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Chase and Air Canada have just reached a partnership agreement. This is big for Chase, as it's the credit card company's first new travel partner in over 10 years. It's also great news if you're a fan of Air Canada and the airline's Aeroplan program.
In late 2021, Chase plans to launch a co-branded credit card with Air Canada. It will also add the Aeroplan frequent flyer program as a Chase Ultimate Rewards® travel partner. If you carry one of Chase's popular travel credit cards in that rewards program, you'll have another airline where you can transfer your points.
Let's take a look at what you can expect from an Air Canada credit card and why the airline is a great addition to the Ultimate Rewards® program.
The Air Canada credit card
So far, there hasn’t been much information released on Chase's upcoming Air Canada credit card. We only know that it has a set release date in late 2021 and that it will be a Mastercard.
We can, however, look at a few existing Chase credit cards to get an idea of potential features. Chase has three credit cards with international airlines at the moment:
- British Airways Visa Signature® card
- Aer Lingus Visa Signature® card
- Iberia Visa Signature® card
These cards have some features in common we may also see on the Air Canada credit card:
- $95 annual fee
- 100,000-mile sign-up bonus (50,000 bonus miles for spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months and another 50,000 for spending $20,000 on purchases in the first year)
- 3 points per $1 on purchases with the airline
I'd expect the Air Canada card to also have a $95 annual fee, earn 3 miles per $1 on Air Canada purchases, and offer similar sign-up bonuses.
It will almost certainly be subject to Chase's 5/24 rule. This is a rule Chase has for credit card applications. The card issuer usually denies applicants who have already gotten five or more credit cards over the previous 24 months. If you plan to open the Air Canada card, you shouldn't open too many other credit cards in 2021.
Chase point transfers to Air Canada
The Air Canada Aeroplan program will also become a transfer partner in the Ultimate Rewards® program. Beginning in late 2021, you'll have the option to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards® points to Air Canada at a 1:1 ratio. Chase requires you to transfer points in increments of 1,000, so the minimum amount is 1,000 Chase points to get 1,000 Aeroplan miles.
This obviously gives you the chance to use Chase points to book award airfare with Air Canada. It also allows you to book award airfare with Air Canada's partners, and there are quite a few of those. Air Canada is in the Star Alliance, where it's partnered with 25 other airlines. It also has other non-alliance partners, such as Cathay Pacific.
As airline miles go, Air Canada miles are some of the more useful ones. You can use them to book a variety of flights, from economy to international first class. It's not too challenging to get a reasonable value, as plenty of award tickets will get you at least $0.015 per mile.
There's a lot to like about this announcement from Chase and Air Canada. Frequent Air Canada flyers will have a quality credit card option that offers special perks with the airline. And Chase Ultimate Rewards® cards have another partner, making the points they earn even more valuable.
