Air France KLM: Slight Devaluation of the Flying Blue Program
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Thanks to Travel on Points for the information.
Air France-KLM has just increased, without prior notice, the minimum number of miles required for Flying Blue award flights. This change particularly affects economy class flights between North America and Europe. Other routes are also affected, as are partner airlines, but to a lesser extent.
Flying Blue – New Minimum Award Prices
Flying Blue uses dynamic pricing for its award flights. However, there are minimum prices, i.e. the minimum number of miles required for a flight.
Between North America and Europe, here are the new minimum fares in Flying Blue miles:
- Economy Class: 20,000 25,000 Miles (25% increase)
- Premium Economy: 35,000 40,000 Miles (14.25% increase)
- Business Class: 50,000 60,000 Miles (20% increase)
Economy Class
Economy class has seen the biggest increase, up 25%. For a flight from Montreal to Paris, for example, the minimum price has risen from 20,000 to 25,000 miles.
The new fares apply to both Air France-KLM flights and those of partner airlines such as Delta and WestJet.
Premium Economy and Business Class
The increase is more moderate for premium cabins. Here are a few examples of new low fares between Canada and Europe:
- Montreal-Paris: 35,000 40,000 Premium Economy Miles and 50,000 60,000 Business Miles
- Toronto-Amsterdam: 35,000 to 40,000 Premium Economy Miles and 50,000 to 60,000 Business Miles
- Vancouver-Paris: 35,000 to 40,000 Premium Economy Miles and 50,000 to 60,000 Business Miles
On Partner Airlines
Increases are more moderate on flights operated by Flying Blue partners:
- Montreal-New York with Delta: 10,000 12,500 in Economy and 14,000 15,000 in Business
- Montreal-Panama with Copa Airlines: 15,000 17,500 miles in Economy and 28,500 29,500 miles in Business
- Toronto-Atlanta with Delta: 12,500 15,000 miles in Economy and 23,000 25,000 miles in Business
- Paris-Abu Dhabi with Etihad Airways: 25,000 28,500 Economy and 46,500 50,500 miles in Business
Why Flying Blue Remains Advantageous Despite These Changes
Despite this fare increase, Flying Blue remains competitive with its rivals. For a business class flight to Europe, let’s compare the lowest prices according to program:
- Aeroplan 35,000 points in economy class and 60,000 points in business class
- Flying Blue: 20,000 25,000 Miles in economy class and 50,000 60,000 Miles in business class
- British Airways: 25,000 Avios in economy class and 80,000 Avios in business class
In my opinion, Flying Blue remains the best option for a flight between North America and Europe in economy class, as availability is generally easy to find and taxes are reasonable.
In business class, Flying remains the best option for Promo Awards. We’ve seen flights from Montreal-Paris for 15,000 miles in Business class!
Otherwise, outside promotional periods, the best option is now Aeroplan and partner flights with a fixed fare of 60,000 Aeroplan points for flights of less than 4,000 miles in distance.
However, Flying Blue stands out with its monthly Promo Rewards, a benefit that compensates for rising fares. Every month, new promotions offer savings of 25% on certain routes, and sometimes even 50% to selected destinations.
For example, a flight from Montreal to Paris that normally costs 25,000 Miles in Economy class could be available at just 18,750 Miles during a Prime Promo. In Business class, the fare could drop from 60,000 to 45,000 Miles.
Keep an eye on these offers: Promo Rewards are announced at the beginning of each month.
Bottom Line
Flying Blue has quietly devalued its program. Minimum prices for flights between North America are now 25,000 Miles in Economy class (up 25%), 40,000 Miles in Premium Economy class (up 14%) and 60,000 Miles in Business class (up 20%).
Air France points out that this new fare structure should result in greater availability at minimum fares, particularly in business class. As a result, we should see more flights available at 60,000 Miles between North America and Europe.
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