Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines Merger Unlocks More Reciprocal Perks and Benefits

The integration of Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines continues to evolve, and frequent flyers now have more reasons to celebrate.

Following the airlines’ merger confirmed earlier this year, Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles continue to introduce new reciprocal benefits for their elite status holders.

Here’s what this means for loyal Alaska and Hawaiian flyers — and how you can take advantage of the latest benefits.

How We Got Here: Alaska and Hawaiian Partnership

In September 2024, Alaska Airlines completed its acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines, marking a major shift in the aviation landscape. While mergers are nothing new in the industry, this one is unique: Both airlines intend to maintain their separate brands while merging into a single loyalty program, which adds complexity to integrating their operations.

One of the most anticipated outcomes of the merger is the planned introduction of a unified loyalty program by mid-2025. The surviving program will be Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, which will see the end of HawaiianMiles. Until then, the 2 airlines have made strides toward aligning their offerings.

For example, travelers can now:

• Transfer miles 1:1 between Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles
• Redeem Alaska Mileage Plan miles directly on Hawaiian Airlines flights
• Match their Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan and Hawaiian HawaiianMiles statuses

Today, 2 new benefits have been added:

• Mileage Plan elites will now enjoy select benefits when flying Hawaiian Airlines
• Reciprocal mileage earning

Let’s take a look at each of those in more detail — plus refresh our minds on the previously announced reciprocal benefits.

Alaska Mileage Plan Elites Now Enjoy Benefits When Flying Hawaiian Airlines

The next stage of the merger of Alaska and Hawaiian brings new perks for Alaska Airlines‘ elite status holders.

Effective immediately, Mileage Plan elites will enjoy reciprocal benefits when flying Hawaiian Airlines, including priority check-in, priority boarding, complimentary baggage allowance, complimentary preferred seat selection at the time of booking, and access to Extra Comfort seats at check-in on a first-come, first-served basis (excluding main cabin basic fares).

To be eligible, just add your Mileage Plan number to your booking with Hawaiian.

Reciprocal Miles Earning Now Live When Flying Alaska and Hawaiian

Members of both the Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles programs can now earn miles when taking flights operated by both airlines.

For example, if a HawaiianMiles elite member adds their frequent flyer number to an Alaska Airlines booking, the miles awarded for the flight will be credited to their HawaiianMiles account.

Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles Status Match

Effective immediately, elite members of Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles can match their status between the programs. Here’s how the benefits align:

• Alaska Mileage Plan MVP: Matches to HawaiianMiles Pualani Gold
• Alaska Mileage Plan MVP Gold, MVP Gold 75K, and MVP Gold 100K: Match to HawaiianMiles Pualani Platinum
• HawaiianMiles Pualani Gold: Matches to Alaska Mileage Plan MVP
• HawaiianMiles Pualani Platinum: Matches to Alaska Mileage Plan MVP Gold

You can request the status match online by logging into your account on this landing page. While the process can take up to 72 hours, most matches are reflected within a few hours.

It’s also worth noting that elite qualifying miles earned with both programs can be combined toward status qualification in 2025 once the unified program launches.

Maximizing Elite Perks Across Both Airlines

For now, this reciprocal status match is the best way for elites to enjoy perks across the 2 airlines. If you’re an Alaska Mileage Plan elite flying Hawaiian Airlines, you’ll want to match your status and add your HawaiianMiles number to your reservation. Likewise, Hawaiian elites flying Alaska should link their matched status for the best benefits.

That said, elite perks differ between the 2 programs. For instance:

• HawaiianMiles elite members primarily enjoy extra-legroom seating upgrades.
• Complimentary first-class upgrades on Hawaiian Airlines are only available for interisland flights, and Platinum members also receive upgrade certificates.

This initiative primarily benefits those with status in either Alaska Mileage Plan or HawaiianMiles. Elite travelers with Oneworld status through other partner airlines won’t see added perks until Hawaiian officially joins Oneworld, which is expected by 2026.

Final Thoughts

Alaska Mileage Plan and HawaiianMiles continue to align their offerings as the merger deepens. The latest updates bring reciprocal elite benefits for Alaska Airlines frequent flyers and reciprocal miles earning.

This move ensures that frequent flyers on both airlines can enjoy elite benefits while traveling on the other carrier.

The integration of Alaska and Hawaiian is steadily building momentum, with the ultimate goal being a unified loyalty program in 2025 to make things even more uniform going forward.