I used a hack to get to Qantas gold status, but I have concerns

In the world of airline loyalty programs, a “status run” is when a frequent flyer takes unnecessary flights to log up enough credits to keep their silver, gold or platinum status alive for the next membership year.

I needed 600 status credits to retain Qantas gold before the end of my membership year in November. In the past year, I earned 550 from flights, so I had to think about ways to quickly boost my credits tally by 50.

Soar point … airline “green” schemes can offer ways to boost your status.Credit: iStock

You can only earn status credits from flying on Qantas aircraft – with one exception, which I’ll get to. Status credits are different from frequent flyer points, which you can earn in a number of ways, including car hire, hotel bookings and credit-card bonuses.

On Facebook, there is a rash of dedicated Qantas frequent flyer pages, most devoted to ingenious ways to accrue points and status.

There is plenty of advice about what flights offer more bang for your buck if a status run is necessary.

But I have many misgivings about the status run. In terms of environmental responsibility, it’s a disaster. One flight from Sydney to Melbourne on a Qantas red E-deal fare is currently worth 10 status points, meaning five flights are needed to earn 50 credits. That burns a lot of fossil fuel.

Australians have the highest per capita carbon emissions in the world, partly because of the long distances we travel.Credit: Craig Abraham

There are ways to gain status more quickly in the business class cabin or on flights further afield, but this doesn’t improve the carbon footprint. We should be thinking about the impact of every flight we take and if they’re necessary, consolidating when we can.

Qantas offers one purportedly sustainable way to get those extra 50 status credits without flying – become a Green Tier member.

I finally reached Green Tier this month. That involved completing five sustainable activities across six categories: travelling, flying, sustainable purchases, lifestyle, reducing impact and giving back.

I gained my first green tick by offsetting a flight from Sydney to Hobart via the Fly Carbon Neutral program.

In the lifestyle category, which encourages members to offset car and home emissions, I signed up for RED Energy’s 100 per cent GreenPower plan, which is slightly more expensive than the regular (less green) option.

I did a quick sustainability quiz in the Qantas Wellness app. I donated to the Kimberley Land Council in the giving back category. Finally, I bought six bottles of “green” wine from Qantas, ticking off the last category.

It’s obvious there’s a commercial advantage here for the airline. Buying from Qantas wines, staying at Qantas hotels, buying a Qantas insurance plan.

The airline says carbon offsets bought through the program so far total 400,000 tonnes. More than $1.1 million has been donated to environment-based charities.

But I still have concerns.

In a recent article in this masthead, Qantas and Jetstar were accused by environmental advocacy group Climate Integrity of misleading passengers over the impact of carbon credits.

Climate Integrity says carbon-neutral schemes falsely equate carbon sequestered temporarily in land-based environmental projects, such as planting trees, with the carbon released permanently into the atmosphere from burning fossil fuels.

A Qantas spokesperson said the airline had always acknowledged that aviation is a particularly hard-to-abate sector and that the company has a responsibility “to do what it can with what’s available now”.

“High integrity carbon offsets are key to us meeting net emissions reduction targets until sustainable aviation fuel and low and zero-emissions technologies are more readily available. We have offered to work closely with Climate Integrity on this journey,” the airline said.

The offset component of Green Tier is just one strand of Qantas’ program, of course. The airline says it is aiming to raise people’s consciousness about how sustainability can be included in everyday choices, not just travel.

It seems from Facebook conversations that many frequent flyers are attaining Green Tier for the bonus – those 50 status credits or 10,000 points – rather than being overly concerned about their carbon footprint.

But maybe it doesn’t matter – 50 status credits from Green Tier are surely better for the environment than five unnecessary flights.

To achieve Green, I made a small donation to charity, completed an easy health questionnaire and offset one flight. I have six bottles of wine and subscribe to an Australian-owned power company.

I don’t deserve applause. I’m as guilty as anyone regarding my carbon footprint. I genuinely want to reduce it or mitigate against it effectively.

But I still couldn’t help the feeling that I am fiddling while Rome burns.