News: BBC on British Airways redundancies, Heathrow Rewards transfer bonus to Avios
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News in brief:
BBC Radio story on the British Airways redundancies
BBC Radio did a well-informed piece yesterday on the current state of aviation, including the British Airways redundancies and issues over social distancing. It appeared in a couple of places, including Radio 4.
It is worth a quick listen and is only nine minutes long. The link is here and you need to fast forward to 13 minutes in.
There was also a 3-minute ITV News piece last night dedicated exclusively to the BA redundancies which you can see here. It doesn’t say much for the PR abilities of the unions that it has taken them 2/3rd of the consultation period to get the situation fully acknowledged.
Last day for the 50% Heathrow Rewards to Avios bonus
Today, Tuesday 2nd June, is the last day to take advantage of the Heathrow Rewards 50% bonus on transfers to Avios.
This is the first Avios conversion bonus since August 2017! It may (or may not, of course) be another two and a half years until we see another one. The offer is clearly flagged on the ‘Transfers’ page of the new-look Heathrow Rewards website when you log in.
The minimum transfer is 250 Heathrow Rewards points, getting you 375 Avios with the bonus. Bigger transfers must be in multiples of 250 points. There appears to be a daily cap of 6,000 points so if you are only getting around to this today then this is your limit.
In virtually all scenarios, Heathrow Rewards points are worth 1p. This is what you get if you take airport shopping vouchers, train tickets etc. The only exception is Official Heathrow Parking where you get 2p per point.
The standard transfer rate is 1 point = 1 airline mile. You are therefore usually ‘paying’ 1p per airline mile, assuming that you could otherwise spend your points in Heathrow.
With the 50% bonus, it is a decent deal. You are effectively ‘paying’ 0.66p per Avios, since 250 points would get you a £2.50 shopping voucher or 375 Avios. It is also unlikely that you will be spending any money at Heathrow Airport for a few months, so taking the shopping vouchers is not exactly a great alternative.
You need to decide for yourself whether it’s a good idea to cash out your Heathrow Rewards points now for a 50% Avios bonus or hold on for something else in the future which may be more interesting.
My personal view is that I am sticking. I have 7,000 Heathrow Rewards points but I’m also not short of Avios. I’d rather use them for Heathrow shopping vouchers or Miles & More miles if there was a future transfer bonus to those partners. You may think differently.
The 50% transfer bonus ends tonight, 2nd June.
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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.
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