Porter Airlines Now Bookable with Alaska Miles

Alaska Airlines has quietly rolled out a long-awaited feature that’ll excite many of us award travellers. You can now book Porter Airlines flights using Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles.

The feature launched fittingly on Canada Day and opens up fresh opportunities for redeeming one of the most powerful airline loyalty currencies in North America.

Let’s explore what this means, whether it’s a good deal, and how to make the most of it.

Alaska Mileage Plan Now Offers Porter Redemptions

As expected, Mileage Plan redemptions on Porter Airlines follow Alaska’s partner award chart, allowing you to book flights starting at just 4,500 miles one-way.

Unlike the reverse scenario, where redeeming VIPorter points for Alaska Airlines flights requires a Porter segment, there’s no such restriction here.

You can redeem Alaska miles for Porter-operated flights on their own, with no need to include an Alaska Airlines segment.

Availability looks pretty good year around, and here are some examples:

Toronto (YYZ) – Montreal (YUL)

Toronto (YYZ) – Vancouver (YVR)

Toronto (YYZ) –Las Vegas (LAS)

Ottawa (YOW) – Calgary (YYC)

Vancouver (YVR) – Ottawa (YOW)

Is This a Good Use of Alaska Miles?

As is usually the case, whether or not you want to redeem Alaska miles for Porter Airlines flights really depends on the situation.

Redeeming Alaska miles for Porter Airlines flights can be a great option when cash fares are sky-high—especially during peak travel dates or last-minute bookings.

Take a flight from Toronto (YYZ) to Vancouver (YVR) as an example. Last-minute cash fares on this route can climb to $505 (CAD).

The distance between the two cities is 2,085 miles, placing it just under the 2,100-mile threshold in Alaska’s partner award chart.

That means the flight prices out at 12,500 Alaska miles plus taxes and fees.

Assuming $60 (CAD) in taxes and fees ($44 USD), you’re getting a redemption value of 3.56 cents per mile:

($505 – $60) / 12,500 miles = 3.56 cpp

That’s well above our target valuation of 2.2 cents per mile.

One thing to note is that when booking through Alaska Mileage Plan, you’ll be issued a Refundable Main fare, which maps to PorterClassic Standard Fare. This fare doesn’t include seat selection or complimentary checked baggage.

However, you can offset these limitations by holding the BMO VIPorter World Elite®* Mastercard®*, which grants VIPorter Venture…