AFF on AIR Podcast

In this episode, Matt chats to frequent flyer and lifetime Qantas Platinum member Chris Gibbs about how he managed to earn well over 100,000 lifetime status credits on Qantas, what he learned along the way and his thoughts on the future of business travel after the pandemic.

Also in this episode, international travel insurance options that cover COVID-19 and Matt shares his experience of flying to Sydney from overseas in the first week of quarantine-free travel resuming.

Episode contents:

2:00 - Fortnightly news round-up

9:56 - Interview with Chris Gibbs

34:52 - Matt's experience flying quarantine-free from New Zealand to Australia

40:46 - Which insurers provide international COVID-19 travel insurance and what is covered?

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

My Experience Flying to Australia in November 2021

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

Virgin Unveils Refreshed Melbourne Lounge

Bonus Velocity Points & Status Credits with International Partners

30% off Qantas Domestic Classic Flight Rewards

Rex Introduces In-Flight Wifi

Two-Way Travel Bubble for Australia & Singapore

Which Airlines Still Offer First Class from Australia?

Velocity’s 20-30% November Transfer Bonus (2021)

Air Canada Releases Sydney-Vancouver Award Availability

Bonza is a new Australian start-up airline with big plans to carve its own niche out of the Australian domestic aviation market when it launches in the second quarter of 2022.

Operating a small fleet of Boeing 737-MAX 8s with 186 Economy seats each, Bonza won’t be competing with Qantas and Virgin for business travellers. Instead, it plans to stimulate demand for leisure travel on new routes that aren’t already being serviced to their full potential.

To learn more about Bonza's plans to launch in Australia, Matt spoke to the airline's CEO Tim Jordan on this episode of the AFF on Air podcast.

Also in this episode, Australia's international borders will begin to reopen from next week! While this is great news for so many people, some challenges remain. Some Australians are encountering challenges with bringing family members to the country, and getting home has just become even harder for Aussies stuck in countries where the only available vaccines are not recognised by Australia's TGA.

 

Episode contents:

1:23 - Fortnightly news round-up

14:17 - Interview with Tim Jordan, CEO of Bonza Airlines

32:07 - Interview with podcast listener Orlando about the difficult of getting parents to Australia

39:01 - The challenge of returning to Australia from countries without TGA-recognised vaccines available

44:18 - Ask Matt: When will the Singapore Airlines lounges reopen?

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

Bonza Airlines website

Upcoming Frequent Flyer Solutions bonus webinar: International Travel in a Post-COVID World (11 November 2021)

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

Australia Removes “Do Not Travel” Warning for 162 Countries

Qantas Brings Forward International Flights, New Planes

Qantas Launches Sydney-Delhi Flights

Sydney’s Qantas First Lounge Will Reopen on 1 November 2021

The Airbus A380 is Making a Comeback

No Quarantine-Free Flights from NZ South Island

Velocity Partner Airline Redemptions Back from 2 November 2021

American Airlines AAdvantage Status Overhaul

12-15% Bonus KrisFlyer Miles on Bank Point Conversions (2021)

Bonus Status Credits at the Qantas Rewards Store

Yesterday, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet announced some big news: From 1 November 2021, vaccinated Australians will finally be allowed to leave the country, and return from overseas into NSW without having to quarantine.

There's a lot to unpack from this announcement. Joining Matt to do so on this episode of AFF on AIR is travel agent and regular podcast guest Alan Lam from Netwave Travel. If you're wondering which airlines are now flying to Australia, what requirements are in place to enter and transit through other countries, how travel insurance will work, and lots more, you won't want to miss this interview!

Also in this episode, how to leverage your airline status to get a status match with another airline.

 

Episode contents:

1:14 - Fortnightly news round-up

13:33 - Interview with Alan Lam: NSW reopens for international travel

40:30 - How to get an airline status match

47:35 - Ask Matt: What would it take for Qantas to bring back the A380s?

50:34 - Ask Matt: Is Award Flight Assist open?

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

Upcoming Frequent Flyer Solutions webinar: Elite Status Matches & Challenges in 2021 (27 October 2021)

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

NSW Scraps Quarantine for Vaccinated Australians

Qantas Flies Non-Stop from Buenos Aires to Darwin

Singapore Airlines to Operate Repatriation Flights to Darwin

Desperate Australians Using Private Jet Loophole to Get Home

Virgin Launches 6 New Routes, Brings Forward Fiji

Bonza: Australia’s Next Low-Cost Airline

Qantas & Emirates Seek Approval to Extend Partnership

Velocity Formally Ends Alitalia Partnership

The Australian government has announced that international border restrictions will start to be relaxed from next month. In this podcast, Matt explains what we do and don't know so far about the new border arrangements and how Qantas plans to restart international flights from November - a month ahead of schedule.

Also in this episode, learn about Virgin Australia's new bonus Velocity status credit offers & status extensions. Plus, when will Velocity reopen reward bookings on international flights and partner airlines?

 

Episode contents:

1:27 - Fortnightly news round-up

8:55 - Australia announces the reopening of international borders

16:58 - Qantas' plans to restart international flights

25:27 - Virgin Australia's recent status extension and bonus Velocity status credit offers

31:01 - When will Velocity international & partner airline redemptions resume?

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

Australia to Reopen International Border from November 2021

Qantas Plans December 2021 International Restart

How Qantas Plans to Fly Airbus A330s to the USA

Virgin Boosts Status Credits for Six Months

Earn Status Credits on Velocity Reward Flights

New Round of Velocity Status Extensions (September 2021)

When Will Velocity Reinstate Partner Airline Redemptions?

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

NSW Commits to Regional Travel Resumption

Qantas Extends Status Fast Track Period

Virgin Extends Travel Bank Expiry Dates

Qantas/BP Status Credit Offer Debacle

BA Executive Club Welcomes Australian Members

Many previous episodes of the AFF on Air podcast have explored the difficulty of getting back to Australia during the pandemic. Navigating the current system is clearly a nightmare for travellers.

In this episode, we’ll get an airline’s perspective. Karl Schubert is the Public Relations Manager for Singapore Airlines in the South West Pacific region, and he joined Matt for a chat about the challenges Singapore Airlines has faced in operating over 5,000 flights to Australia since April 2020.

Singapore Airlines has maintained vital air connectivity in and out of Australia throughout COVID-19. But its operations have been hampered by ever-changing regulations and the Australian government's inbound arrival caps, which have just caused another 88 flights to be cancelled in the next month alone. Currently, despite enormous demand for seats into Australia, the airline is only allowed to sell tickets to as few as 12 passengers per flight.

This episode also contains lots of Australian airline and frequent flyer news from the past fortnight.

Episode contents:

1:17 - Fortnightly news round-up

13:28 - Interview with Singapore Airlines spokesman Karl Schubert

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

International Flights on Sale for December 2021: Will They Fly?

Passport Renewal Delays Expected

Alitalia is Shutting Down: Impact on Velocity Members?

Hilton Honors Extends Status Until March 2023

Niche New Routes Launched to Launceston

Jetstar Ancillary Revenue Up 33% During COVID-19

New Marriott Competition for Vaccinated Australians

Returning to Australia over the coming few months is likely to be as hard as it's ever been during this pandemic. But there is light at the end of the tunnel! Australia is on track to ease some international travel restrictions and introduce home quarantine for some vaccinated travellers by the end of this year.

This episode features an interview with travel agent Alan Lam about international travel to & from Australia over the coming months, and beyond.

Also in this episode, key takeaways from Qantas' huge annual loss for the 2020-21 financial year and how to stop your points expiring while you're stuck at home.

 

Episode contents:

1:34 - Fortnightly news round-up

9:23 - Interview with Alan Lam: Returning to Australia under the reduced arrival caps over the coming months

20:05 - Interview with Alan Lam: Will Australia's international travel restrictions be relaxed before the end of 2021?

31:15 - Highlights from the Qantas 2021 annual financial results

41:00 - How to prevent your frequent flyer points from expiring

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

Australia Extends Halved Arrival Caps Until October 2021

NSW Halves Overseas Arrivals Yet Again

Qantas Plans December 2021 International Restart

Upcoming Frequent Flyer Solutions webinar: Preserve Your Points During COVID-19 (15 September 2021)

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

How to Claim Your Qantas COVID-19 Vaccination Reward

Virgin Australia’s COVID-19 “VA-X & Win” Competition

Qantas Club Gives Another 7-Month Extension

Overview of Australian State Border Restrictions

Bankwest Caps Points on Qantas Transaction Account

Jetstar to Reduce Wait Time for Qantas Points

Claim 1,500 Free Etihad Guest Miles

Matt talks to an Australian Frequent Flyer member currently nearing the end of 14 days of hotel quarantine at the Marriott Hotel in Brisbane. And Qantas Frequent Flyer gives another round of 12-month tier status extensions.

 

Episode contents:

1:00 - Fortnightly news round-up

10:18 - Qantas Frequent Flyer's latest round of status extensions

17:33 - Interview with oz_ally about her hotel quarantine experience in Brisbane

39:08 - Response from Finnair regarding the IfDelayed bankruptcy discussed in the last episode

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

Brisbane hotel quarantine (live) - AFF thread from oz_ally with updates about her quarantine stay at Brisbane's Marriott Hotel

Qantas Offers Easy Status Extensions until June 2022

How a Qantas Flyer Earned Platinum One Status in 2021

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

Virgin Cuts Bags, Velocity Benefits on New “Economy Lite” Fares

Velocity Adjusts Status Credit Earn Rates

Virgin Devalues “Fly Ahead” for Velocity Gold Members

Delta Cuts Domestic Lounge Access for Velocity Members

Qantas Norfolk Island Flights Extended to June 2022

Overview of Australian State Border Restrictions

KrisFlyer Launches Family Pooling (For a Fee)

Qantas Plans Second Points Auction

There are countless claim agencies in the European Union that specialise in pursuing airlines for compensation owed under the EC261/2004 regulation. Their promise is simple: They'll chase up airlines for money owed under EU laws for flight delays, cancellations and instances of overbooking on behalf of airline passengers who lack the time or expertise to do it themselves. If they are successful, the agency will keep a portion of the payout. If they are unsuccessful, there is no fee to the customer.

But as it turns out, these services may not be entirely without risk! In this podcast, we meet multiple Finnair passengers who ended up personally owing the airline thousands of Euros after their claim agency, IfDelayed, lost their court cases and subsequently went bankrupt. This is despite being told by the claim agency that "under no circumstances will you be liable to pay any costs or other penalties if we do not win your case".

This episode explains in detail the unfortunate series of events that led to these Finnair passengers having to pay up to $13,000 out of their own pocket, through no fault of their own. Perhaps surprisingly, nobody seems to have broken any laws along the way.

Also in this episode, the latest Australian airline news & how to maximise the value in Virgin Australia's latest "double status credits" promotion.

 

Episode contents:

1:40 - Fortnightly news round-up

9:32 - How some unfortunate IfDelayed clients ended up personally owing Finnair thousands of dollars

16:09 - Interview with "nicnet"

27:41 - Interview with "SandyS"

41:38 - How to maximise Virgin Australia's latest double status credits offer

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

Finnair Fiasco from 2016 (AFF thread started by SandyS)

Double Status Credits with Virgin Australia (August 2021)

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

Overseas Residents No Longer Exempt from Outbound Travel Ban

Airlines Losing Millions Flying to Australia

Rex Extends Domestic Flight Cancellations

How to Get a Qantas TravelPass with Double Status Credits

Qantas Experiences Up for Bids in Points Auction

Ever wondered what the people designing loyalty programs are thinking? For example, why do points expire so quickly? Are all airlines just trying to devalue your points? And what role do loyalty programs play in helping airlines out of the pandemic? Find out this and lots more in this episode, as loyalty program expert David Feldman from New World Loyalty joins Matt for an extended interview!

Also in this episode, Matt heads to Longreach and chats to Sarah Collins, the Project & Product Development Manager at the Qantas Founders Museum to find out what's new at the museum dedicated to the history of Australia's "national carrier".

 

Episode contents:

1:30 - Fortnightly news round-up

7:17 - Interview with Sarah Collins about the Qantas Founders Museum

13:10 - Interview with David Feldman: Why frequent flyer points expire, and the pros & cons of the different expiration "systems" used

31:19 - Interview with David Feldman: Award charts vs dynamic reward pricing

37:41 - Interview with David Feldman: The shift towards revenue-based loyalty programs

49:20 - Interview with David Feldman: Should airlines keep giving status extensions due to COVID-19?

56:00 - Interview with David Feldman: The logic behind double status credit offers

58:01 - Interview with David Feldman: Why airlines give status matches

1:11 - Interview with David Feldman: David's tips for people running loyalty programs

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

Virgin Australia promo codes

Qantas Founders Museum

Upcoming Frequent Flyer Solutions webinar: International Travel During COVID-19 (27 July 2021)

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

Rex Cancels All Boeing 737 Flights Until August

Virgin Australia Slashes Business Class Fares

Earlier this year, consumer group CHOICE surveyed more than 4,000 Australians whose travel plans were disrupted by COVID-19. This week, CHOICE published its findings in a report called Consumer protection for Australian travellers: a plan for clarity, consistency and fairness. And the findings are pretty damning for the travel industry. Many complained that it was far too difficult to get a refund or use their travel credit.

According to CHOICE, only 17% of survey respondents actually got a full refund, over half waited more than 3 months for a resolution, and 90% of respondents believe Australian laws need to change to make it easier for consumers to get a refund when they’re unable to travel as planned.

In this episode Alison Elliot, one of the authors of the report and Head of Policy and Government Relations at CHOICE, joins Matt to discuss the report, recommendations and tips for airline customers to get their money back.

 

Episode contents:

1:20 - Fortnightly news round-up

10:45 - Interview with Alison Elliott, Head of Policy and Government Relations at CHOICE

43:24 - Update on the trans-Tasman travel bubble and Matt's eventful trip from Auckland to Perth

 

Links:

AFF on Air Discussion thread - a dedicated AFF thread to discuss the podcast and ask questions

CHOICE Report: A plan for fairer consumer protections for Australian travellers

Sign the CHOICE petition

AFF article: Qantas Airport Service Desk Closures Disastrous

Official New Zealand government page on quarantine-free travel from Australia

 

Frequent Flyer Gazette articles referenced in the fortnightly news round-up:

Australia’s “Four-Phase Plan” to Reopen Borders

There is No Queue to Return to Australia

Queensland Raises Hotel Quarantine Fees

How to Prevent Avianca LifeMiles Expiring

Etihad Quietly Drops Multiple Partner Airlines

Qantas Extends Status Fast Track Period

Earn 50 Qantas Status Credits at BP