remymartin

Have you actually redeemed for QR flights with any of the currencies I mentioned above? I have two tickets that are < 100€ in copay.

Flying Yazata

Well, you're making conclusions that are unfounded and which are based on cutting corners.

For instance I didn't say or suggest that LATAM as a whole is a great carrier because of that perk. But what I did was to point out that AY+ isn't the only OW FFP with such a benefit and certainly there's a more generous one also - that being LATAM. As for flying BA, I didn't say I only fly four flights with BA in every membership year. I did say that 2019-2020 I fly four segments with BA, but that's just with my bookings so far and I don't need to fly more BA, unless I want to or some further trips warrant it. I get OWE requalified and I can use the status with any OW carrier thereafter for that membership year. With AY I'd have to keep hammering away with AY coded flights. I could just as well do AY+, but with my flights I wouldn't reach OWE, unless I'd increase my number of flights and fly mainly AY.

Indeed those options 1-4 you listed, are extreme, but I was making my point as a comparison to that and to make my point regarding attaining AY+ Platinum mainly/only with leisure trips. It's very irrelevant do I fly out of TMP or HEL. I don't get additional extras on the ground, if my OWE would be from AY+ and not BAEC, which would be useful for me. I don't play golf or have any other sport equipment I'd check in. The luggage allowance is anyway ample for me. In the air the only perk would be the free Internet. What I can do is fly BA from/to HEL and that's sufficient for me, because I can connect in LON to a multitude of destinations. I don't need a BA co-branded credit card, because 1) ones aren't available here and 2) AMEX does the trick.

I'm not trolling here, I just have a different approach to the issue, just like a few have rightfully said so. I'm fully aware I'm the exception to the norm with my travels and I prefer to go my own way of business, but for the sake of conversation and to bring up another point of view, I didn't prefer to just lurk. That would've of course been easier, as I wouldn't been despised then.

NoWindowSeat

I fully agree that AY offers very little to the J traveller in their FFP, other than lots of points/vouchers to be burned for leisure/family travel. The upgrade availability is one thing but I truly think there’s more noise about that now than real issues for Plats/Lumos. Most have some trips they book early and there the vouchers are best to be used, as with any FFP.

Then again there are not many true 3 class airlines competing with AY on their main markets and what about the small group out there who always fly paid F for LH..what FFP offers much to those lucky few..? 😜

NoWindowSeat

intuition

I get your point - There is always a top-cabin from which there physically are no upgrades.

However, my point is that upgrades are the main benefit in AY+ program. It used to be a great perk for all. But with the waitlist strategy, it has become less beneficial for the J flyer. And since the program offers almost nothing else of value for the J flyer (besides family upgrade) this is yet another stab at loyal J flyers.

My conclusion is that there should be benefits in the program that only works if you are in J. (And this principle would solve the problems Paavo is facing too, when the imaginary F cabin arrives)
The family upgrade is one such perk - it can only be used when you are already ticketed in J (and they should make that a revenue J!)

How about the lumo mercedes ride only applicable if lumonatic is in J?
How about having a super-duper premium-lounge where you need a J-ticket + platinum/lumo status?
How about letting plat/lumo standby for earlier departure, if in J?

I think a loyalty manager could come up with a lot of perks for a top tier members flying J if they really wanted.



I think we are giving Yazata a hard time here. For example, the LATAM comment should be seen in the light of someone saying the upgrades are unique for AY.

Flying Yazata

Exactly. I'm not a J frequent flyer with AY and on a premium tier in AY+, but I can very well see why this is a shortcoming. And I second the opinion especially from the prospective that AY+ should be competitive in the broader OW FFP market. This is just an opinion I have for the sake of the wellbeing of the airline in the long run, if one wants them to succeed as good as possible. To me the current AY+ seems more plausible for the frequent Y travellers with restrictive company travel policies. That probably reflects quite well many Finnish corporations, but I think it's lacking in terms of the bigger picture, which can't be all Fenno centric for an airline with the strategy AY has chosen in the 21st century.

I think some ME carriers have something I'd perhaps consider, especially since HEL is supposed to be a transit hub for AY customers between Europe and Asia, perhaps even NA and Asia. I can't right now remember which have it, but some have a meet and greet service. I'd definetly think about something like that to accomodate AY+ premium tier customers from outside Finland. Pair that with a transit lounge with access only to J customers or AY+ premium tier customers in transit, that would bolster their via HEL strategy. QR has already done some limitations in DOH, so AY could also follow that in some form. Besides transit meet and greet in HEL, I would also consider landside transfers in HEL and maybe some key Asian destinations. The tarmac transit sounds pretty limited in its usefulness in HEL. I do get something like the BMWs for AF La Premičre at CDG. Of course having e.g. Kovanen driving you to Hilton Strand or whichever hotel you'd stay at, is an expense, but at least that's something other FFPs do as well (like IB+ at least). Also something like the old City Terminal for downtown bag drop could be nice. No, don't evict Vltava, but that type of convenience could perhaps be valued by some.

*nodding*

I'm not surprised, but then again this subforum has a very Finnish flavour and thus I'm not surprised to find myself met with some hostility - quelle surprise, because I beg to differ in my opinion about AY (especially as a Finn) and I have a sound reasoning for doing something else than AY+ for OWE and travel that de facto actually always originates in HEL, but still most of that travel is on a ticket from elsewhere in Europe. Like I said, I'm merely bringing a different point of view to the debate and making a valid point about the alternatives, which is something that belongs to any reasonable discussion forum.

P.S. Forgot to mention RJ and their annual complimentary upgrades as well.

aama

Does anyone have any tips & tricks about efficient ways to earn Platsku or should we just change the title to "Which OW FFP is the best"?

Flying Yazata

Yes. Buy a 3D printer. Not sure it's literally earned then, but perhaps it can be seen as earned with some tinkering.

on22cz

I have always thought it has to be a revenue J ticket, but without a booking class restriction. This is a valuable information if it also applies to F class. Already wasted some vouchers, but better to learn about it late than never.

I would be careful restricting benefits to in-J elites only. For example, I don't want same crap lounges for OWS/OWE that QR offers in DOH. Their OWE lounge is one big joke.
However, I think it's a good list to build on and differentiate J a bit. E.g. BMW rides guaranteed for in-J Lumos, while for those in Y only subject to availability. As suggested below, they could also arrange landside transfers, which would definitely need to be a perk for Lumos in J only. Is it extra costs? Sure. But think of how much does a Lumo bring to the company. Perks of real value could even attract more people to spend more on AY.
Standby: If in J, confirmed at OLCI (like with current Pro fares). If in Y, allow standby with some T-x clearance. Or even at gate. It couldn't be used for many destinations, but it would look nice as a perk.


I like the idea of city centre check-in, although, I am not sure if it would be feasible for AY.

AlgoRhythmic

Out of curiosity, why is it cheaper to become OWE flying J with BA over AY? More routes/options which makes it easier to find cheap J tickets?

Personally most of my flights are with Y tickets to Japan, so I went with AY+ since they seemed like a good choice for this flying pattern. J tickets to Japan are just too expensive for me to justify paying full price regularly, so I value vouchers and availability for point upgrades quite a lot. I really hope AY won't make it much harder to upgrade with the recent changes since the good upgrade availability is one of the things I really like with AY.

One thing I really like with the AY+ award points (not sure how common this is with other airlines) is that you can exchange them for tier points at a decent rate. Very convenient when you almost make the goal and you don't have any specific trips coming up before the end of the tracking period.

Unionruler

BA Gold is like the cheapest OWE to earn. 2 multi-segment runs from North Africa/Eastern Europe/GOT to NA (except East Coast)/Hawaii, each of which earns >800 TP and costs ~1.4k euros, add on say 300 euros in repositioning costs, and that's OWE for 3.1k euros/ year.

Compared to earlier in this thread where people were estimating AY OWE at 5-5.5k euros/ year.

np1

Well, that truly depends how you travel and if it's renewal or first time. For example last year I had mostly flown A* and at the end of the year I noticed that I'm missing around 110k points out of 150k. As it was renewal booking DEL-SFO-DEL for 2400 eur and then 450 eur HEL-DEL-HEL (with a good upgrade availability) gave me enough points for less than 3k. Sure I had spend some money for one or two cheap Y tickets before. So not as cheap as BA Gold but if one can manage DEL it's not that much more expensive.

Flying Yazata

Can be done with less. 2700-3100 €, depending on how touristy options one pursues.

It's actually about not having to fly mainly the carrier of your FFP. With BA you can do very little BA/IB or a lot, depending on your travels. With AY the scheme is tilted more towards favouring AY ticketed travels. Thus with BAEC it becomes easier to maintain status, because one earns the equal amount of status qualifying credits (known as tier points with BAEC) with all OW carriers. The exception are certain BA routes in Europe, including all AY routes to the UK, which give the double compared to the usual shorthaul earnings. So yes, essentially there's more options for finding cheap J tickets, because you can do more other carriers than what you'd do with AY+.

In your scenario it makes most sense to do AY+ for FFP crediting.

Yes, that's one of the upsides with AY+. The tier bonus for status credits is the other one. Starting from scratch is harder, but at least it's easier to retain the level.

Purjelentaja

Just a small detail for this interesting discussion and out of curiosity: for me it is not clear if the upgrades with LATAM are for any revenue ticket, or just higher booking classes, as their conditions say "reduced fare tickets" do not qualify. If it means lower booking classes are excluded, then it is not any different from some other FF programs. The great thing with AY+ is that upgrades are available from ANY revenue booking class, and I really hope they don't mess with that!

haapalainen

This is exactly the reason I changed to BAEC after a couple of years of AY Platsku. With AY their partner earnings especially in J are just so much less than their own metal whereas BA gives equal credits for all OW airlines. By crediting to BA I am free to choose the OW airline that gives me the best price and don't have to think about codeshares etc. for earning status. Additionally, while I am based in HEL, my flying takes me to other countries/continents and often also between them for which AY is not just a valid alternative.

Just to give a (biased) example from a recent trip HEL-DOH-KUL and back with QR in J:

• AY gives me approx. (4396+5910)*1,25*2 = 25765 points (= ~17% of OWE status of 150 000 points)
• BA gives me (140+140)*2 = 560 TPs (= ~37% of OWE status of 1500TPs)

Another flight I took recently, a oneway MAA-CMB-BKK in UL J gave me 80TPs with BA while with AY I would have gotten 3795 points.

So basically when flying in J, AY only gives more credits towards status than BA when flying AY coded business class. In my case I don't fly AY enough to justify that.