Spend. Cry. Repeat: Inside the New British Airways Club

Oh, British Airways. You really said “April Fool’s!” but forgot to stop joking. Here’s the lowdown of your shiny new “British Airways Club” announcement. Spoiler: it’s not giving Executive Club 2.0… it’s giving midlife crisis in a trench coat.

Welcome to the New “British Airways Club”

(Now with fewer perks, more confusion, and a fresh logo no one asked for)

Starting 1 April 2025, appropriately April Fool’s Day, the British Airways Executive Club is dead. Long live the British Airways Club, a name so uninspired it sounds like a members-only cheese and pickle sandwich society.

Here’s what you didn’t ask for but are getting anyway: a brand-new way to earn tier points. It is no longer based on how far or often you fly, but instead how much cold, hard cash you throw at BA’s increasingly meh service.

Here’s What They’ve Changed (and Not for the Better)

• Tier points reset – Poof! Gone. Start again.
• Fixed membership year – Everyone’s on a 1 April to 31 March cycle now. So, at least the chaos is synchronised.
• New thresholds – Bronze now costs 3,500 tier points. Silver is 7,500. And Gold? A gut-wrenching 20,000. If your wallet isn’t screaming yet, just wait.

Want Gold Guest List? Hope you’re ready to shell out enough to fund a small airport:

• New member: 65,000 tier points
• Renewal: 40,000 tier points
• (Bonus points if you still have any idea what your benefits actually are.)

Tier Points = £££ (Not logic)

Your elite status now hinges on how much you spend, not where you fly or how often. BA’s logic: if you spend £20,000 on a short-haul flight to Glasgow every week, you’re more valuable than someone doing 100 long-hauls to Tokyo in economy.

• 1 Tier Point = £1 on BA-marketed flights
• What counts: Base fare, BA-imposed charges, seats, bags
• What doesn’t: Airport fees, APD, your dignity

The “Milestone” Bonuses Are… Laughable

Spend thousands and maybe get a congratulatory shrug in the form of Avios:

• 5,500 TP = 2,500 Avios
• 11,000 TP = 4,000 Avios
• 16,000 TP = 5,000 Avios

So, after spending roughly £16,000, you’re rewarded with £115 worth of Avios. Someone, please tell BA we’re not out here playing Monopoly.

Sector-Based Status – Kinda, But Not Really

Don’t worry if you don’t fancy burning your savings:

• Bronze: 25 sectors
• Silver: 50 sectors

But wait only on BA-coded flights. So, if you were relying on Iberia to scrape by? Tough luck. You’re flying full-BA, full-price, baby.

Lounge Access… For the Lucky Few

Sure, lounges are still a thing. But let’s not pretend this is revolutionary:

• Silver/Gold? You’re in.
• First class? Sure.
• Everyone else? Here’s a Pret a Manger.

Oh, and the crown jewel: the Concorde Room. Only for Golds who’ve practically sold their soul to BA (£65,000 spent in a year should do it).

How to Game This (Or Try)

British Airways Holidays lets you earn 1 TP per £1 spent—but here’s the catch:

• Points are split equally between all travellers aged 2+. So if you take your 3-year-old, they’ll steal half your hard-earned tier points. Cheers, Timmy.

Want to dodge that? Book solo. Tell the fam they’re on their own. Not weird at all.

Credit Card Chaos

You’ll eventually be able to earn tier points with the BA Amex Premium Plus card. But not today. Maybe tomorrow. Or July. Or 2047. No details, no launch, no clue.

Estimates suggest you spend £25,000–£40,000 annually for the entire 2,500 tier points. Because obviously your Amex should also fund BA’s mid-tier drama.

Buy Tier Points via Jet Fuel Because… Sure?

Feeling flush? Buy “Sustainable Aviation Fuel Credits” for £1 = 1 TP + 10 Avios. You can even pay with Avios—essentially swapping 200 Avios for 1 tier point. That’s right, you’re now paying extra to offset your flight and get scraps of status.

Lifetime Gold: For Those Who’ve Given Up All Hope

You’ll now need 550,000 tier points. AKA: £550,000 in BA spend. It’s giving midlife hobby gone too far. Or a spreadsheet error.

Oh, But There’s Wine

Don’t forget the real perk here: discounts at The Wine Flyer.

• Bronze: 5%
• Silver: 10%
• Gold: 15%

Because if we’re going down with this program, we might as well be tipsy.

Should You Credit to Another Airline?

Honestly? Yeah.

Check out Iberia Plus, Finnair, Royal Jordanian, and Malaysia Airlines.

At least they won’t make you feel like a fool for flying.

Final Thoughts

British Airways rebrand to “The Club” could’ve been sleek, exciting, and aspirational.

Instead, it feels like they took everything mildly functional about the Executive Club, lit it on fire, and charged you for the smoke.

Cheers to The Club:

Where your loyalty is measured in receipts, your benefits are mostly vibes, and your tier status might as well be determined by tarot cards.