SQ fare increases + spin = no more loyalty

[taipeiflyer]

i am getting sick-and-tired of the nickel and diming. i wrote sq my "goodbye" letter a couple days ago. after my next flight back to tpe to complete my rt, i am taking my travels elsewhere. had my pps coordinator cancel my 3 tpe-lax bookings and my sq-only rtw. the thing is, if sq had just been honest about everything from the beginning, i would have been much more understanding. but when they feed you a shit sandwich and then try to make you believe that not only is it nutritious, but tastes good also, i get a little offended. eva will get the bulk of my flights from tpe, as i was always treated very well by them before, and i will get to sample other airlines as well. eva may not be sq, but then again, sq really isn't sq anymore either. eva is like toyota- reliable, unflashy, safe and practical. sq may be lexus, but they're pricing themselves like ferraris. after raising their fares from ex-tpe flights in july, they're bumping their first class flights up another 25,000 (approx $800 USD) in oct. They then had a two-for-one C class special to LAX from tpe. C class tickets are normally 93,000 NT. They will rise to 100,000 in NT in oct. The two-for-one special prices out at 156,000 NT. I am no mathemagician by any standards, but that certainly doesn't look like two-for-one to me. And four-for-the-price-of-three isn't really a deal to get worked up about when sq fares ex-tpe are already 40% higher than eva. All while the quality of the SQ product is going down. Sorry, I'm no dummy.

[sqforever]

At least SQ isn't CX, they've jacked up there Y tickets for HKG-JFK to over 3,000 USD and J is almost at 10,000 USD.......

[HUGE AL]

This whole thing is really getting ugly. After seeing the rapid decline in American carriers, I was hoping the foreign ones would keep getting better and better, thus forcing a radical change domestically here in The States. But now, the trend is SLOWLY going global (e.g. SQ PPS, LH saladless flights). Not cool.

Seeing taipeiflyer bail is pretty major...especially going with EVA (though I understand based on the TPE local).

Q: Did the SQ-Only ATW go up as well? Is the price the same in NT as US$?

[jhm]

They then had a two-for-one C class special to LAX from tpe. C class tickets are normally 93,000 NT. They will rise to 100,000 in NT in oct. The two-for-one special prices out at 156,000 NT.

Whilst the SQ spin is irritiating and hard to forgive, I think the pricing depends on your perspective. TPE-LAX is about the same distance as LHR-SIN but even the new 100,000 NT price seems about half of what LHR-SIN costs!

[token01]

Tapei, it looks like your not the only one. Since the SQ machine kept spitting out more and more crock, (i may seem like a child on this but im not going to get over how a QPP on J is treated the same on ground with a first timer J), i kept trying to hold on and buy SQ tickets by convincing myself Post September 1, Q-PPS customers were going to get better things and a better experience in T3. Furthermore, realising that some QPP's travelling $40 000 SIN a year could miss out on TPP and become QPP 30, mad me seriously evaluate my standings with SQ. Wth no enticements been shown post September and knowing the new terminal isnt going to hold a blow - away experience, i have made the decision recently to stop purchasing tickets with SQ. So far SQ just recently lost from me, 3 RT BNE - FRA, and 5 RT BNE - ATQ (family and me) all in J. I kno im a very small fish particuarly amongst the travellers here, but thats aprroximately 60 thousand AUD (inc tax n surcharges). What has resulted is in not only SQ prices up leaving BNE to about 12 grand roundtrip from 9, and to ATQ from 4.5 to 6. This for me makes it ironically easier for me to qualify for PPS but instead to pump more dollars into SQ other options will be sought. Im easily flying more than double to triple miles required for *G on any carrier, meaning i can actually lower down my defences and start pestering my good friend Keith about joining the "dark side" of one world and going for good enough status on two different alliances. For a long time i stayed blissfully ignorant to what was around me since my love for SQ in the air was great. However seeing what other airlines have to offer and SQ blatant disregard for its loyal customers has finally made me look at the cold hard facts. It seems like only yesterday when i found this board by chance and was warmly surprised i had found people who offered non biased opinions on their favourite airline and was convinced here to finally get off my butt and do my first run to get the coveted PPS lol after missing out on it every year for the last 4 or 5 by a few sectors. However with these changes SQ has gone one step too far and has woken the slumbering masses that usually put up with the crock SQ used to offer. Im not going to fly SQ on a SQ ticket again and BKK looks good enough for me. The ride for me anyway with an elite airlines elite membership was short and sweet, but as they say all good things must come to an end.

[StarG]

SQ is still the best in the air but I don't think PPS is worth much these days.
token01 is right - I don't think a QPP in J is treated any better than a first timer J on the ground or in the air. The only benefit I can think of is the excess baggage allowance (for the whole family), which is useful for heavy travellers like me - but I guess that will perhaps be on the next round of cost cutting benefits 'adjustments'.
These days I would rather risk having to pay the excess luggage of 8 pcs for my family trip to the US and fly CX, rather than paying SQ's exorbitant prices.
SQ's J prices are nearing (and sometimes exceeding) F prices of other airlines.

So while SQ is still the best in the air, they have raised the prices (and reduced loyalty appreciation) to the point where I don't think it is worth to go out of my way to fly SQ anymore. Of course given my home base in CGK, I will still be flying SQ sometimes.

[SQflyergirl]

to the point where I don't think it is worth to go out of my way to fly SQ anymore. Of course given my home base in CGK, I will still be flying SQ sometimes.

Precisely my feelings. No more overnighting at hotel SKL and all that nonsense for me. If the scheds and fares work out - fine, I'll fly SQ. But I won't bend to suit them anymore - which I did - and spent more time than i really needed to to get to where I wanted to go.

[StarG]

At least SQ isn't CX, they've jacked up there Y tickets for HKG-JFK to over 3,000 USD and J is almost at 10,000 USD.......

Got curious and searched the fares on Zuji and CX websites. Got HKD 10,424 for HKG-JFK-HKG which is about USD 1,400.

Whilst the SQ spin is irritiating and hard to forgive, I think the pricing depends on your perspective. TPE-LAX is about the same distance as LHR-SIN but even the new 100,000 NT price seems about half of what LHR-SIN costs!

While you are right that pricing depends on perspective, IMHO it is more relevant to compare pricing based on route/market than distance. If we are to compare based on distance, a lot of the shorter hauls should cost much less than they are today.

[jjpb3]

This is bad. When a customer like taipeiflyer (along with StarG and SQfg), who has admiration for the standards of service SQ has achieved, feels undervalued and deceived, it should be a cause for concern for management. taipeiflyer may belong to a more price-elastic segment than the contract-constrained corporate warriors SQ apparently values, but it's precisely because he can choose and can (and now, will) move his premium spending to other carriers that management should take his views seriously.

Let's hope it doesn't take another downturn for SQ management to wake up to the problem they're causing with customer loyalty.

[TerryK]

.....C class tickets are normally 93,000 NT. They will rise to 100,000 in NT in oct. .....

SQ web site shows NTD 98,282 for TPE-LAX-TPE in C now. I guess the old fare expired yesterday. F is NTD 161,282.

TPE-LAX-TPE flights are not even all new F/C. It is still operated by old C some days of the week.

It is a sad day that even a loyal flyer like taipaiflyer would dump SQ. SQ management should soon realize that they had overdone it and hopefully take some corrective action.

[fimo]

SQ management should soon realize that they had overdone it and hopefully take some corrective action.

I somehow don't expect that happening until it hits them where it truly hurts. I think they've quite forgotten that SQ customers aren't without choice nor are sheep (unlike a certain population).

And yet this move is so ballsy I can't help thinking that they've crunched those numbers 100 ways to kingdom come and gotten absolute affirmation that this is not going to hurt them.

[singaporu_kooku]

SQ management seems feeling like on top of the world, aka untouchable, thats why they can make this crap decision. When they realised that their world is crumbling down, then it probably too late to take corrective actions. Somehow, this reminds me of my previous employer, which is also a Singaporean company, but that's different story altogether.

My mother is a frequent traveller and used to be the passage and PPS member, but left long before all these changes happens and I bet she won't be back anytime soon either. I, for one, had been a proactive SQ campaigner for her, but these changes made me reluctant to continue my pro-SQ stance. There are many cheaper airlines with acceptable or almost nearing SQ quality with better frequent flyer schemes.

[upright man]

[QUOTE=fimo;30588]I somehow don't expect that happening until it hits them where it truly hurts. I think they've quite forgotten that SQ customers aren't without choice nor are sheep (unlike a certain population).
QUOTE]

OT : are you referring to the Singaporean population, fimo ?
If so, I actually agree with you, you know.

[jhm]

I believe fimo is having a dig at her own fellow she^H^H^HSingaporeans.

[DeltaFlyingProf]

Let's hope it doesn't take another downturn for SQ management to wake up to the problem they're causing with customer loyalty.

My bet is that it will.