I'm about to book tickets from LAX to London for travel in December, and my options for CO miles are:

1. CO
2. VS
3. UA

I don't want to book UA yet as EQM requirements are still not fully known (fare class restrictions, etc.).

CO.com used to offer a codeshare with VS until a couple of days ago, but I don't see that offered anymore for my choice of travel dates (12/24 o/b and 1/2 return). So I'm now left with the option of CO connecting in EWR/IAH, or VS non-stop. My wife much prefers the non-stop, and I probably will have to purchase that on the VS website.

I want to make sure that we receive CO miles for this flight. Here's what the CO website says emphasis mine):

OnePass Elite mileage bonuses are not available on Virgin Atlantic flights.
* OnePass Elite qualification miles and points may only be earned on Continental Airlines codeshare flights operated by Virgin Atlantic.

** Effective for travel June 17, 2008 and beyond
*** Effective for travel June 15, 2009 and beyond
+ Economy Fare classes N, X & V discontinued for accrual effective December 1, 2008.

Does this mean that flights booked through VS.com are not eligible for CO EQM? If not, is there anyway I can force Co.com to show the codeshare again? I don't mind paying a tad more for these codeshare flights (they were around $100 more per ticket than the same flights on VS.com when it was offered) as long as I'm guaranteed EQM (this trip will put me over the top to Plat, so I need these miles )

Thanks in advance.

I booked through VS.com back in December for January 2009 travel on LHR-EWR and EWR-LHR. The LHR-EWR leg had a codeshare number and I was credited miles without a problem. The EWR-LHR leg no longer had a codeshare since CO18 was introduced and CO would not credit me the miles. (Which is quite frustrating since VS18 gets you in early enough to make onward connections at LHR but CO18 forces you to overnight.)

Of course, as with all things, YMMV.

If you tick the non-stop box on CO.com you will see some availability for your dates on the codeshares.

With regard to VS ticketed flights you will earn EQMs (& RDMs) on these flights so far your fare class is not in N, X or V

*both VS flights from LAX are still showing as codeshares although this could change

*It is also worth noting that even if you book the codeshare on CO.com you might not still get the EQMs despite what CO.com says . This was reported in a different thread recently and to me is the only YMMV here. The ?flimsy reason given was that the CO fare class mapped to VS N, X or V

You can book your ticket on VS website or elsewhere online. If it's a codeshare flight you will get EQM, if not, only base miles (no bonus miles ever). The best way to find out if it's a codeshare is to check on CO.com under "Check Flight Status" If it's a codeshare, it will show up even if CO.com doesn't dispaly this flight as available for booking. It's a lot of work, but worth the direct flight esp if you're up front. Good luck!

LAX-LHR-LAX are still listed as codeshares. I think your best bet is to actually to book thru VS.com, since you won't have to worry about how CO.com maps the fare classes and you can make sure it is valid for accrual.

That's not exactly correct. Despite the wording on CO.com that only codeshares earn EQM/Ps, it has been well-documented here on FT that you will earn full EQM/Ps as long as the VS flight you are on is also sold as a CO codeshare. You don't actually have to purchase the CO ticket, you can buy from VS with a VS flight number and will be OK.

FWIW, I called CO.com support and asked why the flights weren't showing up. There was apparently an issue with CO.com that prevented this (and some other flights) from appearing in the search results page. The agent (Erin) created a reservation that I could ticket online. ^

The agent said that she would file a bug/incident report to get this issue fixed.

Thanks for your responses.

That's what NYC_747 said. The flight can be booked anywhere and under either the VS or CO code. The key is that the CO code exists on it, even if booked elsewhere.