MASTER THREAD: CO Elite Benefits w/in Star Alliance | Comments, Questions & Concerns

Oct 27, 2009, 7:54 am

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Original Poster

Join Date: Feb 2006

Location: A festering pit; a pustule of a fistula set athwart the miasmic swamps of the armpit of the Gulf of Mexico - a Godforsaken wart upon a dark crevasse of the World. (IAH)

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OnePass Elite mileage bonuses are not available on...

Adria Airways
Air Canada
Air China
Air New Zealand
ANA
Asiana
Austrian
Blue1
bmi
Croatia Airlines
Egyptair
LOT
SAS
Shanghai Airlines
Singapore Airlines
South African Airways
Spanair
Swiss
TAP
Thai Airways
Turkish Airlines

I like most of the new changes, but this is definitely

Oct 27, 2009, 10:22 am

HobokenFlyer

Join Date: Mar 2001

Location: Central Florida

Programs: Bonvoy-Gold, HH-Gold, UA-Gold, *A-Gold

Posts: 2,043

*A Silver (*S) access pre-annoucement stripped of benefits post CO join

Is it me or does it seem that *S has been stripped of any value except on your home airline?

With all the hoopla with CO's joining *A it seems that the best things about CO joining *A was that as a lowly CO Silver, you could get extra bag allowance, priority boarding and check-in on *A partners like you were flying EA on CO; now after the big join, it seems that they took away the extra bag allowance, the priority check-in and reduced the benefits to just priority waitlist and reservations (but is null and void if you are traveling on a reward res).

I am *G, but this is a big

and makes it really no point of having *S at all unless you are flying your home FFP carrier.

- HF

Oct 27, 2009, 10:23 am

sbm12

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Join Date: Apr 2001

Location: PSM

Posts: 69,232

*S never really had much value. Neither did ST E. You get access to the elite lines at checkin and that's about it. DL/NW killed the baggage allowance a while ago and most other carriers were hit-or-miss. It was not a defined benefit of the ST program.

Oct 27, 2009, 10:33 am

ovenman

Join Date: May 2008

Location: BOS

Programs: TK Elite (*G), DL Gold (MM)

Posts: 121

I am *S in TG's Royal Orchid Plus program and have been so pretty much since they added this "elite" level. It really doesn't give you much, an extra 10kg baggage allowance on TG is about the only thing that has been useful to me. If CO has watered down Silver, it's probably in line with the rest of *A.

Oct 27, 2009, 10:35 am

mersk862

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*Silver is nothing but a token status - it's always just been at a minimum for priority standby (which doesn't do much unless it's irrops on other airlines, since the US idea of standby is much more liberal than the rest of the world). Other airlines (such as UA/US) might be a bit more liberal (ie US Silvers can use UA elite lines and get priority boarding), but that's on a case-by-case basis.

Star Gold is a step up over ST Elite Plus (domestic lounge access if not a US/UA/CO elite, 3 bags, etc.), but ST Elite is a step up from *Silver (as ST E got you at least priority check-in/boarding).

Oct 27, 2009, 11:18 am

HobokenFlyer

Join Date: Mar 2001

Location: Central Florida

Programs: Bonvoy-Gold, HH-Gold, UA-Gold, *A-Gold

Posts: 2,043

But I could have swore that *S gave you a slight extra bag allowance, now that seems to be gone.

Oct 27, 2009, 11:20 am

HobokenFlyer

Join Date: Mar 2001

Location: Central Florida

Programs: Bonvoy-Gold, HH-Gold, UA-Gold, *A-Gold

Posts: 2,043

Quote:

Originally Posted by ovenman

My reference is NOT to CO Silver status (which by default is *S in *A) but to *S on the whole that it seems that pre-CO joining it had more benefits and with all the excitement with today's announcement that *S has been ENHANCED. (CO Speak for losing a benefit couched in a purported better benefit).

- HF

Oct 27, 2009, 11:31 am

sbm12

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Join Date: Apr 2001

Location: PSM

Posts: 69,232

Quote:

Originally Posted by HobokenFlyer

But I could have swore that *S gave you a slight extra bag allowance, now that seems to be gone.

I don't think that was ever the case.

Oct 27, 2009, 11:37 am

HobokenFlyer

Join Date: Mar 2001

Location: Central Florida

Programs: Bonvoy-Gold, HH-Gold, UA-Gold, *A-Gold

Posts: 2,043

Quote:

Originally Posted by sbm12

I don't think that was ever the case.

Yes it was. It was a long time ago, but back in 2003 I was flying on a OK ticket, but had one segment operated by OS (a *A member) VIE-PRG-FRA; and we were slightly overweight and were going to be charged, however, my then GF was an AC Aeroplan Elite which was *S; and when we gave them the number it gave us an extra 10kg of baggage which helped us avoid the fee.

When CO was going to join *A I remembered this incident and checked to see if *S still had this benefit and it did. When I looked recently in anticipation of CO joining, it was gone.

It seems they took away the extra bag allowance and the priority baggage tagging.

- HF

Oct 27, 2009, 11:45 am

#10

ctownflyer

Join Date: Feb 2004

Location: CLE

Programs: UA GS+LT UC, AA EXP+LT PLT, Fairmont LT PLT, Marriott PLT, Hilton DIA, Hyatt Glob, Avis CHM

Posts: 4,671

I'm just angry that CO no longer gives its own Silvers 70 pound bags...

Oct 27, 2009, 11:53 am

#11

orudge

Join Date: Mar 2009

Location: ABZ

Programs: BA Bronze, A3*G, TK*S

Posts: 764

Quote:

Originally Posted by HobokenFlyer

But I could have swore that *S gave you a slight extra bag allowance, now that seems to be gone.

There's no *A-wide extra baggage allowance, but some individual airlines will offer benefits to all *S members. UA for instance offer an extra bag in Economy for Silver, and don't charge them baggage fees on domestic flights either.