Start here: South African Airways Voyager — joining, earning miles, tiers, expiry and awards

Step 1: What SAA Voyager is and who it suits

You will learn: which document governs the program, what the three core terms mean, and which travelers the program is built around.

SAA Voyager reserves the right to amend, change, modify, limit or cancel the terms, may notify members of material changes, and leaves it to the member to refer to www.flysaa.com for future amendments [1]. The terms that apply to an award redemption are those in force at the time the miles are redeemed, and they replace any previous terms and prevail over publicity material [1].

Three definitions carry most of the weight. Tier miles are miles awarded to members that entitle them to attain a higher status level or retain a current one [1]. Bonus miles contribute towards mileage accumulation and not towards Tier miles [1]. The program is built around travel: miles are earned using the services of South African Airways and SAA Voyager Airline Partners, and award flights are flights on South African Airways, Star Alliance or an Airline Partner [1]. On dates, the terms web page states that the terms are effective as at the date of publication (February 2019) [2], while the PDF it links to states June 2022 [1]; both dates are reproduced here as printed on each page.

Go deeper: SAA Voyager program hub, and SAA Voyager compared with Kenya Airways Asante Rewards.

Step 2: Joining and keeping your account

You will learn: who can hold a membership, what to enter at enrollment, and what keeps an account alive or closed.

Membership is available to individuals in their personal capacity only, and is not open to families, groups, corporate entities or companies, trusts, partnerships, other legal or non-legal entities, government departments or travel agencies [1]. Membership is established in the individual's name as it appears on a valid passport and/or official national identification document, and only that member may earn miles on the membership number [1]. Changes to membership details through the Voyager Service Center may only be made by the member in writing or electronically with proof of valid identification [1]. Children aged 2 or older may join, provided the application and all transactions are signed by the child's legal guardian, and only one enrollment per person is accepted [1].

Except for Lifetime Platinum members, accounts are automatically flagged as dormant where no activity is recorded for five consecutive calendar years, and reactivation requires re-registering as a new member [1]. Members may cancel at any time without penalty on providing identification, but all accumulated miles are forfeited immediately on receipt of the cancellation notice [1]. The PDF prints no section 19: its numbering runs from 18 to 20 [1].

Go deeper: SAA Voyager program hub.

Step 3: Earning miles and claiming missing ones

You will learn: where miles come from, which tickets earn nothing, and how to chase miles that did not post.

Members must always quote their membership number when making reservations with South African Airways and when using partner services, and should confirm the number along with first name(s) and surname when accepting tickets, at check-in and with partners [1]. Miles are earned on any eligible fare per flown sector at the earning schedule published on www.flysaa.com, which SAA Voyager may change without notice, they are accumulated only once per flight regardless of the number of seats purchased, and the member must actually fly as a passenger [1]. No miles are earned on industry travel, agent or industry discount tickets, tickets based on unpublished fares, charter tickets, Voyager redemption tickets, compensation tickets, sponsorship tickets, pets or blocked-off aircraft seats [1]. Miles cannot be transferred, assigned, sold or combined with another person's account, and the member must decide before travel which frequent flyer program to earn on, because miles cannot be earned on more than one program for the same flight [1].

Non-Airline Partners determine the rates and the transactions eligible to earn miles in their sole discretion [1]. The terms state, as printed, that missing miles with Non-Airline Partners may be credited provided a legible copy of the transaction record or invoice is submitted to SAA Voyager "within 30 (thirty) days prior to the expiry of the 6 (six) month required time frame" [1]. Members should keep legible copies of tickets, e-ticket confirmations or boarding passes and non-air partner invoices until the miles appear on the Voyager Mileage Summary; for South African Airways and Star Alliance partner flights, missing miles may be claimed through www.flysaa.com or the app [1]. Miles should reflect within 15 days for South African Airways and within 45 days for partner activity, and documents must be submitted no later than 30 days prior to expiry of the required time frame at the nearest Voyager Service Center, with altered documents not accepted [1].

Go deeper: how to claim missing miles.

Step 4: Tiers and Lifetime Platinum

You will learn: what counts towards tier status, how complimentary and Lifetime Platinum arise, and where tier benefits apply.

Only Tier miles earned within a calendar year, meaning 1 January until 31 December, on South African Airways, on SAA marketing flight numbers where Mango or a Star Alliance Partner is the operating carrier, and on Star Alliance Partners, determine Silver, Gold and Platinum status [1]. The figure the terms print for Platinum is that 120 000 Tier miles must be achieved to earn Platinum for the year following complimentary Platinum; no Silver or Gold thresholds are printed in the terms [1]. A member who earns Gold, or a combination of Gold and Platinum, for five consecutive calendar years is awarded complimentary Platinum status valid for one calendar year following the fifth consecutive year, the count of Gold years is then reset to zero, and complimentary Platinum is excluded from the calculation of Lifetime Platinum [1]. Lifetime Platinum requires a minimum of 120 000 Tier miles per calendar year and a cumulative minimum of 720 000 Tier miles on the services of South African Airways and SAA marketing flight numbers where Mango is the operating carrier, during a minimum of four and a maximum of six consecutive years [1]. The same clause then states, as printed, that "Flight activity on Star Alliance Carriers, SAA marketing flights will not count towards Lifetime Platinum Status", although its first sentence counts SAA marketing flight numbers where Mango is the operating carrier; both parts are reported here as printed [1].

Tier Benefits are only available where the member is traveling on South African Airways, unless otherwise specified by a partner or subject to Star Alliance tier benefits, and they apply only to the traveling member [1]. No Tier Benefits apply when traveling on agent discount or industry discount tickets [1].

Go deeper: Star Alliance status benefits.

Step 5: Keeping miles and using them for awards

You will learn: when miles expire, what can bring them back, and how an award is issued, reversed and restricted.

All miles earned are valid for three years after the year in which they were earned, and any miles due to expire expire on 31 March each year [1]. For expiry purposes the terms calculate a year from 1 April to 31 March [1], while tier status is counted over the calendar year from 1 January to 31 December [1]; both calendars are printed in the terms and are reported here as printed. Miles can come back at expiry: where a minimum of 6 000 Tier miles has been flown for the January to December period preceding the expiry date on South African Airways operated flights or SA 2000 marketing flight numbers operated by Mango, excluding other affiliated airlines, Bonus miles with a validity of one year equal to the total number of miles that expired are awarded on 1 April [1].

Awards may be issued via www.flysaa.com, the SAA Voyager app, or any South African Airways ticketing office or Voyager Service Center, and outside South Africa only South African Airways ticketing offices, or www.flysaa.com for an electronic ticket, are authorized to issue them [1]. Service fees apply for award tickets issued through a South African Airways ticketing office: R200 per ticket for routes within South Africa and R500 per ticket for international routes, and award ticket processing fees are non-refundable [1]. South African Airways and Airline Partner award certificates are valid for a maximum of six months from the date of issue and must be exchanged for the actual ticket before they expire, and if an award expires all the miles used to obtain it are forfeited [1]. Miles required for available awards, except Dynamic Awards, are published in the award charts on www.flysaa.com [1]. Awards are subject to availability, are not redeemable for cash, and award tickets cannot be issued on codeshare flights where South African Airways or the Airline Partner in question is not the operating airline [1].

Subject to the partner's rules, an award can be reversed within 30 days of the date of issue for a reversal fee of R210 plus any other fees relevant to the reversal, with Platinum and Lifetime Platinum members exempt, and only miles still within validity are credited back [1]. A change that alters routing, zone, region or class requires the award to be reversed and re-issued, and once travel has commenced no changes to routing or region are permitted [1]. On award types: Dynamic Awards are available only on South African Airways flight numbers SA 001 to SA 999 where South African Airways operates, are issued for the base fare and carrier-imposed fees, are self-service via www.flysaa.com with no award chart and no certificate, and the ticket is valid six months from first departure within South Africa and 12 months elsewhere [1]. Star Alliance and other airline partner awards follow their own charts and separate rules [1].

Go deeper: searching Star Alliance award space and award change and cancel fees compared.

Step 6: Your first concrete action

You will learn: the five things to do now, before your next flight and before your next redemption.

• Enroll in your own name exactly as it appears on your passport or identification document, and make any later change to your details through the Voyager Service Center in writing or electronically with proof of identification [1].
• Quote your membership number at reservation, with partners and when accepting tickets, and confirm it together with your first name(s) and surname at ticketing and check-in [1].
• Keep your tickets and boarding passes until the miles appear on your Voyager Mileage Summary, and claim missing miles within the stated time frames [1].
• Record some account activity at least once in every five consecutive calendar years so the account is not flagged as dormant (Lifetime Platinum members excepted), and watch the 31 March expiry date each year [1].
• Before redeeming, check the award certificate and ticket validity — six months for South African Airways and Airline Partner award certificates, six or 12 months for Dynamic Award tickets depending on region — and note the 30-day reversal window and its R210 fee, waived for Platinum and Lifetime Platinum members [1].

Next: work out your own expiry date with the mileage expiry calculator, then read the SAA Voyager program hub for the guides that follow each step.