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Bye-Bye Lufthansa – my last Senator Anniversary

Florian Buechting Airports and Airlines, Just Blogging No Comments

Exactly eight years ago, I flew SAS Scandinavian flight SK 626 from Dusseldorf (DUS) to Copenhagen (CPH). Not a really special flight – I had the connection a couple of times before and a bunch of times later. However, on that 28th October 2016, I flew as a Lufthansa Senator for the very first time. Their second highest tier and equivalent to the Star Alliance Gold Status. Now, it is 28th October again. 2024. And I am still Lufthansa Senator. I might not have been the best customer for the Germans, but they earned a lot of money with me. And I always easily defended my status. Eight years in a row. My last anniversary. Next year, 28th October 2025, I will have fallen back to the Lufthansa Frequent Traveller Status.

I decided to go for another aviation relationship. I always was polygamist in regards of aviation alliances. British Airways was my other love. oneworld always treated me the way I felt it is appropriate. Now I am second highest tier at Air France / KLM as well.- Flying Blue Platinum status. My new aviation relationship. Currently, this feels better. This post is very personal farewell letter to the German airline.

 

Dear Lufthansa, Dear Miles and More,

Eight years ago, I have been really proud. I flew from Dusseldorf to Copenhagen. Nothing special. But there were these four special characters on the boarding pass. LH*G. Somehow, it was a dream for me to achieve that. Having a higher frequent flyer status at an airline definitely does not turn you into a better human. Some people might even say, it turns you into a worse one, due to the environmental impact. Even more than eight years ago. I did that without any major support by business travel. Myself and you, that felt like a true love. And my loyalty was a statement from my side that I want to travel with you a long route. Maybe to the Lifetime Senator.

I was proud. I enjoyed the additional comfort you gave me. The Senator Lounges in Dusseldorf, Cologne (now: The Lounge) , Munich and Frankfurt more and more became happy places to me. Places where I mentally relaxed. Places where I was happy about our travel geek relationship. I enjoyed that I could beat some of the queues, which would have driven me nuts otherwise. Even when I flew in Economy or Premium Economy “only”. And when people asked me about Lufthansa or one of the subsidiaries, I typically defended you. I did not use you. I was an ambassador for your brand. At work, among friends, and, since 2018, also with Flyctory.com

 

I am thankful…

… for so many interesting places I visited with you and because of you. Flying EVA Air to Taiwan, for example. I likely wouldn’t have done it if I wasn’t certain about the extra care I received as a Star Alliance Gold Member. Our relationship brought me to places like the Star Alliance Lounge at Los Angeles Airport (LAX) – what a beauty. And I told my followers here that I loved it. It is still a special experience to me whenever I am there. Even the places with rather limited enjoyment, like your lounge in Dubai (DXB), I always knew that due to my loyalty and your care, it is still much better than sitting at the McDonalds on the opposite side of the airport.

You and your Star Alliance partner airlines took me to amazing place in the world. Being a Lufthansa Senator helped me to do weird things like having a weekend in the USA just to watch my Pittsburgh Penguins. The additional comfort helped a lot to make these things happen. And to tell people that this status is real value. I rarely made use of the extra luggage, but the other perks were really fine. Thank you, I appreciate that.

 

I am not special at all…

… there are many like me. And there are many people who gave even more love to you. I have quite a lot of friends and contacts, due to my network in the travel scene, who have that black card. HON Circle. Who travel a lot more than I do. And there are many like me, who gave you that love regularly. Who invested time and money only (or preferably to fly with you and your partners and get that golden card again. We gave you loyalty, a commitment. I wrote a whole blog post about it. I jokingly called you Mutti (“Mummy”) during my travels.

During the last few years, maybe since some 2021, I more and more felt that you forgot that this is an asset on your side. Yes, I do understand that some of the decisions you took make sense, if you just look at the immediate economic impact in that moment. But did you understand that it may hurt your customers might remember it? That their loyalty is fading? You might have earned money in the short term of some two years. But you lost me. I was loyal, I did create profit on your side. I would have lead to earnings in the future. You closed the door. Mutti does not like her son any more. Why? I have no idea. You never told me. Soon, she will cash me for a lousy seat reservation.

 

You lied to me and to many others

I do understand, there was Covid and it had an impact to many industries. It had a big impact on aviation. You needed to be supported by us, by the German citizens. You paid it back quickly. But part of the story is that you did that on the backs of the customers. On your clients. Also the loyal ones. Like me. I wanted to go with my wife to Glasgow. Your employees were on strike. You did not rebook me like you should have done. You did not rebook many people like me. It is your legal obligation. You did not act in line with that. You forced customers to sue you just to get what you should have given them anyway.

You lied to me several times. A technical defect became force majeure, the European passenger rights are not applicable for award flights paid with miles. You even canceled a rebooking you already confirmed before. You forced your customer relations managers in the call centers to lie to me. A few times, they even hang up when I complained and made clear that their behavior is against the law.

 

You did even worse

The most ridiculous thing was in February 2024, when you canceled a flight in October and I had to re-book it. Your chatbot had a technical issue and confirmed a flight change without my interaction. Others ran into the same thing. I immediately called you. But after over 30 minutes of being in a waiting line, your call center agent stated it must have been my fault and they cannot revert it. She did not like that at all. I felt that she believed in what I told you before. And I felt the discomfort in her voice because she knew that this was wrong. She even tried to help to get at least some money from that ticket.

It was not that situation when you lost a loyal customer. I decided to go for the divorce before. I cleared my account with over half a million award miles and invested them into different flight experiences. At least once in a lifetime, my wife should have experienced flying First Class with you before. Just as I did the first time in 2018.

I do understand that lying pays back. Only a very small fraction of the people go to court when you lied to them. Only a few fight for their rights. Other peers also follow that strategy, quite some maybe in a more modest way. I hate it, but that’s the way of the world. And it makes people like Matthias Böse, one of Germany’s most prominent aviation law lawyers, more happy. I would not like it if you do that to people who fly Lufthansa here and there only. But why do you do that to people who showed loyalty to you? To your dearest and bravest people? As I said, I think you did not get the additional value behind people like me. I feel sorry for you.

 

At least it was good timing…

… because you changed your frequent traveler scheme in 2024. That perfectly fits to my decision to leave you. The new program is maybe more simple and more transparent, but also attracts a very different kind of traveler. A flight from Tel Aviv (TLV) to Frankfurt (FRA) is worth as much as if you could fly into Germany’s largest airport from Japan. No loyalty scheme is absolutely fair and it is absolutely fine that you support and favor certain types of passengers with the way it is set up. You now favor the rather short-haul fliers. Israel, Dubai, Egypt are the new key destinations. I often had rather long flights. I am not sure whether this strategic change will do good in the mid-term. For now, it just tells me: I likely wouldn’t have made the (now: annual) cut anyway.

 

Time to say goodbye

I don’t want to argue or fight too much. I am thankful for eight good years. We could have stayed together for a much longer time – and I would have loved being a Lifetime Senator one day. I go on with the Brits – and the French/Dutch. If one had told me some two, three years ago that I think about going for the highest status at Air France, I would have felt this person is mad. Now it is reality. Let’s see how this new relationship will be alike. Maybe I am coming back one day. Currently, the wounds still hurt too much.

Thanks Lufthansa, you have been a great pal. Apart from the last two to three years something. Now I am with the French. And the British.

Yours sincerely,

Florian

 

 

Lufthansa Group

Here are all my postings related to the Lufthansa Group:

 

All “classic” blog posts

No reviews – just debating and certain topics – these are my “traditional” blog posts in the categories Just blogging, Just blogging on music and Sports Blogging:

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