Last week, Matt was able to return home to Australia. But some Australians that are still stranded overseas have not been so lucky. In this episode, Matt chats to Australians in Peru and India who have been in lockdown and unable to depart – or even get to an international airport – for several weeks.

This episode also covers the latest news and developments from the past fortnight, and pays tribute to the final Qantas 747 passenger flight to land in Sydney.

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It has been a tumultuous few weeks for the airline, tourism and hospitality industries. As the coronavirus outbreak spreads exponentially, many airlines have stopped flying and international borders are being closed at unprecedented rates.

In this extended episode, Matt looks at the implications of the past few weeks on travellers and the airline industry. This episode includes interviews with travel agent Alan Lam, and Henrique Pereira from Draper Startup House in Lisbon – a hostel that unfortunately had to close due to coronavirus after just two days.

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The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is having an unprecedented impact on the travel industry – and the world in general. Thousands of flights have been cancelled, travel bans are being introduced and millions have had their travel plans disrupted. In this episode, Matt takes a detailed look at what this all means for travellers.

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Qantas Frequent Flyer surprised everybody this week by releasing a new Qantas Double Status Credits offer! In this episode, travel agent extraordinaire Alan Lam from Netwave Travel (a.k.a. “madrooster” on AFF) joins Matt to discuss the best Qantas status credit runs, as well as recent changes to the popular Finnair Business class round-the-world fares.

You can contact Alan by email: alan [at] netwavetravel [dot] com.

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Buffalo Airways is not your typical airline. Based in Yellowknife, Canada, Buffalo Airways operates an incredible variety of historic aircraft such as the Douglas DC3 in some of the world’s harshest flying conditions. It’s no wonder Buffalo Airways was the subject of the popular television show Ice Pilots NWT.

In this episode, Matt sits down with Buffalo Airways pilot Viktor Babcan in Toulouse, France. Toulouse also happens to be the home of Airbus and is where Airbus manufactures its Airbus A380 aircraft… at least, until production stops in June of this year!

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Ever wondered what it’s like to be a road warrior, flying from Melbourne to Sydney every week or internationally multiple times each month? On this episode, AFF member “Sprucegoose” – a Qantas Platinum One frequent flyer – joins Matt to discuss the ins & outs of frequent travel, from airline lounges to tackling jetlag.

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In this episode, we take a brief detour from the aviation discussion to talk about train travel! There’s something nice – perhaps even romantic – about long-distance train travel. Around the world there are lots of famous train journeys such as the Orient Express and Trans-Siberian Railway, but there are also a couple of famous trips right here in Australia. This episode features an interview with an AFF member who has just completed one of them; the Indian Pacific train from Perth to Sydney.

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If you’re a little bit short of the next airline status tier, a status run can get you over the line. In this episode, learn about the best status runs with Virgin Australia, Qantas and the three major alliances. This episode also includes the latest frequent flyer news and an extended interview with AFF moderator JessicaTam about her incredible British Airways status run.

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Many Australians join Qantas Frequent Flyer by default. But even if you fly with Qantas regularly, you could benefit by using the British Airways Executive Club frequent flyer program instead. In this episode, Matt also discusses the new Uber Rewards loyalty program, earning Qantas points for Uber rides and a bizarre experience using Uber in India.

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Airlines seem to love married segments, but for frequent flyers and travel agents they can be extremely frustrating. Sometimes you’ll find an award seat on a flight you want to book, only to find that it’s not actually available if you add on a connecting flight to your final destination. Married segments are also why airlines will sometimes charge a higher amount if you remove one or more flights from a booking!

In this episode, Alan Lam (a.k.a. madrooster) joins Matt to explain what travellers need to know about married segments, as well as a wide range of other topics including an unusual way to fly to London with Qantas that could be cheaper than flying via Perth or Singapore.

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