Club Volare, everything we (don't) know about Ita Airways' loyalty program
Club Volare was announced last October 15, when, surprisingly, what we all thought would be called [...]
ITA Airways
SkyTeam
The Flying Club was announced last October 15., when, surprisingly, what we all thought would be called Alitalia instead announced to the world that it would be using Ita Airways as a name.
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At the same time as announcing the name, the light blue livery that we will see around airports painted on the first A320 in a few days, the management of the new Italian flag carrier had also announced the birth of the new loyalty program, being unable to participate in theauction to buy Millemiglia users and all.
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Club Volare what we know to date
Thanks to the very generous offer of status match, open to a large number of global programs (including the former Alitalia program), to date there are over 200,000 members in the Volare Club. The chance to apply for status match was to expire Nov. 30, But it has been extended until the end of the year.
If you were a member of the AZ loyalty program., it is good to remember that there are other offers active right now to get the status match with Lufthansa, (and thus all Star Alliance carriers), with Emirates and with TAP Portugal.
There have been no other announcements in recent months, other than the fact that the program is expected to go into full operation on January 1, 2022.
Meanwhile, ITA Airways Has entered, on a provisional basis, the SkyTeam alliance. SkyPriority logos have also appeared at the gates of departing flights in recent days.
AF lounge in Paris, photo taken on December 8, as you can see there is no more Alitalia and no Ita Airways
In contrast, however, there is no sign of ITA, let alone Alitalia, in Air France lounges in Paris, just as some TFC readers have reported to us that they have been "bounced" from other lounges operated by SkyTeam companies.
When there are less than 2 weeks to go live, the only thing we know is that miles will be accrued according to a model similar to that used by Air France and Delta, that is, on the basis of ticket spending and no longer on the basis of distances flown.
However, we do not know if, based on the elite level of the passenger, there will be bonuses that will allow those who fly AZ more often to earn more points. Nor do we know what policy the new company will use for status renewal.
If again it will take a cue from Air France's Flying Blue, the mode could be similar to that of XP points, which is then the same as British Airways and its Tier points. Personally If so, I would not be sorry.
By the end of the month, members should receive their membership number, I am curious to see if ITA will send the physical cards or copy the Other companies that have decided to go totally digital. In addition to the number, by December you should log in to your private area, retrieve your flights made in these 3 months and the related points, including the first bonus of 10,000 points promised with your initial registration.
What is still missing
As mentioned, the whole part about earning points for status renewal and any bonuses is missing.
In recent days, ITA Airways announced that on domestic flights as well. business class cabin, called Superior, will be restored, but there is still no word on lounge access.
Alitalia directly operated its lounges in 4 airports: Fiumicino, Linate, Malpensa and New York City.
At the moment, they are all still closed and it is not known if they will be reopened soon, although passengers with Premium or Elite level have, among other benefits, access to these waiting rooms.
Tables for the use of points are missing. and reservation of award tickets. The only thing we know is. award points cannot be used before March 1, 2022. However, it is not clear whether this means that reservations will be triggered on that date or whether award tickets can be booked from that date.
We also have to wait to know whether the philosophy will be that of Millemiglia, which is a fixed table for flights divided by destination, or whether it will go toward a Variable pricing based on supply and demand. In addition, we still do not know what will be the strategy with regard to premium places available on the various flights. Very few as with AZ or availability similar to that of other companies airline?
Then there is a big problem for all serial accumulators of points and miles and that is. The expiration of ITA's temporary membership in SkyTeam.. If the new company decides to Move to another covenant of the heavens, frequent flyers could find themselves with tickets from SkyTeam carriers that would no longer give accumulation with AZ, right at a time of status expiration.
It is good to remember that the loyalty program is a real money maker for airlines, indeed according to some recent transactions, the value of the frequent flyer program of some carriers is worth more than the airline brand itself. And the main reason is that the company sells points to partners, points that are then disbursed by partners to customers.
In this mechanism, the main customer is credit cards. Alitalia had close relations with American Express which issued 5 co-branded credit cards, in the last few months of its life had been Also launched two papers with Deutsche Bank, also had an active partnership with Nexi that gave IoSi Club members the opportunity to turn points into AZ miles.
As of today everything is still standing still on this issue, but I anticipate that in early 2022 there will start to be some news.
In conclusion
Some choices bode well for the future of ITA Airways, foremost among them. the completely renovated fleet over the next 4 years. Others, however, do not convince me at 100%, for example, the decision to "temporarily" join SkyTeam. We will just have to wait a few weeks and see What will happen in early 2022, of course Omicron permitting..
