Airlines Vistara and JAL agree on frequent flyer program partnership

India´s Vistara and Japan Airlines (JAL) have agreed a partnership to give members of their respective frequent flyer programs the opportunity to earn and spend miles on each other´s program. The partnership is effective as of September 2020.

With the agreement, Club Vistara members will be able to earn and redeem CV Points on flights that are being operated by Japan Airlines. This broadens the network by nearly 80 destinations across 20 countries and regions. Vice versa, members of JAL Mileage Bank will be able to earn and spend their miles on flights operated by Vistara.

Vistara’s Chief Commercial Officer, Mr. Vinod Kannan, said, “We are delighted to take this next step in our strategic partnership with Japan Airlines, which helps us to strengthen our value proposition for Club Vistara members. It is in line with our broader strategy of forging more partnerships with like-minded airlines as well as non-airline brands to provide a wider choice of earn and burn options to our customers and make the program the perfect lifestyle choice for today’s travellers. We are equally excited at the opportunity to welcome members of JAL Mileage Bank to experience India’s finest airline.”

In September 2017, Vistara and Japan Airlines first inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for a strategic partnership between the airlines. Last year, the two airlines entered into a codeshare agreement and this latest step to connect the frequent flyer programs shows the satisfaction of the airlines with their partnership.

Regarding its airline, Vistara stated: "Vistara is on course to expand its international network with medium and long-haul international operations, foraying in markets outside of Southeast Asia and the Middle East, using its newly-inducted Airbus A321neo and Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft. The airline recently started services to London Heathrow as part of the bilateral ‘transport bubble’ between India and the UK, and is also considering similar flights to Paris and Frankfurt."

Vistara is a premium carrier from India and was founded in 2014, while commencing operations a year later in January 2015. Main operational hub is at Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport and the fleet consists of 31 Airbus A320, one A321, six Boeing 737s and two 787 Dreamliner.

Japan Airlines is the flag-carrier airline of Japan and was founded in 1951. Currently, the carrier is member of the Oneworld alliance and reaches 412 cities in over 60 countries and regions with its network. The fleet consists of six Airbus A350 XWBs, 49 Boeing 737s, 33 767s, 36 777s and 47 787 Dreamliner.