Sun Country Ufly and Ufly Rewards Plus
In 2004 Sun Country announced a new frequent traveler program entitled the Sun Country VIP Club. This program is unique in the fact that it offers flyer points and it grants members the right to airline tickets at the price of $39 plus 10 cents per mile traveled for domestic travel, or $89 plus 10 cents per mile for international travel. These VIP tickets are available up to one day in advance of travel. Membership costs $99 plus either $12 per month for an individual or $17 per month for a family.
In addition to the VIP-only fares, members receive first class discounts, first class boarding, security, and check in Minneapolis and other cities. The VIP Club grants access to exclusive benefits (special hotel rates, discounts on travel services, lifestyle benefits, etc.,) that were only available to paying members.
In July 2007 Sun Country announced its first traditional frequent flyer program named "Ufly." "Ufly" offers 5 points (coach) or 7 points (First Class) for every one-way. 20 points are being awarded for first-time signers. Once 100 points are obtained, flyers are eligible for one free ticket with no restrictions.
After the Ufly Rewards launch, the Sun Country VIP Club was renamed Ufly Rewards Plus. The same benefits remained and members now earned points for their travel.
On October 20, 2011, Sun Country announced it would be ending their long established Ufly Rewards Plus "VIP" program. With no replacement plan in place to serve their most loyal frequent fliers, Sun Country began terminating customer membership beginning in January 2012 and announced it would continue terminating the frequent flier loyalty memberships on the member's anniversary date throughout 2012. "Once your membership term expires, you will no longer be able to renew."
The Ufly Rewards program was similar to Southwest's "Rapid Rewards" program, JetBlue's TrueBlue program and Spirit's "$9 Fare Club".
Many successful airlines have frequent flier programs that promote positive customer experiences and reward customer loyalty to benefit from customer's lifetime value. In a 2009 NPS study done on the airline industry, Southwest Airlines led the sector with the highest customer satisfaction and also had the highest growth rate of any airline. "When customers are truly loyal to a company, their relationship changes from a simple exchange of product for money to a long-term commitment, despite price increases and/or occasional errors. A truly loyal customer also recruits new customers through positive word-of-mouth recommendations, which results in income growth for a company.".
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