{"id":233928,"date":"2025-11-12T15:00:15","date_gmt":"2025-11-12T15:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/?p=233928\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T14:27:40","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T14:27:40","slug":"korean-air-skypass-limiting-alaska-partnership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/news\/airlines\/korean-air-skypass-limiting-alaska-partnership\/","title":{"rendered":"Korean Air Ending Hawaiian Redemptions, Restricting Alaska Awards in 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"custom-blue\"><em>The changes below have taken effect, and this post is no longer being updated. Here is our <a href=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/tag\/major-updates\/\" target=\"new\">archive of major updates<\/a> from card issuers and loyalty programs.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Despite being a member of the SkyTeam alliance, Korean Air has long maintained a partnership with Oneworld member Alaska Airlines and <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/news\/airlines\/hawaiian-partnerships-ending\/\" rel=\"noopener\">partnered with Hawaiian Airlines until June 2025<\/a>. However, Korean Air's partnership with Alaska Airlines is about to change.<\/p>\n<p>Starting <strong>January 1, 2026<\/strong>, this partnership will look quite different, and there will be two new key limitations. Here\u2019s what you need to know.<\/p>\n<div id=\"toc_container\" class=\"toc_light_blue no_bullets\"><p class=\"toc_title\">Page Contents<\/p><ul class=\"toc_list\"><li><a href=\"#No_More_Earning_SKYPASS_Miles_on_Alaska_or_Hawaiian_Flights\">No More Earning SKYPASS Miles on Alaska or Hawaiian Flights<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Korean_Air_Ending_Redemptions_on_Hawaiian_Restricting_Ones_on_Alaska\">Korean Air Ending Redemptions on Hawaiian, Restricting Ones on Alaska<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#Bottom_Line\">Bottom Line<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n<h2><span id=\"No_More_Earning_SKYPASS_Miles_on_Alaska_or_Hawaiian_Flights\">No More Earning SKYPASS Miles on Alaska or Hawaiian Flights<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Effective January 1, 2026, Korean Air SKYPASS members will <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.koreanair.com\/contents\/footer\/customer-support\/notice\/2025\/2510-SKYPASS-mileage-partnerships\" rel=\"noopener\">no longer be able to earn miles on flights operated by Alaska Airlines or Hawaiian Airlines<\/a>. Since SKYPASS miles are already difficult to earn, this has long been one of the most viable methods for U.S.-based travelers \u2014 but it won't last for much longer.<\/p>\n<p>Members can still accrue miles on eligible flights through the end of 2025. After that, flyers will need to credit paid flights to a different partner instead.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_214236\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img data-aspectratio=\"600\/480\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-214236 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Featured-Hawaiian-Airlines-aircraft-flying-against-a-red-sky-josh-withers-unsplash.jpg\" alt=\"Hawaiian Airlines aircraft flying against a red sky\" width=\"600\" height=\"480\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Featured-Hawaiian-Airlines-aircraft-flying-against-a-red-sky-josh-withers-unsplash.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Featured-Hawaiian-Airlines-aircraft-flying-against-a-red-sky-josh-withers-unsplash-300x240.jpg 300w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Featured-Hawaiian-Airlines-aircraft-flying-against-a-red-sky-josh-withers-unsplash-1024x819.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Featured-Hawaiian-Airlines-aircraft-flying-against-a-red-sky-josh-withers-unsplash-768x614.jpg 768w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Featured-Hawaiian-Airlines-aircraft-flying-against-a-red-sky-josh-withers-unsplash-325x260.jpg 325w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><center><em>Credit: Josh Withers \/ Unsplash<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Related: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/airlines\/alaska-atmos-rewards\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Comprehensive Guide to the New Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards Program<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Korean_Air_Ending_Redemptions_on_Hawaiian_Restricting_Ones_on_Alaska\">Korean Air Ending Redemptions on Hawaiian, Restricting Ones on Alaska<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>But wait, there's more. Starting with flights ticketed after January 1, 2026, Korean Air SKYPASS members will no longer be able to redeem miles for flights operated by Hawaiian Airlines, and only for Alaska Airlines flights within the U.S. (including Hawaii).<\/p>\n<p>According to the announcement, \u201cHawaiian Airlines routes within Hawaii and between Hawaii and the U.S. mainland will be available on Alaska Airlines coded flights as of April 22, 2026, following the merger between Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In other words, Korean Air miles will no longer be usable for flights outside the U.S. on either airline. International routes, such as Hawaiian\u2019s Seattle to Seoul service, will not be redeemable with SKYPASS miles beginning next year.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_234329\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img data-aspectratio=\"750\/309\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-234329 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-06-at-5.12.27-PM-1024x422.png\" alt=\"Korean Air ending Hawaiian partnership. \" width=\"750\" height=\"309\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-06-at-5.12.27-PM-1024x422.png 1024w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-06-at-5.12.27-PM-300x124.png 300w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-06-at-5.12.27-PM-768x316.png 768w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-06-at-5.12.27-PM-1536x633.png 1536w, https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Screenshot-2025-11-06-at-5.12.27-PM-2048x844.png 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><center><em>Korean Air ending Hawaiian partnership. Screenshot of Korean Air<\/em><\/enter><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Related: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/airlines\/alaska-atmos-rewards\/best-use-of-alaska-miles\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Alaska Atmos Rewards Award Chart Sweet Spots: Best Ways to Redeem Your Alaska Airlines Points<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span id=\"Bottom_Line\">Bottom Line<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Korean Air's partnership with Alaska Airlines (and, by extension, what's left of Hawaiian Airlines) is clearly shrinking in a major way. The loss of SKYPASS mileage earning on Alaska and Hawaiian flights is disappointing, and the reduction in redemption options to only domestic Alaska flights and limited Hawaiian routes beginning in April 2026 makes things even worse for SKYPASS members.<\/p>\n<p>And unfortunately, this isn't the first <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/news\/alaska-atmos-rewards\/singapore-airlines-latam-partnership-changes\/\" rel=\"noopener\">negative change to an Alaska Airlines partnership<\/a> we've observed this year. Earlier in 2025, Alaska Airlines' partnership with LATAM ended, and its partnership with Singapore Airlines was massively scaled back. This is just the latest negative development with one of Alaska's non-Oneworld partners, and we're hopeful it's the last.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Despite being a member of the SkyTeam alliance, Korean Air has long maintained a partnership with Oneworld member Alaska Airlines and previously had one with Hawaiian Airlines until earlier this year. However, Korean Air&#8217;s partnership with Alaska Airlines is about to change. Starting January 1, 2026, this partnership will look quite different and there will be two new key limitations. Here\u2019s what you need to know.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":94,"featured_media":152570,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":null,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"default","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[12069],"tags":[12770,12759,12625],"coauthors":[36490],"class_list":["post-233928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-alaska-mileage-plan","tag-korean-skypass","tag-partners-and-alliances"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/94"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=233928"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233928\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":241701,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233928\/revisions\/241701"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/152570"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=233928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=233928"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=233928"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/awardwallet.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=233928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}