Alaska Airlines Partners With Finnair For Mileage Earning/Redemption
Not long after Alaska Airlines announced a new partnership with low-cost carrier Condor, the carrier's unveiling a new partnership with Finnair. The new deal allows travelers to earn reciprocal frequent flyer miles when flying with either of the two carriers. Beginning today, Alaska Mileage Plan members can earn miles when flying on Finnair and Finnair Plus members can earn miles and redeem for award tickets when traveling with Alaska.
Welcome our newest Mileage Plan partner, @Finnair. Together, we'll get you more places you want to go. https://t.co/7ZUJ3I2o2e #iFlyAlaska pic.twitter.com/Vc7MAvI7st
— Alaska Airlines (@AlaskaAir) May 22, 2017
While travelers can earn miles with either of the programs when flying, Finnair Plus members can also choose to redeem their miles for Alaska Airlines flights. The partners plan to add the option for Alaska Mileage Plan members to redeem their miles for Finnair flights later this year.
Here's how the Finnair earnings break down when flying with Alaska:
And here's a look at how the Alaska Mileage Plan miles earning breaks down when flying with Finnair:
Meanwhile, here's a look at the award chart if you're looking to redeem Finnair miles for an Alaska flight:
A one-way economy ticket within the US and Canada will cost 27,000 Finnair Plus miles or 51,000 miles in first class, which is pretty steep. Alaska's award chart is distance-based, so the number of miles required varies based on your routing. But, one-way flights in economy within the US start at 5,000 miles (for trips less than 700 miles) or 25,000 miles in first class.
The partnership comes just a few days ahead of the launch of Finnair's new service between Helsinki (HEL) and San Francisco (SFO). The new route, which begins on June 1, will connect West Coast-based flyers and Scandinavia — now with the opportunity to earn Alaska miles. Ultimately, this is a pretty nice addition for both programs, giving flyers more options when it comes to earning and redeeming.
