Singapore Airlines And Virgin Australia Launch World First Loyalty Programme Conversion
24 September 2014 (Joint Release with Virgin Australia) - Singapore Airlines and Virgin Australia today announced a world first for frequent flyers, allowing members of KrisFlyer and Velocity Frequent Flyer to convert their Miles and Points between both programmes for the first time and receive a number of innovative new benefits.
The new conversion innovation, which is exclusive to the two airline loyalty programmes, will give members greater access to upgrades and reward seats across the combined domestic and international network of Virgin Australia and Singapore Airlines. By converting their miles, KrisFlyer members will also be able to benefit from Velocity’s range of non-flight redemption rewards.
The new conversion capability will be available to members of both programmes from November as well as an improved online booking capability for Velocity Frequent Flyers to redeem flights on Singapore Airlines and SilkAir.
A range of programme enhancements have also been introduced to both KrisFlyer and Velocity members over the last 12 months and include:
redemption across all classes of travel on Virgin Australia with the inclusion of premium economy and the ability to earn Status Credits on domestic, Trans-Tasman and Pacific Islands codeshare flights operated by Virgin Australia for KrisFlyer members; and
a reduction in the Velocity Points required for Reward Seats on Singapore Airlines and the ability to earn Points on all fare classes with Singapore Airlines and SilkAir for Velocity Frequent Flyer members.
Singapore Airlines Executive Vice President Commercial, Mr Mak Swee Wah, said: “We are always looking for new ways to serve our customers better and the alliance with Virgin Australia enables us to offer a first-rate integrated travel experience across Australia. This latest enhancement will increase the benefits to KrisFlyer members, providing more value to miles accrued when travelling on Singapore Airlines and SilkAir with a wider range of redemption options.”
Velocity Frequent Flyer Chief Executive Officer Neil Thompson added: “As we build and strengthen our alliance partnership with Singapore Airlines, we will continue to look for opportunities to leverage their strong international network to the benefit of our most valued customers.
“We have built a transformational loyalty business with a membership base of more than 4.5 million and this unique innovation is part of our strategic plan to fast track the programme’s growth in becoming a world-leading loyalty programme. Enhancing reciprocal reward and recognition for our most frequent flyers will enable us to deliver them even greater benefits when flying domestically and internationally across our combined networks,” Mr Thompson said.
The Singapore Airlines and Virgin Australia alliance provides more choice for domestic and international air travel to and from Australia, with attractive and seamless travel options connecting 45 destinations in Virgin Australia’s network to over 80 destinations across Singapore Airlines and SilkAir’s global network.
About KrisFlyer
KrisFlyer is Singapore Airlines’ frequent flyer programme. KrisFlyer members can earn miles when they travel on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, partner airlines on Star Alliance, as well as other airline partners including Virgin Australia, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin America. KrisFlyer also collaborates extensively with over 170 non-airline partners worldwide ranging from banks to hotels, travel services and retail, so members can continue to earn miles for rewards even when they are not flying.
KrisFlyer members can redeem their miles for award flights on over 30 world-class airlines to more than 1,000 destinations in 170 countries. KrisFlyer miles can also be redeemed for upgrades to Singapore Airlines Suites, First Class or Business Class on Singapore Airlines, and to Business Class on Singapore Airlines’ regional carrier, SilkAir. KrisFlyer members also have the option to mix their miles and cash when paying for their tickets, as well as to purchase preferred seats with more leg room in Economy Class, on Singapore Airlines flights, when booking on singaporeair.com.
KrisFlyer continually enhances the programme to bring more value and benefits to its members. With the recent introduction of “KrisFlyer Spree”, Singapore Airlines’ new online shopping mall, members can earn KrisFlyer miles when they shop at more than 2,000 global and local brands and merchants such as Adidas, Apple, Asos, Bloomingdales, eBay, Gap and Marks & Spencer.
About Velocity Frequent Flyer
Velocity Frequent Flyer is the multi-award winning loyalty programme of Virgin Australia. The programme launched in 2005 bringing competition to the loyalty landscape in Australia for the first time by offering genuine and unique rewards to its members.
Today, the programme has a membership base of more than 4.5 million. The programme gives members the ability to earn Points when flying to nearly 600 destinations worldwide with Virgin Australia or any of its 11 airline partners including Air New Zealand, Delta Air Lines, Etihad Airways, and Singapore Airlines. It also offers an extensive portfolio of more than 130 hotel brands and a partnership with Agoda, giving members the ability to earn Points at more than 400,000 hotels around the world. Velocity Frequent Flyer has the widest retail offering of any loyalty programme in Australia with more than 200 retail brands in its online e-store, which launched in 2008 and a wide range of credit card options to suit the different needs of its customers.
Velocity Frequent Flyer continues to bring unique innovations to the Australian market and in 2014 became the first loyalty programme to partner with Australia Post and Aussie Home Loans giving members brand new ways to earn Points on everyday spend. In 2013 Velocity launched Australia’s first frequent flyer programme for pets and recently introduced ‘Space Class’, granting one member an upgrade to space with a seat on board the world’s first commercial space line in partnership with Virgin Galactic.
