It’s always great to see new reciprocal frequent flyer agreements, especially among airlines that don’t otherwise have many partners. So along those lines, here’s a new collaboration that’s worth being aware of.
Etihad Airways & Hong Kong Airlines frequent flyer partnership
Etihad Airways and Hong Kong Airlines now have a frequent flyer partnership, offering reciprocal opportunities to earn and redeem points. While neither airline belongs to a major alliance, Etihad Guest miles are easy to earn (since the program partners with transferable points currencies), while Hong Kong Airlines Fortune Wings Club points are hard to earn (since the program doesn’t partner with major transferable points currencies).
So as I see it, the big value here is with Etihad Guest when flying on Hong Kong Airlines, rather than the other way around. If you are going to fly with Hong Kong Airlines on a cash fare, you’ll now probably want to credit your flight to Etihad Guest, with the earnings rates being as shown below (miles earned don’t count toward status).
It’s also possible to redeem Etihad Guest miles for travel on Hong Kong Airlines, with the cost being based on the one-way distance based award chart found below.
Here’s what’s pretty exciting — based on my searches, business class award availability on Hong Kong Airlines is generally quite good. That’s particularly the case within Asia, while on the carrier’s long haul routes (to Australia and Canada) I’m not finding much business class award space.
I’d consider this collaboration to be pretty valuable
Obviously Cathay Pacific is Hong Kong’s primary, full service airline. Given the option, I’d always fly the airline to or from Hong Kong (especially with oneworld Emerald status!). That being said, the carrier’s fares tend to be really high, and Cathay Pacific has become terrible about releasing premium cabin award space, even to members of its own frequent flyer program.
So for situations where Cathay Pacific’s fares are too high, or award availability is too limited, having access to rewards on another airline based in Hong Kong is great.
For example, I recently flew Hong Kong Airlines’ A330 business class within Asia. I would’ve preferred to fly Cathay Pacific, but there was no award availability and fares were astronomical. So I found a reasonably priced ticket on Hong Kong Airlines… I just wish the opportunity to earn and redeem Etihad Guest miles had been around then.
If you do earn Etihad Guest miles, just keep in mind the program’s strict mileage expiration policy, as well as the high cost to change or cancel awards.
Bottom line
Etihad Airways and Hong Kong Airlines now have a frequent flyer partnership, offering reciprocal opportunities to earn and redeem miles. As I see it, the most exciting opportunity here is to earn and redeem Etihad Guest miles on Hong Kong Airlines, given the carrier’s lack of other partners. Award availability seems to be quite good in business class, so this is something to keep in mind if you’re struggling to find award space on Cathay Pacific.
Do you see any value in this Etihad Airways & Hong Kong Airlines partnership?
