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Virgin Australia has overhauled its Velocity Frequent Flyer program with two new status tiers.
The airline will add a new “Forever Gold” status from October next year, matching Qantas’ gold lifetime status, as well as a “Platinum Plus” tier above platinum. Velocity Frequent Flyer hit 12 million members earlier this year, though still lags behind Qantas Frequent Flyer at 16.4 million as of June 2024.
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Virgin has also reduced the base cost of economy reward seats on some domestic routes to as low as 5,900 points one-way, though short-haul international will see an increase in points costs, and points earned per dollar on Virgin flights will be reduced from five to four for anyone without a Velocity-branded credit card.
“Forever Gold” status will require 12,000 status credits accrued since 2013, including at least 9,000 from VA flights, while “Platinum Plus” will require 2,000 status credits in a year, with at least 1,500 from VA flights.
Platinum Plus customers will have access to a VIP phone service, the ability to gift a platinum membership, the highest booking and flight priority, four free business class upgrades per year, and access to “Fly Later”, allowing them to shift bookings to later flights on the same day.
Among other status changes, “eligible sectors” will be removed as a requirement to upgrade or maintain status, with customers instead required to have at least half of their status credits come from Virgin Australia flights. Status credits will no longer be calculated based on route and fare type, instead being based on fare type and total price.
Nick Rohrlach, CEO of Velocity Frequent Flyer, said the changes “represent our focus and investment in areas that matter most to our members, like great value Domestic redemptions and being better recognised for loyalty”.
“We have more ways than ever before for members to earn and redeem Velocity Points and will soon have additional opportunities to be recognised for loyalty through the new tiers and benefits announced today,” he said.
“These new changes are balanced by adjustments to other areas of the program to ensure we continue to have a sustainable, competitive and valuable proposition for members.
“We have made it a priority to give members plenty of advance notice on the program changes, understanding how crucial it is for them to stay informed to get the most out of Velocity now and into the future.”
Virgin Australia last year attempted to entice Qantas Frequent Flyer members with a trial status-matching offer for those who have achieved gold status or above in “other Australian airline loyalty programs”.
Virgin and Qantas’ respective loyalty programs have been at war for years, with Virgin in 2022 launching a similar “Switch-a-Roo” scheme to lure the Flying Kangaroo’s frequent flyer customers over to Velocity.
At the time, Rohrlach – who had sensationally “defected” from Qantas Frequent Flyer in 2021, provoking a protracted court battle – called the scheme another example of Virgin’s “playful” nature.
