You know the drill if you’ve flown in the past few years. Toward the end of the flight—right when you’re thinking about gathering your things—the flight attendant picks up the PA for that announcement. Not the turbulence update. Not the “please stow your laptops” reminder.
Nope. It’s the sales pitch.
Airlines and their crews approach it differently. On American Airlines, I’ve heard openings such as, “We’ve had several passengers ask us during the flight how they can earn more miles!” (Sure, Jan.)
It’s the airline-card version of “Once you leave the lot, this offer won’t be available anymore!” You’re a captive audience with limited time, and airlines intentionally wait until the final descent. If they pitch it too early and the plane has Wi-Fi, you could look up whether it’s actually a good deal—and they definitely don’t want that.
Here’s the tricky part: sometimes, these in-flight offers are better than the public ones. I’ve seen bonuses with an extra 10,000 miles, lower spending requirements, or even cashback perks. Of course, not all offers are winners. I’ve also seen a promo where you got a whopping extra 500 miles for applying on board. Woo-hoo?
So why the push? A thread on Reddit features flight attendants from multiple airlines—American, United, Delta, Frontier, Spirit, and JetBlue—who claim to receive commissions when passengers sign up using those paper applications. Others note that making the announcement is required, and skipping it can actually get them in trouble.
Final Thoughts
If you’re even thinking about getting an airline’s co-branded credit card, look up the current welcome bonus before you fly. That way you’ll know immediately whether the in-flight offer is truly better—or if it’s simply banking on the fact that you can’t comparison-shop at 35,000 feet.
And yes, some people are understandably nervous about filling out a paper application in 2025. But with the number of digital hacks and data breaches these days, is pen and paper really any less safe?
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