DragonAir in OW?
 

Mentioned this on the BA forum but it's more on-topic here, obviously. Are DragonAir soon to be a miles and points earning member of OneWorld now that they're wholly owned by Cathay Pacific?

Even better in the AsiaMiles forum, here: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=607720

Bump. Not sure exactly when the change took place, but all KA routes now seem to be offering CX codeshare designators which means (assuming you book using these, rather than the KA equivalent):

- Mileage earn for all OW scheme members.
- Use of The Wing / The Pier when departing HKG on a qualifying ticket or holding OW Sapphire / Emerald status.

Also great news as on routes like HKG/PVG, where the KA op services are 3-class, while the newly-introduced CX op flights offer only Y and J and on the inbound timings are useless if you're planning to connect on to another flight.

Not sure whether this means that xONEx tix can be booked on KA metal using the CX designator, I suspect not (at least not for a little while yet).

Hope the update is useful.

I'm not sure I understand the bolded text. In order to be eligible for mileage credit a codeshare must be on a oneworld member airline. KA still isn't a member therefore CX codeshares on KA flights don't automatically earn miles. From other threads it seems that QF has added KA as a partner and so your scenario would work for QF but KA is not a partner yet with, for example, AA so CX codeshares on KA would not be eligible for AA mileage credit.

Not so, unless this is a specific condition of your program (not the case for the ones I know more about like BAEC, QFFF).

Be careful, VT, many do in fact exclude codeshares of non-OW airlines. For Qantas, CX codeshares of non-OW airlines are excluded. BAEC is similar, though I see that the site does not specifically state what's excluded and what's not. The best thing to do until KX becomes a member (which I believe is just a matter of time) is to look through the T&C of your program and/or call and ask a rep.

I actually thought as a general rule the 'codeshare option' was only good on the "home" FFP; i.e, in this case it would be good for CX folks but not for others.

Steve

I stand corrected, upon second glance at QFFF T&C, which aren't obviously transparent unless you dig a little deeper, it only becomes clear that this is the case when looking at this bit: http://www.qantas.com.au/fflyer/dyn/...m/terms#jump23

You're right that the BAEC T&Cs make no specific reference to exclusion, therefore must be inferred to mean inclusion.

From ba.com:

BAEC does not automatically allow credit for all codeshares. You must call to find out if the flight will qualify. When you call you find out that most ow airline codeshares not on OW metal do not qualify.

I think one of the main problems regarding Oneworld Membership is the fact that KA cannot issue e-tickets accross partner airlines including CX. So if you were to buy a SYD-HKG-PVG ticket on CX/KA it would have to be a paper ticket.

As noted below, if either the metal or code aren't OW, you earn nothing on BAEC. Been there, done that with a CX codeshare on MH.

I guess we will have to wait until if/when KA moves into the OW fold.

Announced today at www.oneworld.com !!

Dragonair is to join oneworld in 2007.

Is Dragonair joining oneworld as an affiliate of Cathay Pacific or as a member in its own right?

Surprisingly (or not) the link in the post immediately above yours answers this question.

So the appearance of CX designators against Dragonair op flights was more than a happy coincidence ^ ^

:D ^ That is fantastic news. A world class short haul carrier, opening up loads more destinations on OW metal. They had better expand the PVG lounge though, it is going to get mobbed.

Or like the BA lounge in CDG subject to strict capacity controls.

Oddly enough, it seems the answer is both. It appears KA's coming into Oneworld in its own right...

While it is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Cathay Pacific, Dragonair has retained its own brand and identity, market positioning and separate "KA" flight code.


...but the article continues by stating....

As a oneworld affiliate, Dragonair will offer the alliance's full range of services and benefits. This means its frequent flyers - who will all be integrated into Cathay Pacific's Marco Polo Club loyalty programme from 1 January 2007 - will be able to earn and redeem mileage awards on all other oneworld carriers.

S'cuse my ignorance, but does it make a difference?

Good point.

It could have been a mistake, but AA once me miles on a BCN-LIS IB codeshare operated by TP.

Service standards (required to be met when joining OW) are different for affiliates (lower). They aren't required to be e-ticket capable, for example. So I suppose it does make a difference, but not one that matters (given all the e-ticket problems that BA and AY have, I'm sure KA will be just as good, affiliate or not).

What motivated my question about Dragonair joining as an affiliate of Cathay Pacific versus joining in its own right is the unresolved question of whether using an affiliate of a oneworld member plus the oneworld member itself satisfies the "two oneworld airlines" requirement of American Airlines for a oneworld award using AA miles. So, yeah, depending on the correct answer to this question, it could make a difference.

Respectfully, no, the link does not answer my question and, yes, I did read the link (and several other websites) before I posted the question.

Affiliate. But will AA really do this correctly? Much confusion ahead, I'm sure.

Understand now.

For AA OW awards, using the affiliate is the considered the same as using its parent airline. E.G. LP and LA count for only 1 OW airline other than AA, not 2 as one would hope for according to the EXP desk.

In my reading of the link there is no ambiguity - KA is joining as an affiliate. Retaining it's own brand, code etc has no bearing on this - other affiliates do the same.

Are you sure enough about this answer that you wouldn't mind being quoted in post #1 of the stickey? If you are, I'll add the information.

What type of e-tkt problems have you experienced with AY?

Once on a codeshare (IB tkt, AY metal) and once on a genuine AY tkt, AY metal flt, AY check-in tried to require a paper tkt as they saw the tkt as a paper one in their system. Caused a delay of perhaps a minute in HEL but in MAD the delay was closer to ten minutes. They sorted it out, though.

Wouldn't it make sense to join as an affiliate for the next 5 or 6 years (or how ever long they agreed to keep the brands separate) until they are rolled-up into CX who is already a full member?