Royal Jordanian & The Royal Club
Royal Jordanian is is the flag carrier for The Kingdom of Jordan. It joined the Oneworld Alliance in 2007 and serves 45 destinations across 30 countries from its base in Amman.
The Royal Club, on the other hand, is a much newer endeavour. In 2018 Royal Jordanian replaced its Royal Plus program for Royal Club effectively pressing the reset button on its previous frequent flyer program.
Royal Jordanian Frequent Flyer Basics
Royal Club
Royal Jordanian’s Frequent Flyer Program is aptly called the Royal Club
In every Oneworld Frequent Flyer program, there are two currencies which members collect simultaneously – Status Points (SP) which determines your elite status level and cannot be spent and Reward Currency (RC) which can be exchanged for airline benefits and rewards.
Tier Miles
The currency of Royal Jordanian’s Status Points system is called Tier Miles.
The number of Tier Miles held is used to calculate your elite status. In general, the more Tier Miles you accrue in a year the higher your elite status will be.
A Membership Year with Royal Jordanian is calculated from when the card was issued.
Award Miles
Award Miles is the name of the Reward Currency used by Royal Jordanian.
A points-based reward scheme used by the airline were you can exchange accrued Award Miles for reward seat redemptions, flight upgrades and other travel-based experiences.
Oneworld Sapphire
Royal Jordanian Royal Club Gold Sparrow is equivalent to Oneworld Sapphire status and you will receive similar benefits when flying with other Oneworld Alliance members.
At least 12 Months
For Gold Sparrow membership is valid for 1 year from date of status issue.
Soft Landing
For Gold Sparrow members there is no soft landing – unlike Platinum Hawk which has.
If you do not re-qualify for Gold Sparrow in your 2nd year you will be reset to zero.
How to Collect Tier Miles
When you travel with Royal Jordanian, a Oneworld partner airline, its subsidiaries, or in some specific cases non-Oneworld member airlines you earn Tier Miles with which you can use to achieve higher levels of elite status and unlock different rewards as you do.
The Royal Club Bronze Sunbird membership is the most basic and available to everyone as does not come with any benefits except the ability to earn Tier Miles and Award Miles. Silver Jay, Gold Sparrow, and Platinum Hawk status are earned and come with a varying degree of benefits.
Moving up the ladder within Royal Jordanian Royal Club is completely dependent on the number of Tier Miles accrued within a given year (or tow in the case of Platinum Hawk), and unlike Award Miles, expire after a set time – in this case, Tier Miles expire at the end of your membership year.
Tier Miles can only be earnt by actually flying, not by signing up to credit card deals. There is no other use for Tier Miles other than setting your elite status; they cannot be spent. The general rule is that they are usually based on the distance of the flight and the fare class you are travelling in.
Royal Jordanian Royal Club works a little differently than to other Oneworld members. Some differences include:
Miles Based Calculations
Like American Airlines, Royal Jordanian operates a mileage based reward scheme – this means that you earn states based on the number of miles travelled with the airline.
but unlike Japan Airlines, which is also a mileage based program, the miles accrued is based of the distance between the Airports rather than the Cities.
Fewer Tier Miles on Renewal
Unlike carriers such as British Airways, you do not require as many Status Points to renew your elite status the following year once you have attained the level.
No Mid-Tier Bonus
Unlike its alliance counterpart Cathay Pacific, Royal Jordanian does not offer mid-tier status to its members.
No Lifetime Status
Unlike Airlines like Qantas or British Airways, Royal Jordanian has no scheme in place for lifetime membership.
Routes to Earn Royal Jordanian Gold Sparrow Status
With Miles
One way to reach Royal Club Gold Sparrow is to fly with Royal Jordanian, a Oneworld partner airline, its subsidiaries, or in some specific cases a non-Oneworld member airline.
To achieve Royal Jordanian Royal Club Gold Sparrow status with miles, you need:
1. 40,000 Tier Miles; and
2. A minimum of 10 Sectors on Royal Jordanian
On Renewal you need:
1. 30,000 Tier Miles; and
2. A minimum of 10 Sectors marked on Royal Jordanian.
With Sectors
Another way to reach Royal Club Gold Sparrow is to fly a lot. Royal Jordanian offers a route to Gold Sparrow status for those who travel exceptionally frequently with the airline.
To achieve Royal Jordanian Royal Club Gold Sparrow status with sectors, you need:
1. 30 sectors; and
2. A minimum of 10 Sectors on Royal Jordanian
On Renewal you need:
1.26 sectors; and
2. A minimum of 10 Sectors marked on Royal Jordanian.
Benefits of Royal Jordanian Royal Club Gold Sparrow
Outline of the Benefits of having Royal Jordanian Royal Club Gold Sparrow membership.
Extra Award Miles
When flying on Royal Jordanian
When travelling on eligible flights on Royal Jordanian you will receive Bonus Award Miles ranging from 100% to 250% depending on the class of Travel.
A quirk is that you get 50% extra miles in economy saver just for having the free Bronze Sunbird card.
Preferential Seating
When travelling on Royal Jordanian or Oneworld Carrier
Preferences accommodated where possible at time of booking where offered.
This is useful with Airlines such as British Airways who only allow seat selection 24 hours before departure if you do not hold at a minimum Oneworld Sapphire elite status.
Priority Check-in
Business Class Counters
Members have access to use Business Class check-in desks when flying internationally or domestically on either Royal Jordanian or other Oneworld carriers.
Business Class Lounge Access
Royal Club Gold Sparrow members get Business class lounge access for themselves and either one companion across the Royal Jordanian and Oneworld Network.
Luggage Extra Luggage Allowance
Variable rules depending on Airline and travel location.
Luggage policies can be found on the Royal Jordanian website.
With Gold Sparrow status you are entitled to 1 extra checked bag weighing 23kg on top of your standard allowance when on flights marked and operated by Royal Jordanian.
This does not extend to Basic Economy tickets.
When on a Oneworld marked and operated flight your status as an Emerald member entitles you to 15kg (if the airline uses the weight system) or 1 extra checked bag (if the airline uses the piece system).
Priority Boarding
When on Royal Jordanian or Oneworld Member airline
With Gold Sparrow status, you are also able to board before the general boarding group.
Fast Track Through Security
When travelling on Royal Jordanian
For Gold Sparrow members, you can use premium security or fast track lanes when travelling through select airports when travelling on Royal Jordanian
This is a nice perk as it’s not normally afforded to Oneworld Sapphire members.
Upgrade Vouchers
When on Royal Jordanian
Gold Sparrow members are entitled to one complimentary upgrade vouchers every 12 months.
Each upgrade voucher is valid for one sector only.
Blackout periods apply but change from year to year – but usually, it is from June 1, until August 31, to/from USA, Canada, Europe, and the Far East.
Calculating the Number of Tier Miles Earned
Royal Jordanian calculates the Tier Miles accrued based on the distance (in miles) from the departure and arrival destination and assigning a percentage multiplier based on the class of travel. As such,
However the class multiplier change slightly when travelling on Oneworld Alliance members.
As such, the number of Tier Miles earned is dependant on 3 factors, the Route, the carrier you have flown with, and the class of travel.
For example, if you travelled from London to Amman (a distance of 2,292 miles one way) you would earn 200% of this distance in miles, or 4,584, if you travelled in Business Class. But, if you travelled in Economy Saver you would only earn 25% of this distance or 573 miles.
One of the interesting points is that on Royal Jordanian Fare Class G (group fare) is not considered an eligible fare class to earn Tier Miles but the same fare group is with British Airways.
The simplest and best tool for finding out how many Tier Miles you’ll earn on any flight is to use Royal Jordanian Tier Miles Calculator.
