Removal of Points earn on Air NZ Trans Pacific Flights from 1 Nov

Updates to the Velocity points earning tables.

From 1 November 2017 Points can only be earned for travel on Air New Zealand operated Domestic flights within New Zealand and Air New Zealand operated Trans-Tasman flights.

From 1 November 2017 travel on Air New Zealand Trans Pacific flights to and from the Americas will be ineligible for Points earn.

Consistent with the email I just received from Air NZ saying you can no longer spend Airpoints on VA long haul flights.

I am furious about this. My husband and I are both Platinum Velocity members and we have a trip (Business Class - over $10K) to the USA on Air NZ booked in November that we booked over a month ago. Have been on the phone to Velocity for ages this evening trying to find out whether our status and points earning will be honoured or not and they know very little more than the email we all received tonight. We would lose over 640 status credits and around 30000 points between us. The status credits earn ensures we keep our status. I will be on the phone to Air NZ tomorrow to try and cancel and refund the tickets so I can rebook on Virgin or Delta but can feel a fight coming.

Flights booked before today (July 10) should still be eligible to earn,

FYI, our story on this at https://www.ausbt.com.au/virgin-australia-cuts-points-status-credits-earning-on-airnz

Just had confirmed by Velocity that points and status credit will be honoured for tickets booked prior to July 10. :-)

No lounge access or baggage benefits though regardless after 1 Nov. :-(

Last flight for us on Air NZ.

What a joke, Velocity continues to get more useless. I find it particularly interesting that you will not be able to redeem points on Air NZ after this - I called the Velocity call centre early this year attempting to make such a redemption and was told it was definitely not possible by the operator, and that they had never ever heard of Air NZ being used for a long haul redemption. Velocity have obviously secretly had this policy in place for months despite widely (mis)advertising the availability of redemptions on Air New Zealand.