Status credits

[jastel]

Having just made Silver myself purely on self funded leisure travel, not govt/corporate expense accounts, I agree, it's not a lot extra but it's more than I had before...

Have received one free upgrade to Business, SYD-CNS, and one points upgrade SYD-LAX in business on the A380, but my favourite bit is the zap card and get on bit, (bag drop if needed with discs) and not having to line up to check in.

I have another US trip planned and timed my trip so that the flight back will be in the next month after my SC reset so get enough SC to requalify on the way over and the way back goes towards next year.
If I am correct in my thinking anyway....

Interesting Chrisb, will be using that one as well.

 

[mr mink]

Having just made Silver myself purely on self funded leisure travel, not govt/corporate expense accounts, I agree, it's not a lot extra but it's more than I had before...

Yes, there is the odd Silver scattered amongst the Gold and Platinum seeming majority on this forum. I only effectively got to QFF Silver after retiring two years ago and then having the luxury of time of doing three or four (self funded leisure) overseas flights a year (not really counting NZ as points and SC gain there is negligible). Having scraped into Silver I then managed to get to 380 SCs last membership year but of course the excess over 250 is effectively "wasted ". Although of course I would love to go to Europe/the Rest of the World every 3 or 4 months to indulge my travel therapy, unfortunately someone has to pay for it (moi, not some corporation). I am therefore realistic that it is highly unlikely that I will get to Gold short of winning the lottery (halfway is after all halfway and no use to anyone). Although the mileage of Gold and Platinum members may vary, the increase in mileage bonus from 25% to 50% for QFF Silver was at least one good thing that came out of the Qantas "enhancements" the last time.

I hope to go to Europe in September but I doubt that any award seats will be involved there, which is a combination of lack of substantial miles not to mention lack of availability. I will likely buy a QF ticket to do this and in the process largely establish enough SCs for a Silver retain. If I was travelling every week Lounge access might be considered a "necessity" rather than an annual "luxury " (I use that word lightly).

Slightly peripherally, I did an ASA return flight to Shanghai in December last year. It was only by stumping up the points for J could I get on the direct QF flight up to Shanghai -- the return was Y and via HKG, which is rather tedious. It seems common that award flights, in Y at least, seem to "prefer" indirect connections like this. Is this a function of lesser status or simple unavailability? I only just got an ASA flight very recently to Seoul, admittedly with OZ not QF metal - otherwise it could have been somewhat around the houses so to speak.

 

[Awesom Andy]

It seems common that award flights, in Y at least, seem to "prefer" indirect connections like this. Is this a function of lesser status or simple unavailability?

It's a function of extracting extra points from our redemptions.