Acting as an A380 Captain on my 380th Qantas flight
A minor monumental moment happened this week for me, when Qantas shifted me from Lifetime Silver to Lifetime Gold in 
recognition of the 385 flights and 562,430 miles flown with them since I joined the Qantas Frequent Flyer programme 20 years ago in 1997. (Plus the few hundred thousand miles on partner carriers such as American, British and Cathay Pacific). Lifetime Gold is the equivalent of One World Sapphire.
I am pretty excited by being a Gold member for life. It means that while I am alive and Qantas is in business and they do not change the rules (important qualifiers) I will always:
1. Check-in at the Business Class counter for Qantas and their partner airlines- No long queues!
2. Have free access to a Lounge before a flight with Qantas and their partners -Free Food. Free Drinks!
3. Have an extra luggage allowance
4. Receive priority Boarding on most flights
5. Earn a 75% bonus on frequent flier miles
Currently, I am at the higher Qantas Platinum tier and will be until 31 July 2018. If and when I stop flying so much it is nice to know I have that cushion.
I joined the Qantas Frequent Flyer programme in 1997 so it had taken me 20 years to get to his point. For most of my travels, I have not pushed to achieve Qantas Lifetime Gold. I have done two mileage runs in that time with Qantas. I also flew one flight with an extra stopover just to get a few more status credits!
To be honest, most of my travel decisions have been based on living in the moment and booking the flight that works best for me destination, timing and fare wise. I think that is a better way to go instead of chasing an elusive status dream. But likewise, I will enjoy every moment in their lounges. 🙂
Source: Myflightmemory
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You have astonished me! Do people actually plan their travel around acquiring maximum flier points? You have to fly so much to gain so little if you are an ordinary flier that I barely give it a thought, although I always claim them, and one day I will have enough to fly to one of the Australian capitals! The best situation, of course, is when you fly for business a lot, because that way you accumulate a lot without having to pay for the flights! Otherwise, you usually get more value from the cheapest flight than the f.f. points would give. My brother-in-law used to fly for work a bit and eventually got enough for a really great around Australia (hop on, hop off) trip by air for him and my sister, but I cannot aspire to that!