Thanks for the report. Just curious, what documentation did you send in for the status match?

I will recheck the dates tomorrow from my office computer (sent it from there) but i think I got it within 2-3 days.

I emailed a screenshot of my account showing miles + status on CO; and accompanied an email with the blabber of flying with BMI to the UK in 09 etc.;)

bmi didn't kill all transatlantic flights, just the ex-MAN ones IIRC. bmi has been flaky lately in matching, sometimes responding quickly and sometimes not at all. If you don't get the status upgrade in say 3 weeks I'd resubmit.

AFAIK, the don't. I asked some 2 years ago, while they were not *A members yet, but I travelled with them quite often, and they said no...

Email request sent on Friday 31/10 reply from BMI on Tuesday 11/4.

Spoke with UAL reps and they stated the elite status match program had been discontinued "temporarily" and would like be re-started in early-2009. Has anyone else had a similar experience?

Yes, I did have a similar experience and am wondering how to respond.

So I sent United an e-mail in April to see if they'd match my Gold Status on NWA. I received a prompt e-mail response saying they would and to send a copy of my statement to them 7-10 days before I will begin flying with them and I'll then have 90 days to fly 15k to maintain the status.

Well.....I have a couple long-haul trips booked on UAL in the next month, so I e-mailed them PDF copies of the requested documents, and then received a reply the next day saying that status match requests ended on 10/31 and to contact them again in January. I e-mailed back seeing if they could still give me the challenge as there was no mention of a deadline in the previous e-mail, and I received a response that "it wasn't possible at this time." What gives?

Comments/insights appreciated. Anyone figured out a way around this?

So let me see if I have this correct...

I am GM on Delta/ST Elite...

I can ask CO to match my status and it will be for *A?

Continental will join the *A in 2009. However, a date is not set in stone. Some are reporting that it'll be late in 2009. My recommendation would be to hold off until next year or until their official entrance in the *A is clear.

will anyone status match this late in the year? if so, how long will it be valid?
 

need some sage advice..

i am presently DL silver (expires 2/09), and will become AA 1MM gold in a couple of weeks. i have copious miles in each, but am nowhere near requalifying with ANY program.

a few questions:

1) how likely is it that any FF program will match me this late in the year? should i even bother?

2) even if someone does match, when is that newly minted status likely to expire?

3) given my present statuses, which program would it make the most sense to match into? my travels, due to the particular (sometimes remote) destinations and limited services to each, flight schedules, etc, have unwillingly been distributed accross a few carriers. i know the importance of trying to stick to just a carrier/team or two, but most of my trips have been last minute, and i did not have the luxury to always use the desired carrier/team.

thank you in advance for your collective valuable insight!

El Al also will match status. Usually they match at a lower level (e.g. CO Plat to Matmid Gold) than one's current status with another carrier.

To apply for a match you must already have an El Al Matmid number. Fax a copy of your elite status card & the last two months of your FF account statements, showing flights and points to
El Al Airlines
Matmid Frequent Flyer Program
Fax # 011-972-3-760-4043

Once matched, you must requalify for status within 6 months.

Thanks for the info, davidy! I've gone ahead and updated the OP.

cabrits, many airlines will match this late in the year, and for most airlines your status would be good through early 2010, so you'd get quite a bit of time. As for which program to match to, it's hard to answer that. It all depends on where you travel and what you're looking for.

thanks!
 

thanks lucky,

another quick question.. would i have a better chance of getting matched with DL silver? or AA 1MM gold?

do other programs not tend to match AA 1MM/2MM much?

thanks again!

I'm guessing that if you have any flying activity with AA at all, it would work for status matches as well, although I can't guarantee that. If it works it should be no different than matching with DL.

Which email address did you use?

I'm doing a fair bit skyteam flying at the moment and with Air France's calender year rules I've no chance of getting enough sectors to get lounge access for ages.

If I could get CO Plat then that will get me in the lounges at CDG and FCO and give me time to actually retain the status.

Assuming they will match my 100+ sectors on bmi in the last 12 months.