IMHO, the reduction to 5 SCs on short flights on Getaway fares is far outweighed by the increased earn rate on Elevate fares + Family Pooling + good SC earn rate with partners + much lower qualification/retention thresholds.
But most people do just book the lowest fare. There seems to be an assumption that most FFers are J flyers, but it's a very small minority. Most are slugging away in Y - and more and more companies are stopping J entitlements. And for those who in Y are interested in status and SCs (which is actually a very small minority of those who do fly, even if it is a significant proportion of those who fly
a lot) and choose to go for these higher earn fares, well then VA have just managed to find a way to extract an extra $40 or more from you each flight - which works out to at least an extra $1000 a year for your SG or $2000 for your WP if your travel is primarily domestic. It might be "easier" in number of flights, but they've also made you pay for it.
How do you work that out? If you are BFOD, you can almost forget about flying on QF codes internationally, so your international SC earn rate will be very low, or maybe even non existent. Domestically, while you are still guaranteed at least 10 SCs each way with QF, remember you need 1,400 SCs to reach Platinum (40% more than Velocity) and 1,200 to retain (50% more than Velocity), with no Family Pooling! As I said before, I very much doubt that many people are reaching Platinum solely through flying MEL-SYD in the lowest fare class. Furthermore, if you are genuinely BFOD, you won't even have the ability to choose QF or OW partners a lot of the time.
BFOD internationally is usually viewed a little differently from domestic - there is usually a band of around 10% we are allowed to work in. As long as our preference falls in that band we are allowed to use it. Most larger organisations (inc. mine) have some pretty good corporate fare deals with QF (and other airlines), from which they are chosen. Just as they let us choose between VA and QF domestically (and largely ignore TT and JQ) we are also not forced to have to use airlines like Air Asia and QF are quite competitive in this space. I can only talk on my experience, but the routes I've done in the last 6mo (2x Europe; 1x NA; 1 x Asia; 2 x CA/SA) prob had QF cheaper than the VA or other full service partner at least 1/2 the time (and QF codes on other metal much more readily available and cheaper than VA codes on other metal - VA do need to sort this out, and it also means for many routes QF fly you don't
need good partner earn rates as there is a QF code).
FWIW for my flying the international SCs would have tapped out at roughly the same, but I would have ~180% of the domestic SCs at QF over VA (I'm allowed to use Elevate
sometimes if I can really make a case that I have no idea when I'll be done and it's only a few dollars more), which makes the most difference as it is the bulk of my flying. With ~50 return domestics a year that's a minimum of 1000 SCs (QF) v about 600 (VA) - a little bit more as it is not all Golden Triangle.
You have said yourself that you can get both you and your wife to Platinum with Velocity despite being strictly BFOD in Y - that would be completely impossible with QF. BTW, I have also got my wife to Platinum twice, and she has never dropped below Gold since 4 years ago, yet she hardly flies at all (again we had to go out of our way to get her 8 eligible sectors both times she made Platinum). In one of those years I also got my father in law to Platinum.
I also said that I would easily get WP in QF as BFOD. Periodically I do check - you never know (VA works for me now, it may not always). I could probably
almost get her gift SG with QF too. My wife flies enough to get SG on her own (or close to - and most of it is without me), and she now chooses VA for that travel (after previously being QF focused) primarily because she gets status through family pooling from me. FWIW I think VA have done well out of it in our family - we have clearly benefited too but IMO it's a
mutually beneficial relationship. My extended family are now primarily VA too, because VA let us use the lounge when they are travelling as long as I accompany them into the lounge (even if I don't travel), and it's created a halo effect. I'm sure it's offering strategic value for them, even if we don't see it, otherwise they wouldn't offer it. Some goes for me, it is these 'extras' that make me prefer VA, even though it has other limitations compared to OW etc.
Yes I had explained that in a previous post. I have only flown 8 VA flights this year, all short domestic trips on Getaway/Elevate fares (2 MEL-ADL returns and 2 MEL-SYD returns), but my wife and kids were with me on 2 of those trips so I collected their SCs too. If those flights were with QF I would have earned only 80 SCs, instead of 240 SCs with Velocity.
Then that isn't really a statement on earn rate as much as it is about the validity of family pooling. I admit I benefit from it (as it allows me to gift WP to Mrs G), but I personally have no issue with it being a family benefit.
Bottom line is this is what VA have considered works for them. I've not found VA lounges any busier than QF ones (though admit both are too crowded sometimes) - I don't think it is "too easy", given the limited range of benefits (but I do agree if the beneftis increased, upping the threshold may be appropriate). If re-qualification is too easy for you - maybe you should celebrate the face you've found the VA sweet spot?
