QFF Classic Upgrade Priority - T&Cs Changed

[Happy Trails]

Kind of academic just now, but the QFF T&Cs have been quietly changed, viz.

Old version:
16.3.3 Classic Upgrade Rewards will be awarded to Members according to their Qantas Frequent Flyer status levels in the following order: Platinum One Members first, then Platinum Members, then Gold Members, then Silver Members and then Bronze Members.

New version:
16.3.3 Classic Upgrade Rewards will be confirmed and awarded before other paid upgrade products including, but not limited to, Bid Now Upgrades.

The traditional pecking order (for P1s at least) is still noted under tier benefits.

I'm guessing it's related to the introduction of OW alliance-wide upgrades.

OW to introduce Alliance wide Upgrades.

From OMAAT. https://onemileatatime.com/oneworld-upgrades/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=today_on_omaat&utm_term=2020-07-23 Supposedly by the end of 2020.

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

 

[ChrisMars]

The relevent bit of the current t&c is in 16.3.2

16.3.2 Qantas Loyalty will determine which requests for Classic Upgrade Rewards will be awarded, if any, at any time between seven days and 24 hours before the scheduled departure of the flight from its port of origin, depending on several factors determined by Qantas including the original booked cabin and the Member's Membership tier.

It's more in line with what might be happening behind the scene: for example some think that someone in Y+ is likely going to beat someone in Y for a J upgrade, even with lower status.

 

[Mattg]

I wonder if this also means a Oneworld Emerald frequent flyer (e.g. American Airlines Exec Platinum) would have priority over a Qantas Gold member once the Oneworld alliance-wide upgrades come in?

 

[Danger]

Aren't we supposed to get 90 days' notice before material changes?

 

[Mattg]

Aren't we supposed to get 90 days' notice before material changes?

Is this really a material change though?

In any case, the upgrade lottery process only really applies to international flights - of which there aren't likely to be many in the next 90 days.

 

[RichardMEL]

My thoughts...

1. The OW alliance wide upgrade thing comes up every so often.. it's not material yet and may never be. As we know QF has a couple of partner agreements (such as LA codeshares which probably have gone come to think of it ) but I wouldn't hold out much on the alliance upgrade thing

2. QF equivalent status will trump OW on QF operated flights - this is how it works on other partners (and on Star too). eg on a tier basis a QF P1 will Donald Trump a QF Plat, which will then be ahead of a BA Gold, AA EXP etc. A member airline will always priorities its own elites ahead of others imo.

3. It's nothing new (I agree) that QFF decide the lottery based on a combination of fare class and status.. I mean even when ranking equivalent tiers (eg: 2 Plat's waiting for one seat, the one on the higher fare class will get it)...

I see the T&C change as merely to clarify that QFF tier members using upgrade awards (ie paying with points) will be processed ahead of any bid now upgrades or other promotions or upgrade types (which gives them a bit of room for one off promotions or whatever). This is the way it's always worked. I don't think it has anything to do with any potential implementation of OW upgrades.

 

[ChrisMars]

@Happy Trails which version are you comparing btw?
I had a closer look, it seems to me the change you invoke is rather old (more than 6 months), and was just about inserting this new clause to clarify that paid upgrade come last. The other clauses in section 16 are unmodified, just the number change.

 

[TeaKozy]

It's more in line with what might be happening behind the scene: for example some think that someone in Y+ is likely going to beat someone in Y for a J upgrade, even with lower status.

First hand experience of this. A colleague (SG) in W, and I (WP) in Y both put in requests for LAX-MEL, myself ahead of him in February. He was upgraded to J, and then I was upgraded to his seat in W. Guess it is unusual in that most upgrades with other carriers are a single cabin only, however at least this makes it explicit.

 

[Lucky_man]

It may surprise some here that the minutia of upgrade ranking is pretty low on the list of operational priorities for the airline - despite their apparently critical importance to those in the lottery. Try not to read too much into it.