Uber-elite level?
 

Good day all.

So I was wondering if anyone thinks that airlines should have an elite level higher than the highest published elite level -- an elite level higher than EXP, Platinum, etc... As an example, United has UGS as an elite level higher than 1K. Perhaps you fly twice as many miles -- or even more -- than the highest elite level threshold to make you worthy of this higher status, or you spend tens-of-thousands of dollars to your airline to make you worthy of a status higher than published.

Does anyone else think that your airline should have an elite level higher than those published? Does anyone think that these levels exist already but no one in the FT community knows about it?

If they exist someone here knows about them...LH HON comes to my mind and BA Premier;CX Invitation;SQ LT Solitaire;some are easier to reach than others.

Wow. I thought UA was the only airline.

do a little search on FT to know the specifics...in brief: CX invitation and BA premier are the only 2 similar to UA UGS and depend more on money spent than miles flown;SQ solitaire is on sectors(only earned in C and F);HON is 600k miles in 2 years on LH and few fully integrated partners(UA used to be in;out from April 1st).

QF have their Chairmans Lounge

All the major airlines have special departments for special people.
Do you really think a US Senator calls United's unlisted 1K or USG phone number? Don't ever think your at the top because your not ;)

No their secretary or Travel Admin does *smile*

Oh yeah. There's always the next level. If you ever have it all then there's nothing left to get. What'd be the point then?

Once you have "it all", you stop flying commercial and on board your own jet.

There was an article about these in the Wall Street Journal a while back. All the airlines have them, some more formal than others.

However, there's an upper limit to how far an airline can go. Commercial air travel, even in the best international F, is still commercial air travel. The uber-elite have private planes, corporate planes, fractional ownership and executive charters. Only very long trans-oceanic routes are beyond the range of most of these, forcing their users to slum with the masses. No commercial airline is going to get a significant share of those folks by giving them fancy lounges, airport greeters and the chairman's private phone number.

(Noticed after posting: ScottC's post just above was posted as I was writing this.)

If anyone's ever seen "Barbarians at the Gate" (HBO movie about the buyout of RJR Nabisco), the finale shows the disgraced ex-CEO of RJR, Ross Johnson, exiled from his "private air force" of private jets and forced to fly in F on Continental with "the rest of the masses". Rather amusing.

An earlier scene in the movie showed Johnson and his wife sending their sick German Shepherd home aboard one of their corporate jets... alone. Must be nice.

And what about once that thrill wears off? Teleportation? I always wanted to try an out-of-body travel experience. :D

Me too. Especially since I've already had a few out-of-mind travel experiences. :D

There IS an elite level above all published levels of all airlines...


It's called CASH :D

How about setting on the front porch and whittlin'? Sounds good to me. :D