Many airlines have a cumulative loy alty system, thanks to which you can get a very profitable bonus. This program may be of interest to those whose activities involve frequent flights due to business trips. Essentially, miles are the units by which an airline evaluates customer loy alty.
Such programs are very similar to the accumulative systems of many large supermarkets, where points ("miles") are awarded for the purchase of goods (tickets). In the future, they can be spent on other goods (exchange for another ticket or book a hotel, rent a car).
Bonus "miles" from low-cost airlines are of 2 types: premium and status. The former are the category of bonuses that can be spent on purchasing a ticket or upgrading the class of service. These bonuses have an expiration date, after which they expire. They are valid from20 to 36 months, during this period they must be completely spent. Status "miles" can also be exchanged for various awards. They affect the status of their owner. The more such "miles" on the client's account, the more important person he becomes. "Miles" in this category are reset to zero after a year.
A bit of program history
This system of gaining advantageous benefits originated in the company 15 years ago, in 1999, but Aeroflot is not a pioneer in this bonus program. For the first time, loyal customers of Transaero airlines received the opportunity to enjoy benefits from participation in it 4 years earlier.
The last decade saw a rapid development of the bonus program, new relevant opportunities appeared in it, because of this, it was possible to attract 500 thousand customers. The opportunity to participate in it was provided not only to Russian citizens, but also to foreigners who used the services of this airline.
Brief description of the bonus system
The essence of the program to support loyal customers is as follows: certain bonuses will be awarded for each flight on comfortable aircraft of the company. After purchasing an Aeroflot airline ticket, "miles" are credited to the member's account. Their number depends on a number of the following factors: the total flight distance, the selected class of service, the current status of the program member.
Who canbe eligible to participate in this bonus system?
Registration in the Aeroflot Bonus system is a simple procedure, age and citizenship do not matter. Children under the age of 12 must declare their participation in a similar Aeroflot Bonus Junior subprogram. Apart from the name, it has no special differences. Aeroflot's rules on how to spend "miles" and accumulate them change periodically. In order to have these bonuses, you need to declare your participation in the system.
Program participation rules
It's very easy to become an official Aeroflot Bonus member. There are 3 convenient ways, you can use any of them:
- submit the completed application form at the nearest Aeroflot representative office or at an authorized point of sale;
- fill out an online application on the official website of the company;
- become the owner of any partner card of the program, for example, Sberbank issues "miles" for Aeroflot. How to spend them is described below.
Any of the above methods requires the submission of the passport data of the future participant, his detailed contact and personal information. After registration, an individual number is issued in the system.
The client becomes a full-fledged member of the bonus program when more than 2000 "miles" are accumulated on the account. Upon reaching this level, a plastic card of the official participant is issued withindividual number, it also indicates the full name. owner. The card is delivered by mail to the specified address. After accumulating the required number of award points, their owner will already know exactly how to spend "miles". "Aeroflot bonus" is really a very profitable and convenient system.
Varieties of bonus "miles"
Now it is very important to figure out how to spend Aeroflot "miles" and accumulate them, as well as what kinds there are.
This company has two main types of points:
- "Miles" of a qualifying type, which are credited directly for completed flights. The client receives these bonuses not only for purchasing tickets for existing Aeroflot flights, but also for purchasing travel documents from partner companies. Each declared partner has its own restrictions and certain rules, each Aeroflot client needs to familiarize themselves with them. How to spend "miles" wisely? This question worries every participant. With the help of qualifying type bonuses, it is possible to make a free flight by exchanging them for the desired ticket, upgrade your class of service or status level in the program itself.
- Non-qualifying bonus miles that are credited for the purchase of various goods and services from partner companies. For this type of promotion, the conditions and procedure for their accrual are constantly changing. How to spendaccumulated "miles"? Aeroflot offers only one way for this type of bonus - obtaining various benefits during registration and during the flight. In order to spend premium bonuses, you must first accumulate them over a certain period of time.
Accumulation Methods
The main ways to get the coveted "miles":
- You must fly with the same airline or with the help of its partners. This is the easiest way to save, it is best suited for those who often travel due to business trips or visit relatives. This method is also relevant for fans of a particular country for recreation. For such tourists, you can choose the most optimal bonus program that allows you to significantly save money without changing your plans.
- Purchase of goods and services from the main partners of the program (payment for hotels, car rental, restaurant meals). They are much more profitable to rent a car or stay in a comfortable hotel from the list presented. Additional "miles" are assigned to the card for purchased services.
- Use of special bank cards. Many large banking organizations offer advantageous debit or credit cards for the convenience of their customers, which help to fly profitably. By making purchases, a certain percentage of the amount spent is credited to the personal "mile" account of the client. For example, for each spentdollar or euro on the account is added 1 "mile". These "miles" are premium, they can be exchanged and spent, but they do not affect the upgrade of the status.
Additional sources of savings
Many companies reward their customers with extra "miles" in the following cases:
- during the initial entry into the program, welcome "miles" are credited;
- celebration miles are issued to reward loyal customers on their birthday;
- you can get "miles" for activity in social networks - for writing reviews, participating in various contests, games or quizzes from the airline;
- extra "miles" are issued for subscribing to the company's newsletter;
- "miles" purchased on the website of the air carrier or from other holders of bonus cards.
Many customers earn "miles" in the hope of receiving certain benefits. Aeroflot also has a similar support program for its loyal customers. With the help of bonuses, it is possible to get real benefits for those who fly frequently. When accumulating bonuses, many people have a question about what Aeroflot miles can be spent on. Let's try to answer it.
Where to use bonuses?
These "miles" are credited by Aeroflot for regular flights, their value depends on the distance traveled by the client by air, andalso from class of service. Each member of the reward program is given a certain status, which also affects the amount of bonus "miles". The conditions of the program are subject to frequent changes, for a more accurate calculation of possible savings, Aeroflot offers a calculator "miles".
You can spend bonuses at your own discretion. It is also offered to accumulate them in the course of making purchases, when the payment is made using a card of a partner bank. Many leading financial institutions of the country are actively involved in this program. Sberbank also offers special Airport Bonus accumulative cards. Bonuses are awarded for opening a new card, each dollar spent adds one bonus "mile" to the card.
Everyone can take advantage of all the benefits of cooperation with Aeroflot. How to spend "miles" from Sberbank, all holders of bonus cards also need to know. Bonus units are spent in a standard way: for a free flight by this airline or its official partners, for the next increase in client status, for booking hotels or renting a car. Moreover, these conditions apply almost all over the world. Now another direction has become popular. How to spend "miles" of "Aeroflot" for the benefit of others? With their help, you can participate in a special charity program, helping those in need.
What are qualifying bonuses used for?
The "miles" of the qualifying type accumulated on the account must be spent in one of the proposed ways, otherwise the client risks losing all the benefits from their use. What you can spend "miles" "Aeroflot":
- Become the owner of an award ticket on an operating flight of one of the partner companies that is part of the SkyTeam group. All commission fees are paid by the passenger.
- Upgrade your current class of service at will. By purchasing a discount economy class ticket, it is possible to use all the privileges of business class when paying with bonus "miles".
- Pay invoices of partner companies.
This is the main thing you need to know for those who have an Aeroflot accumulative bonus card. How to spend "miles" and what they are for, we examined in detail.
Privileged statuses of program participants
The client receives a full right to participate in the program at the time of initial accumulation of 2000 bonus "miles". After fulfilling this condition, he is issued a basic member card. There are 2 more privileged statuses - silver and gold. They are called SkyTeam Elite and SkyTeam Elite Plus.
To receive a SkyTeam Elite Silver Card, a client needs to accumulate 25,000 miles in a calendar year, and 50,000 miles to acquire Gold status. When a client reaches a new level, his card is automatically replaced with an individual one of the appropriate design and color. Similar programsbeneficial to those customers who fly regularly throughout the year. For those who travel by plane from time to time, it will not be easy to accumulate the necessary points. When registering for participation in the airline's program, it is important to know where to spend the bonuses. Aeroflot offers to use "miles" in different ways.
Possibility to buy and sell bonuses
Of course, in the literal sense, bonuses are not subject to sale and purchase. But there are times when a client has accumulated the required number of "miles" to purchase a ticket, but for some reason he cannot use them. In this case, you should agree with another person so that the ticket is not lost. This way you can redeem your accumulated points. This is another option available to Aeroflot customers.
How to spend "miles" if the trip failed? Look for someone to sell a ticket to. Points in this case do not burn out, but appear in the form of a cash equivalent. But there is one more nuance here: in order to avoid fraud, it is advisable to carry out all transactions in special sales centers of the air carrier.
Procedure for donating award miles from Aeroflot
How to spend "miles"? You can give them to your loved ones, relatives. The whole procedure takes place according to the scheme described above, only the owner does not receive any remuneration, and the ticket is issued free of charge. The ticket goes to the addressee. You will also need the personal passport details of the person to whom the award ticket is addressed. You still need to show the card and provide all the datadonor. There is one limitation here: the client can give away his accumulated points no more than 10 times a year. This is perhaps the most recent answer to the question of where to spend bonuses. Aeroflot distributes "miles" to the most active and loyal customers.
