Hi guys, so I managed to get a job that might offer me the possibility to continue my jetsetting lifestyle, only that from now on, the company would be paying for it.

I need your help to suggest the best FFP.

(1) What is your home airport?
Reply: LHR/LGW and SIN for leisure

(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class?
Reply: 25k-50k in cattle class

(3) What types of fares do you usually buy?
Reply: Cattle, always

(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or, class of service?. Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
Reply: Usually EK for pleasure, Ryanair for UK-EU for pleasure. For work, it might involve UK-US, UK-South America and UK-Ireland, rest of EU.

(5) Which routes do you fly most often?
Reply: LHR/LGW-SIN 1-2x per year, UK-EU flights 2-4x per year

(6) Do you have FFP status of any kind of OW or other airline at present? What is it?
Reply: EK Skywards (30k points), SQ Krisflyer (80k points), QF (12k points) all with no status, except EK where there is a chance to upgrade to Silver soon.

(7) What is most important to you in a FFP?
Reply: Extra baggage allowance for longhaul, good award redemption rates, better award access.

(8) Preferred Airlines
Reply: EK, SQ, don't really like QF and never taken BA before. LH is not too bad for continental flights, actually.

(9) Remarks:
I'm definitely keeping my EK FFP (30k with a chance to upgrade to Silver soon). I'm collecting lots of points from my Singapore credit card on SQ's Krisflyer (80k). I have 12k points in QF and naught in my AAdvantage membership.
Could you also suggest the best UK-based credit card to earn miles that I could credit into either a *A or OW FFP?

Sick of AY as a airline and as a FFP program.

Questions
For members asking for information please help people to assist you, can you provide:
(1) What is your home airport?
Reply:
BER
(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class?
Reply:
>300K J class
(3) What types of fares do you usually buy ?
Reply:
restricted C Class fares like Z/P/J
(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or, class of service?. Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
Reply:
I travel mainly for work, and can choose whatever I want.
(5) Which routes do you fly most often?
Reply:
Going to SEA very often SIN/BKK/CAN some trips to the US (Westcoast) and EZE.
(6) Do you have FFP status of any kind of OW or other airline at present? What is it?
Reply:
BAEC Gold & AY Platinum
(7) What is most important to you in a FFP?
Reply:
I need lounge access, good chance of upgrades and good service if things going down the drain.
(8) Preferred Airlines
Reply:
BA - I like their C seats and the service,

Newbie here
 

Hello. I am quite new here and to FFP, though not a complete noob. My situation is a little special in that I do not plan to have a home airport for the next few years, so I thought I'd ask the experts for help.

(1) What is your home airport? (SFO, SCL, London LHR, HKG, Singapore SIN etc.)
Reply: None planned. Currently EZE (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class? (<25K, 25k-50k, >50k)
Reply: At least 25k. Maybe over 50k.
(3) What types of fares do you usually buy ? ( First, Business, Economy etc.)
Reply: Economy
(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or, class of service?. Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
Reply: I can choose. Leisure.
(5) Which routes do you fly most often (US Domestic, Transpacific, Kangaroo, in Asia etc)
Reply: I plan to spend the next few years flying mainly between Asia, Europe and Oceania/Pacific. Only occasionally to the Americas or Africa.
(6) Do you have FFP status of any kind of OW or other airline at present? What is it? (AA Executive Platinum, QF Gold, UA 1K, LAN Comodoro, etc)
Reply: Have 38019Km in LANPASS of which 25602 were this year. No status.
(7) What is most important to you in a FFP? (upgrades on travel, priority services when flying the airline, extra baggage allowance, good award redemption rates, better award access, free - discounted lounge access, etc.)
Reply: Upgrades on travel, lounge access. Awards only in a distant third place.
(8) Preferred Airlines
Reply: Do not have a preference at all. So far I have flown the cheapest.

tl;dr

1. Starting a nomadic lifestyle
2. Plan to move a minimum of 3-4 times a year
3. Mainly between Asia, Europe and Oceania/Pacific.
4. Less than once a year the Americas.
5. Self-funded.
6. Earning from flying mostly.

Long version:
Due to my job, I am able to be anywhere I like in the world, and as I know from experience I love that lifestyle, I plan to do just that for the foreseable future (5-10 years). The regions that interest me the most are Asia, Europe and the Pacific (in that order). I will not have a home airport and will be self funded. Being a resident of Argentina, I can't access any worthwhile credit card offers.

I aimed at Oneworld mainly because I have some miles in LANPASS from previous leisure travel. If you tell me it is worth going to another alliance, that's fine too.

As you can see, this is not an easy problem to crack for a newbie, so any help is very much appreciated!

I'd value your feedback. Is oneworld for me?
 

A bit of background: My partner and I are Americans who live in Spain most of the year. We've been Diamonds on Delta, and were happy until the domestic upgrades started to disappear. Now we're looking elsewhere.

Your feedback and suggestions would be very much appreciated.

(1) What is your home airport?
MAD, VLC, BCN, LHR

(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class?
125k-plus


(3) What types of fares do you usually buy ? ( First, Business, Economy etc.)
Cheapest upgradable

(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or, class of service?. Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
We travel for pleasure and can select our own airlines

(5) Which routes do you fly most often (US Domestic, Transpacific, Kangaroo, in Asia etc)
MAD - SEA
LHR - MEL/SYD
LHR - EZE
And anyplace there is a good fare.

(6) Do you have FFP status of any kind of OW or other airline at present? What is it? (AA Executive Platinum, QF Gold, UA 1K, LAN Comodoro, etc)

Diamond, Delta

(7) What is most important to you in a FFP?

a. International upgrades
b. Domestic upgrades
c. Personalized service, especially where their is a disruption on the journey
d. Quality of food and service onboard

(1) What is your home airport? (SFO, SCL, London LHR, HKG, Singapore SIN etc.)
R: OTP (Bucharest, Romania)

(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class? (<25K, 25k-50k, >50k)
R: starting to be >50k

(3) What types of fares do you usually buy ? ( First, Business, Economy etc.)
R: economy, premium eco, low business


(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or, class of service?. Do you travel for work and/or pleasure? can choose the airline, not the class, travel for work.
R: yes I can choose the airline but usually in economy and premium eco; not ot often business

(5) Which routes do you fly most often (US Domestic, Transpacific, Kangaroo, in Asia etc)
R: I think it would be easier this way: http://flightdiary.net/andreim


(6) Do you have FFP status of any kind of OW or other airline at present? What is it? (AA Executive Platinum, QF Gold, UA 1K, LAN Comodoro, etc)
R: nothing with OW


(7) What is most important to you in a FFP? (upgrades on travel, priority services when flying the airline, extra baggage allowance, good award redemption rates, better award access, free - discounted lounge access, etc.)
R: redeem on exotic places like Male, Bali, Fiji and being able to pay taxes with points and lounge access

Many thanks for your thoughts! 

Re-posted: Deciding on a Oneworld Frequent Flyer Program? Help is here.
 

Somehow this thread was inadvertently merged with an unrelated thread, so I'm re-posting it here and moving the affected posts back. (Apparently there isn't a means to "un-merge" threads which have been combined.)

Please send me a PM if you posted to the "old" thread and it doesn't reappear here, and thanks for your understanding.

Gardyloo
Oneworld moderator

For members asking for information please help people to assist you, can you provide:
(1) What is your home airport? (SFO, SCL, London LHR, HKG, Singapore SIN etc.)
NYC

(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class? (<25K, 25k-50k, >50k)
70-90K, usually J

(3) What types of fares do you usually buy ? ( First, Business, Economy etc.)
First

(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or, class of service?. Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
Yes, I choose. Business and pleasure

(5) Which routes do you fly most often (US Domestic, Transpacific, Kangaroo, in Asia etc)
US domestic and 2-3 trips per year to Europe and 1 trip to South America

Last year, NONE of my travel was on OW. It was mostly on *Alliance

(6) Do you have FFP status of any kind of OW or other airline at present? What is it? (AA Executive Platinum, QF Gold, UA 1K, LAN Comodoro, etc)
Lufthansa Senator, United Gold.

(7) What is most important to you in a FFP? (upgrades on travel, priority services when flying the airline, extra baggage allowance, good award redemption rates, better award access, free - discounted lounge access, etc.)
Reward trips

(8) Preferred Airlines
I like Lufthansa, but it has come harder to get Reward Travel (all of their reward travel seems to be pushed to Swiss) and I will start going to London a couple of times a year, so I was thinking it may be time to try One World.
What program should I use? American or BA?
Thanks

Pcosta Welcome to the FT forum


As you live in the USA AA. Do the AA Plat challenge (see AA forum sticky). With travel in first should be easy.
And you can feed credit card and/or hotels and/or rental cars miles into the AA ffp if you want to.

I'm thinking of switching to OW from *A (UA). I am BD*S, so will become BA Silver as of May1-ish. I could also obtain AA PLT right now based on my Premier Gold UA status, although if I go AA I may be better to wait until June 16/July 1 and pay for a challenge as I have a SFO-LHR WT+ trip in July which will easily get me >10k EQP and then I'll have status until Feb 2014 right?

(1) What is your home airport?
Reply: SFO
(2) How many miles do you usually fly each year & in what class?
Reply: ~50k perhaps less actual miles with ~20% in FF coach.
(3) What types of fares do you usually buy ?
Reply: mainly economy, some full fare economy and premium economy (BA)
(4) Can you choose your airlines and/or, class of service?. Do you travel for work and/or pleasure?
Reply: Work is all coach, mainly UA options, but I can choose.
(5) Which routes do you fly most often?
Reply: Transatlantic (SFO-LHR, ~2x year), US domestic.
(6) Do you have FFP status of any kind of OW or other airline at present? What is it?
Reply: I will soon get my BMI status matched to BA Silver.
(7) What is most important to you in a FFP?
Reply: Low-cost redemptions, Elite ground handling (check-in, security etc), upgrades, lounges (international)
(8) Preferred Airlines
Reply: AA, BA

TIA

There's a sticky in the AAdvantage forum on this, but I believe that this would qualify only if booked as an AA Codeshare

I would go with AA, as you don't appear to fly enough high TQP routes to earn Silver with BA. However, you state your actual mileage may be a little below 50k, which could make AA PLT will be a close call. Unlike UA which allows high bucket fares to earn 50% extra EQM, AA separates out EQM and EQP. High bucket fares earn 1.5 EQPs per mile flown, but only 1.0 EQM per mile flown. Many low bucket fares that still earn 1.0 EQM/mile flown only earn 0.5 EQP per mile flown.

Illustration: If I fly 35,000 in deep discount Y, and 10,000 in full fare Y, I have earned 50,000 EQM with UA.

But with AA, I have earned only 45,000 EQM (35,000 + 10,000), and only 32,500 EQP (35,000 * 0.5 + 10,000 * 1.5).

This is interesting, the question for me is to stick with Star Alliance, or to acquire a new status in OW. So let us see how I do! (I thank you for your answers.)

SIN

Usually 75K-125K, mix of economy and business, but more in economy.

Mostly economy, but some business. First only when upgraded.

Can usually choose the airline, often forced into economy, but will be business at client's discretion. Mostly work travel, but substantial pleasure travel also.

"Kangaroo"?

(1) Intra-Asia
(2) Asia to US
(3) Asia to Europe
(4) Other destinations (Australia, Africa, South America, Pacific islands)

I will very soon have million-mile status on United, so the question is to continue in this system, or cover additional bases by acquiring a OW status. I am in BA plan right now, and also AA (maybe expired years ago), but without any status, unless my recent trip to London in business will get me some status. (Probably not enough?) Silver in EK, but I think this will expire soon.

Upgrades, lounge access.

SQ, EK, CX, QR. I guess BA is alright, just flew AY for the first time in 27 years, and it was OK, but probably not good for my travel patterns.

Unless you want to hop to HKG every time you fly, I would probably stick with *A as your primary program.

If you want to get status on OW for the occasions you do fly it, BA is a good program to consider. If you fly Longhaul in business, one trip on BA to London in Club World nets you 560 TPs and nearly enough for BA Silver (available at 600 TPs) and OW Saphire.

If you do want to switch completely to OW, I would go with CX given that they will be your primary OW carrier.

"Kangaroo" refers generally to UK < > Australia routes. SIN is a typical fueling stop for Qantas and BA services between Europe and Oz.

I think if I was living in SIN (ha ha - first time you've heard that, right?) I'd probably wait a few months until Malaysian is a full OW member, then look at how MH structures its FFP to align with Oneworld standards. I'm guessing their Enrich program is going to get quite a makeover, but we'll see.

Remember that most Oneworld FFPs require a minimum number of flights be taken on the airline's own metal (typically 4/year) in order to achieve/maintain elite status. Some are less stringent about enforcing it (AA) but it's there generally.

In the meantime, though, I'd look at BA, CX and Qantas. Different earn/burn/upgrade standards, but all are quality programs.

OK, thanks for the suggestions. I am in the BA programme, but it may be awkward to fly on BA metal every year, given my location and travel patterns. So maybe Cathay or Malaysia makes sense. But we will see.

Just starting out, so asking if I should continue to chalk things up in my QF or switch to other OW.

(1) home airport - SGP
(2) miles flown each year & in what class? 52k all chalked on Qantas from Jul(start point)-Dec 11. Estimating this year will be 52-80k? Economy
(3) types of fares bought - either a discount economy or economy
(4) choice of airlines/cabins. work and/or pleasure? - work basically whatever is cheapest or reasonably cheap.
(5) routes flown most often - SIN-SYD (2X a year), SIN-LHR (2X), SIN-MIA(1X). Sin-MNL(3X). SIN-PVG(2X a year)
(6) current FFP status - QF Silver. BA lowest (LHR-EDI). United (not sure expiring. First flight may09. silver). AA (1000 miles)
(7) What is most important to you in a FFP? -redemption, upgrade, lounge access
(8) Preferred Airlines - none. SIN-MNL-Sin will be on SQ

Please advise- Going to embark on SIN-LHR-SIN again(CX flights out, BA in)