KLM introduces SkyPriority
 

KLM: Skyteam introduceert SkyPriority voor trouwe klant

Duidelijk herkenbare priorityservices helpen SkyTeam-klanten sneller over de luchthaven te bewegen.
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De wereldwijde luchtvaartalliantie SkyTeam heeft de introductie aangekondigd van SkyPriority, een reeks duidelijk herkenbare luchthavenservices voor Elite Plus-deelnemers en passagiers van First Class en Business Class. SkyPriority is ontwikkeld om binnen de gehele alliantie een gemeenschappelijke en consistente servicestandaard voor priorityservices op de luchthaven te bieden.

Het programma zal maart 2012 op een aantal geselecteerde hubs worden uitgerold. In de loop van de komende maanden zal SkyPriority geleidelijk op meer dan 800 luchthavens worden geïntroduceerd en begin 2013 op ruim 1000 luchthavens beschikbaar zijn.

Via SkyPriority zijn alle partners binnen de SkyTeam-alliantie gebonden aan een gezamenlijke en consistente servicestandaard voor priorityservices op de luchthaven. Dankzij een duidelijke zichtbaarheid van deze services vinden klanten makkelijk hun weg en kunnen zij zich sneller over de luchthaven bewegen. Daarnaast is het ook voor het luchthavenpersoneel eenvoudiger om SkyPriority-klanten te assisteren.

SkyPriority is ontwikkeld door Delta Air Lines, een van de oprichters van SkyTeam, die het product in 2010 bij haar klanten introduceerde. Vanwege het grote succes van SkyPriority heeft SkyTeam het programma overgenomen. SkyTeam vormt daarmee de eerste wereldwijde luchtvaartalliantie die deze priorityservices consistent op wereldwijde schaal aanbiedt, waarbij alle huidige en toekomstige Member airlines deelnemen.

Tot de SkyPriority-services behoren:
• Speciale incheckgebieden
• Voorrang bij de bagageafgifte
• Voorrang bij ticketkantoren op de luchthaven
• Voorrang bij transferbalies
• Snellere doorgang bij de beveiliging, indien beschikbaar
• Voorrang bij het aan boord gaan
• Voorrang bij de bagageafhandeling

"SkyPriority maakt deel uit van onze voortdurende inspanningen om de reiservaring van onze klanten te verbeteren. Door op de luchthavens consistente en uniforme diensten te leveren zorgen we dat reizen sneller en eenvoudiger wordt voor onze klanten", aldus Michael Wisbrun, algemeen directeur van SkyTeam. "Het is verreweg het grootste gezamenlijke SkyTeam-project tot op heden en een uitstekend voorbeeld van de manier waarop onze Members intensief samenwerken om onze klanten nog meer voordelen te bieden."

Op luchthavens overal ter wereld zullen de SkyPriority-services duidelijk herkenbaar worden aangegeven. Bovendien wordt het SkyPriority-logo zichtbaar op de instapkaarten van de betreffende passagiers. Daarnaast zal het beeldmerk aan de bestaande logo’s van de afzonderlijke luchtvaartmaatschappijen worden toegevoegd, zodat passagiers de SkyPriority-services op iedere luchthaven onmiddellijk kunnen herkennen.

De SkyTeam Member airlines hebben ieder hun eigen implementatiedatum en introductieperiode vastgesteld. Enkele van de eerste luchthavens waar SkyPriority wordt geïntroduceerd zijn Amsterdam, Atlanta, Guangzhou, Nairobi, Shanghai en Taipei. Begin 2013 zal SkyPriority op ruim 1000 luchthavens aanwezig zijn. Na deze geleidelijke introductie zullen in een later stadium extra SkyPriority-voordelen worden geïntroduceerd.

(source: BCD Travel in Motion)

What is going to happen to FB Silver and DL Silver for instance? In this bulletin it says that it's only for Skyteam Elite Plus members...

so I'm finally Silver (dont travel for work to much) and no more advantages? this can't be...

During the AF/FB meeting in April 2011 we were told that they were trying to get it introduced by all Skyteam airlines so customers know there is one "product" for priority.

Gajan

According to the English-language announcement on the SkyTeam website, "founding SkyTeam member Delta Air Lines created the SkyPriority brand and rolled out the product to its customers in 2010. Due to the success of the project, SkyTeam has adopted the program" - so it should already be clear what has "happened" to DL Silver.

If anything, this just sounds like a renaming of the "SkyTeam Elite Plus" level to a newly-branded "SkyPriority" level, with a greater push at standardising the benefits across the member airlines. The existing "SkyTeam Elite" level should not be changed by this focus on the upper tiers.
Nowhere does it say that FB Silver is having any of its benefits dropped. FB Silver may not qualify you to have the "SkyPriority" logo printed on your boarding pass, but also nowhere has it been stated that FB Silver will be denied any of the advertised privileges associated with that level.

English version
 

Source

Not exactly. SkyPriority is slightly different because it offers these benefits to pax traveling on expensive Y fares.


It hasn't actually been said; not in so many words, that is. I have noticed, however, that some benefits have been silently pulled away. On 5 out of my last 8 KLM flights the boarding announcements started with pax with children + C pax + Plat & Gold members (no silvers!), then everybody else. So priority boarding has been silently taken away (even though the signs [still] do include ST Elite members). My suspicion is that all the signs that say "FB Platinum Elite, FB Gold Elite, FB Silver Elite, ST Elite+, ST Elite" and the like will be replaced with "SkyPriority", effectively eliminating the Silvers from all these benefits. DL has certainly been moving in this direction.

DL Silver nowadays is very devalued. To the point that you can better have an AMEX and have more benefits than actually earn it.

With KLM or other European ST carriers it is different I think (hope?). You really have to get it by flying. So it still has some 'value'.
At AMS and CDG, I'm sure AFKL won't minimise FB Elite benefits which are very good at the home airports (including priority security which you won't get in the US).

However I'm afraid that especially in the US, SkyTeam Elite recognition and benefits will be downgraded to the point they aren't worth it any more. Don't hope it will happen to other outstations in Europe or with the Asian members.

I am for extending the benefits for E+ where possible, but not while minimizing the Elite benefits.

(BTW KLM is very generous also to other airlines' Elites).

The devaluation of ST Elite is also discussed in the Skyteam forum.

Are you sure about Y fares being included? The blurbs above (both the Dutch and English versions) define the set of SkyPriority passengers as SkyTeam Elite Plus and/or First and/or Business, with no mention of economy pax at all.

The only thing is that the press release states Skypriority is for Skyteam Elite Plus member, however DL Silver Medallion also have these benefits. So it might be that only Elite Plus enjoy the perks cross-airline-network, while Silver will only count for the airline you earned it from?!

That's exactly how I read it, too.

As I said earlier, it sounds like a renaming of the "SkyTeam Elite Plus" level to a newly-branded "SkyPriority" level, with a greater push at standardising the benefits across the member airlines and at advertising the existence of a "common" standard right across the alliance. (Notwithstanding the fact that Biz/First customers also receive those perks too, as you'd expect).

It's just trying to advertise the top-tier benefits right across the alliance in a more consistent and visible way (seeing "SkyPriority" as standard across all airports and all airlines will lead to higher awareness of the top tier benefits - in a way that the uncoordinated references to "SkyTeam Elite Plus" or the various individual programme names and their differently-named upper status levels, as is done now, can achieve. Benefits can be added, taken away, or otherwise changed).

The individual airlines have always been free to extend additional benefits to their own status members (dependent on level) above the "minimum standard" that must be extended to all members of all other alliance FFPs. So FB Silver (and, as we're at it, SkyTeam Elite) should continue independently of this new branding exercise that incorporates only the SkyTeam Elite Plus levels - even if the additional perks of Silver (within FB) or SkyTeam Elite (within SkyTeam) change over time (Neither Flying Blue nor any other programme guarantees that all perks will be maintained indefinitely, regardless of what level is in question)

Delta has a nice explanation of the difference between Skypriority and their Medallion Program (just substitute the latter for FB, and think of Diamond as Club 2000 and forget about Medallion benefits ;) )


http://www.delta.com/traveling_check...rity/index.jsp

sory for the sloppy copying of the table.
Overall I very much like Skypriority. The system they had before required me to show my FB card very often to claim priority etc, now it's a real breeze (I think it was called breezeway, wasn't it?). Also Delta has expanded the service significantly. For isntance, after passport control at ATL it takes me just a couple of minutes to pass the security check to enter the airport, etc, etc. But I have no idea what will happen to FB Silvers. They will not be included in the Skypriority, but their FB beneifts are hopefully retained.

All true, however there is a downgrade!

FB Silver (Skyteam Elite) used to have priority check-in/boarding at DL. If you read the Skypriority press release it only speaks of Skyteam Elite Plus, whilst at the moment @ skyteam.com it still reads Skyteam Elite and Elite Plus. So in the end it is downgrade for Silver members I think..

FB Silver (Skyteam Elite) still has priority check-in/boarding with DL.

SkyPriority has nothing to do with FB Silver/Skyteam Elite - so reading articles about SkyPriority will tell you nothing about the benefits that FB Silver/Skyteam Elite are suposed to have (and likewise, it's incorrect to make assumptions from such articles).

If you want to find out the perks and benefits of FB Silver/Skyteam Elite, the place to look is at the Skyteam benefits page - where Skyteam Elite is still listed as benefiting from both Priority Check In "at most airports" (which is stated, for Delta, as First Class / Business Elite / Medallion counters) and Priority Boarding (with the proviso, for Delta, that "Delta does not offer this benefit on Delta Shuttle and Delta Connection flights")

Just came back to say:-

if you check Delta's benefits, they extend Priority Check-In and Priority Boarding to their Silvers (who are Skyteam Elite) as well as their Golds, Platinums and Diamonds (who are all Skyteam Elite Plus and also SkyPriority).

SkyPriority has been running over at Delta for almost 2 years. So again, there is absolutely no reason to expect that SkyTeam Elites are on the verge of having Priority Check-In and Priority Boarding removed, when Delta did no such thing on introducing SkyPriority...

I may have confused free EC (which do extend to expensive Y fares) with SkyPriority.

Yes, they do say that, but I've had experiences that were contrary to that, both on KL, where during boarding they explicitly and repeatedly said that only Platinum and Gold members (and biz) pax may board, and on DL (at CVG) where there were signs (e.g. for check-in) basically separating SkyPriority pax from the cattle. Of course, this is just anecdotal evidence, but IME there is a difference in what they say and what they do.

Maybe I'm being a bit negative here (which is perhaps understandable after getting screwed over and over by DL), but it seems to me that the idea of SkyPriority is to simplify things. Instead of agents having to know exactly to whom to extend the benefits and having signs listing all those qualified, it's much easier to streamline all this into a SkyPriority concept. I love the idea of no longer having to show the stupid card and instead having "SkyPriority" printed on the BP. (Sidenote: SkyPriority did NOT appear on my electronic BP last time I qualified for it and I was flying DL; it did appear on the paper BP)

As a result, I do believe that Silvers get the shaft because Silver is not SkyPriority. If the boarding call says SkyPriority and that's not on your BP, as a Silver you'd have to argue with the agent and you may or may not win the argument. Same for priority check-in. The may say that Silvers get priority whatever, but in practice this may slowly disappear. (I do hope that I'm wrong.)