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Hey everyone, and welcome back to Smart With Points. I'm Jack, and if you're listening to this on New Year's Day two thousand and twenty-six with a slight hangover and a resolution to travel more, well, I've got some brilliant news that might just motivate you to start collecting those Avios. Today we're talking about Hawaiian Airlines officially joining oneworld, and trust me, this is genuinely exciting stuff for us UK-based points collectors.
So let's dive straight in. After months of speculation following the Alaska Airlines merger, we finally have confirmation that Hawaiian Airlines will officially join the oneworld alliance in Spring two thousand and twenty-six. Alaska's Vice President of Loyalty, Brett Catlin, confirmed the timeline during a Reddit Q and A back in October, stating that Hawaiian is expected to join between March and May two thousand and twenty-six.
Now, for those of us based in the UK who collect points, this is genuinely exciting news. Once Hawaiian joins oneworld, you'll be able to earn and redeem Avios on flights to Hawaii and across the Pacific, opening up a whole new world of redemption possibilities that simply weren't available before.
Let me give you some background on what's actually happening here. Alaska Air Group completed its one point nine billion pound acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines back in September two thousand and twenty-four. Rather than merging the two carriers under a single brand, like they did when Alaska absorbed Virgin America, the company is taking an IAG-style approach. They're keeping both Hawaiian and Alaska as separate operating brands with their own identities.
The loyalty programmes have already merged. On the first of October two thousand and twenty-five, HawaiianMiles was fully absorbed into the new Atmos Rewards programme, which combines the former Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles into a single currency. Existing HawaiianMiles balances converted at a one to one ratio.
Hawaiian will become the sixteenth full member of oneworld and the third North American carrier in the alliance, joining Alaska Airlines and American Airlines.
So what does this actually mean for UK Avios collectors like us? Well, once Hawaiian officially joins oneworld, you'll be able to use Avios from British Airways, Qatar Airways, Iberia, or Finnair to book Hawaiian Airlines flights. This includes routes to Hawaii, obviously, with multiple islands from US West Coast cities. They also fly to Japan, including Tokyo Haneda, Tokyo Narita, and Osaka from Honolulu. There's South Korea with Seoul Incheon from Honolulu, Australia with Sydney from Honolulu, and even South Pacific destinations like Tahiti, Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, and American Samoa.
You'll also earn Avios when flying Hawaiian on paid tickets, and crucially, oneworld elite status holders will receive reciprocal benefits including lounge access, priority boarding, and extra baggage allowances.
Now, here's where it gets really interesting. The Hawaii sweet spot gets even better. Getting to Hawaii with points has traditionally been one of the best uses of Avios. Thanks to British Airways' distance-based pricing, flights from the US West Coast to Hawaii on American Airlines or Alaska Airlines have been a fantastic redemption, typically around thirteen thousand to twenty thousand Avios each way in economy.
Once Hawaiian joins oneworld, you'll have even more routing options. Hawaiian operates a robust network between the Hawaiian islands and major US cities, plus those valuable transpacific routes to Asia and Oceania.
Now, I do need to mention something important about Virgin Atlantic. Virgin Atlantic's long-standing partnership with Hawaiian Airlines ended on the thirtieth of June two thousand and twenty-five. You can no longer earn or spend Virgin Points on Hawaiian flights. This actually makes sense from Virgin Atlantic's perspective. Why partner with an airline that's about to join a rival alliance? But for those of us who hold Virgin Points, it does remove a useful redemption option until Hawaiian's oneworld membership goes live.
Here's some related news that's quite significant for UK travellers. Alaska Airlines just announced daily Boeing seven eight seven service from Seattle to London Heathrow starting the twenty-first of May two thousand and twenty-six. Tickets are already on sale with fares from six hundred and ninety-nine pounds return.
This is significant for UK travellers because it provides a new routing option to Hawaii and the Pacific Northwest. You could fly Heathrow to Seattle on Alaska, then connect onwards to Honolulu on Hawaiian, all within the oneworld alliance.
The flight schedule is quite convenient too. Flight AS one hundred from Seattle to London departs at nine forty pm, arriving at three oh five pm the next day. And flight AS one oh one from London to Seattle departs at five pm, arriving at six forty-five pm the same day.
Alaska secured slots at Heathrow by leasing them from alliance partner American Airlines. The aircraft will be a Boeing seven eight seven dash nine featuring thirty-four lie-flat business class seats with enclosed suites, essentially the same product that was originally developed for Hawaiian Airlines.
Speaking of those Boeing seven eight sevens, here's an interesting development. Hawaiian's four Boeing seven eight seven dash nine Dreamliners are being transferred to Alaska Airlines by early two thousand and twenty-six. These aircraft will be rebadged in Alaska livery and used for the new international routes from Seattle, including London, Rome, and Reykjavik.
Hawaiian will continue operating its Airbus A three thirty dash two hundred fleet for long-haul routes to Asia and Australia. These aircraft feature a comfortable two four two configuration in economy and have been workhorses on routes like Honolulu to Tokyo and Sydney.
Alaska has also converted five remaining Boeing seven eight seven dash nine orders to the larger seven eight seven dash ten variant, which will offer more capacity for high-demand routes.
Now let's talk about oneworld elite status benefits, because this is where things get really interesting for those of us with status. Once Hawaiian joins oneworld, your existing oneworld status will be recognised on Hawaiian flights. This means oneworld Sapphire, which is the BA Silver equivalent, gets you priority check-in, priority boarding, extra baggage allowance, and business class lounge access. oneworld Emerald, which is the BA Gold equivalent, gets you all Sapphire benefits plus first class lounge access and priority security where available.
For those of us with BA Gold status, like myself, this opens up a whole new network where our status will be recognised. Hawaiian operates lounges at Honolulu and other Hawaiian airports that will become accessible with oneworld Emerald status.
Let's look at the bigger picture for a moment. Hawaiian's addition caps off an impressive period of growth for the oneworld alliance. In two thousand and twenty-five alone, we saw Fiji Airways upgraded from Connect partner to full member, and Oman Air joined as the fourteenth full member on the thirtieth of June two thousand and twenty-five.
And there's potentially more on the horizon. Taiwan's Starlux Airlines has indicated it plans to apply for oneworld membership by the end of two thousand and twenty-five, though whether they'll be accepted, given that Cathay Pacific has veto rights as a founding member, remains to be seen.
For Avios collectors, this expanding alliance means more destinations, more redemption options, and more places where your hard-earned status will be recognised.
So here's my take on all of this. I'm genuinely excited about Hawaiian joining oneworld. While I've not yet made it to Hawaii, it's firmly on the bucket list, and the ability to redeem Avios for flights there makes it feel much more achievable.
The timing with Alaska's new London Heathrow service is particularly convenient. From May two thousand and twenty-six, you'll be able to fly a complete oneworld itinerary from London to Hawaii via Seattle, potentially booking the whole thing with Avios and getting your elite status recognised throughout.
The Spring two thousand and twenty-six timeframe, which is March to May, coincides with Hawaiian and Alaska moving to a single passenger service system, which should make booking and managing flights across both carriers much smoother.
If you're planning a Hawaii trip for late two thousand and twenty-six or beyond, I'd recommend starting to accumulate Avios now.
Let me give you the key dates to remember. Spring two thousand and twenty-six, specifically March to May, is when Hawaiian Airlines officially joins oneworld. The twenty-first of May two thousand and twenty-six is when Alaska Airlines launches the Seattle to London Heathrow service. And the twenty-eighth of April two thousand and twenty-six is when Alaska Airlines launches the Seattle to Rome service.
I'll keep you updated as more details emerge. In the meantime, start dreaming about those Hawaiian beaches. They're about to become a lot more accessible with points.
Thanks so much for listening to this episode of Smart With Points. If you've enjoyed today's episode, please do subscribe to the podcast. You can find us on all major podcast platforms, or head over to our website at smartwithpoints dot co dot uk. And don't forget to check the shownotes for useful links and resources.
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