Airline status ensures an enjoyable experience when flying with the airline putting you ahead of the crowd when trying to get an upgrade, complimentary lounge access and other benefits.
It takes a lot of flying to achieve Qantas Platinum One status. But as one member recently discovered, there is another way. Well, kind of… This member recently noticed that a colleague with Gold status was proudly displaying Platinum One bag tags on their luggage. When questioned, this colleague admitted to buying the Q bag … Continued
Gold and Platinum frequent flyers will no longer be able to enjoy the extra legroom of exit row seats free of charge. Qantas has begun charging for these prized seats on all flights. This includes short domestic flights. All flyers will now need to pay the fee, which ranges from $20 to $180 per flight, … Continued
Virgin Australia has gone to great lengths to compete with Qantas since it was rebranded from Virgin Blue. But according to one member, there are two reasons that Virgin and its Velocity Frequent Flyer program cannot be compared to Qantas and its frequent flyer program. The first reason is Virgin’s underwhelming on-board catering. Virgin creates … Continued
How far would you go to earn top-tier status with your preferred airline? It’s not uncommon for AFF members to undertake what’s known as a “status run“. This is where a series of flights are taken in order to earn enough status credits to attain or retain elite airline status. Booking a status run can make … Continued
Virgin Australia has been offering a unique fast-track to Gold Velocity status through their partnership with Flybuys. Although Virgin Australia does not generally accept status matches, many of our members have received a targeted “Explore Gold” offer. Recipients of this offer are invited to enjoy three months of complimentary Velocity Gold status. If members then … Continued
One member faces the unenvious prospect of taking up to 14 trips between Brisbane and Dublin over the next year. As this member will be paying for the flights themselves, they are looking for strategies to optimise their travel experience and hopefully score a few upgrades along the way. I’m looking at doing either 13 or … Continued
Imagine that you’ve been offered your dream job. It has everything you’re looking for, except for one small detail… you would have to work in a different city to your current home. One option would be to simply move to the new city, but this isn’t always practical. As our member significance recently found out, … Continued
This week a Platinum Velocity member is seriously considering abandoning their loyalty to Virgin Australia. Until now this member has flown Virgin exclusively. But after recent devaluations to the Velocity program and poor experiences with Virgin’s partner airlines, they’re on the lookout for greener pastures. Qantas’ superior international network is one reason for jumping ship. … Continued
Qantas has begun offering its frequent flyers the option to “purchase” Platinum status using their frequent flyer points. Multiple AFF members have been contacted by Qantas over the phone with the targeted offer. The asking price? 100,000 Qantas points. In each case, the contacted member had already held Platinum status for several years but had … Continued
Virgin Australia will re-brand its extra-legroom Economy seats as “Economy X”, adding additional benefits including priority boarding and dedicated overhead locker space for Economy X passengers. As part of the new product launch, Virgin will reconfigure its Boeing 737 aircraft to offer three rows of extra-legroom seating at the front of the cabin. This is … Continued
Status matches are a great way to gain status with another airline for free, simply by leveraging your existing status. From time to time, airlines will try to attract the frequent flyers of other airlines by offering a complimentary status match. Sometimes such status matches are promoted by the airline, while at other times it … Continued
Frequent flyers with Virgin Australia are getting a raw deal when it comes to lounge access, according to our members. Virgin Australia flyers with Gold or Platinum status are entitled to lounge access, at least in theory, when flying with Virgin’s partner airlines. But our members are unimpressed by the many gaps in Virgin’s lounge … Continued