Analysing Finnair's Loyalty Programme Update: What You Need to Know

Finnair, the flag carrier of Finland, recently announced a shift in its loyalty programme. They're swapping out their current Finnair Plus award points for Avios as the new points currency. Wondering how this affects you? Here's the lowdown.

Earning Points with Finnair Today

Currently, Finnair Plus members collect both award points and tier points when they fly with Finnair and its oneworld partners. These award points can be earned from flights and various services, and you can later use them for rewards. Tier points are vital for maintaining your status within the airline's loyalty framework. When you travel, you earn an equal number of award and tier points.

The number of tier and award points you get from Finnair flights depends on factors like your booking class and travel zone. If you hold a higher status, like Platinum, you'll earn extra points. For instance, Platinum members earn an additional 25% points on flights with Finnair, American Airlines, British Airways, and Iberia.

On flights with oneworld partners, the points calculation involves the booking class, distance travelled, and a points multiplier. The total tier and award points you earn is the distance in kilometres multiplied by the points multiplier. Here's an example related to British Airways.

What's Changing?

On the surface, it might seem like Finnair is just swapping their own award points for Avios, while keeping their tier point system. But there's more to it than that.

With the switch to Avios, the conversion of award points, tier points, and tier limits will be done at a rate of 3:2. So, if you have 30,000 points now, you'll end up with 20,000 points in the Avios system. The good news is that the cost of award flight redemptions will also change by the same ratio, 3:2. This is a positive move, as it avoids devaluing your points.

The bigger change is that Finnair is moving from a zonal/distance-based points system to a revenue-based one. This is quite significant and will affect how you engage with the loyalty programme. Unfortunately, the exact rules for point allocation under this new system haven't been announced yet. We'll have to wait until 'early 2024' to know the details.

We can look to British Airways, another oneworld member using Avios, for some hints. They recently shifted to a revenue-based model, which might give us a clue about Finnair's plans. Assuming Finnair follows a similar path, the way points are allocated could resemble what British Airways has done.

To figure out the number of tier points and Avios you'll earn under this new system, you'll need to check your eTicket for the 'Fare' line item. Calculating your earned Avios involves multiplying the fare cost by your status tier factor. For instance, if your fare is €112.89 (excluding taxes and surcharges), you'll earn 677 Avios and Tier Points for a standard tier, or 1016 for Platinum. In the current setup, Basic and Platinum tiers yield 1000 award points, which would become 666 and 1000 after adjusting with the 3:2 ratio.

Considering the 3:2 conversion and a system inspired by British Airways, most travellers may not experience significant changes compared to the current setup. BA faced more disruption when they made their changes due to the generosity of their programme. Finnair Plus' alterations might have a milder impact.

This is just an educated guess for now. Once Finnair reveals the specifics of their new system, I'll provide an update.

For Finnair Plus members, the biggest change is that because of the intrinsic link between Avios and Tier points - there will now be a direct link between how much you spend on flights and your tier status. It will make it more expensive for members to maintain status compared to today.

Partner flights will not change much from today

For most Finnair codeshare, oneworld and partner airlines, tier points and Avios will be awarded based on the travel/booking class and distance flown in miles (currently kilometres). This covers the following oneworld airlines: Alaska Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian, Sri Lankan Airlines. LATAM Airlines, Juneyao Air and BRA Airlines will earn Avios only but based on the new system.

American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia will be awarded on the revenue-based system. The exception for these oneworld partners is:

They are all members of the Oneworld Transatlantic Joint Venture (TATL).
By January 2024, AA, BA and Iberia will all be utilising revenue-based award programmes meaning all member airlines of TATL to award Avios and Tier Points, or their equivalent, in a similar manner.

All member airlines of the TATL having revenue-based programmes shouldn’t be overlooked as it will better allow them to co-ordinate and share data on their tickets compared to other partners.

Changes to How You Qualify

Once the changes take effect, earning status purely through the number of flights you've taken will no longer be an option. Currently, you can achieve Platinum status by either earning 150,000 Tier Points or completing 76 qualifying flights. The latter, more daunting option will disappear once the new system is introduced in 2024.

For members based in Finland, there is now one upside - Finnair Visa credit card holders will earn Tier Points, as well as Avios, when they make purchases of at least €1500 per month.

Potential Adjustments to Tier Limits

Finnair has hinted that they'll adjust tier point limits to match the new spend-based way of earning points and the move to Avios. Details about these changes will be communicated later this year. It seems they won't simply convert the existing Tier Point amounts by 3:2, as they're doing with award points to Avios.

This adjustment could be for the sake of simplicity. For example, converting 80,000 points using the 3:2 ratio results in 53,333.33 recurring, which isn't the most user-friendly number. Alternatively, they might increase the tier points needed for each status level.

Unlocking Milestones

The concept of milestones is a bit hazy. It appears these are rewards given to members who achieve specific goals within a tier. For instance:

Basic members earn more Avios.
Silver members get Lounge Passes.
Gold, Platinum, and Platinum Lumo members could enjoy better upgrade benefits.

This seems like a way to make the Finnair Plus programme more engaging, turning progress through tiers into a game of sorts. It's a smart strategy to make members feel more directly rewarded for their efforts.

Upgrading Your Travel Experience

Currently, the programme offers upgrade vouchers to members with status. Platinum members, for example, receive two long-haul and four short-haul vouchers, potentially making Finnair Business awards more affordable (if there's availability). Gold members also have similar perks.

The change here is that the programme will now provide one category of 'upgrade benefits' that cover both short and long-haul flights. The main advantage is that you won't need to contact Customer Service to convert between short and long-haul vouchers, a small but convenient improvement.

Finnair assures us that the number of upgrade benefits won't change when they transition to the Avios programme in early 2024. But, like any other aspect, this could be subject to change in the future.

Messaging WiFi on European Flights

While not a massive development, it's worth noting that Finnair is introducing complimentary Messaging WiFi on its European Airbus narrowbody flights for all Finnair Plus members. Gold and Platinum members will enjoy upgraded connectivity with a 30-minute Browse to Stream package for faster internet within Europe. Although there's no mention of a time limit, it seems likely to last for the entire flight.

However, this improvement is limited to European flights; there won't be any changes to connectivity on longer journeys. Some airlines, like KLM, already offer free message WiFi for all passengers.

New Schengen Lounge

In an overdue move, Finnair will introduce a new Schengen Lounge at Helsinki Airport. Very few details have been released by the airline but they have advised there will be Platinum and Platinum Lumo exclusive areas of the space. One would expect the design to be inspired by that of the non-Schengen lounges.

Transferring Points: New Possibilities

One understated feature is the ability to transfer points between different schemes. Once Avios becomes part of Finnair, you'll be able to transfer points to your British Airways Executive Club account at a 1:1 ratio, and vice versa. Once in your BA account, you can use these points on BA.com or transfer them to Qatar Airways or Iberia. Theoretically, you might even be able to transfer them to Aer Lingus or Vueling after they're in your BA account, although this isn't confirmed on the Finnair Plus website.

For those of us based in the UK, this makes the Finnair Plus programme more attractive, as earning Avios becomes easier compared to the current award points system. With multiple avenues like Barclaycard Avios, AmEx, HSBC, and Nectar, getting Avios in the UK can now benefit four different airlines.

A Better Option for UK-based Occasional Flyers?

For those who don't fly frequently, Finnair Plus might become a more appealing choice due to the potential integration of the Avios framework and the ongoing option to convert Avios into tier points. Right now, Finnair members can convert award points into tier points, bridging up to half the gap to the next tier. For example:

Basic members can convert up to 15,000 tier points, halfway to Silver.
Silver members can convert up to 40,000 tier points, halfway to Gold.
Gold, Platinum, and Platinum Lumo members can convert up to 75,000 tier points, halfway to Platinum.

Although the conversion rate is 3:1, which might not seem fantastic, it does offer flexibility for those taking a few long-haul flights each year and struggling to reach higher tiers. Notably, British Airways doesn't provide a similar option.

Guaranteed Award Seats

Finnair is pledging to offer a minimum number of seats on every flight that can be redeemed using Avios. This mirrors a similar approach by British Airways. With the flexibility of Avios, members across all four Avios-earning airlines could potentially transfer points to access these guaranteed award seats, subject to availability.

It's important to note that while guaranteed seats on Finnair are a plus, you'll also be competing with members from other Avios airlines for those same seats.

Accessing More Redemption Options

The ability to transfer Avios between different schemes opens up a world of redemption possibilities beyond the oneworld and LATAM networks, even beyond your home scheme. Finnair Plus members will now have access to:

Qatar Airways:

Earn-only: jetBlue and S7 Airlines (Russian - currently suspended from oneworld).
Earn and redeem: Bangkok Airways, Middle East Airlines, Oman Air (Doha-Muscat only), RwandAir, Virgin Australia.

British Airways:

Earn-only: China Southern
Earn and redeem: Aer Lingus, Fiji Airways

Iberia:

Earn and redeem: Binter Canarias, Avianca, Vueling, Level

Qatar, BA, and Iberia members will also gain access to Juneyao Airlines (earn and redeem) and BRA (seems to be earn only, although listed under the earn section) via the Finnair connection.

In Conclusion

While some details are still up in the air, the upcoming changes seem to have a mostly positive impact, at least from my perspective. The flexibility to transfer Avios between schemes is a big draw and could significantly increase the value of accumulated points. As more details about the revamped programme come to light, I'll definitely weigh my options – whether to stick with Finnair Plus or return to British Airways when my status expires in 2024.

How do you feel about these changes to the Finnair Plus programme? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.