Staus match alert! Savvy business travellers are always on the lookout for ways to boost their frequent flyer status -- especially with airlines other than their own first choice of travel.

The reason: if you find yourself having to fly with another airline which belongs to a different alliance (say, Skyteam instead of oneworld), then having high status for that alliance will make your travel more enjoyable and your life much easier.

You'll get treats like priority checkin and boarding, free lounge access, earning more points on your flight and often a quicker delivery of checked bags onto the luggage belt. And there's always the chance of an upgrade...

On now: free Silver or Gold status with Star Alliance

So here's your latest opportunity to climb the status ladder.

Star Alliance partner Turkish Airlines is offering a free status match to its Miles&Smiles scheme for Silver or Gold frequent flyers from other airline.

And of course, that status isn't just valid on flights with Turkish Airlines -- it's valid for every Star Alliance member airline including Air New Zealand, Singapore Airlines, United, Lufthansa and more.

Check out the benefits you'll receive as a Star Alliance frequent flyer in our handy reference guide.

If you're a Silver-level cardholder, you'll be matched to Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles Classic Plus level, which is Star Alliance Silver.

Gold-level cardholders will be matched to Miles&Smiles Elite, which is Star Alliance Gold.

With no Australian airline a member of Star Alliance, the card isn't all that useful for domestic travellers.

But across the Tasman on Air New Zealand, you'll have extra baggage allowances, the choice of extra-legroom seats, lounge access and airport priority queues.

Internationally, too, Star Alliance status is very useful -- particularly in the United States, where you can avoid luggage charges on United and US Airways (the Star Alliance members in the States) and get yourself into the lounges across the world.

How to get your status matched

First, sign up for a Miles&Smiles account.

Then email Turkish Airlines, including a scanned copy (or clear smartphone snapshot) of your existing frequent flyer card and your most recent account statement.

That's it! Then you just wait for the airline to get back to you -- which, as ever, can be a few weeks once the applications start coming in.

A hearty tip of the AusBT hat to airline blogger AJ from Live from a Lounge for spotting the status match.

Don't forget, even outside this special offer deal, many airlines will match your existing status if you write in and ask. We've got top tips on how to make sure they say yes to your status match request.

If you don't have the existing status to match, you can always try the Aegean shortcut to Star Alliance Gold status.

For more news, reviews and the very latest for business travellers, follow us on Twitter: we're @AusBT.