QTFLYER

Phitek Headphones

sbiddle

Same company. They were a NZ company and had a lot of patents in the N/C space.

TheTravellingRat

I have signed up on this forum just to vent about the demise of the 'elite' status.

Rarely are there Elite Experiences to try and win anymore...and now our gifts are being given away on our behalf. If they truly were giving something to someone ijn need I might be ok with it...but call me cynical.

Poor form Air NZ...your lame as excuse of mixed messages just doesn' wash I'm afraid. I hope you are reading this Mark Street and realise the discontent your cost saving stuff up has caused.

Time to use those upgrades...theyll be next to go.

Air NZ Elite...the new Silver.

nzkarit

.......

Eltham

Lpmnz

Ive been told by a reliable source that there is 20,000 too many elites for nz’s liking.
Thus the reduced sp earn rates and of course no Xmas gifts etc.

sbiddle

In all seriousness nothing Air NZ have done this year in any way will change the number of Elite customers.

Earn has only been slashed for regional customers flying in the cheapest fares and with credit card earn still making up a significant earn for many Elite customers and no attempts to reign this in it's very clear the are no serious attempts being undertaken to do this. Airpoints makes NZ huge $$$ and they don't want to ruin this earn.

Not giving an Elite Xmas gift at a time when the airline is still raking in the $ and making record profits just makes them look incredibly tight.

CHCflyer

If Air NZ find they have too many Elite status passengers then they clearly have not understood that this is the inevitable consequence of being a de facto monopoly. Punishing regional passengers like me in regional markets is the behavior of a monopoly provider.

khan40

I suppose like the majority of responses i too was quite surprised by Air New Zealand and their move to not reward me. The short haul upgrade was nice but obviously too hard to repeat.
I travel allot both business and personal and will miss my Xmas surprise

Rebound

Xmas Gift this year was HiFly

lionred2012

Out of interest, I have just received (and spent!!) my birthday present from Malaysia Airlines - a gift voucher for 350 Ringgits (NZ$122) t be spent in their on board shop. Compare that with Air NZ's reward for my loyalty.
I used to put all my travel air NZ's way (minimum 5 business class return flights AKL to LHR per annum) plus flights to SE Asia and South Asia) but have cut my Air NZ spend back to a minimum, just enough to retain G*E. I just don't like the way the cutomer experience is going. I can understand airpoints being a major revenue earner for Air NZ and commercially understand it, but it is diluting the customer experience, and people like me will gradually drift away. By increasing the number of elites dramatically through credit card usage they have degraded the value of the regular passsengers.
.I also prefer the on ground experience at KUL compared with the zoo at LAX (admittedly not Air NZ's fault, but it contributes to the passenger experience) and it is so much more relaxing.
The cost cutting/versus customer experience graph is now going to reap its results. I am fortunate in that my travel requirements mean that I have alterrnatives to Air NZ. Where to now for Air NZ?
I

poopbunny

When pre-ordering meals, MH has nice Oxtail Ravioli out of AKL, a light meal that pairs well with their Satays. Most FA's will even cook a beef fillet medium on request.
Nice glamping of the cup noodle snack in between meals.
Nice restaurant table service at their KUL First Lounge, the only time I ever saw Lobster on an airline lounge menu anywhere. KUL is not a great airport (but when you compare it to LAX....)
J seats feel more private.
On a sale, MH fares can be nearly 50% that of NZ (and if flying NZ partner, APD and SP earn is severely punished), its a no brainer.
Enrich earn and burn rates pretty good too.

Everytime NZ cuts cost, they also cut revenue with people like you going elsewhere.

NZ still serves Billecart though.

libertyuk

To be fair, does QF offer a Xmas gift to Platinum Ones? How many airlines do offer such gifts at Xmas? Yes there is a genuine question about how much Elites really get for their loyalty to NZ, but does dropping the Xmas gift make any difference to user behaviour or loyalty?

ruff00

...Air NZ didn't give me a gift (perhaps a $20 bottle of wine?) I didn't give them my next return business flight (perhaps $5,500) It was a pretty direct reflection of my user behaviour and loyalty...

Kiwi Flyer

Yes they do.