Bits: British Airways launches Bremen flights, get £100 off £800 Emirates spend

News in brief:

British Airways launching two new routes to Bremen

It is ironic that British Airways runs a major call centre in Bremen but did not fly there.  All of this will be fixed from 31st October when BA franchise SUN-AIR launches new services from London City Airport and Manchester.

Using a 32 seat Dornier 328 aircraft, there will be 10 flights per week from London City and 11 per week from Manchester.  Ticket sales were due to begin yesterday but there seems to have been a delay.

If nothing else, this would make a good Avios redemption to visit the famous Christmas market.

Get £100 off £800 Emirates spend

A new American Express cashback offer has popped up on a lot of accounts.  To see if you have it, log in to your online statement and click on ‘Offers’.

You will receive £100 cashback when you use your American Express card to spend £800 with Emirates before 6th November.  Flights must depart from the UK and be booked on the UK Emirates site here.

This should work when paying the taxes on an Emirates Skywards redemption as well as buying a standard cash ticket.

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How to earn Emirates Skywards miles from UK credit cards (April 2025)

Emirates Skywards does not have a UK credit card.  However, you can earn Emirates Skywards miles by converting Membership Rewards points earned from selected UK American Express cards.

Cards earning Membership Rewards points include:

• American Express Preferred Rewards Gold (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 20,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 15,000 Emirates Skywards miles. This card is FREE for your first year and also comes with four free airport lounge passes.

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.

• The Platinum Card from American Express (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 50,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 37,500 Emirates Skywards miles

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 Rewards credit card (review here, apply here) – sign-up bonus of 10,000 Membership Rewards points converts into 7,500 Emirates Skywards miles. This card is FREE for life.

Membership Rewards points convert at 4:3 into Emirates Skywards miles which is an attractive rate.  The cards above all earn 1 Membership Rewards point per £1 spent on your card, which converts to 0.75 Emirates Skywards miles

The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card earns double points (2 per £1) on all flights you charge to it, not just with Emirates but with any airline.