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Need assistance with Star Alliance strategy please

Need assistance with Star Alliance strategy please

Old May 28, 2022, 3:29 pm
  #1  
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Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 19
Need assistance with Star Alliance strategy please

I have several flights coming up Star Alliance partners and I am trying to figure out where to focus my miles.
Please help.
Some details:
I am based in Buenos Aires.
I have 19,500 United miles and their branded card.
I did a status match to ANA platinum
Upcoming flights to the US and Caribbean on Avianca and Copa
Planning to fly to Egypt in Nov ( no tickets purchased yet)

What do think my strategy should be? (Let me know if you need additional info)

Thanks in advance
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Old May 28, 2022, 3:49 pm
  #2  
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Originally Posted by alimaj
I have several flights coming up Star Alliance partners and I am trying to figure out where to focus my miles.
Please help.
Some details:
I am based in Buenos Aires.
I have 19,500 United miles and their branded card.
I did a status match to ANA platinum
Upcoming flights to the US and Caribbean on Avianca and Copa
Planning to fly to Egypt in Nov ( no tickets purchased yet)

What do think my strategy should be? (Let me know if you need additional info)
With a UA credit card that would be getting UA ff miles as time goes on.
Any ANA ff miles?

https://www.wheretocredit.com/
Need advice on which *A FF scheme to join? - please post here
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Old May 28, 2022, 4:16 pm
  #3  
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Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 19
I have the United explorer Card... I get miles on it but dont use it very often. Mostly to buy tickets or when I am traveling

On ANA I only have 438 miles since I just did the status match about two months ago
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Old May 28, 2022, 4:41 pm
  #4  
 
Join Date: Feb 2022
Location: LAX
Programs: UA
Posts: 1,529
Originally Posted by alimaj
I have several flights coming up Star Alliance partners and I am trying to figure out where to focus my miles.
Please help.
Some details:
I am based in Buenos Aires.
I have 19,500 United miles and their branded card.
I did a status match to ANA platinum
Upcoming flights to the US and Caribbean on Avianca and Copa
Planning to fly to Egypt in Nov ( no tickets purchased yet)

What do think my strategy should be? (Let me know if you need additional info)

Thanks in advance
Are you looking for a strategy for long term *A flying, or just where to credit these flights?

Additional helpful information: what do your normal flight patterns look like? Do you usually fly economy or business? Where do you fly? What do you want out of a rewards program? Do you have any preferred airlines?
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Old May 28, 2022, 5:01 pm
  #5  
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Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 19
Originally Posted by angetenar
Are you looking for a strategy for long term *A flying, or just where to credit these flights?

Additional helpful information: what do your normal flight patterns look like? Do you usually fly economy or business? Where do you fly? What do you want out of a rewards program? Do you have any preferred airlines?
I think I am looking for a longer term strategy on how to get the most out of Star Alliance for my situation.

I want to upgrade or buy business class tickets with my miles. I like lounge access and free checked bags of course.
I have been flying pretty often Once a month. sometimes back to the states but lately it has been Central America and the Caribbean. I try to fly business (lie flat seats) for all flights over 6 hours (this is a newish goal). Which is most flights from Buenos Aires to anywhere not in S. America. Next year I will have more flights to Europe and hopefully another to Africa

I dont love Avianca but they do have some great fares out of S. America. I am giving Copa business class a try for ,my trip in Aug.
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Old May 28, 2022, 5:23 pm
  #6  
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Originally Posted by alimaj
...I want to upgrade or buy business class tickets with my miles. I like lounge access and free checked bags of course.
Upgrades and business class awards is the objective of many. Thousands of frequent flyers want that.
Upgrades on the airline of your ffp is one thing. Can have conditions. With some ffp's cheap fares are ineligible for upgrades.
Upgrades on other star alliance airlines is another. Star have an alliance upgrade scheme, but requires a high priced base fare and onerous t&c's:--> useless for most people. Sample UA thread-->How to upgrade with UA miles on Star Alliance carriers

Lounge access comes with mid-top tier status and/or business/first class. With UA ffp that has t&c's for USA/regional flights.

Last edited by Mwenenzi; May 28, 2022 at 7:04 pm
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Old May 28, 2022, 7:00 pm
  #7  
 
Join Date: Feb 2022
Location: LAX
Programs: UA
Posts: 1,529
Originally Posted by alimaj
I want to upgrade or buy business class tickets with my miles. I like lounge access and free checked bags of course.
*A Gold status will get you lounge access and free checked bags. Airlines generally restrict partner access to business/first class award inventory, so it's useful to think about where you want to fly business/first to. You also want to consider which miles expire and which don't, see Miles/Points that Do and Don't Expire. UA miles don't expire, and it doesn't sound like you'll be doing a lot of domestic US travel, so UA's restriction on lounge access for it's own members doesn't really apply to you. However, the one sticking point is that UA requires 4 segments operated by UA/UAX to qualify for any status at all. Avianca and Copa are both UA preferred partners, so the cap of PQP earnings for each flight is 750 for economy and 1500 for business. The actual amount is based on distance, fare class, and current status.
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Old May 29, 2022, 9:49 am
  #8  
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NRT / HND
Programs: AA EXP, NH Plat, Former UA 1K
Posts: 5,557
Yeah, I think I'd be looking at AV or CM status, probably CM to be honest because if you get to a high enough level they do have upgrade certificates (program was copied from CO / UA). UA status is probably unobtainable for you unless you fly to / through the US (need 4 segments per year on UA metal). NH status sounds definitely unobtainable beyond this status match because you have to log 50% of your status miles on NH metal, so would require lots of flying to Asia.

Others to maybe look at are A3 and SK, depends on the far classes you fly on when you're paying, but still thinking CM would probably be the most beneficial overall if you can meet the qualification.

The key missing information is do you buy business class or high fare economy? Or only discount economy? (that's the toughest to earn any status on these days).
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Old May 30, 2022, 9:57 pm
  #9  
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Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 19
This is all good things to think about.
I fly to the US about 2 times a year but not usually on united.
Before i was flying economy and trying to use my miles to upgrade but that hasn't been as successful since travel picked back up so now I am commiting to buying business for anything over 6 hours.

I am.not even thinking about any flights to Asia in the next 6-9 months so you are probably right ANA might not be the best.

I have a long flight to Cairo in Nov. That i would like to use points to upgrade. Since i don't think i will have enough to buy a flight

Originally Posted by dvs7310
Yeah, I think I'd be looking at AV or CM status, probably CM to be honest because if you get to a high enough level they do have upgrade certificates (program was copied from CO / UA). UA status is probably unobtainable for you unless you fly to / through the US (need 4 segments per year on UA metal). NH status sounds definitely unobtainable beyond this status match because you have to log 50% of your status miles on NH metal, so would require lots of flying to Asia.

Others to maybe look at are A3 and SK, depends on the far classes you fly on when you're paying, but still thinking CM would probably be the most beneficial overall if you can meet the qualification.

The key missing information is do you buy business class or high fare economy? Or only discount economy? (that's the toughest to earn any status on these days).
Forgive me i have some questions:

​​​​​​Im.not sure which airlines
NH ( But i don't have flights to Asia)
A3 ( is this Avianca?)
SK ( No guess)
I am going to try to find the answers on the threads somewhere.

Also. I will look up what i need for Copa. I have a few flights coming up that i think will get me a start on the qualification

Some additional questions:
  • Do any of these airlines offer a status match?
  • If I focus on Copa how do I take advantage of the Star Alliance status from my ANA account?

Last edited by Markie; May 31, 2022 at 8:00 pm
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Old May 31, 2022, 2:30 am
  #10  
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NRT / HND
Programs: AA EXP, NH Plat, Former UA 1K
Posts: 5,557
Originally Posted by alimaj
Forgive me i have some questions:

​​​​​​Im.not sure which airlines
NH ( But i don't have flights to Asia)
A3 ( is this Avianca?)
SK ( No guess)
I am going to try to find the answers on the threads somewhere.

Also. I will look up what i need for Copa. I have a few flights coming up that i think will get me a start on the qualification
They are just the IATA airline codes, which is what most Flyertalkers use as shorthand. Can always Google IATA code SK, for example if you run across others in the future you don't know. There are 2 types of codes, IATA which are the 2 letter codes used on Flyertalk and many booking sites, and ICAO codes which are less common but are seen on some sites like FlightRadar24. Airports also have IATA and ICAO codes, IATA are the 3 letter ones you're used to seeing on luggage tags, ICAO airport codes are 4 letters, sometimes similar to the IATA code, sometimes not. They are used in operations, like Pilots and ATC, and basically aren't used by most normal people / bloggers unless you hang out on Airliners.net forums.

NH = ANA
A3 = Aegean
SK = Scandinavian (SAS)

Some have an obvious association to the airline's commercial name, some don't. Don't dare mistake AC for Air China for example, LOL, that would be CA and AC belongs to Air Canada.

Originally Posted by alimaj
Some additional questions:
  • Do any of these airlines offer a status match?
  • If I focus on Copa how do I take advantage of the Star Alliance status from my ANA account?
In general you can't status match within an alliance, but what did you use to status match to NH? That is likely a fair play into another Star Alliance program. There's a website https://www.statusmatcher.com/airlines that is decent at giving you an idea if a match may be granted or not. I'm not aware of any matches by SK at the moment but you never know, their qualification from zero though isn't too bad. CM might match LA (LATAM) if you have status with them.

Another one you can try if you have a OneWorld or Skyteam status is Turkish. They have a challenge program so if you fly TK to Egypt then you can meet the challenge easily. TK is also a decent program to maintain status on since they use a 2 year qualification period and the mileage requirement isn't terribly onerous. But as usual they won't match from other *A programs (anymore).

Lastly to use your NH status flying on CM, if you want to accumulate CM miles, you'll have to show your card for luggage allowance, lounge access, etc. Usually in *A they aren't too strict about this, but many OneWorld airlines try to force you to credit mileage to the account you're using for status. It is a lot harder though to get seating benefits if they exist (usually in *A there is no 'better' seating benefit if your status is on a partner airline).
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Old May 31, 2022, 11:03 am
  #11  
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Originally Posted by dvs7310
They are just the IATA airline codes, which is what most Flyertalkers use as shorthand. Can always Google IATA code SK, for example if you run across others in the future you don't know. There are 2 types of codes, IATA which are the 2 letter codes used on Flyertalk and many booking sites, and ICAO codes which are less common but are seen on some sites like FlightRadar24. Airports also have IATA and ICAO codes, IATA are the 3 letter ones you're used to seeing on luggage tags, ICAO airport codes are 4 letters, sometimes similar to the IATA code, sometimes not. They are used in operations, like Pilots and ATC, and basically aren't used by most normal people / bloggers unless you hang out on Airliners.net forums.

NH = ANA
A3 = Aegean
SK = Scandinavian (SAS)

Some have an obvious association to the airline's commercial name, some don't. Don't dare mistake AC for Air China for example, LOL, that would be CA and AC belongs to Air Canada.



In general you can't status match within an alliance, but what did you use to status match to NH? That is likely a fair play into another Star Alliance program. There's a website https://www.statusmatcher.com/airlines that is decent at giving you an idea if a match may be granted or not. I'm not aware of any matches by SK at the moment but you never know, their qualification from zero though isn't too bad. CM might match LA (LATAM) if you have status with them.

Another one you can try if you have a OneWorld or Skyteam status is Turkish. They have a challenge program so if you fly TK to Egypt then you can meet the challenge easily. TK is also a decent program to maintain status on since they use a 2 year qualification period and the mileage requirement isn't terribly onerous. But as usual they won't match from other *A programs (anymore).

Lastly to use your NH status flying on CM, if you want to accumulate CM miles, you'll have to show your card for luggage allowance, lounge access, etc. Usually in *A they aren't too strict about this, but many OneWorld airlines try to force you to credit mileage to the account you're using for status. It is a lot harder though to get seating benefits if they exist (usually in *A there is no 'better' seating benefit if your status is on a partner airline).
Thank you! Very helpful!
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Old Jun 2, 2022, 4:13 am
  #12  
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Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 19
Best Award travel to Egypt

Hello again.

I have several international Star Alliance flights in the next few months. I am also planning a trip to Egypt in the fall.

I am hoping that I will have enough points to get at least a one way ticket. I will be flying out of EZE Or SCL.

So which mileage program should a collect my miles?

I currently have;
19,500 United Mileage Plus450 ANA Miles (Platinum status through match)
Brand new Copa and Avianca accounts
Thanks in advance
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Old Jun 2, 2022, 8:46 am
  #13  
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: NRT / HND
Programs: AA EXP, NH Plat, Former UA 1K
Posts: 5,557
Similar to the advice I gave in your other thread, https://www.travelcodex.com/award-search-results/?airport_from=eze&airport_to=cai
Great website to use as a go-to when you're unsure about mileage required.

Another important point, ANA miles can't be used for one-way, only round trip so that's off the table.

Before anyone can assist much though, we'd need a lot more information about your upcoming trips before the Egypt trip. Airline, booking class (specific booking code letter, not just First, Business, Economy), airports, etc. No one can guess how many miles you might earn without that info. As well, what class of service are you planning to fly to Egypt? Economy or Business?

As another poster mentioned, miles aren't created equal, so even if you earn more in one program for the flights it doesn't mean that the same program is best to redeem that trip in. So have to be able to find the balance.

One good thing, maybe you already know but CAI-xxx trips tend to be priced pretty well, so if you're booking one-way on miles and one-way to go back to S. America then it's one of the more advantageous places to do it.
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Old Jun 2, 2022, 2:40 pm
  #14  
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Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 19
Some additional information about my upcoming flights:

Avianca:
SCL-BOG-PTY - (3097 miles ) XL fare
Copa:
PTY-SCL (2974 miles) A fare
SCL-PTY-HAV (3952 miles) R fare
HAV-PTY-SCL (3952 miles) R fare

I am planning on travling Business class for the longer flights. I am not opposed to mix classes or one way fares. Just hoping I will be able to put some of these miles to use to offset the costs.
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Old Jun 2, 2022, 4:23 pm
  #15  
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Originally Posted by alimaj
Some additional information about my upcoming flights:

Avianca:
SCL-BOG-PTY - (3097 miles ) XL fare
Copa:
PTY-SCL (2974 miles) A fare
SCL-PTY-HAV (3952 miles) R fare
HAV-PTY-SCL (3952 miles) R fare

I am planning on travling Business class for the longer flights. I am not opposed to mix classes or one way fares. Just hoping I will be able to put some of these miles to use to offset the costs.
https://www.wheretocredit.com/avianca
https://www.wheretocredit.com/copa-airlines

OP's other thread on the same topic-->Need assistance with Star Alliance strategy please
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