Hawaiian Alaska Credit Cards Future Plans and Policies

Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines have announced plans to merge their loyalty programs, allowing cardholders to earn and redeem miles across both airlines.

This merger will expand the earning and redemption options for Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines credit card holders.

Cardholders can expect to see a more seamless experience when using their miles to book flights across both airlines.

The merged loyalty program will also introduce new benefits and rewards for cardholders.

Alaska currently offers two co-branded credit cards, the Alaska Airlines Visa Signature credit card and the business version, the Alaska Airlines Visa Business Credit Card.

The annual fees for these cards are $95 for the personal card and $95 for the business card, with $70 going to the company and $25 per card.

You might consider joining the Alaska Mileage Plan program and getting the co-branded credit card even if you don't live on the West Coast, where the airline has most of its flights, because Alaska's loyalty program offers a wealth of earning and redemption possibilities on airlines all over the world.

There are no changes to the benefits of the Alaska Airlines credit card, but all current credit card benefits, including the first free checked bag and Alaska's Famous Companion Fare, will continue to be valid on Alaska Airlines flights only.

The airline is planning to favor its co-branded credit cards over the ability to transfer credit card points, and points transfers may actually go away.

The current transfer partners for Alaska Mileage Plan are limited to Bilt Rewards, which transfer at a 1:1 rate. Hawaiian also has only 1 transfer partner, American Express Membership Rewards, which transfer to the HawaiianMiles program at a 1:1 rate.

Transferring American Express points to Alaska is now possible, albeit indirectly, by first transferring them to Hawaiian and then to Alaska. This is a valuable opportunity since Alaska miles are both highly valued and difficult to earn.

The airline's intent is to discourage earning points across competitor cards, and instead focus on encouraging spending on its own co-branded credit cards.