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Air Canada Aeroplan has done an incredible job adding airline partners outside of Star Alliance in recent months, as the program has added Etihad, Azul, and Vistara. Well, Aeroplan has now announced another new partner.
Aeroplan adds Air Serbia as a partner
Starting Monday, November 9, 2020, Air Serbia will be a partner of Air Canada Aeroplan. However, it will only be a redemption partnership, which means that Aeroplan members will be able to redeem miles to travel with Air Serbia, but not accumulate miles.
Air Serbia offers a single long-haul route between Belgrade and New York and therefore offers excellent access to Eastern Europe and beyond. Air Serbia’s long-haul aircraft is an Airbus A330, which flew for Jet Airways. The plane has business class herringbone seats and offers a great soft product (at least that was the last time I flew the airline).
Air Serbia’s A330 in business class
When Aeroplan members redeem miles with Air Serbia:
- There will be no carrier-imposed surcharges
- Members will be able to combine travel with Air Serbia, Star Alliance airlines and any other partner
Air Serbia’s business-class catering
How many Aeroplan miles does it take to fly with Air Serbia?
The introduction of this partnership with Air Serbia coincides with the launch of the new Aeroplan program (delayed by one day). With this, we are seeing Aeroplan completely change its premium prices.
Here is the relevant premium table for travel between North America and the Atlantic:
And here is the premium table relevant for travel within the Atlantic region:
For a trip of 4,001-6,000 miles, you can expect to pay:
- 40,000 miles in economy
- 70,000 business class miles
- You can add a stopover to your itinerary for 5,000 miles
From New York to Belgrade it covers a distance of 4,511 miles. In other words, for 70,000 miles you could fly business class from New York to Belgrade to Athens, Tel Aviv, Skopje or many other cities, or for 75,000 miles you could book the same with a stopover in Belgrade.
Air Serbia’s only long-haul route is between New York and Belgrade
You can also redeem Etihad Guest miles on Air Serbia
It is worth noting that the other best way to redeem miles for travel with Air Serbia is through Etihad Guest, as Etihad owns a stake in Air Serbia. As a comparison, Etihad Guest charges the following number of miles for travel with Air Serbia between New York and Belgrade:
- 44,970 miles in economy
- 64,082 business class miles
However, this only includes that segment and any connections should be booked separately. So, for the most part, booking through Aeroplan will be a better deal.
Could Air Serbia start flying to Toronto?
It is worth noting that in mid-2018 there was talk of Air Serbia launching flights between Belgrade and Toronto. Seasonally Air Serbia only flies twice a week between New York and Belgrade, so suffice it to say that the aircraft has the ability to operate a few more routes.
So, does this new Aeroplan partnership suggest a new route and greater cooperation between Air Canada and Air Serbia? Personally I don’t think so:
- This partnership is specific to redeeming miles rather than earning miles, which suggests we likely won’t see any kind of code sharing or expanded partnership between the two airlines.
- Aeroplan’s leadership has done an amazing job adding new partner airlines to offer Aeroplan members more redemption opportunities, and it seems to me that this is part of that.
None of this to say that Air Serbia may not eventually fly to Toronto, but I would rather not take this ad to specifically suggest it.
Could Air Serbia possibly launch flights to Toronto?
Bottom line
Air Canada Aeroplan has added Air Serbia as its new partner airline, marking the fourth new partner airline in recent months. It is truly impressive.
The partnership with Air Serbia is specific for mileage redemption, so Aeroplan members can redeem miles between New York and Belgrade and beyond.
This has the potential to represent a great deal: Air Serbia is a nice airline, Belgrade is a big city and it’s especially interesting when you can stop over there for just 5,000 extra miles.
Are you excited about the new Air Canada and Air Serbia partnership?
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