kiwifrequentflyer

Article: https://i.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/11...climate-crisis

Something I found pretty funny though is the insinuation that it's normal and regular for FFs to do status point runs. I am sorry, what? Even that is a pretty extreme thing in the FF community to do and while it happens I would wager that most people who call themselves FFs don't do a status point run. It's a bit more common in the USA but here, not so much. People are much more likely to just fly a higher fare on an already established trip. Its always interesting seeing an outsider giving commentary on a world they don't know about.

EDIT: Removed my political comment because it was not necessary at all.

CHCflyer

Frequent flyer earn on Norwegian domestic routes were not permitted as a means to encourage competition. This may have changed. I am not sure that the lack of FFP dampened demand in Norway.
Secondly, and certainly in Europe, but increasingly in Asia, much flying is carried out by airlines that offer no frequent flyer loyalty schemes, yet their business model is predicated on growth (thinking of Ryanair, easyJet, Norwegian, WizzAir). Low fares are the stimulus from growth and not the FFP.

kiwifrequentflyer

And this idea that everyone is flying on "free airfares" and we should get rid of airpoints to stop these "free flights" feels ridiculous. Almost everyone I know who is not a FF complains they never get enough airpoints to fly with, so they pretty much never use them. And as a FF myself I almost never use them to book airfares, I use them for upgrades on flights I would have flown regardless.

sbiddle

NZ rehash of the original UK story from last week. Reading it simply wastes time from your finite life that could be used doing something exciting.

As pointed out it is interesting to see outsiders comment on a world they clearly know nothing about.

SeaProf

Getting rid of AirPoints would not change the number of annual flights I take at all. I rarely to never use AirDollars for free flights and I have never done a "mileage run".

gratn

This is good advice I should have taken. Curiosity got the better of me and now those minutes are gone forever. Luckily for me, my flight ex CHC is running late so I’ve spent those minutes in the Koru lounge enjoying the benefits the author has so gracefully agreed Air NZ can continue to offer me. 😂

mtofell

I'm new here and am still getting familiar.... I had not picked up any political leaning. Is this board more conservative leaning? I had never really considered the demographic of frequent flyers with respect to political affiliation. My experience while flying/traveling seems to yield about the same results as the the world in general in terms of politics.

kiwifrequentflyer

I removed the comment because it was really not necessary & I do regret adding it.

CHCflyer

It's worth reminding that this is a loyalty scheme, not a licence to burn carbon. The airlines want a piece of my spend and that's it.
I also get points if I tank up at Z (but Waitomo gets my business because I am loyal to the price) - but I don't drive around more simply to get the points.

JayKiwi

I have only done one status run - earlier in my FF career. Got to the Koru, feeling smug with my plan to work there for the day, then fly home and collect the points.

Was only when I got to the Koru I remembered I'd bought the flights with Airpoints .....True story.

Was berating my own stupidity for about a week afterwards. That was my first and only status run

Xiaotung

I watched this with interest when I joined Airpoints years ago as it was relevant to Airpoints earning when you flew SK but I think they no longer impose this restriction.

I think when I heard the term lazy vegetarian or something like that to describe a person who's a vegetarian but will still eat the meat if somebody serves him meat and he knows the meat will go to waste if he doesn't eat it. As far as status run, if I know a flight that does not run on a 100% load factor, whether I get on the plane or not will not prevent it from taking off. Most flights don't take off with 100% seats filled and I see no real correlation between status runs and the environment.

Perhaps the author was just jealous that she couldn't make use of FFP's either because of her travel patterns or her intelligence.

kiwifrequentflyer

In the short term, yes. In the long term, if people voted with their wallets, there would be less flights. That is just a reality, for better or for worse.

Xiaotung

Yes, but shouldn't we start by getting rid of LCC's first and make airfares more expensive to discourage travel? By the same token, we could also introduce tax on each car we buy so that more people will use public transport? There are many things we could do but getting rid of a FFP is probably way down the list and shouldn't deserve to even enter the discussion.

kiwifrequentflyer

If I was an advisor to the government and looking for ways to get people to fly: increasing flight prices would be the first thing I would recommend. The massive influx in air travel is absolutely a result of the cost of airline tickets being cut. Getting rid of Airpoints well, that would be last on my list 😂

Xiaotung

The government also does not want bad economy as reduced travel would guarantee it. Investing as a global effort in fuel efficient aircraft and better ATC management is the way to go. I don't see any other way.