LonLH

My membership year starts in Nov and I got a black envelope with only a letter inside, which says I have a new membership number, that I should quote this number in all future bookings and that if I get 3000 miles I will get blue plus benefits (despite me being requalified for Gold for 2010) etc... No new card or membership pack yet, current card valid until Dec 09. DC account shows downgraded from Gold to Gold.

SKRan

Since there is a view that DC is making money, would it be spinned off just like Aeroplan to AC then listed on AIM?

Remember when the big maple leaf and Air Canada logo was removed from the AC card? The next thing is - Aeroplan was separated.

RAPC

Highly unlikely

rareair

Just got my DC Silver pack through the post.

Plus points - it has "star alliance silver" on it, so partner airlines might have a clue what it is and give me free bags on internal US flights.

Minus points - it has "star alliance silver" on it, so partner airlines might have a clue what it is and won't be bull****ed to let me in the lounge for my forthcoming SQ flights LHR-SIN-MEL

Shareholder

But AC logo has been added back to the elite cards and Aeroplan logos diminished as AC realized the elite program was being lost in the identity with the marketing loyalty program. Now all elite cards focus on AC and elite benefits and not longer have much connection to Aeroplan (other than to use the card with certain merchants).

And given Aeroplan's presence in the UK -- having bought the Air Miles franchise and now expanding it with a new brand and may new retail partners -- I would expect AE would bit to take over the BD program and buy it outright from BD/LH rather than it being spun off as a separate company. Though even this would be most unlikely given LH's increased involvement with BD and the potential of an EU-wide card program if LH ever wanted to head in that direction.

As I posted before, I suspect it was just a "kewl" graphic design firm that sold BD on the de-emphasis of its brand/logo in the same way some company did the same for InterContinental Hotels' Ambassador program and its ties to Priority Club.

Traveloguy

I believe Air Miles is still owned by BA. I think Aeroplan just manage the programme (as they do for Nectar).

Avenarius

AC lounge at YYZ last night: "Ooh, that's a pretty card. Never seen one of those before". But it swiped ok and the right number came up and all was well.

tht

Tried the same at the Presidents Club @ EWR (now a :-:A lounge) on Monday night, met with a what is this, what is Diamond club? I advised it was British Midland, she was still confused... I gave up and used my PC membership card instead....

tht

AusTXHiker

Yeah, got the same response at US' Lounge in RDU. It was a bit amusing.

Shareholder

True, but then AC realized that it needed to reclaim its identity on at least its elite member cards. Two years ago these were redesigned to downplay Aeroplan and reestablish the AC brand mark, along with an emphasis on elite benefits. So the basic AC/AE card is a tangerine colour that overplays AE over AC, but the elite cards are a very different design in silver (Prestige/STARSilver), gold/brown (Elite/STARGold) and black (SuperElite/STARGold).

Shareholder

You may be correct as to who owns the brand, though when AC bought "AM" it was reported over here as Air Miles, but not related to the Air Miles program we have in Canada (which uses the same logo as the original BA program and UK AMs). Confusing, I know, but IIRC the branding in the UK evolved into the Nectar card program as you note. I know our AM site notes that it is not related to the UK, Spanish or other European programs using the same name.

I'm still looking to the day that I can earn AE miles when shopping at Nectar partners in the UK. In the meantime, I will just enjoy a pint or two each time my monthly AE dividend is deposited into my bank account and watch the company grow around the planet.

Roger

The rest of the post is fine but this part is not quite right. Airmiles (new name, same owner) in the UK is quite separate from Nectar and is a competitor as a retail loyalty scheme offering flights, hotels, holidays, experiences, Eurostar ...

IIRC, Nectar was set up by Keith Mills after he left Air Miles, so that's probably the confusion.

Airmiles is part of The Mileage Company alongside BA Miles and owned by BA. It paid a dividend to its parent this year!

tht

Doing a little jolly (weather permitting) from tomorrow:LHR-NRT-AKL-LAX-JFK-LGA-YUL-LHR.. Will see if they have any idea what the Diamond :-:G card is...

tht

sn1ke

So, I re-qualified for Gold, and the package containing my new Gold card arrived yesterday. I haven't seen any reviews/information on it here recently, so I thought that I would share with people exactly what it contains (I'll try to put up pictures, but no promises).

It's a small black envelope, about the size of a postcard, but a lot thicker. On opening it up, there's a small black package inside, along with coupons for Europecar. There are four upgrade vouchers, each one valid for a one vehicle category upgrade when presented at the rental counter along with a valid DC membership card (note: It doesn't specify that the DC card needs to be a Gold card, so these should be able to be used by anyone with any level of DC membership. As well, there isn't anywhere on the voucher that contains my personal DC membership number - it's a generic voucher. Useful for giving to friends or relatives, perhaps).

The small black package that's inside the envelope is secured with a small Velco tab, and opens up to all four sides. It's very tastefully presented, with subdued black letters over the entire front showing various airport codes - quite a nice touch, IMO.
Inside this, shown immediately after opening, is the actual card. For Gold, this is a black card, saying 'Diamond Club' in the middle in gold letters, with the membership name/number in the bottom left, and the expiry date in the bottom right of the card. On the upper left of the card is the Star Alliance lofo, with the word 'Gold' underneath it.

There are then a series of 'flash cards' (each one the size of a postcard), spelling out the various benefits that a Gold member receives.
The one talking about the lounge in LHR T1 has been renamed (as noted in previous threads here) to 'The Great British Lounge'.
There is also some information on the Star Alliance, and the benefits that will be given on Star Alliance partners (such as extra luggage allowance when checking in, Premium Check-In etc)

There are no physical upgrade vouchers for bmi itself, but there is a card noting that the account has been credited with four complimentary upgrade vouchers for use during the membership year. These can be redeemed on bmi flights seven days in advance of departure (it notes that this applies only to bmi operated flights, and excludes bmibaby)

Another card gives information on 'Invite a friend'. This is when you read 55,000 membership status miles, you can apply (for free) for a Silver companion card, which you can give to a friend, and will give them all of the benefits of DC Silver.
Any membership status miles earned over 55,000 will be converted into destination miles.

At the back of the membership back, there are two luggage/suitcase tags. These look the same as the membership card, except that the orientation is vertical, and each one has a small hole at the top to be able to be tied to the luggage.

Overall, a very nice package IMO, and nothing too flashy!

Flashyphotos

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/bmi-d...-pack-ugh.html