The past six months have been quite eventful for Pacific-based carriers. First, Alaska Air announced it would acquire Hawaiian Airlines, but preserve the brand. Then, Fiji Airways announced that they would become full Oneworld members. Well, now Fiji Airways is adopting AAdvantage as its loyalty program.
Today, Fiji Airways has a quasi-loyalty-membership program called Tabua Club. Members of Tabua Club get special perks, such as:
- Dedicated reservation phone number
- Priority Check-In
- Access to the Fiji Airways Premier Lounge in Nadi
- One to two free checked bags, based on fare type booked
- Premium Service when traveling on a paid Business Class ticket
- Ability to earn free upgrades to business class
There is also a “Plus” tier that you can pay to be a part of or earn your way toward from the base tier. Plus members enjoy everything base members do, but also get Oneworld Connect benefits, priority on flight waitlists and upgrades, and a free upgrade when requalifying for Plus membership.
Membership in Tabua Club starts at about $350 US ($899 Fijian Dollars), which includes a roughly $50 US ($100 Fijian Dollars) initiation fee and $300 US ($699 Fijian Dollars) annual membership fee. Buying up to Plus costs $599 Fijian Dollars, which translates to about $262 US according to the exchange rates as of this writing. Earning Plus membership requires you to buy the base membership and then earn 20 credits, which are awarded as 0.25 credits for a domestic flight, one credit for an international economy class flight, and two credits for an international business class flight.
Upgrades credits accrue at the same rate and cost 10 credits for a one-way upgrade.
As you can see, Tabua Club is more like an airline club membership with enhanced benefits. In fact, at the bottom of the membership tier pages on Fijiʻs site, they state that members can earn miles towards free flights by joining Alaska Mileage Plan, American AAdvantage, and Qantas. However, it also notes that only Qantas members can earn Tabua Club status credits, Alaska members get elite status credits for Mileage Plan, and AAdvantage members earn miles only.
Of course, since Fiji Airways is adopting AAdvantage, this is all going to change.
Fiji Airways is Adopting AAdvantage
There honestly isnʻt much to report beyond the fact that Fiji Airways is adopting AAdvantage as their frequent flyer program. For one, the stated timeline for the change is “in the coming year.” Further, Fiji Airways states that “AAdvantage members will enjoy a seamless experience when traveling on Fiji Airways, with Elite members receiving benefits such as priority check-in, priority boarding, complimentary baggage allowance, preferred seats, and enhanced award redemption.”
I like to assume that this adoption means that Fiji is adopting AAdvantage as-is, but given the murkiness of the external communications from both airlines, there is a chance that they might not be. This is especially true since they may try to transition Tabua Club members into AAdvantage. Plus, with the way upgrades and status earnings are today, adopting vanilla AAdvantage means both of those will get much more difficult for Fiji-based members.
What I think is safe to assume is that since Fiji Airways is adopting AAdvantage, the ability to earn and redeem miles for Alaska Mileage Plan and Qantas is likely to go away. That is a bit of a bummer, especially since Mileage Plan is such a great program. However, since all three airlines are Oneworld members, this isnʻt much of a loss – especially since AAdvantage, as it is today, is pretty good, too.
Why Fiji Airways is Adopting AAdvantage
Fiji Airways is the flag carrier of Fiji, is majority-owned by the government, and is responsible for transporting most of the island nation’s visitors. With tourism becoming an increasingly important facet of Fiji’s economy, it only makes sense to find a way to draw in more visitors. Thus, making a destination instantly easier/more affordable to reach by joining a huge loyalty program like AAdvantage is brilliant.
Fiji Airways CEO Andre Viljoen says it best in the company’s press release, “[w]ith this partnership, Fiji Airways is set to gain access to a vast network of American travelers, potentially increasing visitor arrivals to the enchanting destination of Fiji.”