The Latvian airline airBaltic announces a new technology enhancement to its loyalty program airBaltic Club, by releasing 10 000 non-fungible tokens (NFT) collection, called Planies. Owners of Planies will be able to receive airBaltic Club points and other benefits, even if travelling occasionally.
airBaltic CEO on why NFTs make sense for an airline
Martin Gauss, President and CEO of airBaltic: “We have seen a high interest in our initial NFTs, the airBaltic City Collection, and now we are taking the next step. By providing additional benefits like frequent flyer points or certain vouchers, we provide an added value to collectors. It is the first step towards preparing our loyalty program for crypto tokenization in the future.”
“With Web 3.0 (also known as Web3) arriving shortly, airBaltic is preparing to develop token-based economics for its frequent flyer program. The NFT technology will help to further digitalize processes, not only within our loyalty program, but in other airline action directions too, thus reducing costs and making our work easier. Also, the various Planies will be featured in the on-board entertainment materials for kids and youngsters, as well as in the airBaltic’s advertisements,” Gauss added.
Planies NFTs
Planies are digital collectible NFTs, each of them consisting of a unique cartoon artwork of an aircraft with different traits, such as mouth, eyes, wings, engines and other. A total of 10 000 unique NFTs will be issued on its dedicated Planies website. After the initial sales (minting), it will be possible to collect or trade them on the OpenSea marketplace.
airBaltic is well known as an airline of innovation among global carriers. Since 2014, the company is the first airline in the world to accept Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to purchase flight tickets. Later in 2021, airBaltic became the first airline internationally to issue NFTs. Find the airBaltic City Collection via its OpenSea profile.
Further updates will follow on Planies NFT Club Twitter account via the handle: @PlaniesNFT.
airBaltic in brief:
airBaltic (Air Baltic Corporation AS) connects the Baltic region with over 70 destinations in Europe, the Middle East, and the CIS. Over the last 26 years airBaltic has developed as a strong, profitable and internationally respected airline, which employs more than 2000 employees. airBaltic is by far the best known international brand of Latvia and responsible for more than 2.5% of the Latvian GDP. It has received numerous international awards for excellence and innovative services. airBaltic is a joint stock company that was established in 1995. Its primary shareholder is the Latvian state, which holds 97.96% of the stock, while the rest of the shareholders hold 2.04%.