Last year, we saw the Iberia Plus program going revenue-based and British Airways Executive Club will be following its footstep.
Today, British Airways announced its new Avios earning system with full details.
British Airways Executive Club Going Revenue-Based
Effective October 18th, 2023, the British Airways Executive Club has announced that the way customers collect Avios will be changed. The change will offer members a transparent, consistent and simplified way to collect Avios. This includes the ability to collect Avios on ancillary purchases such as paid upgrades, for the first time.
Here are the details of how the Avios will be earned for each Executive Club member based on the tier as of October 18, 2023:
- Blue members will receive 6 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
- Bronze members will receive 7 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
- Silver members will receive 8 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
- Gold members will receive 9 Avios per qualifying £1 spent
The qualifying cost represents the following condition:
- The base fare and carrier-imposed-charges on commercial tickets on any British Airways and Iberia-marketed flights
- Upgrades (online or airport), pre-paid seating charges or excess baggage on any British Airways or Iberia-marketed and operated flights
With this, members are able to earn Avios on all additional purchases that are related to their flights either in advance or at the airport as the amount of Avios collected per flight will be based on the amount paid rather than distance traveled.
What About Earning British Airways Tier Points?
Executive Club members are still able to earn the tier points based on distance travelled rather than the amount paid which is a huge relief.
You can check out how many tier points you will earn here.
My Thoughts About These New Changes
A lot of airlines are now switching their earning ways to revenue-based instead of distance-based and this is definitely very negative for all members as you would need to spend more out of your pocket in order to earn points or miles.
However, this is what Ian Romanis, British Airways’ Director of Retail and Customer Relationship Management think:
“We continue to listen to our customers’ feedback and ideas to evolve our Executive Club. This is a simpler and more transparent system offering more opportunities to collect Avios than ever before and rewarding loyalty based on customers’ cash spend. It’s a tried and tested model already used by a number of global airlines, including our sister airline Iberia.”
Ian Romanis, British Airways Director of Retail and Customer Relationship Management
The update to the new approach is the latest change to the Executive Club this year to keep improving the loyalty programme for Members. The change will be very positive for those who make regular ‘full-fare’ flights as this will earn a considerable number of Avios however, for those who collect Avios by finding low fares with high fare class, it is bad news.
I think this change was inevitable as most airlines such as Air France – KLM or most US airlines have adopted revenue-based mileage earning preference.
Summary
Effective October 18th, 2023, the British Airways Executive Club program will be using a revenue-based Avios earning system. Members will be earning from 6x to 9x Avios per £1 spent on flights marketed by British Airways or Iberia as well as on additional ancillary purchases.
As the changes with Executive Club were expected since the Iberia Plus program went revenue-based late last year, it is unsurprising to see British Airways listening to customers’ feedback and ideas to evolve the Executive Club.