the year. So I did the obvious thing... and went on a 40K mileage run.

The total cost was over $9000, and I travelled in J the entire way. I also turned it into a mini-holiday in SYD, AKL, and LAX. But the real, primary reason was always SE status.

Sometime later I proposed a scheme where Air Canada could make pure profit on those of us who would do mileage runs to maintain status: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/air-c...hitchcock.html

Symmetre

My status with multiple hotels chains means I can wait out the occasional weather delay in relative comfort. So perhaps status does count there. But that has nothing to do with AC.

And let's be honest, Aeroplan miles will never have as much value as cash in the hand.