agurg

I heard from an AS agent that they are coming up with a higher level of MVP. Does anybody have any information about the benefits and level of qualification.

Eastbay1K

Haven't heard a thing. I was at an MVP Gold luncheon with the head of the Mileage Plan and some other bigwigs recently, and no mention was made. However, it signals, if true, that AS is preparing to join an alliance that would require it to have a series of similar levels.

TravelWeary

I for one would be interested in another level as I made MVP in March and Gold in June this year and have many, many miles in excess of what I needed. To EastBay1K's point, you guys have probably seen the following in MilesLink from WebFlyer, but just in case...

"Alaska Partners With LanChile
Alaska Airlines has hooked up with LanChile. We were wondering which airline
would be its next conquest as it is fast moving out of potential partners in
the United States. Alaska's impressive list includes American Airlines,
British Airways, Canadian Airlines, Continental Airlines, KLM, Northwest
Airlines, TWA and now LanChile. Reciprocal frequent flyer benefits (both
earning and redeeming) are effective immediately.

What we are now trying to get to the bottom of is whether Alaska will
eventually partner with an alliance? LanChile is taxiing down the oneworld
runway. Canadian (assuming it fends off the bid by Air Canada), British
Airways and LanChile could pave the way for Alaska to join oneworld;
Continental, Northwest and KLM could pave the way for Alaska to join "Wings"
or else Alaska could do like TWA and go it alone."

p.s. This MVP Gold didn't get invited to any luncheon!

Eastbay1K

Where do you live, Travelweary? They do the lunches occasionally in the major metro areas, but the lists are probably generated earlier in the year than when you qualified. The invites come out from the local sales offices, so given your very recent "gold" status, that's probably what happened. I believe that the lunches were in the late summer for the most part.

Punki

TravelWeary and I are both in the Seattle area.

I didn't hear about such a luncheon either and I have been gold all year. Maybe they don't have those luncheons in Seattle?

agurg

I called the mileage plan this morning and the agent told me that the Platinum level is coming but not sure when. One of the problems is their software that does not allow for an extra level. If they are going to join an alliance than I hope it would be OneWorld.

p.s. I did not get invited to a lunch either eventhough I have had over 100K flying miles each year for the past two years. Maybe it is combination of longevity and being MVP Gold member.

agurg

I called the mileage plan this morning and the agent told me that the Platinum level is coming but not sure when. One of the problems is their software that does not allow for an extra level. If they are going to join an alliance than I hope it would be OneWorld.

p.s. I did not get invited to a lunch either eventhough I have had over 100K flying miles each year for the past two years. Maybe it is combination of longevity and being MVP Gold member.

pshuang

Well, the first one to get some of the details about what might be offered by a Platinum level, please post here. What features would people who are platinum level fliers in other FFP's most look forward to? I was just talking to somebody yesterday about the lack of a Platinum level and the one I'd like the best would be elimination of black-out dates. That sound particularly appealing if that means that you would only be competing with other Platinum members for whatever is the allocation of seats on flights on black-out dates.

pshuang

Better yet, the first to find out what the criteria to make Platinum might be, please post here. I just called up Alaska this morning and tweaked a couple of itineraries left this year (adding stops) to make sure I collected 100 segments, just in case that's the threshold.

professortim

If you log into your Alaska Air account, you will see a link to the gold luncheons (includes breakfasts) in the lower right corner.

Also - At the Gold luncheon in Juneau they said the Platinum level would be coming out in January 08 (no specifics given when asked)

BillScann

I'll hit the 75K mark on AS this year: I wonder whether Platinum in 2008 is something that will be granted based on ones 2007 flying.

Tracer_SEA

Interesting to see a thread from '99 revived... This more recent thread didn't make MVPP sound too likely though, nor did the report from the Oct 07ANC luncheon that "the word platinum did not come up even once".

SPIT

If they indeed role out MVPP in 2008 and honor 2007 mileage earning, AS would be smart to let us know now. I have numerous flights between now and the end of the year that I'm not crediting to AS since there's no point after reaching MVPG. In some cases, I booked airlines other than AS because of this.

Ah well... not like much of it makes sense to me since AS is waaaay overdue for a MVPP program since they entered the transcon business. The top fliers are herded in with the over-population of golds. 125K flier treated the same as a casual 40K flier. The other majors take care of their top fliers *much* better with Plat/1K programs.

Valveman

Personally, being a CASUAL MVPG is suiting me just fine. I don't think I've had the honor of sitting next to a rarified TOP TIER AS Mileage Plan Member in any recent memory. I'm sure I'd remember - as the personal valet would surely give him/her away!

Seriously, there’s only one thing that would make me get really excited about another level.


The way I look at this type of loyalty program is that the benefits should enable me to get from Point A to Point B quickly (Premium Security Line), in relative comfort (Upgrades To F), and I get my annual cookies. Boardroom is a non-issue since I choose to pay for that benefit (a killer benefit it is).

All the other peripheral stuff (Mileage Bonus, MVPG Upgrade Certificates, Quasi Partner Programs) is secondary.

Eastbay1K

Well, the "casual" 40K flyer on AS might be a full-fare west coast or AK flyer that spends buckets on AS and is on the airline a few times a month and is worth much more than the transcon flyer. This has always been the dynamic in play at AS, because unlike other programs, this program was designed when the route structure was limited.

I'm trying to think of how a 1K is better off at UA than a MVPG is at AS. The 1K pays more for the RCC than the MVPG (or anyone) does for the BR. The 1K gets CR1s and 500s, the MVPG gets unlimited UGs instead of 500s, and 4 "companion upgrades" which he can use himself. (We cannot compare with SWUs or upgrade chances on widebodies, because it is a different animal). The MVPG has a similar chance of getting an UG as a 1K on a transcon 319 or 320. On the small planes, there aren't enough UG seats to go around. The MVPG gets the same mileage bonus as the 1K (double). As AS doesn't have agents that can take care of difficult issues for you within the BRs (they send you out to a CS agent), status with or without lounge access doesn't matter no matter what your tier. Since UA got rid of the 1K rooms, 1K is in the same boat as anyone with RCC access. Both get to speak with agents in North America. 1K beats 1P for waitlists, etc., but at AS, all MVPGs are in the same boat.

I just don't see that given the fleet and route structure of AS that an MVPG is much worse off than a 1K at UA. I'm sure others will differ.