The emails landed. The app updated. Members celebrated. And then, 50 hours later, British Airways changed its mind - and now thousands of members are about to be downgraded back to where they started.

British Airways says the status extensions were sent to 'fewer than 1%' of BA Club members. But roughly how many total members does the BA Executive Club have?

The answer is waiting near the bottom... keep scrolling 👇

Late on Friday, British Airways issued a statement confirming what many had suspected: the status extensions sent to members earlier this week were a mistake, and they're being reversed. BA's explanation is that a 'technical issue' caused members to be incorrectly informed they had retained their status 'when they hadn't earned it, or been entitled to it'.

The statement reads: "Due to a technical issue, some members (fewer than 1%) were incorrectly told they had retained their status, when they hadn't earned it, or been entitled to it. Because of this, we'll be contacting affected customers in the coming days to apologise and reinstate their correct tier."

That sounds straightforward. Except it isn't, for a few reasons.

First, the scale. Thousands of members reported receiving these emails - not dozens. If the BA Executive Club has, say, 13 million members, then 'fewer than 1%' could still mean well over 100,000 people. Reports suggest the number could be as high as 130,000. That is not a small rounding error.

Second, the timeline. BA took around 50 hours to issue this statement, claiming it required 'detailed forensic work' to identify the issue. But surely a basic dashboard showing current Gold and Silver member counts would have flagged an anomaly immediately? No forensics required.

Third - and this is the part that raises eyebrows - almost nobody affected appears to have been a member who was genuinely close to a renewal threshold. The people who would logically benefit from a legitimate extension under 'normal guidelines and criteria' have been largely silent. Instead, it's members with very few or zero tier points who received renewals.

There is a school of thought that this was not a mistake at all - that BA may have quietly trialled a loyalty goodwill gesture, faced significant pushback from members who worked hard for their status legitimately, and then retreated behind the cover of a 'technical error'. We may never know the full story.

What we do know: if you received an unexpected status extension email this week, expect a follow-up from BA with a downgrade notification. If you want to track exactly where you stand, our BA Tier Point Calculator can show you precisely how far from a genuine renewal you are. For all our ongoing BA coverage, see our British Airways stories page.

If you've been sitting on a pile of Hyatt points, the clock is ticking. World of Hyatt has confirmed that its sweeping award chart overhaul goes live on Wednesday 20th May, and the numbers are not pretty.

The programme is moving from three redemption tiers per category (off-peak, standard, peak) to five tiers (Lowest, Low, Moderate, Upper, and Top). Of 136 properties affected by category changes, 112 are moving up - meaning more points required - while only 24 are moving down.

The increases can be severe. Some properties are seeing point costs rise by up to 67%. And crucially, even hotels that stay in the same category will likely get more expensive in practice, because the new five-tier structure pushes more nights into higher pricing bands.

The good news: bookings made before May 20th lock in current pricing, even for future stays. So if there's a Hyatt property on your radar - particularly at higher categories where the jumps are sharpest - now is the time to book it. You can cancel most Hyatt award bookings up to 24 hours before check-in anyway, so there's little downside to reserving now.

Heads up: this affects Hyatt's global portfolio, not just US properties. UK travellers using Hyatt points for European and Asian stays should check whether their target hotels are among the 112 moving up before the deadline. See all our Hyatt coverage here for context on which categories are most affected.

Greece is already one of the most sought-after destinations for UK points travellers - and there's now a new reason to look more closely. The Conrad Athens The Ilisian has officially opened, taking over the site of the former Hilton Athens and repositioning it as a full Conrad luxury property.

The property has 278 rooms and suites, many with private balconies overlooking the city. As a Conrad property, it sits within the Hilton Honors programme, meaning you can redeem Hilton points for stays here. Hilton is currently running a 100% bonus on purchased points until 29th May - so if you're short on Honors points for a summer Athens stay, that promotion could be worth looking at (more on that in the Deal Alert below).

Athens is well served from the UK, with direct flights from Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, and Edinburgh in summer. If you're looking to use Avios for the flight and Hilton points for the hotel, Athens makes for a strong combination redemption. You can check live Avios flight availability using our BA Reward Avios Flight Finder.

Heads up: Conrad properties sit at the higher end of the Hilton points chart, so factor that into your planning. Diamond status holders get complimentary breakfast - if you hold Amex Platinum, you get Hilton Gold automatically, which is one tier below Diamond but still worth having.

This one is ending tonight. British Airways has been running a 40% bonus on purchased and gifted Avios since Thursday 23rd April, and it closes at 23:59 BST tonight, Monday 27th April. If you have a redemption in mind and are short on Avios, this is the window.

To give you a rough steer on value: buying Avios at a 40% bonus brings the effective cost per Avios down considerably versus the base rate. We estimate Avios are worth around 1p each on a typical redemption. Use our Buy Avios Calculator to check whether buying makes sense for your specific target redemption before you spend.

Warning: bonus Avios from this promotion do not count towards status. Buy at avios.com. Recipient must hold a BA Club account with at least 1 Avios if gifting.

Hilton Honors is offering a 100% bonus on purchased points until Thursday 29th May. That effectively halves the cost per point, making it one of the better Hilton buy-points promotions of the year.

The effective rate works out at around 0.5p per Hilton point with the bonus applied. Hilton points are generally worth around 0.4-0.5p on a solid redemption, so you're right at the edge of breakeven - which means this is best used when you have a specific high-value redemption in mind rather than speculative buying.

Good fit: topping up for a Conrad or Waldorf Astoria stay where the cash price is high and points redemptions are strong. The newly opened Conrad Athens The Ilisian is exactly the kind of property where this could make sense this summer. Deadline: Thursday 29th May.

The answer is 🟣 Around 13 million members. That means 'fewer than 1%' - BA's own framing - could still translate to well over 100,000 affected accounts. Which is precisely why the phrase 'a very small number' in their statement feels a little uncomfortable. At scale, small percentages are still very large numbers of real people.

The BA status saga has sparked a real debate: is loyalty to one airline worth it when the goalposts can move like this? Are you doubling down on Avios and BA status - or quietly building a more diversified points portfolio across multiple programmes? Hit reply and let me know - I read every response.

And if you want to compare what different UK credit cards earn across programmes, our Credit Card Comparison tool is a good place to start.

That's it for today - but don't forget: the 40% Avios buy bonus expires tonight at 23:59 BST. If you've been on the fence, tonight is your last chance. Check whether the maths works for your redemption using the Buy Avios Calculator before midnight.

These are the top credit card welcome bonuses we're tracking. Offers change frequently - see all cards.

1. Business Platinum Card: 120,000 points after spending £12,000 in 3 months (£650/yr)

2. Platinum Card: 75,000 points after spending £10,000 in 6 months (£650/yr)

3. Business Gold Card: 20,000 points after spending £3,000 in 3 months (£195/yr (waived first year))

4. Gold Card: 20,000 points after spending £3,000 in 3 months (£195/yr (waived first year))

Looking to redeem your points? Here's what's available right now (via Award Travel Finder):

Hotels:

Status Matches:

• Flying Blue Status Match - Air France / KLM (SkyTeam)

• Flying Blue UK (BA Status Holders) - Air France / KLM (SkyTeam)

• Flying Blue (Iberia) - Air France / KLM (SkyTeam)

See all award deals at AwardTravelFinder.com →

Before we wrap up, I wanted to share some timely opportunities I've been tracking (courtesy of our friends at AwardTravelFinder). These deals won't last long, so let's dive in.

Hotel programs:

Award Travel Finder hunts down the best redemptions so you don't have to.

See all deals at AwardTravelFinder.com →