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Christian Demoras

Abstract/Description

Frequent flyer programs (FFPs) started in the 1950s as rudimentary punch card programs tracking limited customer information. However, at present, they are some of the most dynamic and complex loyalty programs in the world: maintaining external partnerships that have diversified industry economics with billions in annual co-branded revenue; agglomerating big data to create detailed customer profiles, determining their willingness to pay, and dynamically set pricing thereafter; and generating commercial value often exceeding the market capitalizations of their respective carriers. This paper leverages extensive secondary sources to portray the evolution of FFPs and their impact on the larger industry through every major iteration—from pre- and post-co-branded credit cards to the COVID-19 pandemic and the contemporary environment. With every iteration came a greater, more complicated integration of FFPs with revenue management as airlines increasingly leverage[d] and manipulate[d] customer loyalty for financial returns. This integration was/is only accelerated by big data and artificial intelligence which have evolved the commercial airline industry from being oriented on mass markets to a segment or customer of one. Nevertheless, growing external partnerships also fuel this change as FFPs and their operating economics evolve from isolated, standalone programs to globally interconnected ones bridging airlines, alliances, and continents. While the future potential of FFPs largely depends on their ability to continue isolating a market of one, proposed governmental action threatens to implicate existing structures and the larger industry as FFPs assume increasing relevance in everyday customer spending.

Note on the Author

Christian Demoras is a 2025 graduate from BSU. He was a Departmental Honors student majoring in Aviation Science with a concentration in Aviation Management. Mentored by Professor Michael Welch (Aviation Science), Christian has long been interested in commercial aviation and has leveraged BSU’s Honors Program to further explore his interests in loyalty programs, travel currencies, and other airline marketing concepts. After BSU, Christian hopes to turn his current multi-semester co-op with Delta Air Lines into a fulltime career at their World Headquarters in Atlanta. He also intends to pursue a Master of Science in Airline Management from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

Rights Statement

Articles published in The Undergraduate Review are the property of the individual contributors and may not be reprinted, reformatted, repurposed or duplicated, without the contributor’s consent.

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