Jan 1, 2018, 3:17 pm
Last edit by: Baze
Welcome to the Alaska Airlines Flame-Free Q&A Thread for 2018!
Anyone is welcome to ask anything, even the most basic questions, in this thread without having to fear a snarky response. In this thread, there's no such thing as a dumb question--we were all new to Alaska Airlines, FlyerTalk, and even the whole idea of mileage programs once and needed some help navigating the ropes. We're here to help you do just that!
That said, if you want to do a little reading to see if your question has been previously discussed, links to some of the most common and extensive topics in this forum are listed in our FAQ thread -- click here to check it out.
Special care will be given in this thread to trying to provide answers in a clear manner with minimal use of acronyms and jargon.
If you need to contact someone for help, here's a current list of our forum's team:
Ambassadors (Our Greeters--members who have specifically volunteered to welcome and mentor newbies and monitor this thread):
ANC RED-EYE
baliktad
beckoa
golfingboy
Moderators (Our Janitors--members who have volunteered to do housekeeping/keep the forum in order)
ryandc99
jackal
You are welcome to send a private message to any of these individuals for assistance, but you'll generally get a faster response and broader palette of answers if you simply post your inquiry here in this thread.
Note to FlyerTalk members who enjoy the ability to take advantage of loopholes--if someone posts something that exposes information you'd rather not be public, please remember this is a Flame-Free thread, and harsh or snarky posts are not permitted. Although FlyerTalk itself does not censor posts that share information, members are free to edit their own posts to remove information. If you wish to request any poster to remove information they have shared publicly, please do so politely and respectfully.
Welcome, and we look forward to providing any assistance we can!
~the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan forum team~
For the 2016 version of this thread, please click here
For the 2017 version of this thread, please click here
Anyone is welcome to ask anything, even the most basic questions, in this thread without having to fear a snarky response. In this thread, there's no such thing as a dumb question--we were all new to Alaska Airlines, FlyerTalk, and even the whole idea of mileage programs once and needed some help navigating the ropes. We're here to help you do just that!
That said, if you want to do a little reading to see if your question has been previously discussed, links to some of the most common and extensive topics in this forum are listed in our FAQ thread -- click here to check it out.
Special care will be given in this thread to trying to provide answers in a clear manner with minimal use of acronyms and jargon.
If you need to contact someone for help, here's a current list of our forum's team:
Ambassadors (Our Greeters--members who have specifically volunteered to welcome and mentor newbies and monitor this thread):
ANC RED-EYE
baliktad
beckoa
golfingboy
Moderators (Our Janitors--members who have volunteered to do housekeeping/keep the forum in order)
ryandc99
jackal
You are welcome to send a private message to any of these individuals for assistance, but you'll generally get a faster response and broader palette of answers if you simply post your inquiry here in this thread.
Note to FlyerTalk members who enjoy the ability to take advantage of loopholes--if someone posts something that exposes information you'd rather not be public, please remember this is a Flame-Free thread, and harsh or snarky posts are not permitted. Although FlyerTalk itself does not censor posts that share information, members are free to edit their own posts to remove information. If you wish to request any poster to remove information they have shared publicly, please do so politely and respectfully.
Welcome, and we look forward to providing any assistance we can!
~the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan forum team~
For the 2016 version of this thread, please click here
For the 2017 version of this thread, please click here
2018 Alaska Airlines *FLAME-FREE* Q&A thread: all welcome, new and old!
Dec 6, 2018, 11:31 am
#1606
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: British Columbia
Programs: AS MVPG100K, Marriott Marriott Titanium Elite, Hilton Gold
Posts: 7,263
I'm just starting out in AS status (been flying them for quite a while) to complement AA and BA status. I have a couple of quite basic questions about EQM earning. I did a status match for the coming year to 75K based on AA Exp Plat, and he plan is to maintain Gold going forward Questions:.
1. Looking at the quoted post it would appear that one gets additional EQM for status, even in Coach. I can't find this on the AS website, so wanted to confirm these details.
2. I know that first (F, P) gets a 1.75x EQM multiplier. Two questions about this:
A. For flights less than 500 miles, I understand that thre is a 500 EQM minimum for coach. If in F/P does the 1.75 get applied before or after bumping to 500 miles, i.e. is it 875, or just miles X 1.75, with a 500 min?
B. Assuming that the answer to #1 is Yes, how does the status-based EQM bump interact with the F/P multiplier?
Thanks for the help!
Cheers.
1. Looking at the quoted post it would appear that one gets additional EQM for status, even in Coach. I can't find this on the AS website, so wanted to confirm these details.
2. I know that first (F, P) gets a 1.75x EQM multiplier. Two questions about this:
A. For flights less than 500 miles, I understand that thre is a 500 EQM minimum for coach. If in F/P does the 1.75 get applied before or after bumping to 500 miles, i.e. is it 875, or just miles X 1.75, with a 500 min?
B. Assuming that the answer to #1 is Yes, how does the status-based EQM bump interact with the F/P multiplier?
Thanks for the help!
Cheers.
For Mileage Plan Members you earn EQM on the flight distance flown regardless of fare class purchased or what cabin you are flying in. Some fare classes have a Class of Service Bonus. All purchased fares in F (F & P) have a 75% COS Bonus while purchased fares in Main (Y, S, B & M) have a COS Bonus at 50% for Y, S and 25% for B & M.
The COS Bonus is based on the 500 mile minimum. Class of service bonus is also EQM towards status.
In addition to the EQM, Elites also receive Elite Bonus Miles that are RDM only and are calculated ONLY on the Base miles flown (500 mile minimum here too) The Elite Bonus RDM is 50% for MVP, 100% for Gold and 125% 75K.
Dec 6, 2018, 11:47 am
#1607
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,533
Thanks all. I had thought that the Elite-based bonus would not count as EQM, but the post I quoted seemed to say otherwise, hence the confusion. Seemed too good to be true.Thanks for the clarification.
Since we're trying to maintain status on three airlines, RDM for use on free flights don't matter much to us as we don't do free flights, so RDM are not as important as EQM
Of course, I have to learn more about the things I can do with AS RDM besides flights.
Hadn't even realized about the Y,S,B,M EQM bonus, although we typically fly either P or a lower-fare economy. Often P seems to cost less than Y
Cheers.
Since we're trying to maintain status on three airlines, RDM for use on free flights don't matter much to us as we don't do free flights, so RDM are not as important as EQM
Of course, I have to learn more about the things I can do with AS RDM besides flights.Hadn't even realized about the Y,S,B,M EQM bonus, although we typically fly either P or a lower-fare economy. Often P seems to cost less than Y
Cheers.
Dec 6, 2018, 12:16 pm
#1608
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
Class of service bonus counting towards elite qualifying is pretty standard (it's how it works on most other airlines as well) It's worth keeping that in mind, since you say that you are trying to get elite status on other airlines as well.
Keep in mind that Y is fully refundable, and P is not. It's normal for Y to be more expensive than P for this reason. Someone who is buying Y when there is discount economy available probably needs that refundability, and they have to pay a premium for it (and P would not be an option for them). If the only economy space left is Y, then probably there is no P available, only F. So, the pricing makes sense.
Keep in mind that Y is fully refundable, and P is not. It's normal for Y to be more expensive than P for this reason. Someone who is buying Y when there is discount economy available probably needs that refundability, and they have to pay a premium for it (and P would not be an option for them). If the only economy space left is Y, then probably there is no P available, only F. So, the pricing makes sense.
Dec 6, 2018, 12:23 pm
#1609
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,533
Class of service bonus counting towards elite qualifying is pretty standard (it's how it works on most other airlines as well) It's worth keeping that in mind, since you say that you are trying to get elite status on other airlines as well.
Keep in mind that Y is fully refundable, and P is not. It's normal for Y to be more expensive than P for this reason. Someone who is buying Y when there is discount economy available probably needs that refundability, and they have to pay a premium for it (and P would not be an option for them). If the only economy space left is Y, then probably there is no P available, only F. So, the pricing makes sense.
Keep in mind that Y is fully refundable, and P is not. It's normal for Y to be more expensive than P for this reason. Someone who is buying Y when there is discount economy available probably needs that refundability, and they have to pay a premium for it (and P would not be an option for them). If the only economy space left is Y, then probably there is no P available, only F. So, the pricing makes sense.
I was just confused about the comment I quoted where Elite Status bonus appeared to count. That would have been new. But taking advantage of COS bonus has aided AA EXP for the past 14 years
True that about Y. In a fair number of cases, I've seen that the F Upgrade Fare is more than F, and this it likely not Y for 75K Upgrade. It's not easily visible (from what I can see) just what fare classes are offered for each of these without going partywa through the booking process...but my assumption is that thus s sub-Y...and still more than P.
Cheers.
Dec 6, 2018, 2:46 pm
#1611
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: ANC
Programs: Alaska 100k
Posts: 1,012
Dec 6, 2018, 2:54 pm
#1612
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: somewhere north of stateside...
Posts: 4,153
There are three additional flights that would get me to LAX in time for the CX flight - long layover there. Its just an award space issue currently - I have a bunch of Expertflyer alerts set, so will wait a week or so and see what happens...
Dec 6, 2018, 3:24 pm
#1613
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: LAX
Programs: AS MVPG, IHG Diamond Elite
Posts: 1,445
See if you can't create your PP account/use a digital card until your physical card arrives. I've not tried to use the digital card for "non-lounge lounges" aka restaurants so they may require it, but I've never used my physical card, and presumably, you should have access to that immediately vs waiting for something to arrive in the mail.
Dec 6, 2018, 4:06 pm
#1614
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: SEA
Programs: Hilton/Marriott Gold, Accor Silver
Posts: 2,036
See if you can't create your PP account/use a digital card until your physical card arrives. I've not tried to use the digital card for "non-lounge lounges" aka restaurants so they may require it, but I've never used my physical card, and presumably, you should have access to that immediately vs waiting for something to arrive in the mail.
Dec 7, 2018, 5:09 pm
#1615
Join Date: Nov 2017
Programs: AS 100K, HH Diamond, SPG/Marriott Gold
Posts: 189
I was able to create a PP account before I received the physical card!
Dec 7, 2018, 10:20 pm
#1616
Moderator: Southwest Airlines, Capital One
Join Date: Sep 1999
Location: California
Programs: WN Companion Pass, A-list preferred, Hyatt Globalist; United Club Lietime (sic) Member
Posts: 21,624
I'd like to confirm that the free bag for Alaska Visa cardholders and companions applies even if I buy the tickets with another card, such as Sapphire Reserve which has travel insurance against cancellation due to major illness etc.
Dec 7, 2018, 10:40 pm
#1617
Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: PDX
Programs: AS MVP Gold 100K
Posts: 2,329
If you are the eligible primary Alaska Airlines VisaŽ cardholder on the account, have entered your Mileage Plan™ number into your reservation, and are traveling on Alaska Airlines, we will waive the first checked bag fee for you and up to 6 additional passengers on the same reservation. For reservations made with group booking codes or through the group desk, only eligible primary Alaska Airlines VisaŽ cardholders will receive the free checked bag. The cardholder must be traveling and the cardholder's Mileage Plan™ number must be in the reservation before checking in at alaskaair.com, the Alaska Airlines mobile apps, or at any of our Alaska Airlines airport kiosks.
Also, I have done this personally and have never had an issue.
Last edited by RAD_PDX; Dec 7, 2018 at 10:41 pm Reason: Added info
Dec 10, 2018, 4:53 pm
#1618
Moderator Hilton Honors, Travel News, West, The Suggestion Box, Smoking Lounge & DiningBuzz
Join Date: Jun 2000
Programs: Honors Diamond, Hertz Presidents Circle, National Exec Elite
Posts: 36,027
Took about 5 minutes (and this is the sort of thing that makes me glad I always keep the ticket # in my calendar -- agent said it was difficult to look up a past flight with PNR versus ticket #) with half of that on hold while the agent researched.
Dec 11, 2018, 12:38 am
#1619
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 227
This is what I am hoping to do
please delete
thank you
thank you
Last edited by Jared Ito; Dec 11, 2018 at 12:43 am Reason: Afraid of a flame
Dec 11, 2018, 4:09 pm
#1620
Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 733
I received notification of a schedule change on a partner award. The only difference appears to be padding of the flight time by 20 minutes, resulting in arriving 20 minutes later.
Not a huge deal, but could I use this as opportunity to change my itinerary without the change fee?
Not a huge deal, but could I use this as opportunity to change my itinerary without the change fee?