Author: Matt Graham

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to more than 100 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course! Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. His interests include aviation, economics & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine. You can connect with Matt by posting on the Australian Frequent Flyer community forum and tagging @AFF Editor.

Gin bar at the Qantas London Lounge

Qantas Continues Status Extensions Until December 2022

Qantas Frequent Flyer members with status expiring between July and December 2022 are now being offered an additional 12-month extension. This offer is available to Australian and New Zealand residents, who can activate it by booking at least one new eligible Qantas or international Jetstar flight. The booking must be made by the end of … Continued

Singapore Airlines Boeing 737-800

Singapore Airlines Returns to Darwin & Cairns

Singapore Airlines will resume regular flights from both Darwin and Cairns to Singapore from the end of March 2022. It brings the number of Australian destinations served by Singapore Airlines to seven. Singapore Airlines’ former regional subsidiary Silk Air served the Darwin-Singapore and Cairns-Singapore routes prior to COVID-19. Both routes were suspended early into the … Continued

Singapore Airlines 777

Glitch Affecting KrisFlyer Mile Extensions

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles normally expire if unredeemed after 3 years, regardless of account activity. But it’s clearly unfair to expire people’s miles during a pandemic when they can’t travel, so Singapore Airlines has been progressively extending the validity of KrisFlyer miles that would have expired since April 2020. Each extension is for six months … Continued

man traveler with hat holding beer glass and looking to airplane, Asian passenger sitting and relax in modern lounge at international airport terminal. Travel concept

Where to Search for Cheap Flights

Everyone loves a cheap flight, but what’s the most efficient way to find one? AFF members often discuss current airfare deals on the Australian Frequent Flyer forum. If you’ve subscribed to an airline mailing list, you may also be notified when that airline goes on sale. But if you need to book a flight to … Continued

Qantas' next Points Plane will land in Perth just after the WA border reopens

Qantas Points Plane Will Land As Perth Reopens

Western Australia will finally reopen its border to the rest of Australia and the world next week, with quarantine-free travel once again permitted from just after midnight on Thursday, 3 March 2022. A lot of flights into Perth next Thursday are already looking quite full. Clearly, a lot of people have been waiting a long … Continued

Qatar Airways will switch its loyalty program currency to Avios.

Qatar Airways Privilege Club Switches to Avios

Qatar Airways’ Privilege Club program will adopt Avios as its main reward points currency from next month, in a surprise move that almost nobody in the industry anticipated. Privilege Club will remain the frequent flyer program of Qatar Airways. The Qatari airline’s frequent flyers will also continue to earn Qpoints for the purpose of earning … Continued

Claim Back GST with the Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS)

Nasty Change to Australia’s Tourist Refund Scheme

Australia’s Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) has long been a popular way for international travellers to claim a refund of the tax paid on expensive items being carried out of the country. But a recent change has rendered the scheme a lot less useful than before for Australians heading overseas on short holidays or business trips. … Continued

Tourism Australia has launched a new "Don't go small, go Australia" campaign

Tourism Australia’s Tough Sell as Border Reopens

Today, Australia’s international border reopens to tourists for the first time since it was slammed shut on 20 March 2020. This is great news for people who’ve been trying to get to Australia and haven’t been allowed in for the past 23 months. It’s also cause for optimism among Australia’s tourism operators. There will no … Continued

Travelling to London, UK

Podcast #78: Travelling to the UK in 2022

As the AFF on Air podcast continues its series on international travel in 2022, we turn our attention in this episode to the UK. In Episode 78, Matt chats to two Australian frequent flyers who recently travelled to London about their experiences. One of this episode’s guests is Andrew Holland, who flew Qantas Business Class … Continued