s0ssos

Finally today, I realized what elite status is about. It is about the on-ground experience. Not about the airplane experience.

I was transiting through Heathrow (the announcement thanks me for choosing Heathrow. I didn't want to choose Heathrow as a transit though) and there is a fast track lane, and I was directed towards it, even though I was flying economy (because I have AA Platinum). And then I went to the lounge, which has some food, and a shower.

And then it all came together. The HON member I met in the Lufthansa First Class Terminal who was flying economy (after we were driven to the plane he proceeded to the jetway on the right). Why would he bother buying a business class ticket within Germany?

Elite status is about making the experience on the ground more bearable (or to some, pleasant). In case one has to sit in the back of the plane (or fly any airline domestic for that matter. Probably anywhere within Europe as well). Because the airlines would like to thank you, and make your life as nice as possible. Oh, yea, except for on the plane.
If you want the whole package, you just have to fly first-class.

PWMTrav

I've only been a bottom tier elite (for airlines) and would agree. Ultimately, upgrades are nice to have, but I wouldn't treat them as an entitlement - airlines are behaving pretty rationally in trying to monetize those cabins. This is my first year in a while without airline status of any kind, and the upgrades aren't really what I miss (and I thought they would be). I primarily miss getting to use the short line to check in no matter what, oddly enough.

I'll be requalifying as AS MVP at the end of this month (based on current bookings) and will be happy to have those conveniences back.

Cloudship

I think it depends on the traveler. For me, status was all about having a wider seat. Of course most of my travel was domestic US. I didn't get lounge access - I had to pay for that. Pre-Check and priority lanes are real nice, but not always faster. And in this day and age you have so little interaction with airline personnel that status never even comes into play.

Each person has their own priorities, however. My biggest bugbear is the narrowness of airline seats. So upgrades were the real reason to even try for status. Other people have less problem with seats but need to be on and off the plane quickly, so early boarding and front of plane access are more important.

BigOrangeTerp

Getting the upgrades was pretty nice when I had temporary DL PLT. I think the best perks were boarding after First Class and having priority tags on checked luggage. I didn't deal with the staff much to begin with so I didn't notice particularly better treatment... I think these days the only way to get treated like royalty is to be Global Services / DL Diamond / AA ConciergeKey.

You want to go where?

I think what we are seeing here is the divide between US airlines and the rest of the world. In the rest of the world, upgrades are rare even to the most elite. However, lounge access and other ground perks are common. In the US, upgrades are more frequent, but (significant) ground perks are not.

Palal

In the US, you get better seats in F and usually a meal, so status is about everything. In Europe, where most flights are under 3 hours, yes, the status is more about on the ground experience than upgrades. And yes, even if I had the money, I wouldn't go out of my way to buy a biz class ticket because the marginal comforts aren't worth it.

Dudemius

For me it's all the above. Plus being able to book exit rows on UA.

PWMTrav

I do like the wider domestic F seat. I could do without the meal entirely. It's never anything particularly great, and we're well beyond the era (in most airports) of the food sucking in the terminal. Maybe I don't even want to go there, but I've enjoyed coach buy on board food more than I've liked F meals recently.

Kagehitokiri

you can pay for VIP services at FRA and other airports, and considering some reports for LH FCT, i think they can be better than FCT

ill pay for things (when flying economy) but im not into earned status

Artpen100

At this point, elite status seems to have pretty marginal utility to me. Domestically in the US, if I want it I usually upgrade with miles or just pay outright, since the cost (and worth) of the upgrade is often not much. For international, being in business is more important, but again I either look for the cheapest (reasonable) flight to buy outright, or try to upgrade with miles, which, again, anyone can do. Add to that the priority line and club access through credit cards, and I don't know what becoming elite would do for me. A few more miles from a multiplier? Most of my miles come from credit cards anyway. Free upgrades or more upgrades? That would be the one thing I would really try to aggregate my travel on one airline for, but there aren't too many programs where status gets you much of that that any more. I don't really even notice when my status changes up and down among the lowest three tiers or so on various airlines.

gooselee

I'm actually a bit tired of people (esp. in the US airline forums) always saying that UGs are the only/top reason for FFPs and elite status.

For many people, this simply does not register. Like others in this thread, if having a premium seat is important to me on a certain route, I will simply purchase it.

Ground handling perks are nice, but IMO the best (for me) benefit of status is priority/better IRROPS handling. Of course, this benefit is more pronounced for more frequent flyers.

pinniped

Why? In the U.S. airline forums, that opinion makes sense, at least for the top tiers. If you're a top tier, you likely measure your airline based on its upgrade rate. The ground perks like tagged bags kick in at the mid-tier level, so top-tiers don't consider it an incremental benefit.

These days, I think *more* routes than in the past are set up to actually *sell* some F seats through the use of "-UP" fares. Back in the day, the entire F-buying experience was partitioned off from individual buyers through astronomical rates (far beyond what any reasonable person would pay), but then discounted 45-50% to corporate buyers. Thus, even many very frequent fliers get their F seats via upgrades only. (Although many on FT hate it, I actually don't mind the paradigm shift that has led airlines to price F at a reasonably premium to Y, thus selling more and upgrading less. Maybe that's my low-tier elite colors showing... )

No disagreement there. IROPS is where even a basic elite tier can save your hide. Lounge access also helps greatly.

Cloudship

I'm finding paid upgrades to be even worse. I suppose if you are traveling on someone else's account, the price is not so significant. But some of us can't afford to triple, or even quadruple, our airfare just to get a few more inches of space. First class prices, at least on any routes I have looked at, are getting astronomically high. Airlines have removed first class seats, and knowing that fewer people have elite status due to program changes, they are counting on selling more of them at a higher price.

I agree to for some people the seat size does not matter so much. At the same time, there are also a lot of people who don't check bags so free bags has little value, and who have flexibility and do some real planning and so aren't as inconvenienced by irops.

So I think it is safer to say that everyone has their own reasons and priorities.

darthbimmer

Arguing about whether the point of FFPs is in-flight comfort or on-the-ground services is a false dilemma. It's obviously both.

Sure, the opportunities for a true in-flight upgrade are dwindling. US carriers are offering more and more of their upper class seats as a paid upgrade to non-status pax than as a program benefit to elites. But it's still a benefit even if less frequently obtained than before. And arguably more important than the one-in-whatever chance of scoring an upgrade from coach to business or first is the value of always sitting in Economy Plus, Main Cabin Extra, etc. on the airlines that offer such a thing.

The value of benefits on the ground certainly can't be discounted. As security checkpoints have become a more time-consuming obstacle the value of priority line access grows. And lounges have always been a nicer place to relax while awaiting a flight than the departure area.

You want to go where?

I could be mistaken but I thought that lounges weren't a perk of American FFPs. That is one of the reasons that I have used European FFPs. The other, of course, is that I fly European airlines more than American ones.