Boaz Shmueli of the excellent MileMaven.com website sends in this tip:

For those Alaska Airlines frequent flyers whose 2007 travels were insufficient to meet the threshold for MVP or MVP Gold, the airline’s elite status tiers, there’s a shortcut that can help you catch up.

If you want to requalify for MVP status, you can fly four paid segments on Alaska or Horizon between January 15 and March 15. Registration is necessary. Click here for full details.

To requalify for MVP Gold, you can fly eight paid segments during the same timeframe. Click here.

These links are “hidden” on the Alaska Airlines website, i.e., you won’t find them on the homepage or the MVP program promotions page. Completing the required flights will extend your status until December 2008.

Related:
- My mom is doing a mileage run
- Alaska Airlines (aff)

In just a few days, my mother will get on a plane (with my dad dutifully accompanying her) and fly to Florida. It’s not a vacation they really planned to take. They’re doing it for the miles.

For those who don’t know, a mileage run is the process of taking a trip just to get the miles. (Usually this means elite-qualifying miles, and not redeemable miles.) For the mileage-running purist, your destination is irrelevant. You might not even stay there — you just fly there, and fly back, to collect the miles. (Wired Magazine’s Dave Demerjian recently jetted around the US just for the miles and lived to tell about it. Even crazier, The Global Traveller recently went on a one-month-long mega-mileage run to establish lifetime elite status.)

Is her son to blame? Perhaps… Indeed, like the dealer helping a junkie get one more high, I pointed my parents to FareCompare’s search engine for mileage runners. The tool searches for flights on a cost-per-mile basis. It turned out that Florida was both inexpensive and desirable.

Yes, my mom has gotten hooked on elite frequent flyer status. She was a few hundred miles short of making status again for next year, and while she wasn’t enjoying the mega-uber-perks of top-tier status, she still appreciated the shorter check-in with business class at crowded airports, the dedicated security lines, and the bonus miles.

Maybe we should call their trip a comfort run. They’re leaving the airport, after all. And they’re actually staying at the destination for a few days. They also used some Starwood points for a Westin and lowballed an Avis rent-a-car via Priceline. In this instance, I think my parents were looking for an excuse for another vacation. And the elite status that results is collateral damage. So this trip isn’t just for the miles…

So is a mileage run really worth it? Elite status is still worthwhile, if you travel enough with one airline (or within one alliance) and if you’re going to take advantage of the perks. If the price is right, and it gets you the perks you want, that mileage run may be an investment worth making.

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Southwest took another step away from its rebellious past and another step toward being just another legacy carrier today. But if you’re traveling last minute on the company dime, there may be a silver lining: Expensive fares, usually bought very close to departure, will now come with a guaranteed “A”-group boarding pass, assuring early boarding and seat selection under Southwest’s open seating model. Plus, you get a free cocktail.

Unclear from early reports is how the number in one’s boarding group is calculated for these passengers. (Southwest recently started numbering boarding passes within the A, B, and C groups, and requiring passengers to board in sequential order.)

Many Southwest fans will be outraged. The airline is gradually moving away from its democratic model, and going with a “money talks, BS walks” approach.

But at the same time, loyalty will be rewarded, too. Much like elite frequent flyers at United, Northwest, or US Airways get access to “premium” economy seats, Rapid Rewards members with 32 flights under their belt in one year are guaranteed an “A” boarding pass.

And in a marketing spin, those expensive last-minute fares would now be termed “Business Select” fares.

(Ooooh, “select”… Isn’t that a grade of beef? Select… choice… prime… The old-style “cattle call” may be gone, but the bovine metaphors live on.)

So, to recap: Expensive tickets get more perks and better seats. Frequent flyers get “upgrades.” And the marketers are spinning tales about how revolutionary and great this all is.

Sounds like a “legacy” airline. Not that there’s anything necessarily wrong with that. But the low-cost revolutionary hype is not in tune with reality any more.

They’ve grown up, perhaps. But Southwest is turning into the airlines it once mocked. Welcome to middle age!

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Upgraded: US Airways elite status for non-elites
Downgraded: Existing US Airways elite member satisfaction
US Airways is letting those without status buy their way into the rank and file of the elite frequent flyer set, giving them access to the upgrade waiting list and a few bonus miles. Whoo. If I were a US Airways elite, I’d be peeved at their “Try Preferred Status on for size” promotion. Much like Tim Winship argues, it’s hard enough getting an upgrade; now the airline is willing to sell your loyalty down the river to make a quick buck, thereby making it even harder to snag that wider seat with the marginally better service. Classy.

Upgraded: Virgin America
Slow-going upstart Virgin America got its approvals all lined up, and they’re officially legal to sell tickets and fly around the USA. But they’re not selling tickets yet. Their website still promises the moon. What’s the holdup? Jeez, people! August, they say.

Downgraded: Airport scales
Surprise, surprise. The scales at airports are often wrong. How often? 90% of scales were off in a Phoenix television station’s investigative report. Problems limited to Phoenix? Probably not. Try to make sure your scale is at zero when you put down your bags, but that won’t necessary avoid trouble. (Via Consumerist)

Upgraded: The little guy
Jane Waun rocks. She took Spirit Airlines to small claims court for the additional expenses she incurred after Spirit summarily canceled her flight and left her high and dry. They refunded her money for the ticket (eventually) but didn’t cover her additional costs. So she sued. And she won, in part because Spirit never showed up to fight it. 90% of success is showing up, or something like that, right?
(Update: I see Chris Elliott picked up on this, too. And he goes a step further, suggesting that everyone take every travel company to small claims court. Sue them every time, and hope they don’t show, in order to force them to change their practices. Nice idea, but small claims cases still take time! That’s probably why Spirit blew the case off in the first place. But if you have the time, go for it.)

Upgraded: Price transparency in the European Union
The EU Parliament has passed a set of rules mandating that airlines have to quote full prices, not just base fares. (Take that, easyJet!) The law needs approval from member states before taking effect, but this is pro-consumer. Let’s hope the member states pass it.

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United Airlines seems to really enjoy taking half-steps to appease dissatisfied customers lately. To wit:

Skimpy bill of rights
In response to the brouhaha over passengers being stuck on planes, and in an attempt to fend off pending passenger bill-of-rights legislation, United has devised a new policy (leaked Sunday to our friends at the Consumerist, and made public later this week) for delayed flights and trapped customers. You won’t be impressed. Or if you are, snap out of it!:

Flights delayed for more than four hours on departure, or an hour and a half on arrival, will be declared “flights of note.” Passengers on “flights of note” will receive the following:
# An apology note;
# 20% off one (1) roundtrip economy ticket on a future United flight;
# One (1) $10 airport meal voucher.

That is all. Passengers delayed for less than four hours get nothing.

And remember, this only applies to delays where the passengers are on the plane, away from the gate, and stuck out on the airfield somewhere. If you’re delayed but the door is still open, this doesn’t apply.

While jetBlue’s policy revision had its problems, and didn’t go far enough in my opinion, it’s miles ahead of United’s policy, which is really laughable. At least jetBlue offered cash refunds.

Upgrades converting to miles again… for some
Remember United’s policy change for 500-mile upgrades? United’s policy of worthless expiration won no praise from this blog.

Well, they’ve backed down, for middle and upper-level elite frequent flyers. If you’re a United Premier Executive or higher, your upgrades will still convert to miles if they expire unused, but only if you register at their special site, and if you maintain your status level (or higher). And you can’t call up and ask for upgrades to be converted in advance of expiration.

But if you’re a lowly Premier, who flew 25,000 to 49,999 miles last year, you might be a good customer, but you’re out of luck. No corporate mile-love for you.

The policy still stinks. Remember, United’s top competitor, American Airlines, doesn’t put any expiration dates on their upgrades, and allows customers to convert their upgrades to redeemable miles with a simple phone call.

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Reader VJ writes:

I’ve heard that there is an American Express card that automatically lets you upgrade your flights on a bunch of airlines. Is this true? How do I get such a card, and what does it cost? I couldn’t find anything on the American Express website.

Such a card indeed exists, but you won’t find an application anywhere on the American Express website. The card you’re looking for is the Centurion Card, also known as the black card.

The black is the ultimate bling credit card. It offers an unlimited credit limit and promises all sorts of “concierge” services and perks, such as personal shoppers at luxury retailers. It’s not even made of plastic anymore: it’s made of titanium. Seriously. Other banks might offer a “titanium” card like they offer a “gold” or “platinum” card. This is really made of metal.

Membership qualifications vary by country, but you’ve got to be a big spender, reportedly as high as $250,000 charged in a single year. You don’t apply: They invite. And it comes at a stiff price: The annual fee is $2500 (for U.S. cardholders; more in some countries, less in others). Not to mention the initiation fee, reportedly at $5000.

So why would anyone spend that kind of money to have a credit card?

To show off, mostly. But the upgrades you mention might be a reason.

For several years, American Centurion holders received mid-tier elite status in several airlines: (more…)

United quietly but firmly kicked its elite frequent flyers in the pants again. It may be a relatively minor change, but it’s yet another devaluation in a program that’s getting less attractive all the time.

For years, Premier members of the Mileage Plus program have received “500-mile” coupons (now electronic) that upgraded your North American flights from coach to first class. (You get four of these coupons every time you reach 10,000 flown miles on the airline. One coupon can upgrade you for 500 miles of distance flown; thus the “500-miler” moniker.) If you couldn’t use your 500-milers, they’d expire after one year, but all was not lost: They converted to 500 redeemable frequent flyer miles in your account.

Not any more.

In another “enhancement” of the Mileage Plus program, 500-milers won’t convert to frequent flyer miles upon expiration anymore. They’ll just expire worthless if you don’t cash them in. (And let me tell you from personal experience, they’ve gotten harder and harder to actually put to use.)

But the real problem isn’t the policy change itself. It’s the fact that they deceptively changed the policy without letting anyone know, hoping that customers wouldn’t find out until it was too late.
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Wineblogger and friend of Upgrade: Travel Better Dr. Vino pays us a visit today with this report from the field.

On Friday afternoon, I made my way to LaGuardia to catch my American flight to O’Hare. Since I knew I would be cutting it close with my appointment soon after scheduled arrival, I tried to go standby the hour earlier flight.

No dice.

During the check-in on AA.com, there was no option to fly stand by on an earlier flight. When I got to the gate of the 2 PM flight, the agent told me it was unlikely that I would get on the flight.

“Would it have mattered if I had gotten on the list when I did the check-in on the web site,” I inquired?

“Nah,” she said glancing at my ticket. “You don’t have status.”

Truer words were never spoken. In the ensuing half hour, I became enthralled with my plunging fortunes, prominently on display for all in the gate area to see (providing they could work out the short form of my name). I started in slot #6, which struck me as distinctly possible.

Soon I was at #7, then #11. Then, suddenly and inexplicably, I plunged to #24. An entire bus of passengers with “status” (in the frequent flier program) must have arrived. When I saw my fortunes rise only marginally to #22 I knew it was time to pony up for the wi-fi and settle in a few gates down.

Stand-by, it’s not just a function of being early. It’s a function of being big.

– Tyler Colman, a.k.a. Dr. Vino

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If you’re an elite member of a frequent flyer program and you’re looking for a status match at United, you may have a window of opportunity, thanks to the sad demise of Brazil’s Varig. Even if you’re not a traveler to Brazil, this might benefit you.

Varig went bankrupt and lost its membership the Star Alliance, so other Star Alliance members are jockeying to pick up the elite frequent flyers in the now-defunct Varig “Smiles” program. The Star Alliance webpage lists the different status match programs that are available to Smiles members until April 30, 2007. Air Canada, Lufthansa, South African, Swiss, and TAP are all granting status matches to Varig’s elites.

BUT: United goes one further. Their rules doesn’t specify that the status match is only open to Varig flyers, either on the Star Alliance site or on their own page. So this is where it gets interesting.

The offer on the United page reads:

We are pleased to offer you the opportunity to participate in our elite status match promotion, offering top-tier flyers with other airlines an equivalent* status in the Mileage Plus elite program. This offer is valid for status matches received between January 22 and April 30, 2007.

Emphasis added. No mention of Varig, though the address and fax number for sending in the documentation are in Brazil. (The asterisk in the quote above indicates that they will match to Premier or Premier Executive, but not to Premier Executive 1K.)

Worth a shot, and a fax to Sao Paulo.

Related:
- Debating the value of elite status

(via MilesLink)

Yesterday, Aviation Daily reported on United’s new check-in and boarding procedures for elite-level frequent flyers at San Francisco International Airport.

Most notably, the airline is rolling out separate boarding lanes, literally laying down a red carpet for elite travelers who can board at any time.

Previously, elite flyers were invited on board early, as part of seating area 1. But once seating area 2 was called, the elites were in line with everyone else. Now, the separate elite “lane” will allow those travelers to move to the front of the line, even when “now boarding all rows” has been called out.

Continental has been doing this for some time, with a blue “Elite Access” carpet. If you’ve never seen it before, click here.

All 30 United gates at SFO have already been “upgraded” to this arrangement. Other hubs will be completed by midyear, and the top 40 airports should have the system in place by the end of 2007. (Some spaces at gates are kind of tight… will there really be sufficient room for two lanes?)

I like this idea, though it is bound to rub some people the wrong way for its velvet rope elitism. As I’ve argued before, ultra-frequent flyers who spend so much of their life traveling deserve to move through airports faster. If this gets them on the plane faster, then so be it.

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Update: From recent comments, it seems that this offer has been pulled. Sorry to those who missed out.

United Airlines is playing Santa a little late. (Or maybe they’re tipping their hat to the Orthodox calendar?) United is making it ridiculously easy to obtain elite status.

For some time, American Airlines has offered their so-called “challenges,” whereby you obtain elite status for a full year by flying a fraction of those miles within 90 days. Most airlines have been loath to offer such shortcuts to elite status. (American’s challenges measure qualifying points, not just miles, so be sure to understand the rules. A basic overview is here. An old but generally still correct primer on the subject of AA challenges is here.)

Now United is following American’s lead and offering a similar program. This is different from United’s earlier “pre-paid” status. Last year, and perhaps earlier, United offered prepaid “gift cards” for $5,000, $10,000, or $20,000, that came with Premier, Premier Executive, or 1K benefits, respectively. But the airline’s adoption of fast-track challenges is new.

According to this thread on FlyerTalk, you’ll need to call the United Mileage Plus (1-800-421-4655) and ask to participate in the challenge. Mention offer code MPP557.

The terms: Pay $100 to participate. Then earn 6,250 elite-qualifying miles within 90 days of registering to earn Premier status. Earn 12,500 elite-qualifying miles on United within 90 days of registering to earn Premier Executive status (which gives Star Alliance Gold status). All paid United tickets qualify, and higher fare classes and premium cabins give a bonus. Only United/United Express/Ted flights count, so no codeshares or alliance flights. If you want to go all the way to 1K, however, there are two caveats: 1) You need to have been 1K in 2006 and failed to requalify for 2007, and 2) only tickets booked in the more expensive fare classes (F, A, P, C, D, Z, Y or B) will count for the challenge.

Status obtained through such a challenge will last through February 2008. Thereafter, you’ll have to earn it the hard way. Unless, of course, another challenge crops up…

If you’re going to be flying anyway, and you don’t already have the elite mojo, this might be worth your while. A mileage run (flying for the sake of miles) might be worth it, too, if the price is right. 12,500 elite-qualifying miles aren’t really that hard to obtain, and this is a really cheap route to elite status.

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I was going to write a post on improving your travels this Thanksgiving weekend, or during the holiday season more generally, but CondeNast Traveler’s Wendy Perrin has already done most of the heavy lifting and offers six good tips. I’ll add my comments and addenda in italics:

1. Check in online.
Indeed. Check in up to 24 hours in advance. And use this opportunity to pick better seats, if they’re available.

2. Check bags curbside.
If you’ve checked in online, some airlines and airports have dedicated bag check-in areas for passengers who have checked in electronically. In Chicago O’Hare terminal 1, for example, that desk is near the far left end of the terminal (if you’re dropping someone off by car, it’s at the last Terminal 1 entrance door).

3. Label your luggage with your name and address, inside and out.
Indeed, and also put a copy of your itinerary inside the suitcase. If the tag falls off on the outside, they’ll look for identification on the inside. Adding the itinerary helps them know where to look.

4. Follow the TSA rules for carry-on luggage to the letter.
Print the TSA’s rules (PDF) and bring them with you, in case you get into a dispute over whether something in your possession is permitted through security or not. After all, screeners aren’t necessarily consistent in their knowledge of the rules.

5. Don’t wrap gifts. TSA might unwrap them.

6. Wear easily removable shoes.

And here are a few extra:

7. Not all security lines are equally busy. Some airports have less-popular security lines, either in an adjacent (but connected) terminal, or at the far end of a terminal building. A few of these “shortcuts” are listed here. They can shave a few minutes off your airport hassle.

8. If you’re traveling with a laptop, download your airline’s timetable. If you’re making connections, having this information on hand is invaluable for approaching a customer service agent and getting booked onto alternate routings.

9. If you have elite status, and your airport has an elite-access line for security, this is the time to use it. Even if you’re traveling on a different airline than the one you have elite status with, you may be able to use the elite line. (Terminal 2 at Chicago O’Hare is an example of this.) A lot of infrequent travelers are passing through America’s airports this week, and some will forget to take off their belt, remove some coins from their pockets, etc. The elite line has the seasoned veteran flyers, and it’s bound to move faster, even if it’s the same length as the general-admission line.

Safe travels!

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