Members of Air Canada's Aeroplan have been in purgatory for the last year as the airline and its outsourced loyalty program formalize the details of their divorce.
In 2020, Air Canada plans to launch its own new loyalty program. And as of last week, we now have a better idea of what will happen to Aeroplan and its members.
According to a new landing page and teaser video from the group, Aeroplan plans to soldier on alone with its current partner programs (including Avis, Fairmont, and a handful of credit cards). Members will still be able to earn points in the same way — though no longer through Air Canada — but now they'll be able to spend them on a whole new spectrum of partners.
According to Jeremy Rabe, the group's CEO, Aeroplan will offer award redemptions on a wide spectrum of airline and travel industry partners, while up to 20 new transfer partnerships will be forged with air carriers.
That's a pretty bold outlook, but for now it's a good reason for many to stick around and see what their points end up being worth. As those partnerships form and Aeroplan's future becomes clearer, members of the current program will be in a strong position through 2019 to choose their loyalty partner.
