Flame3601

Not yet,will report back if i do !

Flame3601

Just coming back to the new F headset ( headphones), seems EK are rolling the old F headset out aggressively down to J. So can anyone confirm if they have experienced or seen the new F headset in the F cabin recently or is it nothing has changed besides that the same current headset for F is being loaded for J as well.

XXTSGR

skywardhunter

From the horse's mouth - 5 ways to maximize Skywards per the current in-flight audio backdrop interview thing on ICE:

1. buy Flex or Flex Plus tickets for higher earning and lower redemption
2. Tier bonus multipliers - earn more miles when you have higher tier status (apparently often overlooked but worth it)
3. Hotel or car rental booking - not sure I disagree universally. Rocket Miles arguably offers best bang for buck here at least for non-luxury stays. Specific mention of SPF You World Rewards is made
4. Co-brand credit cards. Currently 6 markets, apparently to be doubled in next 6 months. I really hope SA makes the cut
5. Watch for promotions - "we do a lot of bonus miles promotions" ya right. They happen occasionally with a lot of restrictions though I did just get a lot of benefit from one such promo. Also mention of reduced miles reward offers though not seen many of those and usually just for travel to DXB

skywardhunter

Other comments from the interview (typed on phone mid-flight):

• 5k monthly Auto-Upgrade requests of which 15% successful. Both figures seem low to me. 25 Auto-Upgrades per day....?
• More focus on harnessing data and targeted promos + I've noticed recent promos much more integrated to the core Skywards system with bonus miles instantly appearing and crediting and already speculated privately that this would lead to more promos - hope this holds true
• Integration of blockchain technology - haven't heard of this before - example given was earn and burn with Careem, not clear what the blockchain implementation is
• Focus on mobile integration, hopefully better mobile app integration coming up
• Hidden gem: digital version of wall Street journal, 1200USD for 10k miles. Doubtful if you ask me
• Event redemptions - not new
• Most popular redemption: cabin upgrade, makes sense as it provides best value despite counter claims. 40% of redemptions are for upgrades

sydtogla

I wonder what percentage accounts for expired miles. There is surely a magic number for EK in that regard. I imagine they would need around 15% of all earned skywards miles to never be redeemed to keep it profitable.

ElJudioErrante

Around 15% ....to keep it profitable yes.
If there are actually 20 million skyward members, then the actual percentage of non redeemers would surely be much much higher.And the percentage of those being blue and signed up and one trip (or vv) , must be extremely high.There's been an efficient move of the goalposts to ensure that !
The increase in EK affinity credit card as today mentioned would be a real push.I remember that happening with the big US carriers, there was a great leap forward in the FF scene.

sydtogla

I think the success of the FF credit card market in Australia is showing EK what is possible. The UK market is pathetic by comparison at the moment. We'll always be trailing the USA though. I can't believe what you can get in the US for a very low fee.

RisottoKimodo

Those credit cards are "OP asf" a term commonly used in video games to describe weapons or players that are too powerful.

eternaltransit

That success hinges on the fact you can charge more than 0.3% for credit card interchange in Australia though...

cheyru

Another way doing that (Ex AU) for a potential cheaper flight is flying Y saver from SYD SIN or MEL BKK. But this is rather complicated and requires stopover within AU, flying in QF metal (SYD-MEL-SIN or MEL-SYD-BKK), price can range between AUD600 -AUD 800, and you earn 6200 miles. Flying direct SYD SIN with QF metal (without transitting in MEL) will only earn u 5200 miles.

so 4 x SYD-DUB return in Y saver = 49,600 miles for AUD 6000-6800
8 SYD - SIN via MEL rtrn Y saver = 49,600 miles for AUD 4800-6400

This probably should be written in "How to reach Gold for cheapskates" :P

ElJudioErrante

I suggest a thread for that, it would be interesting.

Saltire74

Flame3601

Rant Alert

After arriving home a few days ago, i saw when checking my account that i was 600 tier miles short of a plat renewal. I somehow failed to calculate my tier miles correctly, i know silly mistake, but anyway. I emailed Emirates and let them know i was only 600 tier miles short of a Plat renewal, while mentioning how much i fly with them and how much i have spent on them over the years along with saying that i had been a plat for years. I got a reply telling me today saying after checking with the management team that i need to fly another 600 tier miles or I'm going to be gold in May. I am so pissed off that i had to sit down and have a glass of water, i can not honestly believe that all the money i spent on Emirates and my overall loyalty to the company has resulted in me being shown the door to gold tier over 600 tier miles short. I am actually a bit personally offended to say the least. I know rules are rules and have to be constant, but come on for the love of god, 600 short out of 150 000 and they won't cut me some slack. I am so annoyed that i am considering not flying Emirates again in favour of QR, who are cheaper and actually better in J then EK from CPT anyway. I do have another option to quickly fly somewhere, but it is quite costly for just 600 tier miles, however this thought is kept alive by the thought of losing plat. This has come at a bad bad time for me, but even with future trips booked with emirates they do not care.

What is the general conscious, tier run to renew play by May or lose Plat..... or am i being too petty?

skywardhunter

1. Don't ask EK, they never agree to bend the rules, and this answer was foreseeable. You've not been downgraded to Gold yet, so doing anything right now as a reaction would be silly. EK generally says no leeway, then renews if <1000 short. However this has been broadly reported for Gold, not sure about Plat
2. Travelling in premium cabins, would a downgrade affect you so much that you'd rather start from scratch with QR, an airline with fewer flights to CPT, fewer destinations, no access to a lot of the middle east and a worse FFP (if that's possible). To upgrade with miles on QR you need to submit an online request then wait for a few days to hear back. Also you cannot phone as everything went online with them recently
3. If you do get downgraded to Gold try the local SA sales office, rather than sending a mail to EK centrally