Hi,
I currently hold Silver (Frequent Traveller) Status with Luthansa, have not however been overly impressed with their standards of service,even when dealing with loyal customers.However,I feel tied to LH by the status and my location.Does anyone have experience of whether other Star Alliance carriers are likely to equal my LH status if I transfer to them, without having to regain the status on these airlines,particularly British Midland and United.What would be the best way to go about this if so? The same questions apply to British Airways,as they are the easiest airline to travel with from my current location other than LH.

Any help or advice would be much appreciated. Many Thanks

Welcome to Flyertalk. We have a "Star Alliance" forum that experts lurking there can give you a thorough answer. I will transfer your question there. Please check that forum out tomorrow for feedback.

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Craig6z
Buzz & United Moderator
[email protected]

Within Star Alliance, the question of which airline to fly and the question of which FF program to use are almost entirely independent.

You might, for example, find it best to stay with Miles & More while patronizing BD and UA. Or you might decide to fly LH and credit your miles to UA's Mileage Plus. (I've done both in the same week.)

I suggest choosing an airline each time you need to fly, but (unless you are racking up several hundred thousand miles per year) staying with just one FF program. Which *A FF program is best for you will depend on which airlines you fly most, the length of your segments, the fares you pay, etc. M&M is particularly good for those who pay First and Business Class fares and for those who fly short segments.

I very much doubt, that British Midland will comp a LH FT (Silver) - LH and partner SK each hold 20% of BD's shares.

You don't have to give up your miles&more status if you prefer to fly other StarAlliance-airlines (like BD, UA and all others). miles&more even honours every flight with all StarAlliance airlines with status bonus miles (counting as status too) - the other programs (you mention UA) don't.

(the moderator 'forgot' to move this post together with the whole thread)

It is my understanding that *G will not honour status in a transfer from 1 program to another - this is intended to avoid canibalization of each other's base. I do know of one *G member who went from UA to LH by getting AA to comp Gold based on their UA status, and the LH comping Gold based on their AA status.

Not sure if that helps or not.

I agree w/ other posts: basically where are your flight patterns? BD is, of course, very limited compared to LH and UA. I have flown BD several times recently and in short haul I did not like them any more/less than LH. if you travel lots to the States, then UA would be the way I'd recommend. You have to get the UA status, but once you do I think they pay extra attention to foreign members who make 1K or even 1P. While 1K's might be a dime a dozen at ORD or IAD, if FRA is your home airport, you are part of a much smaller pool of individuals and would have a chance to strike up personal relationships with ground staff. And I think everyone on all of these boards will agree, there is no substitute with having an "angel" watching out for you inthe program you fly with most often. (BTW--"angel": an individual airline staff person you get to know personally who is willing to bend the rules, offer UG's, and help take care of you. Often rewarded with little gifts from grateful travelers.)