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An update on how you can redeem Avios points on Flybe

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I was chatting with the Avios team about Flybe redemptions and a couple of things came up which were news to me and so may also be news to you.

I don’t think any of it was meant to be secret but there had been no real effort to communicate it widely.

Here’s the first thing:  there are now Avios seats made available on ALL Flybe flights.  This mirrors the guaranteed availability offered by British Airways in Economy on its own services.

Redeeming Avios on Flybe

Secondly, there is no longer any difference in availability between what it shown on avios.com and what is shown on ba.com.  This was not always the case in the past.

Thirdly, to clarify what we wrote last week, ba.com will tell you that you do not get a checked baggage allowance on a Flybe redemption.  This is not true – even though your e-ticket will also tell you that you do not get a free suitcase.  At the airport it should be visible to the check-in staff that you do actually have a 1 x 23kg baggage allowance.  The call centre staff have been reminded of this anomaly and should no longer be giving incorrect advice to anyone who calls to enquire.

Flybe redemptions are not always good value because of the taxes and charges, but their pricing can be high on some of the niche routes and – adding in the free suitcase – it may work out OK.

You can take a look at the Flybe route network here.  Details of their Avios partnership are here.

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)

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 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 card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

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

25,000 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.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a 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, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa

Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 Read our full review

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

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

40,000 points sign-up bonus 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.

Category

British Airways and Avios

Comments (163)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Craig says:
    17 May17 May 06:06

    Good grief, really? Grow up.

  • Lax says:
    17 May17 May 06:09

    My AA card is an Amex and I do not pay an annual fee, so your article is incorrect. I am guessing that there are many Amex versions around.

    Anyway mine will not be cancelled even when switching to an MBNA card as I have borrowed 20k at 1% per annum. Cheap money!

    • David says:
      17 May17 May 07:10

      Try reading it again: “I am slightly surprised to see the AA card close because the MOST RECENT VERSION does not have an American Express element.”

      – and indeed, the most recent version WAS a visa card with a £70 annual fee.

      The long term version before that was a free Amex/Visa combo, which will not be sustainable.

  • Frenske says:
    17 May17 May 06:22

    Gosh you would have thought that they would do a spring/deep clean at least once a year!

    • Anna says:
      17 May17 May 06:40

      I know – they serve food on board so you would think they would have to have the same hygiene standards as a restaurant. Perhaps they should be awarded hygiene ratings!

      • Mzungu says:
        17 May17 May 14:12

        +1

        If all airlines had a hygiene rating, they could be included in the Skytrax rating, then BA would slide even further down…

        • Rob says:
          17 May17 May 17:15

          That survey is useless for various reasons, and totally ignores the fact that Avios has guaranteed availability on every flight, something which is unique (I think) apart from revenue based redemption schemes.

  • Delbert says:
    17 May17 May 06:42

    On our way from BKK to LHR on BA10 and was surprised to find WiFi available and quite a good speed it is. Wasn’t available outbound.

    Anyway, what is the reason for the dividers to be down on takeoff in CW? Straightforward question. Thanks.

    • Craig says:
      17 May17 May 06:47

      The same as window blinds being up, if there is an emergency there crew need to be able to see whats happening inside and out.

      • Delbert says:
        17 May17 May 06:50

        Thanks, Craig.

      • Delbert says:
        17 May17 May 06:51

        Would that include pax, though? Not just crew?

        • Craig says:
          17 May17 May 07:14

          The Captain or Cabin Crew can initiate an evacuation on the ground, so they need to have an unrestricted view. Once an evacuation starts then everyone needs to be able to see that their exit route isn’t blocked. There are some videos of evacuation trials on Youtube that are quite interesting.

        • Delbert says:
          17 May17 May 12:58

          Thanks again, Craig.

    • TripRep says:
      17 May17 May 07:35

      Last year I learnt the reason for dimming cabin lights for landing/takeoff on night flights.

      I believe it’s in case of emergency, means your eyes are already adjusted to the darkness.

      • Rob says:
        17 May17 May 08:22

        That is correct.

      • Cate says:
        17 May17 May 14:42

        True story, early military pilots in WW2 were made to sit in a darkened room so their eyes would acclimatize to the darkness for around 30mins. Unfortunately they didn’t take into account pilots then had to walk to their aircraft…..

    • Nick says:
      17 May17 May 10:28

      Actually you’ll find that ‘dividers down’ is only required for the safety briefing, not take off, and it’s to ensure full visibility of the ‘crew dance’. If you read the safety placard on the divider itself, it confirms this and does not mention taxi or take off at all

      The only exception to this is on the A380, where the dividers are centrally controlled and are powered down during take off, which means they can’t be raised early. This isn’t a safety reason, more a technical one.

  • Alan says:
    17 May17 May 06:45

    I can’t see Flybe availability from Southampton on BAEC avios search. It doesn’t recognise Southampton as an airport. Can you only book Flybe by calling?

  • Andrew Stock says:
    17 May17 May 06:57

    Why have they let their aircraft get in this state. Surely it would be more cost effective just to clean them properly on a frequent basis than doing these huge deep cleans.

    • Catalan says:
      17 May17 May 09:34

      Apparently they used to. Then spending cuts took the helm and regular deep cleaning was abolished.

  • Pgw says:
    17 May17 May 06:59

    Flybe redemptions are good value for those of us fortunate enough not to live in SE England because we don’t have to pay double avios for a connecting flight.

  • Joan says:
    17 May17 May 07:00

    We’re in Cyprus at the mo ( having used up a soon to expire companion voucher for our flights ) . The plane was shabby but the staff in business were really old school and delightful . We had such a fun flight because of them . They were saying the plane often gets cleaned in about 2 minutes or they have to do it themselves . They also said the new planes coming on this route to Larnaca will be awful – no space at all .

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