BA changing partner award prices

[Mattg]

Uh oh, this cannot be good news

British Airways is apparently making "changes" to the number of Avios required for redemptions on partner airlines, except for BA, Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling. However, they haven't actually said what the new prices will be!

I expect prices will increase. We have a month now to book at the current prices.

Here's the announcement from British Airways:

Our Avios prices on partner airlines are changing
From 30 May 2019, we’ll be changing our Avios prices on reward flights with the following partner airlines: Alaska Airlines, Air Italy, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Japan Airlines, LATAM, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, S7, Sri Lankan and Royal Jordanian Airlines.

The price of Avios upgrades on American Airlines only will also be changing from 30 May 2019. You will pay the difference between the Avios prices of your booked cabin and your upgraded cabin.

Don’t worry if you have an existing Avios booking with one of these airlines. It’s still valid and you can make changes or cancel it if you need to*. Our new Avios prices will apply to any changes or new bookings you make after 30 May 2019.

There will be no change to our Avios prices for reward flights and upgrades with British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia or Vueling. The Avios prices for our other services are also unaffected, so you can continue to benefit from spending your Avios on our wide range of hotels, car hire and experiences.

BA did announce in 2017 that it will be moving to a revenue-based loyalty program. I imagine that this is the first step in that direction...

 

[RooFlyer]

Is it the number of Avios that's changing, or the cash component or taxes and charges? I can only see reference to the latter.

 

[Mattg]

Is it the number of Avios that's changing, or the cash component or taxes and charges? I can only see reference to the latter.

Nobody knows at this point because BA hasn’t provided any detail about the changes!

 

[RooFlyer]

This implies that its just the cash component ... (from the FAQ in the announcement).

What is changing with our partner airlines?

From 30 May 2019, we’ll be changing our Avios prices on reward flights with the following partner airlines: Alaska Airlines, Air Italy, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Japan Airlines, LATAM, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, S7, Sri Lankan and Royal Jordanian Airlines.

The price of Avios upgrades on American Airlines only will also be changing.

All Avios pricing is subject to taxes, fees and carrier charges. Example taxes, fees and carrier charges on partner airlines at Wednesday 17 April 2019 for a return journey with outbound travel on 5 May 2019 and inbound on 12 May 2019 are:

Chicago (ORD) to La Guardia (LGA) on American Airlines £8.60 plus Avios
Hong Kong (HKG) to Taipei (TPE) on Cathay Pacific £63.40 plus Avios
Tokyo Haneda (HND) to Fukuoka (cough) on Japan Airlines £4.60 plus Avios
Lima (LIM) to Cusco (CUZ) on LATAM £12 plus Avios
Kuala Lumpur (KUL) to Bangkok (BKK) on Malaysia Airlines £28.90 plus Avios
Sydney (SYD) to Melbourne (MEL) on Qantas £20.20 plus Avios
Doha (DOH) to Bangkok (BKK) on Qatar Airways £138.70 plus Avios
Moscow (DME) to St Petersburg (LED) on S7 £16.40 plus Avios
Male (MLE) to Colombo (CMB) on Sri Lankan £107 plus Avios
Dubai (DBX) to Amman (AMM) on Royal Jordanian £180.20 plus Avios

 

[serfty]

This implies that its just the cash component ... (from the FAQ in the announcement).

From the FT thread and examples given on the BA web page, the £ appear to be staying the same.

It would be Avois levels that are changing then.

 

[RooFlyer]

Well colour me confused then. I recall some other airline announced an award pricing change ... but didn't specify what the changes were going to be!

Do they think the reaction will be less hostile if they up their charges via the dance of the seven veils? Isn't the idea with bad news that you get it out of the way in one hit, not drag it out over time?

 

[serfty]

Over on FT BA, they have done some detective work:

Originally Posted by TProphet
By asking the right way, I was able to figure out what the changes are. They are loaded up into BA reservation agents' computers so I just had to list out some specific routes in order to get the pricing, and cross-check them on multiple airlines.

Here's the new chart - you saw it here first.

 

[Revenge]

This is bad news. I have Avios in my BAEC account which have been amazing value for QF domestic redemptions. Much cheaper on points and fees than redemptions using QF points. All good things must end I guess.

 

[blueythecat]

Not good news at all. BA had become one of my new favourite programs.

 

[amaroo]

Sometimes staying still is the best option....

 

[wandering_fred]

Sometimes staying still is the best option....

Sometimes staying is the least worst......

Just wandering
Fred

 

[futaris]

Here Is the Official New British Airways Avios Partner Award Chart - The Points Guy

Take a look at the new chart.

thepointsguy.com

New Sweet Spots Post-BA Devaluation

Nobody likes a devaluation, and unfortunately one is coming at the end of the month for most partner flights booked with British Airways Avios. The full extent of the devaluation was initially kept a secret by British Airways, but Seat 31B figured out part of the new chart early by calling into...

www.flyertalk.com

 

[repete]

Almost emptied my account tonight There's been a few good redemptions - this was for a group of 4 CBR-ADL as one of the good ones

 

[Mattg]

The change has now come into effect and seems to be as expected. Not too drastic, but the 4,500/9,000 Avios redemptions on flights under 650 miles will be missed. It's now 6,000 Avios for Y or 12,500 Avios for J.

 

[RooFlyer]

And here is OMaaT's story on it, with the new chart:

Live: British Airways' New Partner Award Chart

Here's a look at British Airways Executive Club's new award chart for travel on partner airlines. Just how bad are the changes?

onemileatatime.com

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Overall I'm as hapy as can be with the changes. My usual intra-asia routes into and out of HKG on CX are increasing by a couple thousand points each, but still good value compared to one way fares (esp in premium cabins).