Ten months after the JAL rule change, “it’s getting harder and harder to get award tickets”… Changes in mileage “training” have occurred.

Mileage “Shugyo” Boom Loses Its Shadow…… rule continues, popularity concentrated on ANA

JAL’s mileage “Shugyo” program effectively ended in January 2012. As a result, ANA, which continues to follow the rule, is concentrating its popularity, making it difficult to book award tickets and causing a number of complaints from existing users.

Shugyo” refers not strictly to the accumulation of miles, but to the accumulation of annual flight records by flying more than necessary in order to earn points for status upgrade, thereby gaining the status of senior member. In particular, membership in ANA’s Super Flyers Card (SFC) and JAL’s JAL Global Club (JGC) offers significant benefits, such as priority check-in and boarding at airports and access to airline lounges.

To qualify for SFC and JGC membership, a passenger had to have flown approximately 50 times per year. However, once you have achieved this, the benefits are semi-permanent as long as you continue to pay the annual membership fee for the card. Therefore, there are actually many people who have done the training only once and just keep it forever.

50 boardings to 300!　Details of JAL’s rule change for JGC membership this year

JAL has changed the rules for JGC membership. JAL has changed the conditions for JGC membership to “JAL Life Status” program, which is based on annual flight records only. According to the new program, in addition to flight records, the total number of “Life Status (LS) points” earned through the use of JAL Card, JAL Mall, and other airline-related services is now the criterion for enrollment.

The requirement for JGC membership is 1500 points or more, and since 5 points are earned for each domestic flight made by the JAL Group, this means that 300 flights are required for JGC membership. The hurdle has been raised from 50 flights until the end of last year to 300 flights, which at the same pace would take six years and cost more money.

In fact, since the beginning of this year, the term “JGC training” has rarely been heard. The only people who still train are those aiming for Diamond/JGC Premier status in the FLY ON Program, which determines status based on annual performance, and since this requires training every year, the number is considerably smaller than that of JGC training.

ANA’s current situation is that “award tickets cannot be obtained” and “phone calls are disconnected.

On the other hand, ANA’s SFC admission rules remain the same. As a result, people who are trying to train for airline seniority membership starting this year are concentrating on ANA.

Recently, ANA has been hearing a lot of comments about how difficult it is to book award tickets. Especially during the year-end and New Year holidays and major consecutive holidays, there is a real competition for reservations.

As you accumulate flight records through SFC training, you can also accumulate ANA miles. Moreover, there is a limit to how long you can use the miles accumulated from the COVID-19 crisis (ANA miles are good for 3 years). The lack of international travel due to the COVID-19 crisis has made international long-haul flights to Europe, the U.S., and other destinations more popular, especially in business class and other advanced classes. In addition, the popularity of inbound travel has driven up the cost of international airfares, especially business class, which can cost as much as 1 million yen for a round trip to Europe or the United States.

In addition, the number of senior class members has increased to such an extent that crowding in ANA lounges has become the norm, the priority lanes at security checkpoints are faster than the general lanes, and there are long lines for priority boarding.

It is well known among heavy users of ANA that even if you want to change your reservation by phone, it is difficult to get through to the ANA lounge.

What?　You need all these miles?” JAL’s award tickets are hard to get, a different situation from ANA’s.

JAL’s award tickets are easier to book than those of ANA. However, this new system is not well received.

JAL offers award tickets for domestic flights from 4,000 miles one way and international flights from 7,500 miles one way. Both have introduced “Award Ticket PLUS,” a variable fare (dynamic pricing), so to speak, that allows passengers to book award tickets with additional miles when there are no seats available for booking at the lowest mileage.

For a standard seat on a domestic flight, a Tokyo-Osaka flight requires 6,000 basic miles, or a maximum of 23,500 miles when using PLUS. On the other hand, for international economy class flights, Tokyo=Seoul requires a basic of 7,500 miles / PLUS up to 60,000 miles, and Tokyo=New York requires a basic of 70,000 miles / PLUS up to 224,000 miles. And all of them are “one-way” .

In fact, even if it is possible to make a reservation with the minimum number of miles required during off-peak periods when there are many seats available, it is nearly impossible during peak periods, and a considerable number of miles are required. Therefore, it is possible that the destination is Seoul, Korea, but the number of miles required is almost the same as that for New York, USA. Naturally, the distance between Seoul and New York is different, and the fares are also very different.

No matter how easy it is to book award tickets compared to ANA, anyone would hesitate to pay 60,000 miles for a one-way trip from Tokyo to Seoul. Incidentally, JAL e-points, which can be redeemed with miles and used to purchase tickets, are 15,000 points (worth 15,000 yen) per 10,000 miles, so 60,000 miles is equivalent to 90,000 yen for a one-way trip.

Mileage revision is also in the U.S. …… countries surveyed the airlines.

Airline frequent flyer programs are not limited to Japan, but are conducted by all companies around the world, each providing their own services. Award tickets, in which accumulated miles can be redeemed for airline tickets, are widely known. On the other hand, it is not uncommon for the number of miles required for award tickets to increase from time to time, a so-called “deterioration” of the program.

The Associated Press reported earlier this September that the U.S. Department of Transportation is investigating major U.S. airlines regarding their frequent flyer programs. The investigation targets American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, and United Airlines. According to the article, the airlines are raising the number of miles (points) required for award tickets and limiting the number of seats that can be purchased with miles (points), a move that appears to be in response to recent complaints from frequent flyers of the airlines.

Signs of emphasis on “value” of non-aeronautical business such as shopping rather than flight performance

ANA has already started to include more than just flight activity in earning airline status: ANA-affiliated stores and online stores, “Life Solution Services” such as hometown tax payment and insurance, and ANA Card and ANA Pay payments are eligible for this status. Even if the number of flights is less than the normal annual number of flights, the total of these payments will be added up to earn status.

Delta Air Lines also changed the rule in 2012. Delta Air Lines has also changed the rules since 2012, and now grants status based on the “amount” of money spent on car rentals, hotels, and other services through Delta’s official website, as well as on purchases made with Delta’s affiliated credit cards, rather than on the actual distance flown.

JGC/SFC system of Japanese airline companies that have the advantage of “several roundtrips per day every weekend ……” even if you go out of your way to train.

It may be difficult for the general public to understand the benefits of flying more than necessary. For example, flying Haneda-Sapporo or Naha several times a day, or flying to the Amami Islands in Kagoshima to make up for lost time until last year was called “island hopping training” in JGC training. The Itami-Tajima route is famous as a JGC training route, and at the end of the year, when the annual boarding limit is reached, most of the passengers on the two round-trip flights per day, especially on weekends, leave the arrival gate and go directly to the security check point after arriving at Tajima from Itami.

If you are a regular flyer, I would say that there is a merit to obtaining JGC or SFC. In JAL and ANA lounges, you can drink as much alcohol as you want, including beer, for free.

Establishment of “exclusive lounge” Movement of “differentiation” among foreign airlines. …… What will happen to Japanese airlines?

Recently, there has been a movement among foreign airlines to “differentiate” their airport lounges. For example, Singapore Airlines offers “Kris Flyer Gold Lounge” for “Star Alliance Gold members in economy class” including SFC members, and “Silver Kris Lounge” for “business class” members. The Silver Chris Lounge, which has a noodle bar and other food and beverage facilities, is superior to the Kris Gold Lounge.

Qatar Airways has limited the use of its lounge at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, Thailand, to business class passengers and above, and at its base airport, Hamad International Airport, lounge access is different for each class of travel. ANA will continue to offer free pre-selection of seats with extra legroom, etc. only to Diamond and Platinum tier members, while other tier members, including SFC members, will have to pay for this service.

To begin with, services as a senior member can be enjoyed without status if you fly JAL’s First Class or ANA’s Premium Class on domestic flights, or Business Class or higher on international flights.

In addition, if you use the advanced class on a regular basis when boarding, the number of miles you can accumulate and your flight record will be different from those of regular seats or economy class. Many businesspeople who travel frequently and those who regularly fly in the higher classes are “already a senior member when they realize it” without any training.

Overseas, there is no membership system such as JGC or SFC, and it is necessary to accumulate flight records every year in order to maintain status. It will be interesting to see what ANA will do.