Where the existing loyalty programme which was launched in July 1994 has fetched the company 30,000 members to date, Jet Airways is expecting a higher membership base of 70,000 consumers in the first year of the relaunch itself.

Jet Privilege will be an upgraded version of the earlier programme. ``We will be operating 170 flights to 36 destinations in the country by next month. The customer loyalty programme hence had to be redesigned to address the needs of an expanded customer base more effectively,'' says Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal.

The company has installed an international customer service software, `Sabre', to monitor and operate the Jet Privilege programme at its customer service cell set up in Mumbai. Jet Airways is currently working on an advertisingcampaign to coincide with the relaunch.

According to the company, Jet Privilege (JP) consumers will not be required to pay a membership fee unlike the other loyalty programmes in the market. Jet Privilege does not require passengers to produce boarding cards or other proof of travel. A passenger starts earning free JP miles (points) the moment he or she takes the first flight.

The new programme offers three different levels of privileges: JP Blue, JP Silver and JP Gold, depending on the number of miles accrued or the flights flown. All other loyalty programmes in the market offer equal benefits to all their members. Says Goyal: ``JP Silver and Gold members can now earn bonus miles on all Jet Airways flights and will also enjoy lounge access, tele check-in benefits, and voucher upgrade to Club Premier.''

Jet Airways has tied up with international carriers like KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Northwest Airlines as a result of which Jet Privilege members will be able to earn miles on these airline networkstoo.

As part of the programme, the company has also tied up with Oberoi Hotels & Resorts, Trident Hotels, The Park Hotels, Radisson Worldwide and The Leela Hotels. Members of Jet Privilege will be able to earn miles on each stay at any of these hotels. Miles can also be earned through the use of AVIS car rentals.

Jet Privilege members will also continue to enjoy the benefit of exchanging their miles for free flights on the international network of British Airways, KLM and Northwest. Members can redeem their miles when they have earned atleast 10,000 miles or have flown 10 flights. The same in the case of competition is 30,000 miles.