Aeroflot has banned its elite passengers from accessing two dozen business lounges at various Russian airports. A Travel.ru correspondent speculates that the carrier may be attempting to lower the prices for these lounges.
Starting September 15, Aeroflot Bonus Gold members will no longer have access to lounges at airports in Nizhny Novgorod, Novosibirsk, Rostov-on-Don, Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, Perm, Samara, Krasnodar, Anapa, Mineralnye Vody, Kemerovo, Novokuznetsk, Barnaul, Kaliningrad, Astrakhan, Saratov, Yakutsk, and Salekhard. A similar decision was previously made regarding lounges at airports in Arkhangelsk and Magnitogorsk. Aeroflot Bonus Platinum members and Business Class passengers will retain access.
As compensation, Gold-level passengers will be awarded 3,000 Aeroflot Bonus miles every time they fly from these airports on Aeroflot, Rossiya Airlines, and Aurora Airlines. Some passengers may find this exchange advantageous, while others will regret the lost opportunity to relax or work in the business lounge. Furthermore, travel companions of these passengers who previously had access to the lounges will not receive any compensation.
All of this could, among other things, discourage some passengers from earning Aeroflot Bonus Gold status. Several rounds of Aeroflot Bonus mileage devaluations implemented by the airline over the past year and a half could also prompt many passengers to reconsider their participation in the program.
Aeroflot has repeatedly complained about inflated prices for business lounges at airports across Russia (the company operates its own lounges in Moscow and St. Petersburg). Aeroflot claims that the costs of providing its elite passengers with access to these lounges in Russia can be several times higher than similar services offered abroad, while the quality of service is inferior. Complaints are not limited to Aeroflot—for example, Turkish Airlines has refused to pay for its passengers to access the business lounge at the new Rostov-on-Don airport.
It's unclear whether Aeroflot's measures will lead to lower lounge rates. Many of these lounges could lose a third or half of their customers and, consequently, revenue as a result of Aeroflot's decision.
Source: travel.ru