Heads up about program changes

[AnonymousCoward]

Absolutely disgusted with the new changes,

as a QF WP for the last 4 years, I will be moving to AA and SQ.

Why does Qantas have to penalize its most loyal customers? I'll have 1.4million points to burn, and then no more earning to qantas.

Absolute joke QF. Red Roo, please relay our concerns to management, not that they give a flying f*ck

How are you being penalized? I'm still looking through the tables trying to work out winners and losers. Anyone throwing significant money QF's way (Flex J / First, even Flex Y) seems to be winning

 

[Lisee]

I see once again they're really living the 3 month notice term in their program terms and conditions.

How are the changes by Qantas legal then??

Or have I misunderstood due to the massive headache I have, brought on by having to immediately search for new credit cards that are not linked to QF earn?

 

[SeatBackForward]

You still get benefits flying on partner airlines. However if you want to fly a lot on CX or MH or AA, then I think QF is saying "credit to their program, not ours"

International points earning seems to be up, in most cases: SYD-SIN used to be ~3900 points (Y) or ~5000 (J), and is now up to 5200 (Flex Y) and 9100 (Flex J)

SC's have been devalued significantly, and this is where the OW alliance had some consistency in earning rates.

as for "credit to their program"..well its clearly a drive away from QF then.

 

[benjy]

"MASAs" will no longer be available to book after 30 Jun 2014. Travel can be after this date.

Please note, existing bookings will not be impacted.

An important point to make is that any booking made after today as a MASA for travel after 1 July will not credit with any points or status credits because it will credit under the new system. The new system excludes classic award buckets from 'earn'.

See the qantas website:

"Existing bookings beyond July 2014For members with a booking made prior to 27 March 2014 in a fare class impacted by these changes for travel on or after 1 July 2014, we will automatically credit your account within a month of flying with the Qantas Points you were entitled to when you made your booking."

Hi Red Roo, can you please offer some clarification on this:

If we were to book a "MASA" in June for travel in September (as an example) in U Class, would we still earn SC and Points?

 

[Comoman]

Next step - QF leaves OW.

i can feel it coming....

 

[AnonymousCoward]

Wow, those couple of thousand points almost make up for the huge losses in status credits...

Huh? SCs are the same, or up.

Old system was 30 SCs in Y and 120 SCs in J
New system is 30/40/60(!!) SCs in Y, and 120/135 SCs in J

How is that a loss? It sucked before to be booking in B SYD-SIN and you got a measly 30SCs. Now you can get 60.

 

[eric2011]

With all you people leaving, at least I will have a pick of the best seats. You all go, I am staying.

 

[shellthom]

To me, the survival of my favourite airline is more important than any personal gain I can make through loop holes.
I did use this one to my own advantage but if that means I will not be able to fly QF in the future I am happy to forgo it.
My preference is to fly an airline I know and trust. I love the training the pilots get on QF and feel they deserve the esteem of being world-class pilots. Leaders in their field. I want them to have a secure job future and wages and working conditions provided in Australia.
Thank you Red Roo for thinking of us and personally giving a run down of the situation.

 

[ish]

Ouch!

Yes, changing the way we earn and fly alright... to earning with another airline and flying with them instead.

Punishing high volume corporate travellers like me, whose companies are cost conscious enough to book cheaper fares wherever possible, is NOT a smart, loyalty retaining move. Not a lot of details on SC earn, but it looks like at least some definitions result in a drop in SC earn rate (Sydney > Cairns for example). I doubt I will retain Platinum now, and with no chance to use mASA's to help me over the line looks like a competitor status match and run is on the cards.

Oh well, that stupid QStreaming iPad system was starting to get on my nerves anyway....

 

[Flying mermaid]

Wow. Pretty much all of my core earning is impacted by this:

1. "Status bonus stays the same" - except as a WP paying for First where you used to get 100% of the F points as a bonus but you now get 100% of the Y points. So actually that's a 50% reduction in status bonus.

2. First flights LAX-SFO on AA drop from 60SC to 40.

3. The aforementioned loss of MASA bookings.

4. Reduction in partner earn which is a killer when on AONEx fares and you need to use partner airlines rather than QF on some routes to satisfy fare rules.

Seeing as most of my international flights are paid F, and I've already got Lifetime Gold for domestic lounge access, it is probably a good time to start buying tickets on the best price/value carrier for each trip rather than blindly booking with QF.

Well it did seem to me that Qantas was shafting its revenue F flyers..... I guess they have so few F routes left that they don't feel they need to pander to us. I have to admit points and status credits are not a big reason why I fly Qantas .... I am trying out Emirates in F in August Sydney to Nairobi and will give others a try as well. In the end I will book my flights with the airline with a good safety record whom I enjoy flying with. If Qantas continues to downgrade its meals and service on its planes that will see me moving elsewhere. I don't believe Joyce has the faintest idea how to run a premium airline - everything seems to get cheaper and nastier the longer he is there... Although points and status credits are not a huge driver for me, I think whoever dreamt up this convoluted system worthy of the worst kind of public servant needs to be retrained!

 

[amaroo]

On a quick glance it appears to be bugger all difference if - A) you were already flying QF B) not redeeming via ASA C) you won't conducting status runs on other OW partners!

In fact it has an upside if you purchase full freight J .

 

[timmitch]

well I'm glad i finished up the FIFO game and are back at home full time on the tools. Would of been a big loss to me. Will burn points for overseas trip just as a classic not a jasa or masa

 

[blackcat20]

So, guess I should be glad VA gave me Gold last week. Makes it much easier to change loyalties now that I can no longer use my points in my preferred manner.

 

[JTB]

I have no other reasonable option out of Perth but to fly CX or MH.

The whole thing sucks. Where is Perth on the new earning table anyway?

I was thinking the same thing, once Qantas cans the Singapore flight it is impossible to fly international from Perth other than on another airline (did JetStar ONCE and it will remain ONCE).

 

[HarryB]

as for "credit to their program"..well its clearly a drive away from QF then.

Yep, and this makes no sense. Limit options for people to earn and they will go elsewhere that has better options.

 

[travelislife]

Simple! I think the marketing department is taking a bit of licence there. Have they look at the tables they have produced!

 

[Berlin]

Next step - QF leaves OW.

i can feel it coming....

That all makes my choices easier- time to give QF the go. And the above is exactly what I see is in the making- QF will exit OneWorld, it's just a matter of time and another reason not to keep chasing Lifetime Gold anymore and rather hope across to another member!

 

[AnonymousCoward]

SC's have been devalued significantly, and this is where the OW alliance had some consistency in earning rates.

You get less for your SCs in terms of benefits? Or you get less SCs? It seems you get more SCs for flying on QF, and less on partners.

as for "credit to their program"..well its clearly a drive away from QF then.

I think QF / Red Roo were very upfront/explicit that they are aligning points/SCs with money spent with QF (which probably aligns reasonably closely with profit).

If people want to have nice benefits, new planes, good facilities, etc. then you need to have a profitable airline, and it seems QF's either trying to get people to pony up more money, or firing unprofitable customers.

At least it makes a change from cost cutting (and the never ending complaints here about how business never cost-cut their way to profitability)

 

[jamesatfish]

You sure about that? I thought status and cabin bonus were all calculated off the mileage of the flight (aka the 1:1 you'd get as a NB in Y) - so it's still 100% of miles + 100% cabin

I'd have to go and check now, but from memory my SYD-LAX flights in F earned 30k+ points.

I'm willing to stand corrected if that's not the case - just means there's only 3 negative changes for me in tonight's email, not 4.

 

[spentan]

How are you being penalized? I'm still looking through the tables trying to work out winners and losers. Anyone throwing significant money QF's way (Flex J / First, even Flex Y) seems to be winning

The removal of mASAs, I mean it was extremely difficult to book them anyway, for those that knew what they were doing, why not leave them be.

By gaining status on JASAs and FASAs, it gave us a reason to continue flying Qantas due to high status. Without that, it's just whoever is cheapest, in which case 99% of the time, its someone else.