The miles game has changed: Quest says points are now on the cards

Flying helps, but it's not what will make you accumulate air miles. Today, the secret is in your wallet or cell phone app. The amount is no longer on the plane seat, but on the credit card statement.

Richard Quest, the iconic voice of international business and aviation on CNN, sums up the frustration of purists and the reality of the new times.

"The game changed with the arrival of the accumulation of miles through credit cards. Suddenly, spending on the card became more important, in many ways, than the flight itself", said the journalist who, in 2025, registered 110 accumulated flights. So more than two a week.

In Brazil to participate in the annual meeting of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Quest spoke with CNN Brasil about the sector that fascinates him.

For those who accumulated points "the old fashioned way" after hours on a plane and hundreds of meters covered in airport lounges, the new reality almost seems like cheating.

Quest recognizes this feeling with traditional British good humor. "Those of us who earn miles the old-fashioned way think it's a bit of a cheat. Because we actually fly, and flying should give you more miles," he says.

The financialization of loyalty programs
Mileage programs are no longer mere marketing appendages but have become areas with significant revenue for airlines.

Companies like Australia's Qantas, cited by Quest, have become financial - and not just logistical - forces in their domestic markets.

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"If you look at frequent flyer programs, they want you to have their credit card. Look at Qantas in Australia, which is the biggest credit card issuer in the country."

This business model has an enviable financial elegance: banks buy billions of miles from airlines in advance, wholesale, to distribute them as rewards to their customers.

For airlines, this means a vital injection of immediate, high-margin cash. For banks, it is a way to attract, retain and please customers, especially those with higher incomes who spend more on their cards and also fly more in the skies.

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Source: CNN