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THE FREQUENT FLYER GAZETTE   ::   NOVEMBER 2005

   

CONTENTS ::
 
1. Maximise Miles
2. Member's Talk
3. Travel News
4. United vs. QF

 

Editors Note ::
 
Welcome to the November edition of the Frequent Flyer Gazette.

This month we publish the results of a report undertaken by the Consumers Union of the United States.  It details ways to get the most for your miles and offers some great tips.

Plus there's the usual insights from our discussion board and travel news - including an interesting story on how to collect 1,000,000 points in just 50 days!

... and then their is the generous 25% Frequent Flyer Friend discount which exclusive to readers of the Gazette! 

Enjoy!

Leah
Editor, Frequent Flyer Gazette



 
1. GET THE MOST FROM YOUR MILES
 

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The ultimate goal of every Frequent Flyer is to cash in on those hard-earned points to produce maximum reward.  The Consumer Union of the United States has published some interesting findings on how to get the most for your miles, and reveals the pesky manoeuvres airlines use to deny Frequent Flyers their rewards.

The research put ten of the largest US carriers to the test and were able to get 93% of the US flights they requested.  The success, however, was not without compromise:

Firstly, there were the fees, airlines have been adding charges for services that were once free.  To encourage online transaction they�re charging for reservations made on the phone or in person and they are also charging for redepositing miles after a flight cancellation.

Secondly, airlines are under no obligation to grant reward travel, there are no laws that require carriers to disclose award-seat allocations or provide a minimum number of seats per flight.  Airlines are constantly tweaking the number of free seats on there planes.  For example, Continental reduced free flights last year to 5.6% of its total inventory down from 7.6% in 2003.

Thirdly, Frequent Flyer programs (as I�m sure all Qantas Frequent Flyers are well aware!) can change the rules at any time.

The report provides some useful tips on how the consumer can fight back and secure the flights they want, when they want them:

  • Focus on the best program, don�t worry about earning miles - instead pick the program that is most generous with free flights
     

  • Watch out for fees when booking over the phone or in person
     

  • Pick up the phone when necessary, booking online usually saves a small fee of $5-$10 but the report revealed testers who found nothing online, later succeeded with a phone representative
     

  • Consider whether it pays to redeem miles.  Before you claim your reward seat make sure you are getting good value by estimating the cost per mile
     

  • Go for the upgrades, they often provide the best value for your frequent flyer points
     

  • Avoid buying miles, you may pay as much as 3.5 cents per mile plus taxes
     

  • Avoid transferring miles from other frequent flyer programs, as you can often lose points in the process
     

  • Be flexible, the report revealed testers were able to get flights with the minimum number of miles by agreeing to fly off- peak, mid- week, very early or very late in the day or by using alternative airports
     

  • Keep your account active, most airlines require that you have some account activity in the previous 36 months to keep your miles from expiring
     

  • Use up your miles, if the bulk of your miles are concentrated are concentrated with an airline operating under bankruptcy protection try to use your points as soon as you earn them.

For more refer to our Guide to maximising the value of Frequent Flyer program membership.

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2. MEMBER'S TALK
 

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The Flying Famous

Who would you most like to sit next to on an aeroplane?  Being a Frequent Flyer ensures you are likely to share a cabin with a celeb or two.  Our members DISCUSS rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous on flights, in hotels and even in the bathroom!

Getting the seats you want

Find out the best ways to nab your favourite seats.  Our members RECOMMEND some useful websites to help you get those coveted exist row seats.

Lindsay's 1,000th post

One of the most frequented topics in was this month's informal competition to guess the time and date of Lindsay�s 1000th post.  The prize goes to Danielh scoring a free Frequent Flyer Friend license.  Congratulations Lindsay and well done Danielh!  Read it all HERE.

Amex Platinum

The launch of the Amex platinum credit card has caused quite a stir on the Discussion Board.  Are the rewards worth the $395 joining fee?  See for yourself HERE.

How Frequent a Flyer are you?

Our Frequent Flyers compare the maximum number of points they are tallied in a year?  Compare your total with our members.  MORE..

Airline Customer Service

How well do airlines deal with customer complaints?  Our members share their EXPERIENCES: the good, the bad and the compensation!

The FlyBuy caution

Our members discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the FlyBuys scheme.  One FF member warns about keeping receipts to ensure the FlyBuy points are credited to your account.  Read HERE.

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3. TRAVEL NEWS
 
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For the latest travel news, check out our new Travel News service
 - travel news from leading agencies, updated continually

 

One Million Points in Fifty Days

Pilot, Marc Tacchi is taking the humble mileage run to a new level.  He's flying Air Canada with the aim of accumulating one million air-mile credits, equivalent to ten round trip executive class flights to Australia, in less than two months!

Tacchi decided to take Air Canada up on its North America unlimited pass offer.  The offer costs the customer $3,500 a month and allows unlimited travel to more than 100 North American destinations.

Tacchi is averaging ten return flights a day, flying 7,500 miles per day, but with his super-elite status it multiplies out at 2.75 points per mile, earning him a grand total of 19,000 points a day.

He aims to finish his one million mile run by the end of November and has entered his efforts with Guinness World Records.  Taachi thinks he is getting himself a good deal, for a $7,000 investment he is earning $70,000 worth of flights.

Fraudulent Frequent Flyer Charged

Austin Perot accrued more than 17 million frequent flyer points illegally without even boarding a plane.  The Singapore airlines customer service supervisor tapped into the Qantas computer and exploited the loophole for over six years.

Perot opened more than 29 frequent flyer accounts under fictitious names, and added the names to passenger lists after the planes had already landed.  His total points tally were enough to fly around the world 200 times.  Perot pleaded guilty to obtaining financial advantage by deception in the Melbourne County court.

Virgin Launches Online Check-in System

Virgin Blue launched an innovative online check-in system last month.  The system allows passengers to check in - via their PC - for all domestic Virgin flights.  After entering a reservation code, the check-in process ensues allowing the consumer to print off their boarding pass from their home computer.

The Lowdown on OzJet

Australia�s forth-domestic airline, OzJet plans to start selling tickets for flights between Sydney and Melbourne early this month.  The civil aviation safety authority has confirmed the airline is in its final stages of gaining its air operators certificate.

The all Business Class airline is planning eight daily flights between Sydney and Melbourne with its three 60- seat 737-200�s.  The airline is set to begin severely handicapped by its lack of business class lounges and a Frequent Flyer scheme.

Aviation Urban Myth not so Mythical

Delta air-lines admitted this month what many of us have suspected for years.  The carrier acknowledged that for more than a month it had cancelled some flights as late as two days before departure because planes weren�t full enough.

Delta claims it began the practice to save fuel after Hurricane Katrina sent fuel prices skyrocketing.  The idea was that by filling one plane with passengers scheduled for two flights it helped the airline conserve fuel.  Within days of admitting the practice, Delta announced it would no longer cancel flights based on numbers of seats filled.  They claimed fuel prices have now stabilized.

How Safe is Airline Water?

An alarming new study has found dangerous levels of bacteria in the drinking water in 15% of planes at US airports.

The study undertaken by the US Environmental Protection Agency has prompted 24 US airlines to agree to disinfect their water supply, and monitor water quality.  Coliform contamination was present in 3 of every 20 craft; its presence in drinking water may make people ill, as it is usually a sign of faecal contamination.

The EPA are now drafting mandatory regulations regarding drinking water that will come into effect within the next two years.

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4. UNITED OFFERS GREATER FREQUENT FLYER AVAILABILITY THAN QANTAS
 
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United Airline's Mileage Plus program has become the second frequent flyer program to be supported by Frequent Flyer Friend.  At the click of a button you can get availability on all United (and partner airlines) flights 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Check out the Frequent Flyer Friend website for more information.

Given that Frequent Flyer Friend now supports both Qantas and United, we thought we would compare the availability of United vs. Qantas frequent flyer seats over the same route and for the same period.  We selected the Melbourne to LA route during January 2006, and got some interesting results:  whilst Qantas showed availability on only 11 days, United (Standard) showed availability on all days.  United (Saver) had less availability - but does come at a 40% discount of the standard redemption rates.  You can download a copy of our analysis HERE

SPECIAL OFFER!!

And while on the subject of Frequent Flyer Friend, we are offering readers of this newsletter a pre-Christmas discount of 25% off the standard license fee.

To take advantage of this exclusive offer, enter the coupon code "15f743f075895180" (no inverted commas) when purchasing your Frequent Flyer Friend license.  This offer is valid until 24 December 2005.

Those of you who have tested the trial version, now is your time to PURCHASE a license at this heavily discounted - and not to be repeated - price.  If you haven't yet tried Frequent Flyer Friend, DOWNLOAD your free trial copy now.  If you choose to purchase a license before Christmas, you will also qualify for this discount. 

 

� THE AUSTRALIAN FREQUENT FLYER, 2005