Air India's Flying Returns offers three elite tiers, ranging from the Silver Edge Club to The Maharaja Club. Since its privatization in 2022, the program has been pushing to add more frequent flyers, with a recent 50% discount on tier thresholds to qualify. So what are the elite tiers on Air India, and how can you qualify?

Base to Platinum

Flying Returns is one of many programs with four tiers in total, starting from a Base tier that you can join by signing up online. This comes with no perks other than being bumped from a full flight behind only those with no status at all. The three elite tiers, however, have some more exciting benefits. These are the Silver Edge Club, Golden Edge Club, and The Maharaja Club (translates to "king," or Platinum in loyalty parlance).

Air India's Star Alliance membership means that these track to Silver and Gold for the middle two levels, respectively (since that is the highest alliance-wide tier). However, before jumping into the perks, here's what you need to qualify for each tier:

• Silver Edge Club: 25,000 points
• Golden Edge Club: 50,000 points
• The Maharaja Club: 75,000 points

As mentioned earlier, in May 2023, Flying Returns offered a 50% reduction in points requirements for all tiers based on flying between July 2022 and June 2023. It was an odd offer since it was retrospective in nature, but it was an easy way to reach Star Alliance Gold, as we'll discuss in the earnings formula below.

Photo: PhotographerIncognito / Shutterstock

Unlike other airlines, Air India recently switched to a fare group-based points earning. This means earning is based solely on distance traveled and if you're booked in one of three fare groups: Super Value, Flexible Saver, or Flexible in economy, Super Value or Flexible in premium economy and business class, and Flexible in first class.

This simplified model does make earning calculations easy but fails to reward high spenders; you usually can see over 300% on a flexible economy ticket. Now, business class passengers are capped at double an economy fare. However, for those traveling on a budget, paying a little extra for the next higher fare group and yield significantly more miles, as seen below.

Photo: Air India

Benefits

Earning elite status with Flying Returns guarantees Star Alliance Silver or Gold. Silver Edge Club brings you several perks on the flag carrier, most notably:

• 15% points bonus
• One extra bag/10kgs extra
• One domestic upgrade voucher
• Priority check-in and boarding

Golden Edge Club throws in the key Star Alliance Gold privilege globally, including:

• 25% points bonus + 1 bag/20kgs extra
• Two domestic upgrade vouchers
• Air India lounge access + one guest (plus business class lounges globally)
• Dedicated check-in and boarding queues
• Waiver of rebooking fees

Photo: Air India

Finally, The Maharaj Club is akin to Platinum in most programs and most ups the perks. You'll receive all of the above privileges plus

• 30% points bonus
• Three domestic upgrade vouchers

A quick way to Gold?

Air India is currently in the midst of a massive transformation, which will see it receive 470 new aircraft and add scores of destinations. Expect to see the Flying Returns program overhauled as well, but until then, the program is a convenient way to earn Star Alliance Gold with just a few long-haul business class flights.

What do you think about Flying Return's elite tiers? Let us know in the comments!