Travel rewards 101 #9: An Overview of Airlines And Alliances

As you delve deeper into the world of points and miles, you’ll notice that many of the airlines that the major travel rewards currencies partner with are not US airlines, or ones you may have ever flown at all.

The First Few Amex Airline Transfer Partners

It may not be clear that some or all of these airlines could be helpful in booking flights operated by other carriers due to partnerships and alliances that airlines have created, but often, it’s helpful to consider more than the program of the airline who is actually operating the flight when looking to book award flights.

Key Takeaway: Airline Partnerships Allow for Unexpected Bookings

Many airlines around the world are involved in an alliance or partnership. These are groupings of airlines that have formed agreements with each other that typically allow their customers much more flexibility and ease of travel when using one or more airlines within the same alliance. Sometimes, airlines will make tickets available to their partners, so you could theoretically book a flight operated by one carrier, say Delta Airlines, with one of their partners, such as Air France or Virgin Atlantic. There are three major alliances, which we’ll walk through below.

Alliance 1: oneworld

The oneworld alliance, headlined by American Airlines and now also Alaska Airlines in the US, is a group of airlines that spans the globe and has many interesting partnerships that can be of use to us when looking to book flights with points and miles. The table below has a view of all oneworld airlines, and any of those airlines that have agreements with any of the transferable points currencies.

The following airlines partner with at least one transferable points currency: Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Qantas, and Qatar.

Airline:	Rewards Currency:	Transfer Partners:
American Airlines	AAdvantage Miles	N/A
Alaska Airlines	Mileage Plan	Bilt
British Airways	Executive Club (Avios)	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
Cathay Pacific	AsiaMiles	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Citi
FinnAir	Avios	Capital One
Iberia	Avios	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Wells Fargo
Japan Airlines	Mileage Bank	N/A
Malaysia Airlines	N/A	N/A
Qantas	Frequent Flyer	American Express, Capital One, Citi
Qatar Airways	Privilege Club (Avios)	American Express, Citi
Royal Air Maroc	N/A	N/A
Royal Jordanian	N/A	N/A
Sri Lankan Airways	N/A	N/A
Fiji Airways	N/A	N/A
Oman Air*	N/A	N/A

Oneworld has many high profile airlines, including some of the most luxurious in the world, such as Qatar Airways and Japan Airlines. Their network is particularly strong to Asia and across the Pacific. The table above highlights that there are three airlines in the alliance that use Avios, which itself is a shared currency. We’ll address Avios more in a separate post, but know that if you transfer your points into one Avios program, it is possible to transfer those Avios points between any of the programs that use the shared Avios currency. Avios are used by: Aer Lingus, British Airways, Finnair, Iberia, and Qatar Airways.

Alliance 2: Sky Team

The Sky Team alliance is headlined by Delta Airlines in the US, with a significant presence across the Atlantic, with partners such as Air France, KLM, and Virgin Atlantic, participating in the alliance.

The following airlines partner with at least one transferable points currency: AeroMexico, Air France, Delta, KLM, Virgin Atlantic.

Airline:	Rewards Program:	Transfer Partners:
AeroMexico	AeroMexico Club Premier	American Express, Capital One, Citi
Air France	Flying Blue	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Citi, Chase, Wells Fargo
Delta Airlines	Sky Miles	American Express
KLM	Flying Blue	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Citi, Chase, Wells Fargo
Virgin Atlantic	Flying Club	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Citi, Chase
Aerolineas Argentinas	N/A	N/A
Air Europa	N/A	N/A
China Airlines	N/A	N/A
China Eastern	N/A	N/A
Czech Airlines	N/A	N/A
Garuda Indonesia	N/A	N/A
ITA Airways	N/A	N/A
Kenya Airways	N/A	N/A
Korean Air	N/A	N/A
MEA	N/A	N/A
Saudia	N/A	N/A
Tarom	N/A	N/A
Vietnam Airlines	N/A	N/A
Xiamen Air	N/A	N/A

I’ll break this down further in my guid to Flying Blue, but it’s important to note that Air France and KLM share a loyalty program: you can book flights with both airlines and any other partners available to Flying Blue by transferring points to either account.

Alliance 3: Star Alliance

Last, but certainly not least due to it being the largest of the three alliances, is Star Alliance, headlined by United Airlines in the US. Star Alliance has the largest number of partners, with key players all around the world.

The following airlines partner with at least one transferable points currency: Air Canada, ANA, Avianca, EVA, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways, TAP Air Portugal, Turkish Airlines, and United Airlines.

Airline:	Award Program:	Transfer Partners:
United Airlines	United Mileage Plus	Chase
Air Canada	Aeroplan	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase
All Nippon Airways (ANA)	ANA Mileage Club	American Express
Avianca	LifeMiles	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Citi, Wells Fargo
EVA	Air Infinity MileageLands	Capital One, Citi
Singapore Airlines	KrisFlyer	American Express, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Citi
Thai Airways	Royal Orchid Plus	Citi
TAP Air Portugal	Miles&Go	Capital One
Turkish Airlines	Miles and Smiles	Bilt, Capital One, Citi
Aegean Airlines	N/A	N/A
Air China	N/A	N/A
Air India	N/A	N/A
Air New Zealand	N/A	N/A
Asiana Airlines	N/A	N/A
Austrian Airlines	N/A	N/A
Brussels Airlines	N/A	N/A
Copa Airlines	N/A	N/A
Croatia Airlines	N/A	N/A
Egypt Air	N/A	N/A
Ethiopian	N/A	N/A
LOT Polish Airlines	N/A	N/A
Lufthansa	N/A	N/A
SAS	N/A	N/A
Shenzhen Airlines	N/A	N/A
South African Airways	N/A	N/A
Swiss Air	N/A	N/A

Using Airline Alliances and Partnerships to Our Advantage

Now that we’ve reviewed the key airline alliances, let’s dive into an example to understand why we should always be thinking about airline alliances and partnerships when looking to book flights with points and miles.

Say I want to book a flight from Boston to Edinburgh. I see that Delta is operating this flight next May, and I’m interested. I can of course go to Delta’s website and book the flight there, either with points or cash.

Award Availability on Delta’s Flight 122 on Delta’s Own Site

However, I can also check to see if any of Delta’s partners also have access to booking seats on this flight. In fact, there is availability both with Air France / KLM Flying Blue and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club.

Air France / KLM Flying Blue Has Access to the Same Flight

Virgin Atlantic Has Access to the Same Flight!

If I had only thought to check Delta’s own site for this flight, I would’ve missed out on great deals with these other two airlines. There are many examples of this with carriers and programs in the other alliances as well. Always remember to check to see if flights are available with partners. Often, the best prices on a flight are with partners if they have access to the flight.

In the next post, we’ll walk through the example shown in these screenshots to consider how best to book this flight as an example of how your transferable points can have so much value.