Fairfax (SMH/Age) article on status runs

[DavidFlynn]

I'm putting together (for Fairfax Media) an article on status runs: partly referencing the 'strange novelty' and unique appeal of this curious (to the outsider) activity, but also seeking to open the eyes of some actual business travellers and semi-frequent flyers (not point-heads like us!) to the status run as a useful option for retaining / boosting status with Qantas and Virgin Australia.

I'd appreciate hearing thoughts from anybody here on their suggestions of a few good status runs and some real-world tips for same, and I'm especially interested in hearing from anybody who might like to be interviewed for the article... however, you'll need to be cool with my using your real name AND you'll need to qualify as a 'normal' person / business traveller who uses status runs to top up their status or nudge up into the next tier, rather than a points / aviation enthusiast who chases status with extensive runs just for their own sake.

[If you need to contact me directly, please send a PM]

 

[Deleted member]

I think that broadcasting to the world is a great idea ...... not!! How long before it becomes more difficult to plan a status run ? But hey. What would I know.
Just so long as you make a buck.

 

[Danger]

I'm with GPH.

The less said of it in the mainstream media - especially specific runs - the better, in my opinion.

 

[DavidFlynn]

Just so long as you make a buck.

Quite an unfair accusation, GPH. This story is not about me making money – none of my stories are. I don't do this for the money, I write because that's what I do.

(And where possible I try to help people make the most of their travel, such as bridging the gap between Gold and Platinum, or between the risk of losing Platinum due to being short a few hundred SCs and safely retaining it, rather than mad SC runs via CMB or those runs which criss-cross the US in order to hit Platinum One).

 

[yohy?!]

cant see it being accessible to most people, wouldn't be happy to see more hard fought routes enhanced away

 

[Virgin Bart]

I'd be happy to. I travel for leisure only and am always on the lookout for a few status runs

I'd be happy to. I travel for leisure only and am always on the lookout for a few status runs

On that... My most memorable status run was spending a day in RAR to push me into Platinum (MEL-AKL-RAR-AKL-MEL)

 

[Deleted member]

Quite an unfair accusation, GPH. This story is not about me making money – none of my stories are. I don't do this for the money, I write because that's what I do.

(And where possible I try to help people make the most of their travel, such as bridging the gap between Gold and Platinum, or between the risk of losing Platinum due to being short a few hundred SCs and safely retaining it, rather than mad SC runs via CMB or those runs which criss-cross the US in order to hit Platinum One).

My apologies, I misunderstood, I thought you did this for a living.
However if you're doing it (the article) as a public service, then there is even more reason to keep it on the down low as it were.
I don't resile from my position. We have seen too many "enhancements" as a result of open posting and sharing. MASA's being a case in point.
I can't stop you, but I won't support it or participate

 

[DavidFlynn]

My apologies, I misunderstood, I thought you did this for a living.

Ah yes, I can see where you're coming from... while my calling is as a journalist and my full-time gig is running Australian Business Traveller, this status run article is for my fortnightly Fairfax business travel piece which is just a little something I do on the side and certainly nothing I do 'for the money' (I have no shortage of topics for that column, but can see a little bit of a product focus ahead so figured this was one topic that'd lighten the mix and provide something a bit more actionable).

However if you're doing it (the article) as a public service, then there is even more reason to keep it on the down low as it were... I can't stop you, but I won't support it or participat

Totally understood, I get where you're coming from and the concerns you have, no sweat.

 

[Dr Ralph]

I'd encourage the OP not to publish such an article.

 

[burmans]

Doesn't look like you are getting many takers here that are happy to share their secrets. Just guessing, that may be because they would rather it remain somewhat secret.

 

[I love to travel]

I think the AA changes will make it so much harder anyway as they seemed to be the easiest. In any case, I think the concept of status is almost dead, the devaluations are biting and for many its now about value for money on a trip by trip proposition.

 

[samh004]

I once visited Karratha twice in two days to get to Platinum One... although I take it I'm not classed as 'normal'

 

[trippin_the_rift]

I once visited Karratha twice in two days to get to Platinum One... although I take it I'm not classed as 'normal'

seems normal enough to me

my craziest was tsv-bne-drw-bne-tsv, 2x in 2 days

To those concerned, the OP likely isn't about to publish a list of low cost status runs but likely give insight to the world of status running with an example or two.

certainly information which is already available with minimal searching online.

 

[burmans]

certainly information which is already available with minimal searching online.

It is but currently people don't even know about it so they don't go looking, publish this and some will start to, maybe the OzBargain crowd.

 

[RooFlyer]

The other side of the coin:

I think Status Runs are weird. Even though I fly a lot and value my status, I would never spend hard cash just to maintain my status. Status serves me, not the other way round.

I use status matches if I don't have status and 'need' it - such as when I did a bunch of whY flying on star alliance (shiver) after my Air Canada status petered out. Status match saw me in the lounges no sweat.

 

[Bundy Bear]

Sometimes you don't want to give too much away but other times even if you tell some people they just don't get it.

Take this thread as an example I have some friends who do earn status but find it too hard to use their points, or just find that they have the money but not so much the time to go and search for a good deal which does take time.

The best deal in most recent times was a Brisbane to Fiji on Air Pacific in business class with the routing options both ways being rather open, flying via Melbourne and Sydney.

I did spend 2 nights in Fiji which was a rather nice holiday.

A decent one at the moment is Melbourne to the Gold Coast via Sydney but that does take a bit of extra time, and sometimes you would rather be on the beach or home without the extra hassle of flying.

Flying around on American Airlines was a good one but time consuming both in the studying and then flying the segments, now with Qantas enhancements and with American coding their domestic First as J then this is not as lucrative as it once was.

 

[trippin_the_rift]

It is but currently people don't even know about it so they don't go looking, publish this and some will start to, maybe the OzBargain crowd.

you still need to spend the money and take the flights. And if you're doing all that just for status then you'll never actually use the benefits.

The only person who care about status runs are revenue managers who can't do their job by pricing flights properly. They'll be out of a job in a few years when machines take over anyway.

 

[nlagalle]

My apologies, I misunderstood, I thought you did this for a living.
However if you're doing it (the article) as a public service, then there is even more reason to keep it on the down low as it were.
I don't resile from my position. We have seen too many "enhancements" as a result of open posting and sharing. MASA's being a case in point.
I can't stop you, but I won't support it or participate

Speaking as someone who worked in the media for over 20 years, if an editor says he wants a story on X then you write a story on X. Whether we like it or not is irrelevant.

I'm sure companies celebs etc don't like it when a story is written about them but there isn't anything they can do..

FWIW 98% of the public are going to just shrug and go meh..

and MASA's weren't stopped because they were out in the public.. heck QF knew people earned status off the back of them. They introduced ASA's with no earn then added earn to entice people to use them..

 

[DavidFlynn]

The best deal in most recent times was a Brisbane to Fiji on Air Pacific in business class with the routing options both ways being rather open, flying via Melbourne and Sydney. I did spend 2 nights in Fiji which was a rather nice holiday. A decent one at the moment is Melbourne to the Gold Coast via Sydney but that does take a bit of extra time, and sometimes you would rather be on the beach or home without the extra hassle of flying.

I reckon you've nailed two good points here, BundyBear. Firstly: these runs are best (for most people) when worked into a mini-holiday, which makes more sense (again, to most people) than just flying A to B to C to D and back again.

Secondly, the best runs make use of favourable connections and indirect routing, which is something that most 'normal' (there's that word again!) people would find insane... they're attracted more to direct time-saving travel, and they see the notion of flying from Sydney to Melbourne just so you can fly back to Sydney and catch a SYD-CGK flight as being daft in the extreme.

 

[samh004]

and MASA's weren't stopped because they were out in the public.. heck QF knew people earned status off the back of them. They introduced ASA's with no earn then added earn to entice people to use them..

And then they commenced a website redesign and either forgot to keep the functionality in its then-current form (which had a flaw that allowed classic reward flights to be booked as an ASA), or purposely removed said flaw. But ASA's didn't disappear, they're still there, they just removed the flaw!