Best FF Program for me?
 

Just found out about this site, and looks like a great find for me. I'm 15, and travel a good amount, so I need the perfect FF program for me. Going to be flying a lot on these routes:

• LON-NYC
• LON-DYU
• LON-SVO
• NYC-SVO
• NYC-DYU

Currently have Lufthansa MM and a Delta account which I can't access but have an FF# with. I use Lufthansa mostly, but the only reason it works for me is because it's star alliance, and I can actually access the account. Is there a better FF I should be using for my routes? I'm looking to get miles for frequent upgrades onto good business class planes.

Cheers

PS. Anyone know any way to recover my Delta pwd when I dont have an e-mail associated with the account, and them sending me the PIN won't work because I have an old address registered with the account?

It's scary how young some frequent flyers are... I'm young but 15 is really young. I mean, you can't even get a credit card for free miles.

You actually need to provide more information if you're going to get accurate help. What kind of fares do you (by you, I'm assuming your parents) usually buy? Where are you based more, LON or NYC? What do you want from your FFP? Any favoured carriers you have? Any carriers you want to avoid? How many miles do you estimate flying? Is domestic lounge access important? (although keep in mind you'll likely be barred from entering the lounge alone)

Do you actually want to go to SVO or just MOW in general? (If it's the former I think a psychological examination is in order for you as well) SVO is mainly a ST hub, so unless you want to fly DL/SU specifically there is no reason to choose that as your only airport option in MOW. Actually, just by looking at the cities you want to fly to, AA/BA would probably be the best programmes for you. You'll have the benefit of an AA hub at JFK, BA hub at LHR and an S7 hub at DME. Between those 3, you can get pretty much anywhere in the world worth mentioning except for Southeast Asia and Oceania. DME also has connecting flights to Tajikistan, something I don't think SVO has.

Both AA and BA FFPs have their merits and disadvantages, no way to tell without more information which is more suitable.

Deltas your best bet man. I value those are 5 cents a piece, plus the easiest to use

DL? You must be kidding.

I would recommend one of the US-based Star Alliance carriers, UA/CO/US. They offer better rates than Miles and More but have the benefit of Starnet availability.

Just call Delta. I'm sure they will work with you.

Zoui21, welcome to FT

do you care which airports in NYC and LON you fly into? EWR and JFK are far apart.

Also, what are you looking for? Upgrades, award flights, ect

I don't mind which airports they are at all, I can access both pretty easily. Tell you the truth, I'm probably looking for upgrades rather than award flights. And a good airline lounge would be awesome too.

Yea, I'm a pretty insane FF, I've travelled to over 25 countries in my life :) (34 including the countries my mom visited while pregnant). I'm a pretty special circumstance though because my dad works for the UN, so he's been to over 100 countries. He hit 400,000 miles on various airlines somewhere in the 90s.

But basically, my parents usually try to buy the cheapest options possible, so I think I need the best FFP from each alliance that suits my travelling. Tell you the truth, I'm probably looking for the potential to get upgraded the most, but I wouldn't mind a nice lounge if I can get in. I'll probably be flying 40,000-50,000 miles/ year, sometimes less sometimes more. I don't mind most carriers, but I would prefer one with a pretty new fleet, and pretty good service and seats.

I definitely am talking MOW over all, just forgot about DME. Tell you the truth, I'm not a big fan of MOW at all, but most of my family lives there so it's a necessity :rolleyes: OT. Terminal D isn't great but definitely better than the others!

I see what you mean about BA/AA but I'll be flying on the cheapest options possible which most probably won't we Oneworld, so I should find the best option in all three Alliances. Any ideas what they would be? I was thinking AA, LH/UA, DL/SU?

By the way, another route I could potentially start flying pretty often is LON-PRG and NYC-PRG. But that will most likely be on budget airlines :(

Thanks for the reply :)

No matter what the folks at UA/CO may say, EWR is not in NYC... just saying.

Isn't it almost impossible to get complimentary upgrades on international flights, even with high status? I know upgrades are frequently given on domestic flights within the US, but it appears that the OP flies mostly long-haul international flights.

I would be wary of Lufthansa's program because their miles expire 36 months after earning them, unless you have the German Lufthansa Miles and More card.

EWR is as much NYC as IAD is WAS.

This kid sounds like that kid that was on the Delta forum!

1. Lounge access will be tough for you if the lounge has a self-service bar. Some lounges require you to be 21 years old as well.

2. Upgrades will be tough if you fly a mix of carriers since you will barely make it to 1P on UA for example. Getting upgrades on int'l flights are very hard unless you have an upgrade instrument or do miles+copay.

3. If you prefer a pretty new fleet, and pretty good service/seats then don't look at US carriers to be honest...

Personally, if I were you I would save my miles till I turn 18 or so and go to places with my friends. I don't see the point of sitting in business/first class at that age since you aren't able to experience the full business/first experience. I doubt you require a more spacious seat at that age as well which is one of the reasons people want to sit up front. The only beneficial thing about this is being able to sit in a premium cabin and bragging to my friends. I'm 21 years old so not much older than you...

My first premium cabin experience was when I was around ten years old going to/from GMP and JFK. I didn't care about anything at that age since I was young and naive. The only time I sat in a "premium" cabin after that was in UA F from SEA-ORD from an op-up and that was nothing amazing to write home about since I was unable to enjoy the beverages that are served since I was 19.. The food is rather underwhelming as well so McD's is something I had to resort to upon arrival..

Just my two cents.. Save your miles for the future and enjoy your time when you become legal to enjoy certain things..

At 19 I highly doubt the FA would have made you inconvenience the passenger beside you and make them move their tray/food out of the way to get your passport from your bag. A verbal confirmation used to be all I needed to get served alcohol on UA when I was 20. 15 is most likely very obvious though. Personally if I was OP I would go with AA as I believe he is more based in NYC than LON (based on his spelling) and he won't have to face the horror of BA fuel surcharges on awards.

Speaking of Intl Upgrades
 

Haven't been on in a while, but just an update- I'm sticking with LH for this year (pretty sure I'll get FT at least) and then I'm going to be trying to find the program that suits me the best.

I just stopped by to note that Intl upgrades do happen. Within my family exclusively, we've had two in the last month.

One of them was my dad (Silver DL) flying LON-NYC with a pretty empty plane. It was Dec 22nd (close to christmas) so I'm assuming that's why he got it. And the other free upgrade was obtained by my bro, he's DL platinum and was flying PRG-NYC, but apparently the plane was very full so that's probably why. I still don't think DL is my best option though. I was thinking about switching to OnePass, but they have those ridiculous co-pays on the lower fares, so that isn't great.