Avios & Tier points, everything you need to know about the British Airways Executive Club
In this article we have explained all the ways of collecting and using Avios in Italy, now we want to explain [...]
British Airways
Oneworld
In this article we have explained all the ways of collecting and using Avios in Italy, we now want to explain in detail how the British company's Executive Club works.
In this article:
The system used by British Airways is significantly different from that used by Lufthansa and Alitalia, and in some ways is much easier to understand and especially to plan for.
A user who takes a BA flight should know that he will earn a number of Avios that depend on the distance traveled, the class of travel, and the type of ticket purchased. At the same time he or she will earn a predetermined number of Tiers, the points it takes to reach the program's various elite levels.
What are the levels of the Executive Club?
The best bonuses
There are four levels:
- Blue: the initial level
- Bronze: 300 Tier Points (or level points) earned in one year
- Silver: 600 Tier Points (or level points) earned in one year
- Gold: 1,500 Tier Points (or level points) earned in one year
Then there are two additional status levels that are not published:
- Gold Guest List: is obtained by earning 5,000 Tier Points in one year of membership and then 3,000 Tier Points to maintain the status each subsequent year.
- Concorde Room Card: after 5,000 Tier Points or more in a membership year (requalification for status with British Airways requires the same amount of Tier Points, except for the Gold Guest List).
However, BA provides a "happy decrease" for customers who fail to renew their status when it expires. If a member fails to maintain his or her status, he or she will drop to the next lower level, even if he or she has not completed a single flight in the year.
The benefits grow as the level increases membership: extra luggage, free seat reservation, and with the gold level you are entitled to first-class lounge access even if you fly supereconomy.
How Tier Points are Accumulated
The accumulation of points that allow one to climb the various levels is simple and straightforward. The first thing to memorize is that the expiration of points does not coincide with the calendar year, but with the date of enrollment in the program. So to obtain or renew status you have time until your "birthday."
The second rule is that Tier points are earned by flying with the 13 airlines that are part of the Oneworld alliance (British Airways, American Airline, Qantas, Iberia, Finnair, etc.)
Third and final concept, but it is also the most important, you earn a fixed number of points based on flight length and class, so from a minimum of 5 points for a short-haul economy flight up to 360 points for a first-class flight.
In detail, the flights of less than 2,000 miles in economy allow you to earn 5, 10, 15 or 20 Tier Points, depending on the fare class booked.
If you fly business on the same flights you earn 40 Tier points instead. Then there are flights that, for just a few miles, allow you to earn 80 Tier points. For example, if you fly a/r from Rome to London you will earn 80 Tier points, or 40 each way. If, on the other hand, the route leaves from Catania and you fly to London the points earned will be 160, 80 each way.
As for flights over 2,000 miles in economy bring 20 to 120 Tier points, while Club World (BA's business class) passengers earn 140 or 160 per way.
First class varies from 140/160 points for long-haul flights, but for the flight connecting London with Sydney there is a gain of 320 points. Basically with a round trip in first, you automatically become silver level.
Once you understand how Tiers work, calculating how many points you accumulate for each flight becomes simple. If you want to attempt the status run you will have to opt, for example, to break a flight into several segments to get maximum points.
E.g. A direct London-San Francisco flight in Club World allows you to earn 160 points, but if you do London-New York and then New York-San Francisco you will earn 280 Tier points. Of course, you have to put up with the stress of the stopover and connection, however, with a round trip you get 560 points on your account instead of 320.
The benefits of status on all Oneworld airlines
The British company, like the entire IAG group, participates in the Oneworld alliance. Thus elite statuses are also recognized when traveling on all companies belonging to the same alliance. The Bronze card corresponds to the Ruby level, the intermediate Silver level is equivalent to Sapphire, while all other statuses coincide with the highest level, namely Emerald. To learn in detail what benefits each level brings, you can consult the alliance's website.
NB One of the most important and most desired benefits is to have lounge access, in which case you need to reach at least the Sapphire Oneworld level