Amex Bank of Canada and Aeroplan, a marketing and loyalty company linked to Air Canada parent ACE Aviation Holdings, yesterday launched an enhanced corporate card program for small and medium-size businesses. Also yesterday, AirTran Airways announced it had begun accepting payment through the Universal Air Travel Plan.
Corporate travelers booking AirTran tickets in any distribution channel now can use any UATP card. "Online acceptance has become a necessity for corporate travelers," said Ralph Kaiser, UATP president and CEO. "AirTran Airways' expanded acceptance of UATP shows the response by airlines for fulfilling corporate travelers' needs and to become more competitive in the marketplace."
UATP earlier this week officially announced JetBlue Airways as an accepting merchant, though the carrier had been developing that form of payment since last year
(BTN, Oct. 25, 2004).
Airlines that issue or accept UATP cards do so to take advantage of fees lower than traditional corporate card programs.
JetBlue also recently partnered with American Express by announcing a co-branded consumer card. The companies said the program would launch this summer and mark JetBlue's first foray into co-branded card programs. JetBlue in December linked its TrueBlue loyalty program to the American Express Membership Rewards program.
American Express also deepened its partnership with Air Canada through the American Express AeroplanPlus Corporate Platinum Card. The program provides various benefits to small and medium-size corporate accounts, including a 4 percent year-end cash rebate on Air Canada tickets and a 5 percent rebate on purchases made with various travel companies including Budget Rent A Car, Corporate Express, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and Marriott Hotels of Canada. The card program also offers the ability to control spending by setting parameters on purchases and enforcing travel policy, online expense reporting tools and dedicated customer support.
For a set annual fee of $350, companies can provide all cardholding employees with access to Air Canada's airport lounges in Canada, Europe and the United States. Cardholders also can earn Aeroplan loyalty miles at a faster rate.
Aeroplan, which this week progressed on an initial public offering, first announced an Amex corporate card program in March 2004
(BTN, March 15, 2004).