It’s a great day for British Airways and Finnair frequent flyers.
Starting tomorrow, May 22, members will be able to seamlessly transfer their Avios between Finnair Plus and British Airways Executive Club with no limits.
“As we continue on our journey into a new era with Finnair Plus, we are excited to be joining forces with our friends at British Airways,” said Pekka Antila, head of loyalty at Finnair.
The news comes as Finnair announced it would adopt Avios as its mileage currency almost a year ago. This expanded partnership with IAG Loyalty will also bring about some new benefits, further adding value to the Oneworld alliance — here’s what you should know.
Transferring Avios Between Finnair and British Airways
Finnair officially adopted Avios as its loyalty currency on March 9, 2024, and it’s already bringing positive changes for its frequent flyers.
For instance, you can only upgrade your flight with points from the loyalty program of the airline you’re flying with. But now that travelers can transfer Avios between Finnair Plus and British Airways Executive Club, they’ll be able to upgrade their flight no matter where their rewards live.
“This move has been a long-time coming, and we know it will prove popular with customers in the UK, Finland, and across the world, who choose to fly with both Finnair and British Airways,” said Antila.
Additionally, members of both loyalty programs will benefit from being able to earn Avios in new ways.
For example, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts is a partner of Finnair Plus, but not of the British Airways Executive Club. Thanks to the ability to transfer Avios between accounts, British Airways Executive Club members staying at Shangri-La properties will be able to credit their stay to the Finnair Plus account and then transfer the Avios earned to their Executive Club account.
The same can be said for Finnair Plus members staying at Marriott hotels, which is a partner of Executive Club, but not Finnair Plus.
Bottom Line:
The British Airways Executive Club is one of the most popular loyalty programs for frequent Oneworld airline flyers wherever they’re based in the world, so it makes sense for Finnair to strengthen its ties with the carrier.
Final Thoughts
The ability to transfer Avios between British Airways and Finnair’s loyalty programs will mean some exciting changes for frequent flyers. From using Avios to upgrade flights to new ways of earning Avios, the partnership is likely to be well received by members of both airline’s loyalty programs.
