I'm starting with the urgent news today because you've got less than 24 hours to act.

Loganair - the UK regional carrier that connects Scotland, Ireland, and various UK cities - is running a flash 50% off Avios sale that ends tonight at midnight. And unlike most 'sales' that come with blackout dates covering every time you'd actually want to travel, this one's available for peak summer dates.

But before we dive into that, let me mention something interesting happening on the Iberia side of the Avios family. They've just launched family pooling, which could change how many of you manage your points.

Which UK airport does Loganair connect to both Orkney and Shetland?

🟡 London Heathrow

🔵 Edinburgh

🟣 Manchester

⚫ All of the above

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

Here's the deal: Every single Loganair route is available for 3,250 Avios one-way instead of the usual 6,500 Avios. That's half price, and you can book through the end of their schedule starting from 7th March.

The only blackout dates? Christmas and New Year. That's it.

Let's do the maths on what this actually means:

That London Heathrow to Orkney flight (via Dundee) that normally costs around £500? You can book it for 6,500 Avios return plus roughly £70 in taxes. If you value Avios at our standard estimate of 1p per point, that's £65 in points plus £70 in taxes = £135 all-in.

Compared to the £500 cash fare, you're saving £365. That's exceptional value for a domestic UK redemption.

But here's where it gets interesting...

Loganair operates over 60 routes across the UK, Ireland, and even into Scandinavia. We're talking connections like:

Every single one of these routes is priced at the same flat rate: 3,250 Avios one-way during this sale. It doesn't matter if you're flying 50 miles or 500 miles - same price.

The key detail: You can't book these through ba.com. You need to transfer your Avios to a Loganair Loyalty account first.

Here's how it works:

First, create a Loganair Loyalty account using the same email address and name as your British Airways Executive Club account. This is crucial - if the details don't match, you won't be able to link the accounts.

Then, go to avios.com (yes, the new Avios website actually does something useful) and use their transfer tool to move Avios from your BA account to Loganair. The transfer is instant, free, and reversible - so if you transfer too many, you can send them back.

Heads up: You might need to attempt the transfer twice. The first attempt triggers a 2FA security check, then you'll need to try again. Also, check your spam folder for Loganair emails - that's where mine ended up.

Once your Avios are in your Loganair account, booking is straightforward. Just search for flights on the Loganair website and tick the 'Spend Avios' box.

What you get:

Warning: Seat selection costs extra, and there's no waiver for British Airways elite status holders. You'll pay for seat selection just like everyone else.

Bottom line: This is genuinely one of the best Avios redemption values you'll find in the UK right now. If you've been thinking about exploring Scotland's islands, visiting Ireland, or connecting to smaller UK cities, tonight's your deadline.

Just remember - Loganair's aircraft are small (72 seats or fewer), so Avios availability is limited. There's no guaranteed award space like you get with British Airways, Iberia, or Finnair.

Remember when we talked about the challenges of moving Avios points between family members? Well, Iberia just made that significantly easier.

They've launched family accounts that let you pool Avios with 2-7 other people - and here's the clever bit: there's no requirement to actually be related.

Unlike BA's household account system where you need to manually transfer points (and pay fees if you want to use Finnair as an intermediary), Iberia's approach is different. Each member keeps their own Iberia Plus account and individual Avios balance. There's no merging of accounts and no manual transfers needed.

The account creator becomes the Family Account manager, and then everyone's Avios are effectively available for booking travel for anyone in the group.

Why does this matter for UK readers?

Because Iberia Avios can be used on British Airways flights at often better value than booking through BA directly. Their distance-based award chart sometimes offers better pricing for short-haul European flights.

And honestly? This is the kind of flexibility that makes me wonder why BA hasn't implemented something similar yet. With Iberia's family pooling, you can collect Avios across multiple UK credit cards in different names and pool them for family bookings without the faff of manual transfers.

In my opinion, this is one of those quiet updates that will have a bigger impact than it first appears. Especially for couples or families who are strategically collecting Avios across multiple programmes.

With Aer Lingus winding down its Manchester base, Virgin Atlantic has wasted no time swooping in to fill the void.

The airline is boosting its long-haul operations from Manchester this summer with additional services to Orlando, reinforcing what Virgin describes as its long-term commitment to the North of England.

This is smart business from Virgin's perspective - Aer Lingus's exit leaves a gap in transatlantic capacity from Manchester, and Virgin's positioned to capture that demand.

For UK points collectors, this matters because it means more award availability on transatlantic routes from Manchester. Virgin's Virgin Points programme often has better availability than BA on US routes, and you can transfer points from American Express UK instantly.

And if you're up north, avoiding the trek to Heathrow for US flights is worth quite a bit in itself.

The answer is ⚫ All of the above!

Loganair connects London Heathrow, Edinburgh, and Manchester to both Orkney and Shetland. That's quite impressive coverage for Scotland's northern islands. The Heathrow flights stop in Dundee on the way, making them technically two-leg journeys, but Loganair treats them as single flights for Avios pricing - still just 3,250 Avios one-way during this sale.

Have you ever transferred Avios to Iberia or another partner for better redemption rates? Or do you stick with booking everything through BA? Hit reply - I'm genuinely curious about how UK readers navigate the different Avios programmes.

Right, that's your lot for today. Don't forget - Loganair sale ends tonight at midnight.

Friday Flight Deals finds the best flight deals when paying cash beats using points.

Browse all deals at FridayFlightDeals.com →