I recently wrote about how the miles & points world has changed over the years. As is the case with just about any industry, things evolve over time, and some developments are positive, while others are negative.
When it comes to actually redeeming points for airline award tickets in premium cabins, I’d argue there’s one trend that we’ve been seeing a lot of, and I suspect this practice will only continue to spread. While I’ve mentioned this in passing and have written about specific instances of this, I’d like to take a big picture look at this practice.
In this post:
How airlines are getting savvier with releasing award seats
Going back 15 years, airlines almost always made the same saver level award seats available to members of their own frequent flyer program, as they did to members of partner frequent flyer programs. So this made it easy to combine many airlines on a single award ticket, and it also created endless arbitrage opportunities.
While I don’t want to suggest that this is some change that has just happened overnight, we are increasingly seeing two trends when it comes to how airlines release award space, and I think this will only continue to spread:
- Airlines are increasingly making premium award seats available exclusively to members of their own frequent flyer programs, and not to members of partner frequent flyer programs
- Airlines are also increasingly providing more award space to those who have elite status, or who hold a co-branded airline credit card
Like I said, we’ve seen this in some form for a long time, but we’re seeing this more and more as time goes on.
Perhaps the most radical example of this in recent times is how United Polaris business class award seats are no longer bookable through partner frequent flyer programs, and on top of that, the best pricing is reserved for MileagePlus elite members, or those with a co-branded credit card.
Similarly, we’ve seen Emirates Skywards restrict first class awards to those who have elite status in the program, and we’ve seen Air France-KLM Flying Blue offer expanded award availability to Platinum members.
For consumers, this is a double edged sword:
- For those who are actually loyal to an airline, it gives them an advantage in terms of having access to desirable award availability
- For those who love seeking out arbitrage opportunities, or like booking award tickets that include travel on multiple airlines, this is obviously massively negative
It definitely changes the approach that people will want to take with their points strategy. For example, it increases the incentive to have a co-branded credit card or even to pursue elite status.
This frustrates me, but I don’t blame airlines for this trend
As someone who loves maximizing miles & points, I of course hate this trend. I love being able to take advantage of award pricing sweet spots, and combining many partners on a single award.
At the same time, I completely understand why airlines have changed their approach to releasing award space, and if I were in the shoes of a program executive, I’d probably do exactly the same.
Going back a couple of decades, there wasn’t that much competition for award seats, most miles were actually earned through flying, and the airline alliances had a pretty close level of cooperation. So airlines generally acted within the spirit of reciprocity when it comes to award availability.
One airline would do its best to make award seats available for members of another program, and vice versa. Reimbursement rates for award tickets between airlines are generally very low, so the idea is that this is largely an accounting exercise, and that these amounts balance each other out.
But over time that changed. For one, many airlines got more entrepreneurial with monetizing award seats. Airlines would start selling miles to consumers at very low costs, knowing that they were primarily being purchased for redemptions on partner airlines.
At one point, many of us referred to US Airways Dividend Miles as the unofficial consolidator of Star Alliance first and business class tickets, since you could buy miles and then turn around and redeem them at an amazing rate for first and business class travel on partner airlines, at a time when no other programs were doing that.
When you get to the point where there are massive imbalances in terms of award booking patterns, obviously that’s not within the spirit of these partnerships.
I think the other thing that has changed is that airlines have just gotten much savvier with their loyalty programs. Loyalty programs have become huge profit centers for airlines, rather than cost centers. The question is always how you can get members to increase their engagement.
It’s pretty logical that the way you’d get people to increase engagement is to make it more rewarding to be a member of that program, and to also make it more rewarding to pick up a credit card or pursue elite status.
And honestly, I think that logic is sound. It goes without saying that demand for premium cabin award seats massively outweighs supply. Should those few saver award seats go to someone who has never booked a revenue ticket on a particular airline, but who heard about award availability on social media, or should it go to a good customer of the company?
Like I said, I absolutely hate this trend for myself. But I also recognize why we’re seeing it, I think we’re going to continue to see this a lot more, and it’s something we’re all going to have to increasingly plan around.
Bottom line
In addition to many airlines releasing fewer saver level award seats in general, airlines are also getting savvier about which members they offer these seats to. Back in the day, it was common for airlines to offer the same saver level award availability to anyone with access to the seats. That’s not the case anymore.
We’re increasingly seeing airlines limit award seats, especially in premium cabins, to members of their “native” program. On top of that, we’re also seeing some programs limit award space to those with elite status, those with a co-branded credit card, etc.
While this is quickly becoming common, personally I think we’re only at the early stages of this, and that it will spread much more in the coming years.
What do you make of the evolving ways airlines release award space?
Sadly non-American frequent flyers are basically now third class citizens. We are not allowed US airline credit cards and the ones that existed are gone (AA and AS had Canadian cards but both have gone away).
Last year I was able to concoct a Business trip from YLW to BKK and DPS through Air Canada for about 115,000 points OW pp. This involvved one leg with Polaris and 5 other legs on various carriers...
Sadly non-American frequent flyers are basically now third class citizens. We are not allowed US airline credit cards and the ones that existed are gone (AA and AS had Canadian cards but both have gone away).
Last year I was able to concoct a Business trip from YLW to BKK and DPS through Air Canada for about 115,000 points OW pp. This involvved one leg with Polaris and 5 other legs on various carriers (UA, Swiss, TK, Oman, SQ, LH, AC). With UA now dynamic I am booking for cash as it is cheaper than buying ridiculous numbers of points. The days of AS ticket on CX First are sadly very much history.
The scary thing is that this all mirrors DJT's America First policy. Is it possible to rationalize it for miles & points and not politics?
I think the way programs have been evolving makes sense. Holding international first for your own elites is probably a good policy. Some of the more robust programs having better premium award space for elites (and/or cardholders) makes sense. And American programs are in a unique position of wanting to keep their own co-branded portfolio from being undercut by international partners and their partnering bank's own transferable currency. The people most harmed are elites of...
I think the way programs have been evolving makes sense. Holding international first for your own elites is probably a good policy. Some of the more robust programs having better premium award space for elites (and/or cardholders) makes sense. And American programs are in a unique position of wanting to keep their own co-branded portfolio from being undercut by international partners and their partnering bank's own transferable currency. The people most harmed are elites of the international partners (like Flying Blue or Miles & More) that cannot get any premium space on Delta or United coming to the US.
From my perspective, this doesn't matter. I don't feel entitled to international first class. I so far have not had a problem finding adequate award space, as there are plenty of lesser known international airlines that have extra space in business or PE at reasonable prices. Product chasers are getting shut out of the most elite experiences, but that should not be how we define award space quality.
The trend I really despise is bigger programs adding tons of YQ to award tickets, and in BA's case, trying to force other programs to pass that cost onto the consumer as well.
While Ben subtly sides with the airlines here, justifying their changes with the equivalent of an ‘it’s just business, nothing personal’ quip, I’d certainly fight back harder on this, if I were you, sir. Like, the push from a consumer side should be to recognize that we have an severe power-imbalance as users within these programs, regardless of status or what cards we have. So, the solution is not to just shrug and accept the...
While Ben subtly sides with the airlines here, justifying their changes with the equivalent of an ‘it’s just business, nothing personal’ quip, I’d certainly fight back harder on this, if I were you, sir. Like, the push from a consumer side should be to recognize that we have an severe power-imbalance as users within these programs, regardless of status or what cards we have. So, the solution is not to just shrug and accept the negative changes (because, these are indeed ‘nerfs’ to these programs); we should be pushing for regulation that ensures a baseline value for points/miles, and clear terms (at the very least ‘notice’ for material changes to the programs), and ideally, ensuring awards remain available. The shift from charts to dynamic pricing really burned us all; and, the exclusion of top classes (First) from many programs is further upsetting. Ultimately, voices like Ben can make a difference by continuing to advocate for us, rather than throwing hands up and just ‘taking it.’ Then again, Ben’s gotten his over the years, so maybe do as TPG has done, and shill for the big boys instead. Hmm… the telltale sign of that would be when comments sections go away…
Regulating points/miles is a great way to nerf the programs. Sweet spots still exist that can be used by those who are paying attention (like us) precisely because a lot of consumers use their points for poor value. Regulate these programs more heavily and they all become Skypesos with a low, fixed or semi-fixed value.
And aside from talking to industry execs when he gets a chance, Ben doesn't have a big enough megaphone to materially change these industries.
@1990, you're right! Ben sometimes writes as he if were an airline executive or interviewing for a top position at an airline. We have to call this getting-worse-every-year shift in award availability for what it is: it sucks 100% and it's almost like false advertising.
Airlines need to be careful here... They make a huge amount of $$$ selling their points to Amex, Chase etc... if only X airline's elite members can book reward seats, those sales will fall off a cliff...
Yup, ‘credit cards with wings.’ Yet, they still gotta fly (and provide something for those points/miles). That’s the thing, Paul. These programs are nearly completely unregulated. Other than consumers ‘voting with their wallets’ in the aggregate (unlikely to happen), the best hope for ensuring availability is these big banks. If airlines continue to devalue their programs, the banks are the ones that need to call them out, ensure a baseline value is maintained, otherwise, they’re...
Yup, ‘credit cards with wings.’ Yet, they still gotta fly (and provide something for those points/miles). That’s the thing, Paul. These programs are nearly completely unregulated. Other than consumers ‘voting with their wallets’ in the aggregate (unlikely to happen), the best hope for ensuring availability is these big banks. If airlines continue to devalue their programs, the banks are the ones that need to call them out, ensure a baseline value is maintained, otherwise, they’re getting screwed as are we.
I understand why airlines do this. Overall I don’t love it. And for selfish reasons, especially so because the airline I’m “loyal” to is Delta and they sure don’t offer me much, other than 15% off with my CC… but I truly believe they’ve crept the prices up since announcing that so now I’m paying what I used to pay pre discount. If they gave diamonds or platinums actual good discounts on mileage tickets like...
I understand why airlines do this. Overall I don’t love it. And for selfish reasons, especially so because the airline I’m “loyal” to is Delta and they sure don’t offer me much, other than 15% off with my CC… but I truly believe they’ve crept the prices up since announcing that so now I’m paying what I used to pay pre discount. If they gave diamonds or platinums actual good discounts on mileage tickets like united does, it would maybe sway me back to being 100% with them as opposed to splitting my status.
There's just no reason to participate in an ecosystem where a one way business class flight to Europe costs 300,000 miles plus $800 in cash. It costs less to just pay cash and buy a ticket. Why jump through all of the mileage hoops?
Airlines have sucked all of the value out of their programs. I fortunately can still spend points on flight from, idk, Uzbekistan to Indonesia but most people aren't traveling this way.
Indeed. I've had status with AF/KL for twelve years, and will be Platinum for Life in ten days.
I'm also on my first FB award ticket. In the past, whenever I looked, there was no availability, or 300k one way for business class.
Then Flying Blue started testing more availability for Platinums, and suddenly I can fly.
The other part of the equation is that US credit cards have these piles of transferable...
Indeed. I've had status with AF/KL for twelve years, and will be Platinum for Life in ten days.
I'm also on my first FB award ticket. In the past, whenever I looked, there was no availability, or 300k one way for business class.
Then Flying Blue started testing more availability for Platinums, and suddenly I can fly.
The other part of the equation is that US credit cards have these piles of transferable points, and so the award seats went to Americans with a low-activity* Flying Blue account who transferred points for a purchase. That's great, but not encouraging loyalty for your primary market.
*Those who create a Flying Blue account and immediately transfer points in usually get a rude surprise.
The annoying thing here is when the re-ticketing team does not do the re-ticketing timely. I almost got stranded in Tokyo because suddenly a Narita flight opened up and I switched my booking but I got the airport and the Japan airlines team say well I can see your booking on this flight but American airlines is yet to re-ticket it
This post reads like the introductory paragraph of "How we should change our approach". What is one to do?
Are we back into the sordid business of earning top status in multiple programs? And in addition, earning points in multiple programs?
Wanna fly Emirates First? Need Emirates status and points.
Wanna fly Air France La Premiére? Need Flying Blue Status and points.
Want access to Cathay Pacific Business/First? Need AsiaMiles.
Want to...
This post reads like the introductory paragraph of "How we should change our approach". What is one to do?
Are we back into the sordid business of earning top status in multiple programs? And in addition, earning points in multiple programs?
Wanna fly Emirates First? Need Emirates status and points.
Wanna fly Air France La Premiére? Need Flying Blue Status and points.
Want access to Cathay Pacific Business/First? Need AsiaMiles.
Want to get meaningful value from Aeroplan, avoiding cancel fees? Need high status.
And on and on.
Yes a follow-up of “where do we go from here” would be useful.
I think it makes strategies needing to be more "personalized" to one's travel habits and future goals. Most advice has been generic and "one size fits all" but that clearly isn't the case now.
Where we go from here is to just paying for J and F. There is no need to be loyal to any airline and, if you do the math, you’ll see that it comes out ahead. Stopped running on the points and status hamster wheel a few years ago and couldn’t be happier with that decision.
That’s a lot of words to write so little information.
Suggest writing your essay.
Edit.
Publish.
you must be new here
Are these changes not inevitable as airlines and hotels learn of the sweet spots and the way consumers have exploited the gaps? Heck, all they need do is to have a staff dedicate a few hours of their time to these blogs and trawl utube and SM to learn what gaps to plug.
I’m curious how transferable currencies come into play here. If the airlines make more money from loyalty to their own programs and credit cards, and transferable currencies (the Amex, Citi, Chase, etc., ecosystems) are widely available such that points are pretty easy to come by, then what incentive do airlines have to sign up as transfer partners? Do the respective banks pay the airlines for participation?
Excellent points! This trend of airlines gatekeeping premium awards behind their own programs, elite status, or cards is definitely reshaping the game, and it's tough for those of us who loved the old partner sweet spots.
It's most pronounced in the big alliances, but non-alliance carriers like Philippine Airlines offer an interesting contrast. Since PAL isn't in a global alliance, they avoid some of those inter-program reimbursement headaches. Mabuhay Miles still uses a pretty straightforward...
Excellent points! This trend of airlines gatekeeping premium awards behind their own programs, elite status, or cards is definitely reshaping the game, and it's tough for those of us who loved the old partner sweet spots.
It's most pronounced in the big alliances, but non-alliance carriers like Philippine Airlines offer an interesting contrast. Since PAL isn't in a global alliance, they avoid some of those inter-program reimbursement headaches. Mabuhay Miles still uses a pretty straightforward zone-based chart (no obvious dynamic pricing), and awards are mostly booked directly through PAL – often needing a call or visit to a ticket office, though verified members get some online access.
In practice, though, PAL prioritizes its own loyalists too as earning miles is hardest without flying them (no big transferable points partners in the US), and partner redemptions (like old ANA bookings on PAL metal) have always been spotty or restricted. It subtly pushes you to build direct loyalty if you want reliable access to their seats.
That being said, I so get why airlines are doing this, loyalty programs are profit machines now, and protecting inventory for actual customers makes business sense. But it'll probably kill off a lot of the fun arbitrage. Curious if independents like PAL will stay relatively open or start adding more elite/card perks too.
But then one must transfer in MNL & that's a deal breaker.
An interesting follow up would be which airlines are furthest along in implementing this strategy and which aren't.
+1
You need to make your mind up on the value of status- in one post you're writing that it's worth less than it used to be, in the next you're saying that airlines drive engagement by increasing the value of status through making more awards available to elite members. While different airlines will have different approaches and value propositions, you can't really claim that the industry trend is to simultaneously increase and decrease the value...
You need to make your mind up on the value of status- in one post you're writing that it's worth less than it used to be, in the next you're saying that airlines drive engagement by increasing the value of status through making more awards available to elite members. While different airlines will have different approaches and value propositions, you can't really claim that the industry trend is to simultaneously increase and decrease the value of being an elite member!
At least for United, the bar for "loyal" to get expanded access to seats is so trivially low that it shouldn't factor into consideration of who you fly with much.
I have MileagePlus Silver and haven't taken a revenue flight with United in years as it comes with Bonvoy status. Or you can just have a credit card for it.
It depends on what you want out of status. Not as many domestic F or extra-legroom Y upgrades nowadays but waived fees, access to saver awards, and other perks will be valuable to many elites too, plus long-haul upgrade certificates if you have the highest tier status.
Probably also partially driven by seats.aero and friends. I imagine they will start to incorporate a special search method for these fares as well. The UA change has helped me dramatically this year.
Pro tip: If a single person you know has the UA CC or status, you should be able to make a milage pool, and then all pool members can search for that special availability, and then put miles in the pool as...
Probably also partially driven by seats.aero and friends. I imagine they will start to incorporate a special search method for these fares as well. The UA change has helped me dramatically this year.
Pro tip: If a single person you know has the UA CC or status, you should be able to make a milage pool, and then all pool members can search for that special availability, and then put miles in the pool as needed. Keep in mind you can only book UA metal through milage pool.
Good to see a miles and point topic on the blog. Had been thinking the name "onemileatatime" needed to be changed.
Agreed. Off late, Ben has been distracted with flying etiquette, fringe airlines (no more Global Airlines stories, please) etc.
Agreed. Today's stories about bed bugs and a lady stumbling off of a plane were particularly low points
Feels like this continues until demand drops off from a recession and the awardseat flood gates open back up. Hope I'm wrong.
We're seeing this already except it's for economy awards US-Europe especially has never been lower or more available in the 2nd half of 2025. I'm also seeing US-Australia premium awards available for the first time in ages.