Swissfan

I am a Silver member of CSA's OK PLUS programme, and have accumulated quite a few thousand airmiles. As I travel regularly in business class on OK and other airlines, the incentive of using my airmiles for air travel in economy and business is small. Instead, I have been hoping to save up for a "trip-of-a-lifetime", which of course I want to take in First class. Either on Air France or Korean Air.
After speaking to an agent in the OK PLUS service centre, it appears this is not possible, as CSA only offers Y and J, hence their FFP members can only use Y and J on other airlines - even if these other airlines offer Y, J and F..!
Is this correct?
Is there any other way around this? Like transferring my miles to Flying Blue or another programme...
I feel quite by learning this, and feel like writing a letter to CSA/OK PLUS senior management. Does anybody else have any experiences in raising this issue with OK?

Look forward to your comments



Swissfan 2008

sbm12

Welcome to FlyerTalk!!

Sadly, what you heard from the OK service center is actually correct. Only FB and KE miles can be used for F redemptions because the other carriers don't have F cabins. You can write a letter, but that isn't going to change things.

AF's J isn't so bad as an alternative.

Happy flying.

ralfkrippner

A warm welcome also from me.

What sbm12 has written above is also my actual knowledge. It may be worth to investigate in (non skyteam) partner airlines of cza. Maybe you can have an F award there? Malaysia Airlines possibly?

Swissfan

Hi guys, thanks for your replies.
Looking on ok-plus.com, it doesn't seem like CSA has any other other partners than Skyteam members and their assocaties. (Like Kenya Airways etc...)
Where can I get a list of OK's non-Skyteam partners...?
Or did you mean become a member of MH's programme, and collect miles when flying on OK. But then I wouldn't get tier miles...? Then, I might as well join Flying Blue - but their threshold for silver membership is higher than OK's.

I think that is still the only solution if one wants to use airmiles for F/cl travel, and most miles are being accumulated on OK.

Is there not a pressure group that can convince OK management to change this stupid policy...! Many business travellers travel frequently in Business class anyway, so why would they want to use their "hard-earned" miles for: a leisure trip in business..!?!? Not much of an incentive for someone that travels in J/cl anyway 20 times a year..!!!


Swissfan 2008

sbm12

You can try MH, but I believe that even they are starting to pull back on F rewards for partners who can't reciprocate. NW is an MH partner, for example, and they recently stopped allowing redemption of F rewards:

dvs7310

As much as most of us don't like it, your problem isn't unique to OK. In the US it greatly benefits me to keep my miles in CO, NW, or DL's programs because of free elite upgrades on domestic flights, but it also precludes me from getting a first class award ticket anywhere.

One good thing for you is that if you're used to OK's business class then most of the other skyteam carriers business class will seem like a significant upgrade to you. Also beware, on KE, even if you get a first class seat the First and Biz seats on the A330 that serves Prague are a joke. The Biz seats on that plane are like domestic first class in the US and the first class seats are not much better.

If you really want to keep silver status in OK plus then I'd just put enough miles per year in that program and then dump everything else into AF Flying Blue.