Qantas flyers splurge 1 billion points in loyalty seat overhaul

Qantas Airways Ltd. frequent flyers almost immediately swapped more than 1 billion air miles for international flights after the airline overhauled its loyalty division to make it easier to redeem points.

The number of points used on Monday “- the day the revamp was announced “- was more than triple the average for the day, The most popular destinations were London, Singapore, Tokyo, Los Angeles and the New Zealand ski resort of Queenstown. Almost half the redemptions were for seats in premium cabins, Qantas said in a statement Wednesday.

In a move to appease customers frustrated with the difficulty of cashing-in points for desirable flights, the airline has made an extra 20 million reward seats a year available on all flights in any class. The immediate response underscores the pent-up demand for flight redemptions that dogged the airline’s former loyalty model.

The change, which will cost the airline A$120 million ($79 million) in investment next financial year, adds to a growing list of initiatives pushed through by Vanessa Hudson since she took over as CEO from Alan Joyce in September.

Qantas Airways announced the scheme for its passengers last week. However, passengers would need to use more loyalty points to secure their tickets, as the airline overhauls a model that had increasingly frustrated customers. The stock jumped.

Vanessa is attempting to appease passengers who have struggled to swop their points for flights to the destinations they want. The change, which will cost the airline A$120 million (S$106.6 million) in investment next financial year, adds to a growing list of initiatives pushed through by the new CEO.