Your guide to Star Alliance!

You may have seen that grey star logo whenever you traveled on United Airlines within the States. That’s because United is part of the Star Alliance.

Airlines:

1. Aegean Airlines

2. Air Canada

3. Air China

4. Air India

5. Air New Zealand

6. ANA

7. Asiana Airlines

8. Austrian

9. Avianca

10. Brussels Airlines

11. Copa Airlines

12. Croatia Airlines

13. EGYPTAIR

14. Ethiopian Airlines

15. EVA Air

16. LOT Polish Airlines

17. Lufthansa

18. Scandinavian Airlines

19. Shenzhen Airlines

20. Singapore Airlines

21. South African Airways

22. SWISS

23. THAI

24. TAP Air Portugal

25. Turkish Airlines

26. United

Status:

If you hold qualifying status with any Star Alliance member, you will have Star Alliance Silver or Gold status. For instance, United MileagePlus Premier 1K status holders are Star Alliance Gold.

For this example, let’s assume I am a Premier 1K member on United. If I book a flight on Lufthansa, I am sure to put my United MileagePlus number into the booking (done at the time of booking or on the reservation page). As soon as I link my Lufthansa reservation with my United MileagePlus number Lufthansa verifies the number with the Star Alliance server and recognizes my Gold status. This is extremely valuable as it lets every Star Alliance member knows I am a special customer and allows me to access lounges, priority boarding, etc.

Benefits:

• Star Alliance Gold

• Priority Check-in

• Priority Baggage

• Lounge Access

• Priority Boarding

• Extra Baggage Allowance

• Priority Security (at Star Alliance airline hubs)

• Everything in Star Alliance Silver

Star Alliance Silver

• Priority Reservation Waitlist

• Priority Airport Stand-by

Bottom line:

It’s usually worthless to have Star Alliance Silver. Gold is where all the benefits are present. Alliance status is a major perk when traveling abroad or in economy class. It can get you free upgrades, lounge access, and more!