STORY UPDATE (FEB 24, 2021 @ 2:00 PM PST) – The new fare codes for award flights on Alaska Airlines have changed, see below.
Alaska Airlines is in the process of making changes to the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan. I believe these changes are in preparation for Alaska Airlines joining the Oneworld alliance on March 31, 2021. These changes take effect on March 31, 2021. Here are the changes that were announced today.
Changes To First Class Fare Codes
The previous first class fare codes were F, P and I. The new first class fare codes will be J, C, D and I. The new mileage earning chart shows the new fare codes and their respective mileage earnings.
OLD CHART
NEW CHART
Earning on purchased first class tickets will change to:
- Fare code J earns a 100% mileage bonus
- Fare code C earns a 75% mileage bonus and
- Fare codes D and I earns a 50% mileage bonus.
Full fare full class formerly fare code F has been changed to fare code J. An additional first class fare code C has been created. Previous discounted first class fare code P has been replaced by fare code D. The two lowest first class fare codes have their bonus miles reduced from 75% to 50%. These bonus miles earned do count towards the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan elite status qualification.
Changes To Economy Class Fare Codes
Earning on purchased economy tickets will change to:
- Fare code Y and B earns a 50% mileage bonus
- Fare code H and K earns a 25% mileage bonus and
- Fare codes M and S formerly earned a 25% mileage bonus. Fare codes M and S will no longer earn bonus miles.
Fare codes H and K are now ranked higher than fare codes M and S (from the old chart). These bonus miles earned do count towards the Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan elite status qualification.
Changes To Award Flight Fare Codes
Along with the fare code changes for paid flights, Alaska has also changed the fare codes for award tickets:
- Economy class award tickets were fare code W and are now fare code T and
- First class award tickets were fare code A and are now fare code E.
Mileage Earning Details
To qualify, flights must be in the range of eligible flight numbers listed above, and must be marketed and operated by Alaska Airlines, or marketed by Alaska Airlines and operated by the airlines noted above. Alaska award flights booked into the fare classes above are not eligible to earn miles or elite qualifying miles or segments.
Miles earned on American Airlines operated flights purchased as Alaska Airlines flights AS4000-4799, AS6000-6999, and AS8001 – 8100 will count toward elite status in the partner category.
Miles earned on Qantas operated flights purchased as Alaska Airlines flights AS5000-5999 will count toward elite status in the partner category.
To ensure flight credit, the two-letter airline code (AS) must precede the flight number (for example, AS XXXXX) on your ticket receipt or boarding pass.
Earn 500 miles minimum on flights shorter than 500 miles. No miles will be earned for classes of service not listed above.
Final Thoughts
It would appear that these changes are in preparation for Alaska Airlines joining the Oneworld alliance. These fare codes look a lot like the fare codes used by American Airlines and fellow Oneworld alliance members.
A fifth elite tier is in the works at Alaska Airlines. The new top tier may be aimed at the 100,000 elite mileage qualifying level. My sources at Alaska Airlines say that this level is still under development and it will be formally announced in the future.
I believe all of the changes heading to the Alaska Airlines Mileage plan are to make the airline model look like the other Oneworld carriers.
