Saturday, May 13, 2023

24th Anniversary

どうでもいいような埋め草記事です。

先週、なにげに MileagePlus® のアカウントを眺めていたら、こんなダイヤログボックスがポップアップ。
 氏名・MP会員番号・生涯マイルは加工してあります。実際の生涯マイルは、もうちょっとで3.1MM。
マイレージプラス入会24年目、おめでとう! …だって。

もうおじいさんだし、これから別の FFP へ乗換えて修行する元気もカネも残ってません。
ブログの旅行記のように、トルコちゃんと ANA でポツポツ旅行する余生を送っています。

それが証拠に、マイルの在庫はたったの 31 マイル。ここは未修正。(笑) 
このスクショ、トルコちゃんの特典発券直後でした。

8 comments:

  1. Is it the 24th anniversary? If I follow the thread of memories, I remember the time when I first met you on a certain bulletin board. I think it was a few years after you became a United MileagePlus 1K member. At that time, I learned about the existence of the "1K" status for the first time. If I were asked back then, "What is 1K?" I would probably have answered, "1K is a layout where the kitchen is located outside the room," with a laugh.
    Before that, I was just randomly choosing airlines and hotel chains, but since then, I have learned a lot about FFPs and FSPs from you and become wiser (although I still can't compare to you at all).

    I heard from you that United Airlines is good at the abandoned play towards its customers, but it seems they manage customer information properly in unexpected ways. Even JAL, if I log in, provides information called "lifetime flight miles," which shows my usage history on JAL Group flights from enrollment until now. According to that, in my case, my lifetime miles are 43,236 miles (16,915 miles for domestic flights, 26,321 miles for international flights), and I have flown 57 times in my lifetime (45 domestic flights, 12 international flights). They kindly added, "These lifetime miles correspond to approximately 1.7 times around the Earth, about 0.1 round trips to the moon, and a total flight time of approximately 115.3 hours." Compared to your United Airlines lifetime flight miles, my JAL usage history is only about 1/100, hahaha.

    Happy 24 Years Anniversary! That's nice, but it feels a bit lonely with just this congratulatory phrase. Still, I was impressed that you only have 31 miles left. In my imagination, someone who has flown so much with the same airline would have accumulated a mountain of miles, right? It's a testament to how effectively you've been using MileagePlus, and that's remarkable.

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      Yes, on the ‘certain’ forum over the Internet, I just became 1K® from the fall of 2000. I joined MP in May 2000 but it takes half year to be 1K. I was really frequently flying over the 48 states… I’m the US version of Yukawa Semmu but I wasn’t selling the final products, the architecture of the gaming. (I skip the details because it’s far off from your profession)
      At that time, when I saw you at Westin Bonabona, 1K is really a one kay, physically take flights over one hundred thousand miles – they ripped off the word ‘hundreds’ so it became one thousand = 1K.. I felt people at United can’t do the math… perhaps worse than me. (lol)

      I am not a good mileage runner. Oh-My-san is way better than me. I only know United and IHG (formerly Strawood but they are gone), and a little bit of Star Alliance members.

      So… you’ve flown by JAL at 43.3K so far? It’s less than a half I flew by UA in 2000… but America is much wider than Japan. Now I understand some mileage runner in Japan do the numbers of shortest ride… accumulating segments, not miles. When I had a offline meeting with Masahiro-san’s group, one of the member said he took ten times of flights between Haneda and Oshima for all day long. That’s not a fun way to achieve higher status for me, I thought.

      And due to the Internet, 3 million miles is 120.5 circumnavigations of the Earth. I am now concerned of by exposure levels of natural radiation from the sky/space… The lymphoma I got in 2014 might be happened by this reason… How flight attendants and cockpit crews can survive from those radiations? Are they sneakily wearing lead aprons? (lol)

      Delete
  2. Yesterday, after mentioning the B787, I started reminiscing and remembered something. It was 12 years ago, on November 1st, that the B787 started operating on the Haneda-Okayama/Hiroshima route (I remember seeing a banner in the Omotecho Shopping Street, where the local department store, Temmaya, is located, saying "Celebration! The Latest Boeing 787 Aircraft Starts Operating at Okayama Airport on November 1st!"). On the other hand, ANA itself didn't promote it much, and I wondered, "Why aren't they promoting it more?"
    But later, I understood why. It turned out that initially, the plan was to deliver the B787 to ANA at an earlier date, but due to the extensive development involving new designs such as the fuselage using new materials and innovative engines, which were developed by various companies worldwide, the development faced significant challenges and delays. As the launch customer, ANA itself had concerns about the reliability of the B787.
    So, by choosing the Haneda-Okayama/Hiroshima route, even if any accidents or incidents occurred midway, they had the reassurance of being able to repair or provide backup at airports such as Centrair, Itami, and Kansai, which were their own major airports. However, if they had chosen those large airports as their initial destinations and encountered delays or incidents on the runway after arrival, it would have had a significant impact on other flights.
    Therefore, I read in a local newspaper article later that ANA selected Okayama as the first destination, not so much for PR purposes of launching the Haneda-Okayama route, but rather to serve as a sort of test or familiarization flight. It seems they were concerned about the adverse effects in case of numerous troubles.

    Yes, to be honest, I didn't quite understand why 1K meant a flight of 100,000 miles. United Airlines removed the word "hundreds" and it became 1K. At that time, I wanted to ask you several times, "Why does 1K mean 100,000 miles?" but it seemed like such a naive question, so I refrained from asking. It's been almost 20 years since I met you, and now the mystery has been solved! (lol)

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      I do remember Omotecho Shotengai is the street Annie Hirakawa ran like a Kemuru-jin. That street must ne the Okayamans’ soul-street therefore NHK made Ms. Ryoko Moriyama running on that arcade with grandma’s costume. Impressive …and Omotecho arcade to Okayama castle was only 2-3 minutes by grandma’s run. Both places are so close to your home, walking distances, aren’t they?(そこか!?)

      So, you mean… route to OKJ is not so important hence ANA made that destination as a guinea pig. Well… if I were a dispatcher of ANA, I also pick Okayama because the destination is 腫れの國 so the severe weather won’t be expected, and the air traffic is not too busy, probably easy runways for touching down or taking off with brand new, not well experienced aircraft which should not be out of order.

      When I achieved 1K® in 2000, I simply asked gate agent why they don’t call it 100K. Then the agent replied to me that 100K doesn’t fit in their computer.

      MileagePlus elite statuses were:
      - Premier
      - Premier Executive
      - Premier 1K
      Those 3 ranks. Then United assigned 2 letter codes to their reservation system – 1P for Premier, 2P for Premier Executive and 1K for Premier 1K.
      This must be the correct answer to you, sensei. But when I heard the answer from the agent, she didn’t explain 1P or 2P so I simply recognized two letter for 100K describes as 1K… what a company… no one can do the math! (lol)

      Delete
  3. To me, both you and Oh-My-san are connoisseurs when it comes to travel. If you say Oh-My-san is even more impressive, then he must be remarkable.
    For me, I still rely on your travel accounts by learning about United Airlines and Turkish Airlines, but thanks to your influence, I have started using IHG frequently, and I now understand the benefits of being their elite member (I used to utilize Starwood, but with the downgrade of Centurion's automatic coverage from Platinum to Gold, I have become less familiar with it).

    Hahaha, my lifetime flight miles with JAL are less than half of what you flew with United Airlines in 2000... It's significantly fewer miles indeed. America is undoubtedly many times larger than Japan. I support Shohei Ohtani, and his dual role in professional baseball while managing extensive travel is unimaginable.

    I also know that some mileage runners in Japan focus on accumulating segments rather than miles by taking the shortest flights. Flying between Haneda and Oshima ten times in a day—I would refuse even if I were paid to do it. While I also aspire to achieve higher status with ANA or JAL, if I were to pursue it, I would prefer a more enjoyable approach.

    I have attended a lecture by an aviation medical specialist once. They also touched upon the safety measures regarding the exposure of flight attendants and cockpit crew to natural radiation during flights. Here are my notes from that lecture:

    As you have often pointed out, radiation exposure in the air is higher compared to ground-level exposure, but airlines seem to monitor and assess radiation to ensure the safety of the crew. In terms of aircraft design, efforts are made to minimize radiation exposure for both crew and passengers by using materials and structures that absorb and shield radiation. Airlines also provide education and training on radiation exposure to crew members and instruct them to take appropriate protective measures. This includes managing crew working hours and flight patterns, as well as providing adequate rest and recovery.

    Therefore, while flight attendants and cockpit crew are exposed to radiation, it appears that airlines take appropriate measures to create a safe working environment for them. However, from my perspective, I cannot say with certainty whether these measures are sufficient. To my knowledge, Certainly, I haven't come across any reports stating that flight crew members have a significantly higher incidence of radiation-related malignancies compared to the general population. However, since you fly much more frequently than the average passenger, it seems that you have to take your own defensive measures in this regard.

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    1. Yamada Denki sensei,

      So… Centurion members only receives Marriott Boiboi Gold. I expected The Centurion Card gives all the highest statuses of hotel chains… HHonors Diamond, Boiboi Ambassador, Hyatt Globalist and IHG Diamond or Royal Ambassador. That maybe the sign Amex is under fire…

      In good old days, there was a segment-based cheat for UA1K when the threshold was 100,000 miles or 100 segments – a flight in Thailand domestic, less than 30 min and over 10 times daily route. So… if you stay in Thailand, take that flights 10 times for 10 days, you will achieve United 1K as well as Star Alliance Gold.
      However, I’m with you, sensei – I don’t like such ‘segment based’ trips. All journeys must be fun with something – foods, drinks, nice views and memorable nightlife. (plus good massage in Türkiye)

      Thank you for the info regarding the exposure of natural radiation. But…
      > as well as providing adequate rest and recovery.
      If I remember correctly, the impact of radiation exposure is accumulative so even there are rests between the flights, the amounts of Gray/Sievert are just sdding… I thought.

      So, for me, watching northern lights (aurora) in high-latitude area is somewhat insane… northern lights are the signs of significant amounts of natural radiation is falling. (lol)
      And I heard PA by captain during the winter flights, telling “we can see northern lights around the direction of 3 o’clock.” Then I check it but simultaneously scared of stronger radiation coming through our airplane…
      When Boeing 787 introduced with carbon graphite body, I immediately concerned the material can be less protective than duralumin, the aluminum alloy. But due to my Googling, carbon graphite body is as protective as duralumin because of it has enough amounts of plastic layers to prevent radiation.

      So let’s rest assured and fly over the Pacific. My cats and wines are waiting for your arrival. (lol)

      Delete
  4. Yamada Denki sensei,

    I don’t know about JGC, but Super Flyers Club can be eternal unless otherwise you cancel that SFC credit card. When I got an offer matching from ANA SFO office, they will give me Mileage Club Platinum – then my first question was; No Diamond? I’m 1K. …the answer was No. 2nd question I asked was; Can I apply SFC? …the answer is no. that was the concern ANA has and to prohibit giving eternal Star-Gold, they restricted to apply SFC after matching.

    For Marriott Buibui, I don’t request this year so far, but I can be Buibui Gold by UA1K.
    https://marriottbonvoy.unitedmileageplus.com/signup
    I actually signed up right now. Thank you for reminding me to make my Buibui status back to Gold. So… I am a lifetime 1K, then if United teamed up with Marriott, I can keep Buibui Gold for life as well.

    The XX-Pay with reading QR code for the payment – I don’t like that method because it’s everywhere in China. If you don’t have any, you will be in trouble. Compare to that, Apple Pay or Android Pay are just tap. much easier and feel trustworthy.

    I received a series of radiation therapy for my lymphoma in 2014. The tumor was found just under the skin of top skull, I received high voltage electron beam which accelerated by liniac. I was told I receive 30 grey at total. Which is the threshold of the risk ‘radiation started creating cancer’.
    Radiation doctor surprised I understood immediately that “electron run in the atmosphere” supposed to have good electron voltage, and if it’s naturally generated, it’s sp called Beta-Line. So I got β-line on my skull up to the amount raises the chance of cancer… scary but I had to reduce the chance of metabasis. I felt a dilemma– suppress .the risk of lymphoma creates the chance of cancer?? (lol)

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  5. I see, so the Super Flyers Club continues indefinitely unless they cancel that SFC credit card. This makes me understand why many people go through the SFC qualification process. I whimsically thought it would be interesting if there were a "KFC qualification". Imagine being called a "Lifetime KFC" and being ushered to a special seat to eat specially prepared fried chicken, with unlimited soft drinks to boot. Would that be attractive? (sweat)

    Wow, if you're a Mileage Plus 1K, you can match to ANA's Mileage Club. Is this because they belong to the same alliance? If you were GS instead of 1K, would you get Diamond status instead of Platinum?

    Even if you are a 1K holder, you were not able to apply for SFC. Indeed, if they granted eternal Star Gold and SFC status through temporary matching... I might be tempted to aim for 1K status. Oh, but aiming directly for SFC might be easier for me?

    So, if you're a Mileage Plus 1K, you can become a Marriott Bonvoy Gold. Thinking about it, frequent flyers like 1K are inevitably frequent hotel guests, so they should be valuable prospective customers for each hotel chain. Doesn’t IHG have any such reward offers in partnership with United?

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