abezebabe

I have several mileage runs scheduled in the near future to top off my segments for gold status. Was wondering what the general consensus is regarding this (I sure picked the wrong time to try to qualify, right?). Let's say I am in the middle of a mr and mech delays affect my itinerary. If I secure a later flight from destination xx (wherever the delay occurs), and am not able to complete my itinerary (these are same day mr) can I/will I receive credit for the missing segments of the itinerary? Has anyone encountered this? I just thought with the possiblity of the strike, my chances of this occuring were greater.

For those of you who attended the MR in Chicago, you know how important it is for me to get home.

dmfriedman

Most of the time, when moderators move posts, it's because it was posted in the wrong forum. In this case, I can see how it is related to a Mileage Run, however the most important thing moderators can do is try to help get you the best answers. In this case, while you may get some answers in the MR forum, I think your best answers will be found in the Northwest Airlines forum. So I'm going to move this there, in hopes that some of the NWA gurus can give you feedback on your inquiry.

Dave, a.k.a. dmfriedman
Moderator, Mileage Run

MikeMpls

If the ticket and the flight home are on the same airline, probably not. The airline's obligation is to get you to your final destination, not necessarily to every stop in between.

If you are reaccommodated on a different airline, you can request your original mileage on the original carrier. Real example: My wife & I were scheduled to fly MSP-ATL-CVG-STL (1906 EQM's) on DL last Saturday, but MSP-ATL was cancelled and we were placed on a direct MSP-STL flight (500 EQM's). Initially, only the 500 EQM's were posted, but on our request the 500 EQM's were withdrawn and the original 1906 EQM's were posted. On top of that, since we had ended up on a NW flight, we were upgraded to FC for the trip.

If the airline on which you are reaccommodated is not a partner airline, you can even participate in that airline's FF program and still request your original mileage from NW.

Another avenue open to you is to establish that it was a "trip in vain", i.e. due to the delays there is no point in continuing so you return home. In this case your fare is refunded or credited towards a future ticket. Usually a "trip in vain" happens because some intermediate destination can't be reached, e.g. your MR is ticketed as a round trip from X to Y and back (with several segments in each direction) but you are never able to reach Y (or -- more usually -- you would reach Y so late that your original purpose -- e.g. business meeting -- is history); so it is called a "trip in vain" and you return home to try again some other day. You should still retain credit for any segments actually flown.

troyintn

I think it is a great time to do a MR. If they cancell a flight or it is delayed, make sure to demand another airline. They will rebook you on NW first, but you can request whatever you want at that point. Get on another airline and go home, book a couple of miles on the other airline and then call NW about the cancelled flight and they will credit your account. A 36 hour run could be done in 8 hrs if everything worked out perfectly. Just make sure to rebook asap a late flight missing a connection could cut down on your miles.

yogimax

I have mixed feelings on this one. Last month I completed my first three mileage runs and had problems on each. One flight was cancelled and I was rebooked on another airline. I called the NW elite line and did receive credit for the missed flights. On another, I was rebooked on a NW flight some 6 hours later. But since it was rebooked in F, I received 150% EQMs, almost equalling the total of the two missing segments.

But here's the catch. If there is a strike or continuation of the major slowdown, there will be no guarantees. If you miss a late flight, you may be forced to overnight in IND, DTW, or someplace else. Is your schedule so flexible that you can handle an additional day of travel? The other issue is the stress that would be involved. I think you have to address these concerns as well as the relatively simple one of obtaining mileage credits.

TexasYankee

My thoughts exactly! Here I start heavy into MRs and the strike looms like a dark cloud. I do have 3 MRs booked on Delta and hope that they will not be affected and I will still get the NW EQMs. I do know that if you are moved to another airline due to a cancellation or problem on the part of NW they will credit you with the original flights.

hyunja

When NW was struck by the pilots in late 90s, I was on a flight HPN>DTW>TYS with a return a week later. The return flight was during a strike and I received the full EQM for the cancelled segments. It was especially nice since I did not make the flight due to other arrangements.

HJ

GWave120

Is that SOP during a strike? Giving the appropriate EQMs if a flight is cancelled?

I won't be doing a MR until late December, so this should all be moot. The key word there is "should."

goingforgold

Based on many of the posts in the last month - I certainly wouldn't do an MR BEFORE the strike.