Jet Airways goes international — 2005

Jet Airways went intercontinental on May 1, 2005: non-stop Mumbai–London Heathrow on two-class A340-300s sub-leased from South African Airways, while its own long-haul fleet was still years from delivery. Until that morning, India’s best private carrier flew domestic and short-haul regional only. The borrowed jets were an obvious stopgap — and a loud announcement that Jet intended to stop being just a domestic airline.

For JetPrivilege members, this was the moment the program grew teeth. It was the first genuine long-haul earn-and-burn route JetPrivilege had ever offered: real mileage earn on premium international fares, and — for the first time — a burn target actually worth saving toward, priced in miles you could accumulate on Indian flying.

Our take: a loyalty currency is worth exactly what its best redemption is worth, and on this date JetPrivilege finally got one — which is why it became India’s most-loved miles program for the next decade. The lesson still cashes in 2026: judge every currency in your wallet by the seats it books, not the tiers on the brochure. And as this tracker’s 2019 entry shows, even the best redemption dies with the airline — so earn, transfer, book. Don’t hoard.