It has now become easier to accrue points for both members of Hainan Airlines‘ Fortune Wings Club and Virgin Australia‘s Velocity program. The recent announcement that Hainan Airlines has begun a frequent flyer cooperation with Velocity comes as a very welcome one for frequent travelers between Australia, New Zealand, and Greater China, kick starting a relationship that covers point accumulation, award tickets redemption, and reciprocal elite benefits.
The cooperation includes not just Virgin Australia but also select member airlines of the Fortune Wings Club, which aside from Hainan includes Hong Kong Airlines, Capital Airlines and Tianjin Airlines. Starting from now, members of the Fortune Wings Club may accrue Fortune Wings status qualifying points and award points when flying Virgin Australia between Australia, New Zealand, mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. The same applies to members of Velocity, where points can be accrued on flights with the aforementioned Fortune Wings Club members
Further details on the award tickets redemption and reciprocal elite benefits will be announced next month, when members of either program will be able to redeem their points for award tickets on the other party’s flights. Elite members will have access to a number of privileges on the other airline’s flight, including priority check-in, additional free baggage allowance, lounge access and priority boarding.
Cooperation between HNA Group and Virgin Australia dates back to last year, with both companies engaging in a number of agreements including codeshare. This represents the latest step in that relationship, meaning a better experience for members of either or both frequent flyer programs, an increase in members, and an easier way to earn points.
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