AIRLINES & ALLIANCES

Qantas Frequent Flyer adds 20 million more rewards seats

Qantas Frequent Flyers will have access to over 20 million more reward seats with the launch of Classic Plus Flight Rewards, a new way for members to use their Qantas Points to book flights.

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Qantas

This change is one of the biggest ever expansions of the Qantas Frequent Flyer program in its 35-year history and will make it easier to travel to places like London, Tokyo, New York and Singapore with Qantas Points, even during peak times.

While usually requiring more points than the existing Classic reward seats, Classic Plus will represent some of the best value across the frequent flyer program with much wider availability. Classic Plus reward seats are also eligible for upgrades. The points required to book Classic Plus reward seats will vary like normal airfares, which means they’ll be lower during off-peak periods or when booking early, and higher during peak periods. During sales and promotions, Classic Plus reward seats may drop below a Classic reward seat on the same route (see tables below).

Classic Plus reward seats can be booked from today on Qantas international flights departing Australia for travel from 1 July 2024 exclusively via qantas.com and will be rolled out across the rest of the airline’s international and domestic network on Qantas-operated flights by the end of the year.

By the end of calendar year 2024, when Classic Plus has fully launched across the international and domestic network, members will have had access to 20 million new reward seats for travel across the rolling 12-month booking window. There will be a similar level of availability on an ongoing basis.

Qantas Group CEO Vanessa Hudson said frequent flyers have more ways than ever to earn points and a new flight reward option would open up more value for frequent flyers wanting to use their growing points balances on travel.

“The Qantas Frequent Flyer program is an integral part of Qantas and has always been about recognising our customers for their loyalty. We’ve spent a lot of time listening to members about how we can better reward them,” Ms Hudson said.

“We’re adding over 20 million new flight rewards with the launch of a new type of reward seat called Classic Plus. It’s one of the biggest expansions we’ve made to the Frequent Flyer program in its 35-year history.

“The growth and success of Qantas Loyalty is driven by engaged members who earn and redeem points across the frequent flyer program, including with our partners, and that’s why we’re investing in making more seats available to book with points.”

Qantas Loyalty CEO Andrew Glance said: “The widespread availability of Classic Plus means that frequent flyers have more options to fly where they want, when they want and more often, using their points.

“The new type of reward seat will usually require more points than the highly sought after existing Classic seats, and will be available to all destinations on the Qantas international and domestic network, across
First, Business, Premium Economy and Economy cabins.

“We know how much our members love the existing reward seats and have been booking them in record numbers, so the new Classic Plus product we’re announcing today is over and above our commitment to 5 million Classic reward seats.”

Qantas will continue to offer more than 5 million existing Classic rewards seats across Qantas, Jetstar and 45 partner airlines, with no change to the points required to book these seats since 2019.

This financial year, Qantas will invest $60 million in more flight rewards for frequent flyers, which included adding 6,000 new premium Classic reward seats to Europe during peak travel times last October.

Financial update

The program changes are expected to deliver a substantial improvement in member engagement and will help drive the long-term growth of Qantas Loyalty as it continues to target $800 million – $1 billion Underlying EBIT by FY30.

The Classic Plus product represents approximately $120 million investment in FY25, excluding benefits from the program. This investment includes the value of displaced seat revenue in the airlines as well as the non-cash impact to fair value assumptions applied to future sale of points in the Loyalty Segment. The combined financial investment will be managed within the existing planned customer investment of $230 million for FY25.

Following the launch of the new product, Qantas Loyalty is now expected to deliver between $500 – $525 million Underlying EBIT in FY24 before returning to growth of ~10 per cent in Underlying EBIT in FY25.

Buy-back

As announced in February, the Group’s on-market share buy-back would commence once details of the Frequent Flyer program changes were finalised. Following today’s announcement the Group confirms the buy-back of up to $448 million will commence and subject to market volumes is expected to be completed by 30 June 2024.

Qantas Points required to book Classic Plus reward seats (and taxes, fees and carrier charges)

Example Economy fares

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Off peak period: Example fares available for booking as at 5 April 2024 for travel between 10 – 28 February 2025.
Peak period: Example fares available for booking as at 5 April 2024 for travel between 27 September – 13 October 2024 (school holidays).
*Outbound leg of a return fare

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Off peak period: Example fares available for booking as at 5 April 2024 for travel between 10 – 28 February 2025.
Peak period: Example fares available for booking as at 5 April 2024 for travel between 27 September – 13 October 2024 (school holidays).
*Outbound leg of a return fare

Frequently Asked Questions

When will Classic Plus reward seats be available to be booked?

From today, Classic Plus reward seats can be booked across one-way or return international Qantas-operated flights departing from Australia for travel from 1 July 2024.

By the end of the calendar year, they’ll be available to book and travel on across the full Qantas international and domestic network.

How many Classic Plus reward seats will be available across each flight?

The number of Classic Plus reward seats available on each flight are linked to specific commercial fare classes, which cover the majority of seats on the Qantas domestic and international network.

Once fully rolled out, Classic Plus reward seats will be able to be booked on any flight that has these fare classes available, although they can sell out.

Will Classic Plus reward seats be available on Jetstar or partner airlines?

Classic Plus will only be available across Qantas-operated flights, but frequent flyers can continue to access Classic reward seats across Jetstar and our network of 45 partner airlines.

Are the taxes, fees and carrier charges (TFCCs) the same as Classic reward seats?

For Economy and Premium Economy seats, the TFCCs for Classic Plus reward seats will be the same as Classic reward seats.

For Business and First seats, the TFCCs for Classic Plus reward seats will be higher than Classic reward seats. (See tables above for examples).

Are Classic Plus reward seats upgradable?

Yes – Classic Plus reward seats can be upgraded and, from May 2024, frequent flyers will be able to apply to upgrade their booked Classic Plus Business seats to First, which isn’t possible on the existing Classic reward seats.

What’s the value per point for a Classic Plus Flight Reward?

It varies between economy and premium cabins with more value on Business and First seats. Following the existing Classic reward seats, Classic Plus reward seats will be one of the best value ways to use points across the program.

Can Classic Plus rewards seats be booked via the contact centres?

No – Classic Plus reward seats can only be booked online via qantas.com.

Will Points Plus Pay still be available to book flights?

Yes – Frequent flyers will continue to be able to use the Points Plus Pay option for flights by selecting a cash airfare and then using the Points Plus Pay slider at the payment screen to choose the mix of points and cash they prefer.

Source: Qantas