Jan 4, 2023, 7:47 am
Last edit by: Adam Smith
How can I qualify for elite status on AC?
There are four main ways to qualify for status:
For further questions on Everyday Status Qualification or the Chase cards, please see the threads dedicated to those topics, which are linked above.
What are the levels of status?
The Aeroplan Elite program has five published levels of status:
Before the late-2020 revamp of the Aeroplan program, the 25K level was formerly known as Prestige 25K, the three middle tiers were known as Elite 35K / Elite 50K / Elite 75K, and Super Elite was Super Elite 100K. You may see the terms P25K, E35K, E50K, E75K, and SE100K on FT as references to the former branding (sometimes minus the K, e.g. P25).
Air Canada also operates an unpublished VIP program. Unlike UA GS, AA CK, and DL 360, it is not possible to qualify for VIP through flying. ACs VIP program is targeted at a different audience that would not normally qualify for a high level of status through their own level of flying. For example, they might award VIP status to the CEO of a large corporation that buys a lot of travel from AC. Those curious about the VIP program can visit that thread; no discussion of the VIP program will be permitted in this thread.
What are the qualification requirements?
For the level you want to qualify for, it is necessary to the requirements for:
The requirements are:
Beginning in 2022, all members must meet the SQD requirements. (Prior to 2022, non-residents only had to achieve 50% of the SQD requirements).
What are SQM, SQS, and SQD, and how do I earn them?
SQM are Status Qualifying Miles. You earn them by taking flights with AC or Star Alliance airline partners. They can also be earned by spending money on certain Aeroplan credit cards.
For flights, SQM are equal to approximately the distance between the two airports, multiplied by the earning rate for the fare type purchased. For example, Aeroplan calculates the distance from YYC to YYZ as 1,669 miles. A flight in Flex would earn 100% miles, i.e. 1,669 SQM. A flight in Standard would earn 25% miles, i.e. 417 SQM.
Certain credit cards award 1,000 SQM for each $10,000 spent on Core credit cards or $5,000 spent on the Premium "Black" credit cards.
Premium credit cards allow you to roll over up to 200K SQM over the level you qualified for in the previous year. For instance, if you flew 56,700 SQM and qualified for 50K status, you would roll over 6,700 SQM to the following year. Please see this thread for more information about the rollover benefit.
SQS are Status Qualifying Segments. You earn them by taking flights with AC or Star Alliance airline partners, by using certain Aeroplan credit cards, or as a Select Benefit selection (as of 2024).
Each qualifying flight earns 1 SQS; there are no multipliers.
Certain credit cards award 1 SQS for each $10,000 (Core credit cards) or $5,000 spent (Premium credit cards).
Starting in 2024, a new Select Benefit is available to Aeroplan 50K, 75K and SE status holders that awards 5,000 SQM and 5 SQS. This replaces the "Lower Requalification Level" Select Benefit offered in 2023 and prior years.
There is no SQS rollover.
SQD are Status Qualifying Dollars. These are equal to the base fare plus carrier-imposed surcharges for the ticket. Or you can think of SQD as the total amount paid for the ticket minus taxes and 3rd party surcharges (e.g. airport improvement fees). On receipts from AC, the amount listed as Air Transportation Charges will equal the total SQD for the ticket.
On itineraries with more than one segment, SQD are allocated across the segments based on distance, regardless of what you paid for each segment. For example, if you purchase a YYC-YYZ round trip, each segment (YYC-YYZ and YYZ-YYC) will earn 50% of the SQD, even if you paid different amounts for the two segments. Lets say you paid $300 for YYC-YYZ and $500 for YYZ-YYC (excluding GST, AIFs, etc). The total SQD would be 800, and each segment would earn 400 SQD.
SQD are earned only from flying (one-time promotions aside). Only flights themselves, eUpgrade add-ons, and unlimited flight pass monthly payments qualify. Fees for extra services (e.g. baggage fees, seat selection, on-board purchases, etc) do not count towards SQD.
There is no SQD rollover.
SQD: Air Canada Vacation / ACV: The one exception to "only from flying" for SQD is the purchase of an Air Canada Vacation Package. Air Canada will take 25% of an eligible package value and split it equally amongst all passengers over two years old. So a $10,000 package with two adults and two teens will see each passenger get 625 SQD. An Eligible Package refers to a vacation package consisting of a flight-inclusive vacation package or a Flight & Cruise package.
SQD: Companion Pass / Buddy Pass: If through a credit card or Aeroplan you have earned a buddy pass or companion pass that allows a second traveller at no-charge or low-charge the primary pax receives 100% of the SQD and the second pax does not receive any credit.
Do all flights qualify for SQx?
No. Many flights do not earn SQx.
Basic Economy fares on AC earn no SQx, although they do earn Aeroplan points.
Points tickets redeemed from Aeroplan or a Star Alliance partner airline do not qualify, even if paying with a mix of cash and points.
Points redeemed from 3rd party loyalty programs (e.g. Air Miles, RBC Avion) have a mixed track record. Be very cautious relying on ANY ticket you purchased through a "points" programme even if previous tickets have earned SQx or the website says it will. The companies operating this can (and have) changed the way they source tickets without notice. The Air Canada Aeroplan T&C explicitly say anything points related does not earn SQx and thus any dispute will almost certainly be denied.
In recent years, AC has added a number of non-Star Alliance partners. Flights on most of these partners only earn Aeroplan points (i.e. no SQx), and some only earn Aeroplan points on certain routes (e.g. Cathay Pacific).
SQD can only be earned on:
To illustrate, lets use an itinerary consisting of (i) YYC-EWR, operated by AC, and (ii) EWR-CHS, operated by UA. If this itinerary were purchased from AC, both flights would earn SQD. If purchased from UA, only the YYC-EWR flight would earn SQD.
How do I know how many SQx Ill earn for a given itinerary?
AC doesnt tell you when you book a ticket, but its relatively simple to calculate. The AC website lists all partners, eligible fares, and accumulation rates.
To make life easier, some FTers have built a tool to calculate SQM/SQD earnings, discussed in this thread: Calculator for SQM, Aeroplan miles, & SQD
Important caveat for flights involving partners: miles earned always depends on the operating carrier. This is the airline whose aircraft you are sitting on when you fly. Sticking to the YYC-EWR-CHS example from above, you would earn miles according to the AC accumulation chart for YYC-EWR, and according to the UA chart for EWR-CHS, regardless of which airline sold the ticket and whether the flight is a codeshare.
This can create confusion in several ways:
What are Premium and Core credit cards?
Premium cards are the highest tier Aeroplan credit cards that have an annual fee of around $600 Amex Reserve cards or Visa Infinite Privilege cards from TD or CIBC.
Core cards are mid-tier Aeroplan credit cards with an annual fee of around $120 Visa Infinite from CIBC or TD, the Chase card, or Amexs basic card.
There are four main ways to qualify for status:
- Earn a sufficient number of SQM/SQS/SQD (sometimes collectively referred to as SQx on FT) to qualify for status
- Achieve Everyday Status Qualification, which requires only earning 100K qualifying Aeroplan points (EDQ) in a calendar year to earn 25K status
- Be gifted status from an existing member. Super Elite may choose as a select benefit to gift an E50 package and E75 can gift an E35 package
- Through the Chase Aeroplan credit card, which:
- Grants 25K status for the year in which its first obtained, and the following year; after that, 25K status can be maintained by spending US$15K on the card in a calendar year
- Allows you to boost your status one level by spending US$50K on the card in a calendar year
- Some have received E25 through their Canadian credit card provider. TD specifically did issue some E25 packages one year
For further questions on Everyday Status Qualification or the Chase cards, please see the threads dedicated to those topics, which are linked above.
What are the levels of status?
The Aeroplan Elite program has five published levels of status:
- 25K
- 35K
- 50K
- 75K
- Super Elite
Before the late-2020 revamp of the Aeroplan program, the 25K level was formerly known as Prestige 25K, the three middle tiers were known as Elite 35K / Elite 50K / Elite 75K, and Super Elite was Super Elite 100K. You may see the terms P25K, E35K, E50K, E75K, and SE100K on FT as references to the former branding (sometimes minus the K, e.g. P25).
Air Canada also operates an unpublished VIP program. Unlike UA GS, AA CK, and DL 360, it is not possible to qualify for VIP through flying. ACs VIP program is targeted at a different audience that would not normally qualify for a high level of status through their own level of flying. For example, they might award VIP status to the CEO of a large corporation that buys a lot of travel from AC. Those curious about the VIP program can visit that thread; no discussion of the VIP program will be permitted in this thread.
What are the qualification requirements?
For the level you want to qualify for, it is necessary to the requirements for:
- SQM OR SQS; and
- SQD
The requirements are:
- 25K: 25,000 SQM / 25 SQS / 3,000 SQD
- 35K: 35,000 SQM / 35 SQS / 4,000 SQD
- 50K: 50,000 SQM / 50 SQS / 6,000 SQD
- 75K: 75,000 SQM / 75 SQS / 9,000 SQD
- Super Elite: 100,000 SQM / 100 SQS / 20,000 SQD
Beginning in 2022, all members must meet the SQD requirements. (Prior to 2022, non-residents only had to achieve 50% of the SQD requirements).
What are SQM, SQS, and SQD, and how do I earn them?
SQM are Status Qualifying Miles. You earn them by taking flights with AC or Star Alliance airline partners. They can also be earned by spending money on certain Aeroplan credit cards.
For flights, SQM are equal to approximately the distance between the two airports, multiplied by the earning rate for the fare type purchased. For example, Aeroplan calculates the distance from YYC to YYZ as 1,669 miles. A flight in Flex would earn 100% miles, i.e. 1,669 SQM. A flight in Standard would earn 25% miles, i.e. 417 SQM.
Certain credit cards award 1,000 SQM for each $10,000 spent on Core credit cards or $5,000 spent on the Premium "Black" credit cards.
Premium credit cards allow you to roll over up to 200K SQM over the level you qualified for in the previous year. For instance, if you flew 56,700 SQM and qualified for 50K status, you would roll over 6,700 SQM to the following year. Please see this thread for more information about the rollover benefit.
SQS are Status Qualifying Segments. You earn them by taking flights with AC or Star Alliance airline partners, by using certain Aeroplan credit cards, or as a Select Benefit selection (as of 2024).
Each qualifying flight earns 1 SQS; there are no multipliers.
Certain credit cards award 1 SQS for each $10,000 (Core credit cards) or $5,000 spent (Premium credit cards).
Starting in 2024, a new Select Benefit is available to Aeroplan 50K, 75K and SE status holders that awards 5,000 SQM and 5 SQS. This replaces the "Lower Requalification Level" Select Benefit offered in 2023 and prior years.
There is no SQS rollover.
SQD are Status Qualifying Dollars. These are equal to the base fare plus carrier-imposed surcharges for the ticket. Or you can think of SQD as the total amount paid for the ticket minus taxes and 3rd party surcharges (e.g. airport improvement fees). On receipts from AC, the amount listed as Air Transportation Charges will equal the total SQD for the ticket.
On itineraries with more than one segment, SQD are allocated across the segments based on distance, regardless of what you paid for each segment. For example, if you purchase a YYC-YYZ round trip, each segment (YYC-YYZ and YYZ-YYC) will earn 50% of the SQD, even if you paid different amounts for the two segments. Lets say you paid $300 for YYC-YYZ and $500 for YYZ-YYC (excluding GST, AIFs, etc). The total SQD would be 800, and each segment would earn 400 SQD.
SQD are earned only from flying (one-time promotions aside). Only flights themselves, eUpgrade add-ons, and unlimited flight pass monthly payments qualify. Fees for extra services (e.g. baggage fees, seat selection, on-board purchases, etc) do not count towards SQD.
There is no SQD rollover.
SQD: Air Canada Vacation / ACV: The one exception to "only from flying" for SQD is the purchase of an Air Canada Vacation Package. Air Canada will take 25% of an eligible package value and split it equally amongst all passengers over two years old. So a $10,000 package with two adults and two teens will see each passenger get 625 SQD. An Eligible Package refers to a vacation package consisting of a flight-inclusive vacation package or a Flight & Cruise package.
SQD: Companion Pass / Buddy Pass: If through a credit card or Aeroplan you have earned a buddy pass or companion pass that allows a second traveller at no-charge or low-charge the primary pax receives 100% of the SQD and the second pax does not receive any credit.
Do all flights qualify for SQx?
No. Many flights do not earn SQx.
Basic Economy fares on AC earn no SQx, although they do earn Aeroplan points.
Points tickets redeemed from Aeroplan or a Star Alliance partner airline do not qualify, even if paying with a mix of cash and points.
Points redeemed from 3rd party loyalty programs (e.g. Air Miles, RBC Avion) have a mixed track record. Be very cautious relying on ANY ticket you purchased through a "points" programme even if previous tickets have earned SQx or the website says it will. The companies operating this can (and have) changed the way they source tickets without notice. The Air Canada Aeroplan T&C explicitly say anything points related does not earn SQx and thus any dispute will almost certainly be denied.
- Air Miles have generally never posted
- RBC Avion used to consistently earn SQx but many flights booked now don't earn (see thread)
In recent years, AC has added a number of non-Star Alliance partners. Flights on most of these partners only earn Aeroplan points (i.e. no SQx), and some only earn Aeroplan points on certain routes (e.g. Cathay Pacific).
SQD can only be earned on:
- Flights operated by AC
- Flights operated by *A partners, ticketed by AC
To illustrate, lets use an itinerary consisting of (i) YYC-EWR, operated by AC, and (ii) EWR-CHS, operated by UA. If this itinerary were purchased from AC, both flights would earn SQD. If purchased from UA, only the YYC-EWR flight would earn SQD.
How do I know how many SQx Ill earn for a given itinerary?
AC doesnt tell you when you book a ticket, but its relatively simple to calculate. The AC website lists all partners, eligible fares, and accumulation rates.
To make life easier, some FTers have built a tool to calculate SQM/SQD earnings, discussed in this thread: Calculator for SQM, Aeroplan miles, & SQD
Important caveat for flights involving partners: miles earned always depends on the operating carrier. This is the airline whose aircraft you are sitting on when you fly. Sticking to the YYC-EWR-CHS example from above, you would earn miles according to the AC accumulation chart for YYC-EWR, and according to the UA chart for EWR-CHS, regardless of which airline sold the ticket and whether the flight is a codeshare.
This can create confusion in several ways:
- During the booking flow on the AC website, AC displays only the earning rates for AC flights. You may buy a Flex fare thinking you will earn 100% miles, only to find out that on a partner flight you were booked in a fare class that earned less. For instance, if you buy a business class fare involving an intra-Europe flight on Lufthansa in a P fare, the website will show that you'll earn 150% miles, but you will earn only 50% on the Lufthansa leg
- When booking codeshares, it may be impossible to know the operating carrier's fare class. For instance, the AC website may sell you UA's EWR-CHS flight as "AC5678" and show you an M fare when you select Flex. But you may actually be actually be booked on a UA Q fare and only earn 75% miles
- When booking AC flights through a partner airline, you may not know the fare brand (Flex, Latitude, etc). United might show you an H fare on YYC-EWR, but this could map to Flex, Standard, or Comfort, and your earning would be impacted accordingly
What are Premium and Core credit cards?
Premium cards are the highest tier Aeroplan credit cards that have an annual fee of around $600 Amex Reserve cards or Visa Infinite Privilege cards from TD or CIBC.
Core cards are mid-tier Aeroplan credit cards with an annual fee of around $120 Visa Infinite from CIBC or TD, the Chase card, or Amexs basic card.
Qualifying for Aeroplan Elite Status - overview/FAQ
Feb 13, 2025 | 9:16 pm
#1201
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: SFO
Programs: AC SE MM, SK Gold, Bonvoy Plat LTG, Hyatt Glob, HH Diamond
Posts: 47,355
Feb 20, 2025 | 12:02 am
#1202
Join Date: May 2024
Programs: FB Silver
Posts: 6
Aeroplan mileage credit on UA-ticketed, AC-metal flights
For a UA-ticketed (016) revenue flight on AC metal, will I earn Aeroplan miles based on the UA fare class indicated at the time of purchase? For example, will an R class 016 ticket operated by AC earn 100% Aeroplan miles?
I very rarely fly *A but have periodically run into issues with ST codeshare flights booked in an eligible fare class being excluded from earning miles based on the codeshare flight number range, so I wanted to confirm before buying. I don't see any similar restrictions listed on the AC website's partner earnings schedule for UA.
Thanks in advance.
I very rarely fly *A but have periodically run into issues with ST codeshare flights booked in an eligible fare class being excluded from earning miles based on the codeshare flight number range, so I wanted to confirm before buying. I don't see any similar restrictions listed on the AC website's partner earnings schedule for UA.
Thanks in advance.
Feb 20, 2025 | 12:15 am
#1203
Original Poster
Moderator, Air Canada; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: YYC
Programs: AC SE MM, FB Plat, WS Plat, BA Silver, Marriott Plat, Hilton Gold, Accor Gold
Posts: 18,980
Note: merged with existing thread. The wiki at the top of the thread addresses codeshares. UA R should map to an AC PY fare class (O/E/A). Which one doesn't really matter since they all earn 125%.
Feb 25, 2025 | 5:24 am
#1204
Join Date: Oct 2022
Location: Ottawa, Canada + Edinburgh, Scotland
Programs: AC Super Elite 100k, Star Alliance Gold
Posts: 1,324
I understand how SQD is supposed to be awarded in normal cases, but am unsure about what happens (or is supposed to happen) in the case of voluntary changes made after one bound is flown. The wiki is silent on this from what I can see, or at least not explicit.
To see the issue, suppose I book FRA-YYZ and YVR-FRA as one itinerary, for total ATC of $1000. After flying FRA-YYZ, 440 SQD will post (or should post). If I fly YVR-FRA, the other 560 will post/should post. So far, so good, this is the normal case.
But suppose after flying FRA-YYZ, I change the return from YVR-FRA to YYZ-FRA. Do I get 560 SQD for that, the reasoning being there is 560 SQD residual in the ticket and that's the only segment it is divided over? Or do I get 500 SQD, the reasoning being ATC were $1000 and YYZ-FRA flight is half the total distance flown?
A related question is if I have to pay, say, $500 more in ATC to change the YVR-FRA flight to YYZ-FRA, does all of that SQD get attributed to that flight, on the grounds its the only segment remaining? Or would AC consider the change to affect the SQD due for the entire itinerary (FRA-YYZ-FRA) rather than just the not-yet-flown bound, on the grounds that how much you pay for each segment is irrelevant? (I know it's irrelevant in the normal case, I just don't know if it's irrelevant in this sort of case where there's been a change after one bound has been flown.)
The amounts are small in my example but could be large, but aside from that it's hard to keep accounting tidy without knowing how this sort of issue is treated by AC.
thanks for any insight.
To see the issue, suppose I book FRA-YYZ and YVR-FRA as one itinerary, for total ATC of $1000. After flying FRA-YYZ, 440 SQD will post (or should post). If I fly YVR-FRA, the other 560 will post/should post. So far, so good, this is the normal case.
But suppose after flying FRA-YYZ, I change the return from YVR-FRA to YYZ-FRA. Do I get 560 SQD for that, the reasoning being there is 560 SQD residual in the ticket and that's the only segment it is divided over? Or do I get 500 SQD, the reasoning being ATC were $1000 and YYZ-FRA flight is half the total distance flown?
A related question is if I have to pay, say, $500 more in ATC to change the YVR-FRA flight to YYZ-FRA, does all of that SQD get attributed to that flight, on the grounds its the only segment remaining? Or would AC consider the change to affect the SQD due for the entire itinerary (FRA-YYZ-FRA) rather than just the not-yet-flown bound, on the grounds that how much you pay for each segment is irrelevant? (I know it's irrelevant in the normal case, I just don't know if it's irrelevant in this sort of case where there's been a change after one bound has been flown.)
The amounts are small in my example but could be large, but aside from that it's hard to keep accounting tidy without knowing how this sort of issue is treated by AC.
thanks for any insight.
Feb 25, 2025 | 10:06 am
#1205
Original Poster
Moderator, Air Canada; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: YYC
Programs: AC SE MM, FB Plat, WS Plat, BA Silver, Marriott Plat, Hilton Gold, Accor Gold
Posts: 18,980
You asked the same thing in December. Nothing about the program has changed since then, and I doubt anyone here has any new information beyond what was provided then.
Feb 25, 2025 | 1:15 pm
#1206
Join Date: Oct 2022
Location: Ottawa, Canada + Edinburgh, Scotland
Programs: AC Super Elite 100k, Star Alliance Gold
Posts: 1,324
Thanks. I had a vague memory of having asked this, but I searched multiple threads trying to find the discussion (but for some unknown reason not this thread) and thought I must be hallucinating the memory. Thanks for your earlier reply and the reminder.
Feb 25, 2025 | 2:55 pm
#1207
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC SE 100K MM; Marriott Lifetime Titanium, Avis Presidents Club
Posts: 4,118
Just curious as to the purpose behind this exercise in intellectual self-pleasure...it's going to be what it's going to be as surely the system is programmed to handle these situations in the manner with which AC intends. The output will be the output and if you want to make sure you get the SQD you thought you were going to get then fly the flights you booked is how I see it, but just MHO.
Feb 26, 2025 | 12:18 am
#1208
Join Date: Oct 2022
Location: Ottawa, Canada + Edinburgh, Scotland
Programs: AC Super Elite 100k, Star Alliance Gold
Posts: 1,324
Just curious as to the purpose behind this exercise in intellectual self-pleasure...it's going to be what it's going to be as surely the system is programmed to handle these situations in the manner with which AC intends. The output will be the output and if you want to make sure you get the SQD you thought you were going to get then fly the flights you booked is how I see it, but just MHO.
For example, suppose (as Adam confirmed is not the case) I would lose some SQD by changing YVR-FRA to YYZ-FRA, but I need to fly YYZ-FRA on the date of the flight rather than YVR-FRA. If I have a YVR-FRA trip needed later in the year, it could make sense to punt that flight to then (preserving rather than losing the SQD) rather than change it to YYZ-FRA. This is just one of many things I can think of.
In this example scenario I gave, the SQD value is small so it's not a big deal, although as you know toward the end of the year even a very small difference in SQx can make big difference to status levels. But the bigger point is just that if one notices a lacuna in one's understanding of how the AP program works, especially for SQx attribution, isn't it better to fill it rather than to just let the ignorance remain?
Feb 26, 2025 | 2:04 pm
#1209
Join Date: Oct 2021
Location: Halifax, NS
Posts: 70
SQM/SQD/SQS for Korean Air?
Hello again folks,
Again, I've searched and could not find an answer so I thought I'd ask here!
if I were to book a flight through the Air Canada website (I'm assuming this would result in an 014 ticket) and 1 of the segments (each way was operated by Korean Airlines, a non-Star alliance member), would I still get SQM/SQD/and SQS for that segment?
Here is the proposed itinerary (3 flight segments each way):
Halifax YHZ - Toronto YYZ
Duration: 2h 29mDuration: 2 hours and 29 minutes
Cabin:Business Class(D)
Toronto YYZ - Seoul ICN
AC 61 | Operated by Air Canada
Boeing 787-9
Cabin:Business Class(D)
Seoul ICN - Cebu CEB
Flight number KE615. Operated by Korean Air
KE 615 | Operated by Korean Air
Cabin:Business Class(I)
Return Portion:
Cebu CEB - Seoul ICN
Flight number KE616. Operated by Korean Air
KE 616 | Operated by Korean Air
Cabin:Business Class(I)
Seoul ICN - Toronto YYZ
AC 62 | Operated by Air Canada
Cabin:Business Class(Z)
Toronto TTZ - Halifax YHZ
AC 620 | Operated by Air Canada
Cabin:Business Class(Z)
Thanks in advance, once again!
Again, I've searched and could not find an answer so I thought I'd ask here!
if I were to book a flight through the Air Canada website (I'm assuming this would result in an 014 ticket) and 1 of the segments (each way was operated by Korean Airlines, a non-Star alliance member), would I still get SQM/SQD/and SQS for that segment?
Here is the proposed itinerary (3 flight segments each way):
Halifax YHZ - Toronto YYZ
Duration: 2h 29mDuration: 2 hours and 29 minutes
Cabin:Business Class(D)
Toronto YYZ - Seoul ICN
AC 61 | Operated by Air Canada
Boeing 787-9
Cabin:Business Class(D)
Seoul ICN - Cebu CEB
Flight number KE615. Operated by Korean Air
KE 615 | Operated by Korean Air
Cabin:Business Class(I)
Return Portion:
Cebu CEB - Seoul ICN
Flight number KE616. Operated by Korean Air
KE 616 | Operated by Korean Air
Cabin:Business Class(I)
Seoul ICN - Toronto YYZ
AC 62 | Operated by Air Canada
Cabin:Business Class(Z)
Toronto TTZ - Halifax YHZ
AC 620 | Operated by Air Canada
Cabin:Business Class(Z)
Thanks in advance, once again!
Feb 26, 2025 | 2:11 pm
#1210
Original Poster
Moderator, Air Canada; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: YYC
Programs: AC SE MM, FB Plat, WS Plat, BA Silver, Marriott Plat, Hilton Gold, Accor Gold
Posts: 18,980
No. KE isn't a *A partner, so earns no SQx. The details of what qualifies for SQx can be found in the wiki at the beginning of this thread.
Feb 26, 2025 | 2:19 pm
#1211
Join Date: Oct 2021
Location: Halifax, NS
Posts: 70
Important caveat for flights involving partners: miles earned always depends on the operating carrier. This is the airline whose aircraft you are sitting on when you fly. Sticking to the YYC-EWR-CHS example from above, you would earn miles according to the AC accumulation chart for YYC-EWR, and according to the UA chart for EWR-CHS, regardless of which airline sold the ticket and whether the flight is a codeshare.
Strange AC would offer flights by non- *A members on its website, don't ya think?
Anyway, thanks again!
Feb 26, 2025 | 2:25 pm
#1212
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: YYZ
Programs: AC SE 100K MM; Marriott Lifetime Titanium, Avis Presidents Club
Posts: 4,118
My understanding is part of the purpose of Flyertalk is to help FF understand how mileage programs work, so they can use them to their advantage, or at least not to their disadvantage. There are all sorts of good reasons one might want to know the answer to the question I asked and why it might make a material difference to one's decision-making.
For example, suppose (as Adam confirmed is not the case) I would lose some SQD by changing YVR-FRA to YYZ-FRA, but I need to fly YYZ-FRA on the date of the flight rather than YVR-FRA. If I have a YVR-FRA trip needed later in the year, it could make sense to punt that flight to then (preserving rather than losing the SQD) rather than change it to YYZ-FRA. This is just one of many things I can think of.
In this example scenario I gave, the SQD value is small so it's not a big deal, although as you know toward the end of the year even a very small difference in SQx can make big difference to status levels. But the bigger point is just that if one notices a lacuna in one's understanding of how the AP program works, especially for SQx attribution, isn't it better to fill it rather than to just let the ignorance remain?
For example, suppose (as Adam confirmed is not the case) I would lose some SQD by changing YVR-FRA to YYZ-FRA, but I need to fly YYZ-FRA on the date of the flight rather than YVR-FRA. If I have a YVR-FRA trip needed later in the year, it could make sense to punt that flight to then (preserving rather than losing the SQD) rather than change it to YYZ-FRA. This is just one of many things I can think of.
In this example scenario I gave, the SQD value is small so it's not a big deal, although as you know toward the end of the year even a very small difference in SQx can make big difference to status levels. But the bigger point is just that if one notices a lacuna in one's understanding of how the AP program works, especially for SQx attribution, isn't it better to fill it rather than to just let the ignorance remain?
Feb 26, 2025 | 2:27 pm
#1213
Original Poster
Moderator, Air Canada; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: YYC
Programs: AC SE MM, FB Plat, WS Plat, BA Silver, Marriott Plat, Hilton Gold, Accor Gold
Posts: 18,980
The text you've quoted is specific to codeshares and not applicable to your situation. What it says under SQM is "SQM are Status Qualifying Miles. You earn them by taking flights with AC or Star Alliance airline partners." SQS/SQD say the same thing.
AC offers many flights by non-*A airlines on its website. As big as *A is, it doesn't fly everywhere, so sometimes the only option is a carrier outside the alliance. It's also not a single integrated airline, with each airline cooperating to a certain extent, but also looking out for its own bottom line.
This occasionally leads airlines to form partnerships outside the alliance. For example, AC and AI are both in *A, but for various reasons, AC has chosen to partner with EK and funnel a lot of traffic to/from India via DXB. Or in the old days, AC often had better pricing to South Africa connecting via LHR on BA than it did with SA.
Strange AC would offer flights by non- *A members on its website, don't ya think?
This occasionally leads airlines to form partnerships outside the alliance. For example, AC and AI are both in *A, but for various reasons, AC has chosen to partner with EK and funnel a lot of traffic to/from India via DXB. Or in the old days, AC often had better pricing to South Africa connecting via LHR on BA than it did with SA.
Feb 26, 2025 | 2:56 pm
#1214
Join Date: May 2003
Programs: NZ Silver, AC SE100K, Westjet, Marriott, Global Entry
Posts: 6,868
Therein lies the wonder of FT. Answers to 99.99% of our questions.
I was questioning how far to push the crediting of a missing 288 SQMs and 79 SQDs and decided it was important as imagine being close to YE, or just shy of a PA or Threshold.
In flyingcrooked's example it would be a serious bummer to avoidably miss out on some SQX's that would push them over the next threshold/hurdle
Mar 23, 2025 | 7:03 am
#1215
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: YYZ
Programs: ACMM SE UA2MM Marriott Lifetime Tite Titanium
Posts: 4,472
How many SQM's?
Paging the Experts
I have searched this & other threads RE: Qualifying for AE Status and cannot find the discussion on the following.
I will be short of 3000SQM for 75K.
In FEB I had big spend purchasing TIXs issued 014 north of 12K++ on my CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege
From my calculation the Base points Status Qualifying Currencies was north of 30K- I should have receive 6000SQM
My Spend posted on 21 March broken down as :1, 21 March CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege
Base
10,288 pts
Status Qualifying Currencies 10288
2. 21 March - CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege
Base
19208 pts
Status Qualifying Currencies 19208 pts
MAR 21 CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite PrivilegeStatus Qualification Boost/ Acclrateur de qualification un statut CIBC 3,000 SQM 3 SQS
I am new to this. is 3000SQM the correct or I should have received 6000SQM?
I have searched this & other threads RE: Qualifying for AE Status and cannot find the discussion on the following.
I will be short of 3000SQM for 75K.
In FEB I had big spend purchasing TIXs issued 014 north of 12K++ on my CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege
From my calculation the Base points Status Qualifying Currencies was north of 30K- I should have receive 6000SQM
My Spend posted on 21 March broken down as :1, 21 March CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege
Base
10,288 pts
Status Qualifying Currencies 10288
2. 21 March - CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite Privilege
Base
19208 pts
Status Qualifying Currencies 19208 pts
MAR 21 CIBC Aeroplan Visa Infinite PrivilegeStatus Qualification Boost/ Acclrateur de qualification un statut CIBC 3,000 SQM 3 SQS
I am new to this. is 3000SQM the correct or I should have received 6000SQM?