Everyone loves a free flight. The concept of airline loyalty schemes took off in the 1980s. But, at first, the rewards, in the shape of zero-cost tickets, were aimed squarely at the airlines' most valuable passengers. Normal people – those of us for whom flying was a special and strictly occasional activity – were unlikely to benefit.
So when, in 1988, British Airways brought out the then-revolutionary Air Miles loyalty scheme, the public were hooked. At the time, cash fares were stubbornly high: London to Paris cost at least £150 return (more than £400 in today's money). Yet thanks to Air Miles, the general public could fly to the French capital and back simply by shopping at an affiliated supermarket or buying petrol at the right service station and collecting the coupons.
