As ITA continues to grow its operations, the airline is hoping to build its own base of loyal frequent flyers. With this goal in mind, the airline has launched a status match program that will give elite status holders from a long list of 24 airlines the ability to attain status with ITA’s loyalty program, Volare.
For those unfamiliar with the practice, a “status match” offers elite status holders of one airline an equivalent (or near-equivalent) elite status with the airline offering the match. While status names vary wildly, an example could be an offer from Emirates to offer Skywards Silver status to a United Airlines MileagePlus Premier Silver member.
Status match for 24 international airlines
“If you are already a member of an exclusive club of a loyalty program of one of the 24 selected airlines*, you can join the Status Match campaign,” ITA’s website states. Requests for a status match to ITA’s Volare loyalty program must be made by November 30th, 2021, and is available for the following airlines:
- Aeroflot – Aeroflot Bonus
- Aerolíneas Argentinas – Aerolíneas Plus
- Air Europa – Suma
- Alitalia – Millemiglia
- Air France/KLM – Flying Blue
- American Airlines – AAdvantage
- ANA – Mileage club
- British Airways – Executive Club
- Czech Airlines – OK Plus
- Delta Air Lines – SkyMiles
- Emirates – Skywards
- Iberia – Iberia Plus
- Korean Air – SKYPASS
- Lufthansa – Miles and More
- Middle East Airlines – Cedar Miles
- Qatar Airlines – Privilege Club
- Royal Jordanian – Royal Club
- Saudia – Alfursan
- Singapore Airlines – KrisFlyer
- Swiss Air – Miles & More
- TAP – Miles & Go
- Tarom – Sky Team
- Turkish Airways – Miles & Smile
- United Airlines – Mileage plus
While the carrier engages a long list of well-known and highly-respected airlines from around the world, there are certainly some large carriers left out, including Canadian airlines, as well as airlines based in Africa. American, Middle Eastern, and European airlines feature prominently on this list, but there are some surprises too, including far away outfits like Korean Air, Singapore Airlines, and Aerolineas Argentinas.
The fine print
The airline states that requesting a status match can be done “in two simple steps:” First, participants must register for ITA’s loyalty program, Volare. Once this has been completed, an email must be sent to statusmatch@itaspa.com with the following details:
- Email subject: “program of origin” – “status of origin”
- Body text: Name; Surname; “program of origin”; “status of origin”
- Attach a legible copy of your current valid Frequent Flyer Card (digital or physical) and a copy of your ID card (can be in pdf or jpg format)
Then, the airline says that requests to match membership status “will be reviewed, and you will be sent an email to confirm that your status has been recognized by December 31st, 2021.”
The airline adds the following rules for its status match campaign:
- Offer valid between October 15th to November 30th, 2021.
- Only available to members “belonging to exclusive clubs defined as Tier premium (Tier not accessible just with the registration to the program.”
- The assigned status will be valid for one year, starting from December 31st, 2021. Maintenance methods are indicated in the Volare program.
- Requests that do not include all the requested data or that are accompanied by illegible documentation will not be processed.
December 31st is the key date for those who take part in this status match, as the new status will be available and visible to members with digital and any physical cards also being made available on this day.
It looks like the ITA is going all-out to convince travelers to give its services a try. The airline has cast a fairly wide net in terms of luring frequent flyers, which is a fairly interesting approach. Indeed, it makes sense for the airline to match the status of Alitalia frequent flyers, as well as those in the region. However, it’s hard to believe that Singapore Airlines and Korean Air elite flyers would fly ITA enough in the future to hold on to their newly-matched statuses.
Ultimately, other than the time it takes to register, combined with offering up some personal information, there seems to be very little to lose. Indeed, it seems like a great way to experience the best that ITA will have to offer. Hopefully, it doesn’t disappoint!
Are you a status holder for one of the 24 airlines mentioned? Will you be participating in ITA’s matching scheme? Let us know by leaving a comment.
from Simple Flying https://ift.tt/3pqYwSJ
via IFTTT
Comments
Post a Comment