Decent Finnair Asia flight sale and the first look at their A350’s

Finnair has launched another batch of special offers in Business Class from London on its long-haul routes to India and Asia.

Finnair, you will remember, is a member of the oneworld alliance alongside British Airways.  This means that you will earn BA tier points and Avios on these tickets.

The routes below will all give you 440 British Airways tier points (80 for London-Helsinki and 140 for Helsinki-wherever) which is 75% of the way to a British Airways Executive Club Silver card.

The current offers, which must be booked by 22nd September, are:

• Bangkok £1,569
• Chongqing £1,199
• Delhi £1,349
• Hanoi £1,499
• Seoul £1,499
• Xi’an £1,199

Economy deals are also available.  You can find full details with blackout dates, cancellation policies etc on the Finnair website here.

A350XWB launch details revealed

Finnair is the first European customer for the new Airbus A350 XWB aircraft, which stands for ‘Extra Wide Body’.

Shanghai, Bangkok and Beijing will be the first routes to receive this aircraft during 2015.

According to Finnair:

It is equipped with Wi-Fi and wireless in-flight entertainment services. It also comes with dynamic LED lighting that changes to suit the time of day, destination and season, creating a calming and fresh atmosphere. The Airbus A350 features an advanced pure-air filtration system that recycles the air in the cabin every two to three minutes. Draft-free air management, adjustable multiple temperature zones and lower cabin pressure all enhance the well-being of everyone on board.

The planes will be equipped with the new flat-bed business class seats which are currently being rolled out to the rest of the fleet.  Each plane will have 46 business class seats and, as per the picture above, a user-friendly 1-2-1 seat layout.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.