Comp'ing status in SKYTeam
 

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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

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 ?

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

Cannot try KL.

Why ?

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?

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)...

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 ?

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!

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 ?!?

The short answer to your question is: Non-US based FF programs do not generally comp status (this includes KL); it is extremely unlikely that any of the US-based SkyTeam FF programs will comp top-tier status.

Thanks KVS.

And if anyone else out here does have experience/rumour of how I can a) get comp'ed status on one of the Europe based SkyTeam carriers, or b) how to get comp'ed top tier on any SkyTeam carrier, I would be most appreciative if you could share the info with me ?!?

Ta !

You have "earned" it with your current programs but not with SkyTeam.

And the whole point of any SkyTeam carriers giving you a comp match only up to Gold Level because they want to see some "hard work" from you on their airlines. You did your hard work on other networks, how could you expect to not do anything at all and get the same benefits? Even when moving from SkyTeam to StarAlliance (for example, myself getting comp match from United, I only got Premier Executive instead of 1K while I am a DL Platinum who needed 100K miles to reach that status), they do the same by giving one tier below the top tier. This is so common !!! You jump from nothing to Gold, that is generous enough. Remember that SkyTeam Gold gives you min of 100% mileage bonus (except AF non-US account gets 50%) on ALL SKYTEAM operated flights. I don't see any other StarAlliance airlines doing this. Most airlines only offers 100% bonus on their own operated flights, but not on their partners, e.g. United Premier Executive gives 100% bonus only on UA and LH flights.

Challenge or comp match is offered for you to show only "some or no" work by giving you the quickest way to get one level below the highest tier. If you don't like the idea, don't bother. Stay where you are with your own networks and at the end, you get nothing from SkyTeam.

You said you fly half in Economy and half in business, therefore, you will only suffer half of the time for not getting lounge access while earning 100% bonus miles ALL the time you fly. To me, that makes up for it. If lounge access matters so much, spend your few hundred dollars to get club membership. It should not cost much comparing to NO WORK you have done for SkyTeam and already got Gold Level.

I know someone would get tetchy about this !!!

Obviously, but that does not stop other airlines comp'ing their top status - last year Star Alliance gave it to anyone in the UK for equivalent status in any other airlines*, BMI do it all the time anyway, as do a number of US, African and Asian carriers... Have a read of the Status Match thread and similar ones mate, you will see just how many people, on so many airlines, get comp'ed top status - I just want the same from SkyTeam...

... especially, as I explained in my post, over the next few months ALL my travel in SkyTeam will be in Y, none in J (so lounge access is an important benefit).

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate that anyone comp'ing me anything is a great thing, that I have no God given right to it, and that it is all for free, but in the cut-throat competitive world of air travel, and when other airlines do comp. top status, it is something I felt may have been offered, indeed should be on offer.

If they had any forward thinking, and studied my travel patterns, they would understand why giving me top tier might benefit SkyTeam. With lesser status there would be little incentive for me to move my business from the airlines I have it in already - but with top tier if I liked the service I might move my business, and find myself actually earning top tier in years to come ! You would have though that someone who flew over 160,000 miles in a 13 month period, much of it in J/F etc, would be someone they would want to attract, what ever it takes !

* = In fact, some people got given top status even though they did not have it with their own airlines ! Qantas Golds were comp'ed Star Alliance Golds even though Qantas Gold is only the second highest status !

Have just seen this on the Status Match Thread by the way, on a post from Oct '03, that states -

Continental : Will match status, generally to equivalent level up to Platinum (top tier).

So they do, or at least did, match top tier status, prooving my point.

Other US carriers that is states there also comp. their top tier status are - American West, Alaska, USAirways, AirTran, Frontier, Mexicana,... you get the point !

Miles Bonus v Lounge Access
 

On this point, that is a good benefit, agreed (thought its not unique), but mid-tier status on Oneworld carriers (Sapphire) for e.g. gives you Lounge Access across the network even when flying in Y (plus 50% miles bonus)... so it is 6 of one, half a dozen of the other ! Depends on your preferences.

Oh, and on the subject of benefits, with top-tier status in QF I can go into the First Class lounges at any time, even when I am flying a totally unaffiliated airline that day (or on Oz Domestic even if I am not flying) ! (Does SkyTeam offer such a benefit to its most valued customers ?)

So if I can always make sure that when I fly SkyTeam I am in the same terminal as a QF lounge I won't need SkyTeam lounge access rights, but its unlikely this will be the case very often !

<i don't think LH comps anybody! Read the LH forum. Certainly not just anybody.

Will CO comp me to Gold??

As a UK based *A Gold (BD), I am an existing CO Silver(ex-Gold) and can evidence 3 *A t/atlantics, plus euro trips in last 3 months....have some more t/atlantic trips planned this year and need the double miles Gold bonus!.....WILL go *A unless they do comp tho.....