SouthsideJAX

In respect to your statement about the carnage at DL/NW, I think all airlines are doing a good bit of matching status for each other members. Certainly some DL elites are leaving, but a lot of US elites have left as well, for example. Call it the great elite shuffle of 2009.

In regards to your statement in blue text, in depends on who you are matching with to some degree. If the airline just gives you the status with no strings attached, you have to fly enough throughout the rest of 2009 to keep that status. If you match with an airline that does challenges, like AA, you would be wise to only start the challenge when you can meet the goals, since the window is shorter.

Armchair Flyer

I have contacted LH M&M twice to ask the same question.

Email got no response.

Telephoned today and got "Mais non Monsieur! Vous êtes Skyteam et nous sommes *A! C'est absoluement impossible!

I did try and point out that I had read here that it may be possible but the CSA was rather abrupt.

There again, it was a French CSA, albeit working for LH

AAerSTL

Match with CO as they'll be joining * soon

skywalkerLAX

LAN responded today (4 weeks after my initial message) with the following:

So I answered that our operations in South America are new and therefore I had no reason to fly these routes in 2008.

Oh well, lets wait for the answer. I expect it at the end of February.

Cheers,
S

91StealthES

Hello all,

I haven't been here in a while and was just parousing throught thinking of getting away from United.

What is the *A everyone keeps mentioning?

Thanks

skywalkerLAX

Welcome to FT !

*A stands for Star Alliance in which UA is already included as you know.

For your 1P status, Northwest will match you up to their mid tier Gold Elite. American will only offer you a challenge up to Platinum for which you have to pay

On some routes Alaska Airlines can make sense which matches up to MVP Gold.

You being based in ORD I guess it doesnt make much sense to escape to anyone else than AA. You dont really want to fly NW via MSP or DTW when the weather makes your life difficult enough in ORD (and these short flights are the first that get cancelled).

Hope that helps !

Cheers,

91StealthES

Thanks skywalkerLAX!!

I was confused what the *A was.

I am so frustrated with United.

I wish I would have done the AA Plat. challange last year.

Like you said, I am stuck with either AA or UA. Being they do not match and now charge $150, I don't see the benefit in my book.

Guess I am stuck with UA.

Cheers and thanks for the speedy response!

skywalkerLAX

Your welcome !

If it's really bad then well... of course you can try something different.

I just warn you in advance that with AA you wont settle to greener pastures @:-)

brahms77

Okay, for more details, please check my thread: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/other...l#post11146406

I received a reply from a person (not automated ones) exactly AFTER 31 days since my first email to LANPASS:

Note: Names are edited.

So, I got Comodoro, after sending in my UA 1K card scans, PDF copy of my 23 month *A and UA flight activity (from united.com) and a lot of patience. Status reflected immediately on my online profile.

OW nobody to OW Emerald!!! Boy aren't I excited? Now, my question is whether or not BA and QF will allow me into their F lounges without me having a card...

This also confirms that LANPASS actually carefully studies status match request letters/emails and whether or not the customer requesting is flying on LAN routes, etc. So, when you draft a letter, I suggest that you also write about your plans for LAN flights. I thinking forwarding them with my upcoming LAN and LA coded flights (six long haul in D class) kind of helped (b/c my mailing address is in Korea and there are no LA flights there or even to Asia).

robbert

I'm debating the same thing, with the changes so late I'm already too committed to NW/DL for the next couple of months with flights booked, a fare credit waiting to be used etc. If I match to CO the 50% will kill me and I am not sure I'll even go for Plat this year on any airline, just booked summer TATL travel for $600 on a special deal, and that was not NW/DL. Maybe I'll forget about loyalty and book whomever is most convenient/cheapest. For domestic I've already switched mostly to WN (many NS from BNA).

The best course of action seems to be to use up the few remaining miles, get at least silver on NW/DL in the process and match to another airline after June 15 and try to get status until early 2011. Hopefully by the end of this year it will be known when CO will join *A, I can live with the combined UA/CO network but not with either one of them. But then, which airline will be the next to announce billions in losses? The benefits are going downhill no matter what.

aviationkiwi

what works for me is to scan it and invert the colors, that makes the card faxable (if that is a word).

ipott

I live in northern NJ and fly CO most of the time but continued as a NW Worldperks Silver Elite. However, after the merger, Delta has started screwing around with Worldperks and I decided to fully switch to CO. I sent them an email yesterday and got a reply this morning. I no longer have to worry about how else Delta will undermine my miles... I'm burning what I have on CO before CO leaves Skyteam and then it's a clean start.

bmw303

I was interested in status matching to NW, however, NW has informed me that a response can take 4-6 weeks. Does anyone else have any experience with this?

Thanks.

aviationkiwi

I did the same yesterday and they called today asking me to re-send the fax with a clearer copy of the Skymiles card. I hope the match me soon.

Did your continental account show your status today?

mirobatka

When you status match to UA and they offer you a challenge, it is said that you get the elite benefits upfront for the duration of the challenge.

Does that mean that you earn mileage bonuses on the flights that you take in those 90 days?

Do you get the bonuses even on flights on other *A carriers? (I know those flights don't count towards the challenge).

Thanks!