Aisle Seat H

Hi all.

Was wodering if any of you could give me advise on which, if any, of the SkyTeam airlines will comp. me their top tier FF status (I'm a QF Platinum and a BMI Gold)...

And if they do which one would I actually want, by which I mean which ones have the best benefits etc... and I would prefer it if it was not in an airline likely to go bust soon !

Ta

slawecki

Seems US will comp, Europe will not.

No program as strong as LH SEN, as in No domestic tickets into the club when out of country,I think.

I generated a chart for qualifications, you can see it here:

http://www.anything.slawecki.com/SKY...on%20chart.xls

One of the best places to get awards info and lounge info is on the Czech site:

http://www.czechairlines.com/en/worldwide.htm

NickW

slawecki - one note on your spreadsheet: it suggests that Alitalia elite bonus mileage counts towards elite status.

However, this is not the case: "Le miglia guadagnate con il bonus non sono qualificanti per l'accesso ai Club esclusivi Alitalia" according to the Alitalia website.

kiam

slawecki, Neither NW nor DL counts Elite Bonus towards Elite Status. Kindly update your spreadsheet. Only flown miles with multiplier based on fares are counted towards Elite Status on NW, CO and DL.

Aisle Seat H, regarding your original post in relating to comp match, it really depends on who you plan to fly the most, then choose that one. From what I know, AF will NOT match status for sure while DL, NW and CO should (only up to Gold from what I know) but they may offer you a challenge, e.g. flying 15-20K miles within 60 days, then you will get Gold Status. Contact respective airlines directly to find out more details. I know someone who needed to fly 20K in 3 months and get Gold status out of Delta.

The most controversial question regarding which program is the best, I don't think anyone here could or should answer you that question unless it is strictly their own personal opinion, and I don't believe there is such a thing as the BEST program because each program within SkyTeam is quite unique of its own. All really depends on who you fly the most, how you fly (routing and class of service wise) and what kind of benefits you are looking for. Are you looking for US domestic upgrades? Are you looking for the easiest way to achieve Elite Plus Status? Are you looking for a club membership or Upgrade Coupons upon reaching Platinum (75K miles)?...etc You can search elite benefits info on each of the airline's forum to find out, or just go directly to their own website to see the summary then decide which one meets your needs the most.

slawecki

I got the 1's and 2's in the wrong columns. Only AZ & OK count bonus miles to status miles that I have found so far. I cannot figure out what AM & KE do with most everything.

Thanks for the correction.

graraps

Not true for OK (only COS bonus counts). And, as NickW said, doesn't look like it's good for AZ either.

slawecki

Will delete. sorry, very difficult to read and understand.

Aisle Seat H

Ta kiam and slawecki and everyone for the info., very good of you.

Will look into programmes, just was interested in general opinions on merits of SkyTeam airlines programmes - there may have been one or two that is generally prefered/avoided !

But in answer to your question kiam, top status benefits and upgrades are my priority. I fly a LOT each year - short, medium and long haul, about half in Economy half in Business, mainly Europe and Asia-Pacific, little bit to US - and want best 'rewards' for this.

And specifically, do any of you know for sure which airline will comp. me status without me having to do a 'Challenge' ?

And slawecki wrote "Seems US will comp, Europe will not" - does this means that NONE of the Europe based SkyTeam carriers comp. status in your experience ?

slawecki

I tried OK, AF, & AZ. Had business class tickets on AZ IAD-VCE, and no comp. Not even the 25K silver.

Cannot try KL.

Aisle Seat H

Why ?

slawecki

US address. When I try to fill out the form, I get bounced to NW web site. Can I go to airport & get a form & join KL? Or do they bounce me to NW?

KVS

They will always bounce you to NW if you have a North American address.

However, just like most US-based carriers, NW does comp. Also, if you get comped by NW and change your address on file to an address in the KL "region" (e.g. Europe), they will transfer your status to KL's FlyingDutchman (although the process can take a number of weeks)...

Aisle Seat H

OK, this is starting to become clearer.

I live in London, UK - so does this all mean that KL will comp. me ?

And I called CO and they said that they do not comp. anybody to Platinum, but that they would give me Gold. This does not give me lounge access when travelling in Y though does it, so I have to admit is of little appeal to me. As a QF Plat and BMI G I get into the First Calss lounges even when in Economy, so what use to me is a status that does not even get me into the J lounge ?!?

Will KL (or any other SkyTeam airline) comp. me top tier status ?

graraps

What's the problem if they don't?
Seriously, you need only 45k to get top status on AF. In real terms this is less than two longhaul biz roundtrips, or about three in Y. It's not like it will take you an awful lot of time to build it up!

Aisle Seat H

a) cos I would like the benefits the first time I book and fly, not a few months later after I have 'earned' it !

the whole point of trying to get comp'ed is that i have done the 'hard work' to get status in other airlines/networks and am trying to use this to 'jump the queue' on other airlines ! This is such a common practice that there is a Thread on the subject on this site that now runs for more than 18 pages !

b) the main thing, which i share with you all but won't tell the airline in question of course, is that I want this status so I can get benefits I doubt very much that I am actually going to earn - i.e. there is no way I will be flying enough to re-earn QF Plat. (which requires a tremendous amount of travel), BMI Gold AND a SkyTeam top tier, so this year I will be re-earning my longstanding QF and BMI statuses. BUT, I will also be taking at least 3-5 short and medium haul flights in the next year with SkyTeam airlines in Y for personal trips (on KLM, Czech and possibly on Alitalia and/or a US carrier too) so this would be a good year for me to have SkyTeam top tier benefits too.

Lounge access, and an upgrade etc too, on these limited flights I will be taking would thus be very nice ! Gold on one of these airlines is thus not that useful to me, it would seem, as it does not get me lounge access etc when flying other SkyTeam carriers.

So, now that you see my situation and needs... will KL (or any other SkyTeam airline) comp. me top tier status ?!?