RBH58

I'm booked in May to fly from MEL>JNB return. My ticket is with SA (which is of course a *A member). Accordingly, I quoted my SQ FF number on the flights expecting to earn *A points only to find out that because QF (OneWorld) operate the codeshare with SA and it is a cross-alliance codeshare, that I'd have earned ZERO points for the flights.

Apparently if I change the FF number to my QF one (which I've now done), I will earn points even though I'm on an SA ticket. At no point in time did anybody point this out to me and the only reason I found this out is because I was at a party on the weekend where some guy was venting about how SA had ripped him off on the same itinerary.

I really think that SA, or any airline that chooses to engage in cross-alliance codeshares, have a duty to point this out to their customers...and not in microscopic small print. There was a negligible difference in price flying SQ (but a big difference in total travel time) but if I'd known about the impact that a cross-alliance codeshare would have before getting the flight ticketed, I think I may have flown SQ.

Anybody else experienced this or something similar?

trooper

I think it is a general rule for the operating carrier to be required to be part of the alliance for points to accrue...at least when crediting to *A programs...

I assume you were/are booked on QF metal?

Only time I've been affected was when I flew DEN-CEZ as part of a larger itin.. and did not get credited for that flight... but nor did I expect to as the operating carrier was ZK... not a *A member....

kazuwox

I'm sorry to hear that - I had the same situation years ago :

I took OZ flight (Asiana) from Seoul to Istanbul years ago. The flight number was
three digit, then I thought it should be a proper Asiana flight. However, the truth is that
it was a code share flight with TK (Turkish airlines) who was not Star Alliance member
at the time.

The result - no mileage..! Yes, it was a trap -- but the journey itself was gorgeous,
which was good consolation to me..

lokijuh

This is very very common. And it works both ways - if you had flown on SA (from PER) on the QF code, if you'd tried to credit the flight to another oneworld program (eg CX) you would have had the same issue.

Bottom line codeshares that are not within the same alliance, are usually only good for the marketing airline's own FF program. Often you wouldn't even get points on the operating carrier's program.

RBH58

I think it sucks. If an airline sells a ticket on a flight and that flight is carrying their flight number then its alliance members have a right to expect that they'll earn alliance points on it. If the airline has offered the flight by codesharing with an airline of another alliance it should have no bearing on this. Who owns "the metal" should be totally irrelevant. SA give no warning when you are making the booking. The whole thing is a con job.