El Al Israel Becomes Flying Blue’s Newest Earn and Redemption Partner — Here’s the Details

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Flying Blue miles are easy to earn, versatile, and generally valuable to redeem. You might be surprised to learn there are over 30 airlines you can book with the currency. And there's a near-equal number of carriers offering Flying Blue miles on flights you credit to the program. El Al Israel is the newest of the bunch; you can now book El Al award flights through the Air France/KLM Flying Blue program.

Here's a look at what Flying Blue charges for El Al flights, how many miles you'll earn on El Al flights, and a recap of the primary ways to amass Flying Blue miles.

Redeem Flying Blue Miles for El Al Israel Flights

The excitement of a new redemption option quickly wears off you you realize how poor the pricing is. To put it bluntly, the main draw to booking an El Al award with Flying Blue miles is if you just want to fly El Al using miles.

For example, you can fly between Newark (EWR) and Tel Aviv (TLV) for 62,500 miles in economy, 83,500 in premium economy, or 151,500 miles in business class. That's steep.

Credit: Flying Blue

If you opt for Air France and connect in Paris, you can fly one-way from EWR to TLV for 30,000 miles in economy, 50,000 in premium economy, or 129,000 in business class (perhaps less if you check for cheaper dates).

Credit: Flying Blue

Longer El Al flights cost a bit more. A seat in an economy seat from Tel Aviv to Los Angeles (LAX) costs 83,500 miles, or 202,00 for a lie-flat seat in the pointy end of the plane.

Credit: Flying Blue

The best deal, though, comes courtesy of short-haul flights. On routes such as Tel Aviv to Santorini (JTR) or Athens (ATH), you can book economy seats for just 7,500 Flying Blue miles plus a cash co-pay of around $16.

Credit: Flying Blue

We'll take 2.73 cents per mile over an ordinarily $200+ ticket any day of the week.

Credit: Google Flights

Related: Air France/KLM Flying Blue Award Sweet Spots

How to earn Flying Blue miles

Outside of flying or signing up for the Air France KLM World Elite Mastercard^®, the easiest way to collect Flying Blue miles is via transfers from credit card rewards programs.

Several programs offer 1:1 transfers to Flying Blue. You can also transfer points over from Marriott Bonvoy, but at a comparatively subpar 3:1 ratio.

Related: Do Air France/KLM Flying Blue Miles Expire?

Earn Flying Blue Miles When Flying El Al Israel

You'll earn Flying Blue miles based on how far you fly on El Al Israel flights. Earning Flying Blue miles on your travels might appeal more than collecting Matmid points or Delta SkyMiles.

Here's a breakdown of the miles you'll earn on El Al flights and the eligible fare classes:

Flying Blue's minimums will apply to flights in eligible fare classes that fall below the bottom distance band. You'll earn a minimum of 500 miles for domestic flights and 750 for international flights.

Final Thoughts

You can now earn Flying Blue miles on El Al Israel flights and cash in your Flying Blue miles for El Al awards. It's always a good day when there's a new way to earn and burn miles, but unfortunately, the redemption rates leave a lot to be desired. With rare exceptions, your Flying Blue miles will go further on other carriers than on El Al — even if you have to connect through Paris or Amsterdam to get to your final destination.

AwardWallet Tip of The Day

Did you know that you can track travel vouchers with AwardWallet? The next time you receive a travel voucher (e.g. $300 voucher valid for 1 year), you can save it in your AwardWallet profile and be notified before its expiration.
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