British Airways Executive Club Frequent Flyer Program: The Simple Flying Guide

Those who fly with British Airways (or through Terminal 5 at London Heathrow) will be familiar with the Executive Club, the carrier’s loyalty program. Since BA is owned by the International Airlines Group (IAG), it shares its points currency, Avios, with several major airlines including Qatar Airways, Iberia, and Aer Lingus. Here is the Simple Flying guide to the Executive Club, how to earn miles, redeem them, and get status on the oneworld carrier.

The Executive Club has attracted only ten million members since its founding nearly 30 years ago as a full-service program. With a strong presence in the UK and the US, there are plenty of earning opportunities through flying, package bookings, and credit card rewards. BA is a redemption partner for American Express, Chase, and several other card providers so the chance of earning large swathes of points is readily available.

Of course, as a oneworld member you can use your BA miles to redeem across all airline partners with ease. It also helps that BA’s website is quite handy to find redemptions with several carriers, although it can be a bit tough to navigate for complex itineraries.

Pros and cons of the Executive Club

Here’s a quick rundown of the pros of British Airways’ loyalty program.

• Single currency : British Airways uses Avios as its points currency, which means there are huge redemption options. The new partnership with Qatar Airways means you can now use your Avios directly with the carrier by transferring them. Add to this the more than a dozen one world members and other partners and BA has plenty of redemption options.
• Reward flight saver: One of the newest changes to the program is the extension of RFS tickets to all sectors in economy, premium economy, and business class. Previously limited to short-haul services, RFS allows members to reduce their fees and taxes in lieu of more points.
• Quick run to elite status: British Airways offers one of the quickest paths to elite status, requiring only 300 tier points for Bronze ( one world Ruby), 600 tier points for Silver (Sapphire), and 1,500 for Gold (Emerald). Given the benefits at every level and on partner airlines, BA is an easy choice for those living in any city with plenty of services.

However, not. everything in life is good. The Executive Club has some notable cons too.

• Expensive fees: British Airways is notorious for its “carrier imposed surcharges” on reward tickets. These can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars on each ticket. Unlike its Star Alliance rivals, mileage earning is easier but redeeming will need some cash as well. For example, a roundtrip from London to New York before RFS costed 100,000 Avios + £844.36 ($1,045). Now, it will cost as little as 170,000 + £350 ($433.3) but that is a big mileage hit.
• Hard-to-find premium redemptions: Given the Executive Club’s popularity it can be hard to find business class redemptions on some routes and first class can be a scavenger hunt. However, awards do open 355 days in advance so be sure to book in advance!

Those are just some of the pros and cons of the program, read more about earning miles, status, redeeming for flights and more, and reaching status below!

Photo: British Airways