Late last year, Air Canada shook things up with a surprise announcement: It would become the 14th Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partner. Chase and the airline said to expect the addition to go live sometime in “late 2021.”
That day has come. As of Tuesday, Aug. 3, transfers are now live to Aeroplan from Chase travel cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve®.
Those transfers are now available in the Chase Ultimate Rewards hub. Chase points transfer to Aeroplan on a 1:1 basis – meaning the current 60,000-point welcome bonus on the Chase Sapphire Preferred would get you 60,000 Aeroplan miles. And all transfers should be instantaneous.
Read more on Chase transfer partners: how they work, the best options, and more!
Chase and Air Canada also shed some light on their plans for a new co-branded credit card for U.S. travelers, including an easy 10,000-point bonus by joining the waitlist for the card for when it finally launches.
Aeroplan is a strong addition to the stable of Chase transfer partners. It's the latest addition since Chase added Emirates Skywards transfers in August 2019.
“We are giving cardmembers more options to unlock value from their rewards,” Matt Massaua, Chase's head of Ultimate Rewards and loyalty solutions, said in a statement. “With Aeroplan, cardmembers will enjoy a seamless point transfer experience when they are ready to travel and have the flexibility to redeem for flights, upgrades and more with Air Canada’s extensive network of partners.”
Aeroplan is a longtime favorite of frequent flyers for using miles, thanks to reasonable redemptions to fly Star Alliance carriers like SWISS, EVA Air, Turkish, and dozens more. More recently, Air Canada partnered up with Etihad for a new way to book flights to and from the Middle East.
But Air Canada recently overhauled the Aeroplan program, with pros and cons. On the bright side, Aeroplan eliminated some of the egregious cash surcharges when booking certain airlines like Lufthansa, Austrian, ANA, and even some Air Canada flights. You can add a stopover to any one-way award ticket for just an extra 5,000 miles. And the new program now boasts the ability to pool points with family members.
On the downside, some redemptions now cost more. Most notably, business class flights from the U.S. to Europe jumped from 55,000 miles each way to as much as 85,000 miles each way, depending on how long the flight is thanks to Aeroplan's new pricing model that's based (in part) on distance.
Still, there are plenty of great ways to use Aeroplan miles in this new setup, including 12,500-mile flights from the mainland U.S. to Hawaii, reasonable business class redemptions to Asia, and much more.
Read our guide to maximizing the new Aeroplan program!
Scope out the full list of Chase transfer partners, and you'll see that Aeroplan makes for a nice addition.
| Program | Type | Transfer Ratio | Transfer Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aer Lingus | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Air France/KLM | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| British Airways | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Emirates | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Iberia Plus | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| JetBlue | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Singapore Air | Airline | 1:1 | 12-24 hours |
| Southwest Airlines | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| United Airlines | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| Virgin Atlantic | Airline | 1:1 | Instant |
| World of Hyatt | Hotel | 1:1 | Instant |
| IHG | Hotel | 1:1 | 1 day |
| Marriott Rewards | Hotel | 1:1 | 2 days |
It's becoming increasingly easier and easier easy to earn Aeroplan miles. You can already transfer them from American Express, Capital One, and Marriott Bonvoy. And now, Chase has officially joined the fold.
Bottom Line
Aeroplan is a solid addition for Chase, providing yet another valuable way to put a big stash of Ultimate Rewards points to good use. This newest Chase transfer partner is officially live today, Tuesday, Aug. 3.