Earlier this week, Scandinavian Airlines exited the Star Alliance for pastures anew. However for those who wish to retain loyalty to the alliance, SAS EuroBonus Gold and Silver status members can now request a loyalty status match/challenge with select Star Alliance member airlines.
Which Star Alliance member will you land with? Air Canada Airbus A330-300 landing – Image, Economy Class and Beyond
Which airlines are taking part?
Select member airlines offer a frequent flyer programme “status match/challenge” in Scandinavia. Members of SAS EuroBonus who hold eligible frequent flyer status can request the equivalent status in a frequent flyer programme of any of the participating Star Alliance member airlines.
The airlines participating in the status match/challenge campaign include
- Air Canada
- Air China
- Air India
- Ethiopian Airlines
- Lufthansa Group airlines
- South African Airways
- TAP Air Portugal,
- THAI
- Turkish Airlines
- United Airlines
Status can be matched across equivalent gold and silver tiers, as applicable.
In the pitch, member airlines of Star Alliance operate more than 3,650 flights per month to Scandinavia from 26 hubs worldwide, offering customers connections to more than 1,070 international destinations. In addition, 18 Star Alliance member airlines continue to offer direct flights to and from Scandinavia, including Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air India, ANA, Austrian, Brussels Airlines, Croatia Airlines, EGYPTAIR, Ethiopian Airlines, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, SWISS, TAP Air Portugal, THAI, Turkish Airlines, and United.
Want in?
Status holders may request a status match with or participate in the status challenge of the programmes of the above-mentioned airlines by visiting staralliance.com/statusmatch.
Participation in the promotion is voluntary and free of charge.
The promotion is available from 1st September to 30th November 2024, both days included. Different terms and conditions apply to each status match/challenge and are available on the website. The status match/challenge offer is powered by StatusMatch.com in partnership with Star Alliance and the participating member airlines.
In Quotes
Renato Ramos, Vice President of Strategy at Star Alliance said:
“Global travellers today seek unmatched network, access to more lounges, and benefits at more airports. With its 25 world-class member airlines, only Star Alliance is best positioned to deliver these advantages to frequent flyers in the Nordic countries.”
Worth it?
Like any status match, you’ll have to work out which airline suits your needs, as well as how the loyalty programme works (in terms of earning and burning). It’s research work, but selecting the wrong frequent flyer programme could put you at a disadvantage much on – either forcing you to chase for another match or inadvertently losing the status after beating the match requirements a year due to any number of reasons.
But if you put in the work, there is a lot of value you can extract if your travel patterns match – a rare occasion, that in right circumstances, loyalty can be brought.
Just do your research first before you match – it’ll pay off in the longer term.
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Doesn’t work for a SAS account that was recently matched (from i.e. TK)