AFF on Air Discussion thread

[AFF Editor]

The link for this thread takes me to an "oops, somethings gone wrong type message"

We did recently merge the podcast discussion and question threads. That may be what's causing the error message.

 

[tdpali]

Hi team

Loving the podcast. Great listening in the car on the way to and from work. As I finish listening to one podcast, I can't wait for the next one.

Great information and easy listening.

Keep up the great work!!

 

[1st]

Hey Matt,
Really enjoying the podcast and advice it provides
Great to get details of upcoming changes and promotions/deal etc

What I would like to have covered (perhaps briefly given I guess for most others on AFF and listening to the podcast probably already know this sort of stuff) is around starting out with collecting FF points

1) At what point should people switch focus from seeking offers/deal and accumulating points to digging into the deeper layers like expert flyer? e.g. 50k points (you need to plan ahead), 100k points (partly there and need to plan ahead), 500k points (get there first and then start planning)

2) Given the changing nature of points and reward redemption's - What advice can you offer about managing the balancing act of planning ahead and obtaining points?

3) I'm looking at a trip to USA via west coast (so say LAX with Virgin) in early October - looks like I should have planned ahead a year in advance in order to have any chance to get reward flights - but I wouldn't have had enough points then.
How much of a "mistake" is spending points on a "non-reward" seat? It looks like terrible value but perhaps I am missing something

4) For multi-leg journeys - is there a way to use points to upgrade one leg of the trip?


Perhaps these questions would be better in the forums but I imagine that the broader topic of points vs planning might be worth a mention

Thanks
1st

 

[AFF Editor]

Hey Matt,
Really enjoying the podcast and advice it provides
Great to get details of upcoming changes and promotions/deal etc

What I would like to have covered (perhaps briefly given I guess for most others on AFF and listening to the podcast probably already know this sort of stuff) is around starting out with collecting FF points

Thanks for the feedback & questions.

I'll try to answer your questions in an upcoming episode of the podcast. Stay tuned!

We will also take on board your feedback about including more content for "beginners". I can see that this would be useful for many of our listeners.

 

[AFF Editor]

@daft009 I talked about buying Etihad Guest miles for cheap VA redemptions in the latest episode. @1st, I also answered your questions on yesterday's episode. Thanks for asking them!

https://www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au/affonair-cheap-virgin-australia-business-class/

 

[daft009]

Thanks Matt! Much appreciated. Already half way in to the ep

 

[HNL808]

G'day, it's Matt here. I hope you've been enjoying our new AFF on Air podcast! It's free to tune in, and a new episode will be released each fortnight.

This thread is where you can discuss anything from an episode of the podcast. In this thread you can also ask any travel-related question that you would like me to answer or talk about in a future episode of the podcast!

Hi Matt.

Thanks for producing a great podcast. I look forward to listening to episodes as soon as they're released. My question relates to redeeming with Alaska Air. I have been curious about Alaska after hearing your podcasts, seeing that it's possible to buy miles on sale and with bonuses and importantly because they fly to USA (or partners). Every time i look to book in Business there are only "mixed cabin" options available in Business or First, with the international leg between Australia and the US always in Economy which defeats the purpose of trying to score Business. Have you ever seen a Business class seat available when redeeming with Alaska? Any tips to find one?

Thank you. Mike

 

[AFF Editor]

Hi Matt.

Thanks for producing a great podcast. I look forward to listening to episodes as soon as they're released. My question relates to redeeming with Alaska Air. I have been curious about Alaska after hearing your podcasts, seeing that it's possible to buy miles on sale and with bonuses and importantly because they fly to USA (or partners). Every time i look to book in Business there are only "mixed cabin" options available in Business or First, with the international leg between Australia and the US always in Economy which defeats the purpose of trying to score Business. Have you ever seen a Business class seat available when redeeming with Alaska? Any tips to find one?

Thank you. Mike

Thanks Mike.

I'll give a detailed answer in a future episode. Stay tuned...

 

[daft009]

@daft009 I talked about buying Etihad Guest miles for cheap VA redemptions in the latest episode. @1st, I also answered your questions on yesterday's episode. Thanks for asking them!

https://www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au/affonair-cheap-virgin-australia-business-class/

Glad you found your passport! Clever technique there

 

[goldenhorn]

Hey Matt, LOVING the podcast. I was listening to the podcasts IAH-PHX, PHX-ORD and ORD-IAH. Makes the time go very quickly and such great into.

I just listened to Episode 12 and loved the interview. The info you provide is top-notch and I love the combination of latest news/offers, then an in-depth interview.

The tips from the frequent flyers have been very inspiring and got me thinking about lots of future travel I want to do. Thank you!

 

[PhilOsman]

Hi Matt,

I love the podcast, your style is very easy to listen to!

I’m Irish and have been living in Sydney for 14 years. However we have now decided to move to Dublin with our 2 kids (4 years old and 6 month old)
I have 600k velocity points and also 600k qantas points. I am Velocity Gold.

1.) Should I burn all my points before leaving, or are there ways to use the points from both programs for flights around Europe?

2.) Any suggestions for a one way route back to Dublin with a nice family stopover somewhere that would put a dent in one of the program points? Business ideally!

Many thanks in advance if you get to this

Phil

 

[AFF Editor]

Hi Matt,

I love the podcast, your style is very easy to listen to!

I’m Irish and have been living in Sydney for 14 years. However we have now decided to move to Dublin with our 2 kids (4 years old and 6 month old)
I have 600k velocity points and also 600k qantas points. I am Velocity Gold.

1.) Should I burn all my points before leaving, or are there ways to use the points from both programs for flights around Europe?

2.) Any suggestions for a one way route back to Dublin with a nice family stopover somewhere that would put a dent in one of the program points? Business ideally!

Many thanks in advance if you get to this

Phil

Thanks for the compliment, Phil

I will talk about this in a future episode.

 

[PhilOsman]

Thanks for the compliment, Phil

I will talk about this in a future episode.

Super!
I think it would also be very much of interest to anyone looking to use points for trips around Europe or across the Atlantic to the US, not just my specific case.

 

[Melburnian1]

The podcast with jb747 (of which I've only listened to part) was excellent, although Mattg either sounded very nervous or excited when interviewing (not a bad thing: just an observation.)

However, this interviewee didn't mention what skills one needs to become a pilot (apart from commonsense and a sense of calm when the pressure's on.) Maybe this is a topic AFF could cover by interviewing another subject in the future. I've always thought that for a job like that, one ought be good at physics, maths I/II and chemistry type subjects, not commerce, law or history like some of us are.

 

[daft009]

Excellent interview with John. I was actually listening with such concentration on a recent flight in J to SIN, the FA saw my face and asked me if I was ok

 

[Skyhawk]

A great interview. I really enjoyed it.

 

[jakeseven7]

Hey Matt great work on the pod cast.

Personally I'd love to hear more from our regular corporate flyers.

Although it is nice to hear from pilots and travel agents, moderators now and then, most of us are business 'air warriors' (some fly more than others) and I'd just love to hear from those who fly loads, their tips, tricks and habits and their job role that leads them to travel so much! We have such amazing people on here to profile - you have self employed SME consultants that pay their own way and hunt for bargain airfares right through to Director levels of corporations who chaperone celebs around the world - imagine the stories they could tell.

Personally I'd like to hear from them Just a thought.

 

[AFF Editor]

Hey Matt great work on the pod cast.

Personally I'd love to hear more from our regular corporate flyers.

Although it is nice to hear from pilots and travel agents, moderators now and then, most of us are business 'air warriors' (some fly more than others) and I'd just love to hear from those who fly loads, their tips, tricks and habits and their job role that leads them to travel so much! We have such amazing people on here to profile - you have self employed SME consultants that pay their own way and hunt for bargain airfares right through to Director levels of corporations who chaperone celebs around the world - imagine the stories they could tell.

Personally I'd like to hear from them Just a thought.

Thanks for the feedback. I have interviewed a couple of frequent flyers already, such as John Blom in episode 11. But we can look at including more of these in the future.

 

[jakeseven7]

Thanks for the feedback. I have interviewed a couple of frequent flyers already, such as John Blom in episode 11. But we can look at including more of these in the future.

Yes you have.... just pointing out there are very interesting profiles here to interview, some a bit more unique I guess!

 

[Mr Isolated]

Hi Matt,

Fantastic podcast, this coming from someone who doesn't normally listen to them!

My partner and I have our sights set on business class tickets next Feb/Mar, Perth To Japan return. We currently have 70k Qantas points with another 250K+ arriving throughout the next 6 month.

My question is, was this the most sensible choice of a rewards program for these flights? Also what is the best method for newbies to find the correct program once they have chosen the destination.

I of course do know about your sister website, frequent flyer solutions, however I have not explored throughly.

Is it as simple as using rewards programs that allow transfers to different airlines programs? I hope this has not been answered before and was hoping you had an answer to help all newbies.

Please note, at this stage, chasing status is not a priority.

Thank you in advance Scott