American Express Blue Sky

American Express awards one reward point for every dollar spent, without an expiry date. There are no blackout dates for flying, so one can redeem points for flights 365 days per year. It is required that flights be booked a minimum of thirty days in advance to secure a seat; however, to qualify for this special offer, flights must be booked before January 2009 and taken before 2010.

The half-points offer is good for flights on various airlines to specific overseas destinations including Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore, Vanuatu, Fiji, Auckland, and Christchurch, as well as domestic flights to capital cities throughout Australia. Flights include complimentary travel insurance for the cardholder and family.

As this is an American Express credit card rather than a charge card, it carries an 18.49% p.a. interest rate on purchases and cash advances, with up to 55 interest free days on purchases and an annual fee of $95. There are, of course, no interest free days on cash advances.

Balance transfers, under this offer, carry an interest rate of 6.99% p.a. This is not an introductory offer, but is good for the life of the loan, no matter how long the term; however, balance transfers do not earn bonus points nor are they allowed interest free days. American Express practices payment allocation, meaning that the balance with the lower interest rate is paid off first, while any additional charges—including any costs associated with rewarded flights that are charged to the credit card—remain on the account and earn the higher interest rate until that transferred balance is discharged. For this reason, the Blue Sky card is either an excellent balance transfer card or a great frequent flyer rewards card, but not both.

Article correct at its author date: February 2008. Copyright Virtual Office Space, Any unauthorised reproduction of this article will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Credit Cards Australia.

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