Why the Alaska-Hawaiian merger could be a win-win for frequent flyers

04.12.2023 - 14:47 / thepointsguy.com

In case you missed it, Alaska Airlines announced on Sunday that it has reached an agreement to acquire Hawaiian Airlines for $1.9 billion.

The two carriers tout expanded access across the U.S. (and the globe) as one of the key synergies of the merger. The combined airline will be based in Seattle and would be better positioned to compete against the larger U.S. airlines, Alaska and Hawaiian said.

Assuming that the merger goes through — a big if, given the Justice Department's current anti-consolidation stance — Alaska has plans to keep the Hawaiian brand separate but integrate the carrier's operations onto a single operating certificate and merge the Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles loyalty programs into one.

It's that last point that's perhaps most interesting for frequent flyers — and here's why.

As part of the merger, Alaska plans to bring Hawaiian into the Oneworld airline alliance.

Until now, Hawaiian has partnered with individual airlines on a one-off basis, without formally joining any of the major airline alliances.

But by joining Oneworld, many more frequent flyers will have access to perks on Hawaiian, as well as the ability to earn and redeem miles with the carrier.

Oneworld membership means that travelers with elite status with any of the 13 Oneworld member airlines will enjoy a (limited) set of perks when flying with Hawaiian, such as priority check-in and security.

Plus, elites in the HawaiianMiles program will also be matched to an equivalent tier in the combined program. Not only will these members enjoy expanded perks across both carriers, but they'll also have access to benefits when flying across the Oneworld alliance.

"We're going to look at all the tier statuses and ... our statuses and we're going to match them," said Alaska CEO Ben Minicucci at a press conference on Sunday.

As part of joining Oneworld, many more travelers will have access to award seats on Hawaiian using their respective miles. This should be particularly exciting for American Airlines flyers, who can already book select Hawaiian flights with AAdvantage miles. (The American-Hawaiian tie-up excludes award flights to the continental U.S.)

Assuming that the merger goes through, that restriction will likely be dropped. Of course, there's no telling how many award seats Alaska will release, but more options to book flights with miles are certainly better than fewer.

HawaiianMiles is a niche frequent flyer program. Though HawiianMiles partners with Amex Membership Rewards, Bilt Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy for point transfers, most travelers will only find value in the program for a trip to Hawaii or perhaps an upgrade to a premium cabin.

But with the merger, HawaiianMiles members will have many more ways to redeem their