Air France/KLM Flying Blue Guide
Before you read this guide, review "Points and Miles 101" to learn the basics of how it all works!
Want to earn more points to redeem through Flying Blue? Checkout our Recommended Cards!
As a 1:1 transfer partner of all major flexible card currencies, the joint award program of Air France and KLM - Flying Blue - should definitely be on your radar for your next big trip! Frequent transfer bonus and special Promo Rewards lead to many great rates - especially for flights to Europe. However, the fees can be on the higher side. There are a few quirks to this program, so read on for tips and tricks to booking award flights through Flying Blue!
What have we booked through Flying Blue?​
Virgin Atlantic Upper Class JFK-London - 56.5k + $202 each​
Delta Main Cabin Columbus-ATL-Louisville - 11.5k + $22 each
The Basics
1:1 Transfer Partners:
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Book flights operated by:
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SkyTeam member airlines
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Japan Airlines
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Copa Airlines
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Air Tahiti Nui
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WestJet
Pricing structure:
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Dynamic/variable for Air France and KLM flights
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Distance and segment-based pricing for all other itineraries
Best uses:
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Air France, KLM, and Delta flights to Europe
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Delta flights within North America
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China Airlines and Vietnam Airlines flights to SE Asia
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ITA Airways to Rome and Milan
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Air Europa flights to Madrid (from JFK and Miami)
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Virgin Atlantic Flights to London and Manchester
Customer service:
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Phone: +1 (800)-237-2747
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Limited support may be available on social media sites
Fees/surcharges:
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Fuel surcharges passed on (reduced fuel surcharges for Virgin Atlantic-operated flights)
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Higher departure taxes for flights departing Europe
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70 EUR for change/cancellation/redeposit
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Lap infant fee is generally 10% of the fully flexible cash fare for an adult (requires calling to book)
Related guide: Lap Infant Booking Guide
Miles Expiration:
Flying Blue miles expire after 2 years without "Qualifying Activity" on your account. There are two types of Qualifying Activity: "Overall" and "Partial".
"Overall" includes flying on a revenue flight with any of Flying Blue's partners (including Delta and other SkyTeam airlines), spending on a co-branded Flying Blue credit card, or having elite status with Flying Blue. "Partial" Activity includes miles earned from partners like hotels and rental cars. This type of earning activity will extend the expiration by 2 years, but only for the miles earned from this same type of activity.
If you find that you have Flying Blue miles expiring soon, the easiest way to extend the expiration date is by taking a flight on a partner like Delta and crediting it to your Flying Blue account by adding your Flying Blue number in the frequent flyer details.
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Important: don't transfer points to Flying Blue until you have found the availability and are ready to book. Transfers are a one-way street and you don't want points "stranded" in an airline program when they could be used elsewhere. Points will post instantly to your Flying Blue account in most cases, so there's no need to transfer ahead of time.
How to search and book:
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Step 1: Create a Flying Blue account
This is required to search, and you will need to have an Flying Blue account setup to transfer points.​
Flying Blue Sign-up Page
Step 2: Download the Air France app
The desktop site for the US tends to be very glitchy and difficult to use (though it has improved recently). The app is generally much faster and simpler to use.
After downloading the app, login using your Flying Blue account details.
Step 3: Begin a search with miles
Select the "Buy now" tab and then toggle ON the "Pay with my Miles" option. Enter your route (one way at a time is recommended), number of passengers, class of service, and departure date.
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Ignore the "Not enough Miles" warning that might be displayed.
Note that Flying Blue does have discounted rates for children (ages 2-11), so you'll want to make the appropriate selections if you're flying with children.
Air France app search page
Step 4: Search and Review results
If you searched for 2 or more passengers, the results will show the one way TOTAL rate for ALL passengers. We recommend initially searching for just one adult to avoid confusion, and then once you've found the flight you want, search again with the full selection of passengers to confirm.
The tabs up top will display the lowest rates for Air France and KLM operated flights. Flights operated by partners such as Virgin Atlantic or Air Europa could have lower rates than what the tabs show, so it's worth checking through each date if you're searching a route operated by those partners.
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TIP: for the best way to find all possible airlines and routes between two cities, use flightconnections.com
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There's also a bit of a glitch where if you previously searched for economy but then search for business class, the calendar tabs will show economy rates (or vice versa). Backing out and restarting the search will update the rates. The rates can also sometimes be slow to load on each date, so give it a second when switching between dates so you don't miss any of the deals!
Air France app results page
Step 5: Finalize booking
At this point, you have confirmed the flight availability and are ready to transfer your points to book. Transfers to Flying Blue are instant in most cases, but you usually have to sign out and back in to see the updated points balance in your account. On a rare occasion, your bank or the airline might slow down the transfer to review it for fraud protection (usually if your airline account is brand new or if you're transferring a very large sum of points). Once the points post, search for the flight again and go through the booking process - it's pretty straightforward!
If you feel more comfortable using the desktop site to finalize the booking, you can do that! It's just when you do multiple searches on the desktop site that you encounter the most errors (though it has improved recently).
Occasionally, the booking will fail on the final step, or you will be issued a record locator but your card won't be charged and the points won't be deducted. In this case, your booking is in sort of a "phantom hold" status. Give Flying Blue a call (+1 800-237-2747) and they will get it finalized for you. The customer service agents are usually friendly and helpful!
To select seats, the Air France/KLM record locator (6 alphanumeric characters) will often be the same for partner flights like Delta and Virgin Atlantic. You can use this record locator on the partner site to manage your booking. For other airlines, you will need to contact Air France/KLM to receive the partner record locator to select seats and manage the booking on the partner site.
BONUS: Promo Rewards and Child Fares
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Each month, Flying Blue releases a list of cities that are included in Promo Rewards. These deals offer 25-50% off - which can get you crazy good deals like US to Europe for 11k in economy. It varies by date and final destination, so you sometimes have to do some experimenting with different cities to find the best deals. The Promo Reward fares will be clearly labeled as shown in the above examples.
Another great feature about Flying Blue is that children ages 2-11 receive a 25% discount for award tickets on Air France or KLM flights when traveling with an adult. Simply add the number of children traveling to the passenger list when searching and the results will automatically reflect the discount in the total!