Too good to be true? The promise of airBaltic’s NFTs

The upfront costs and benefits of acquiring a Planie

As it stands, the cost of a Planie is tied to the price of the cryptocurrency known as Ethereum. Currently, these are sold at a price of 0.075 ETH, plus an “Ethereum gas fee.” At the time of this article’s publication, “Minting” (buying) a Planie directly from the airline would cost around $178.

So a one-time purchase worth around $180 will earn 20 points per day. Over the course of a year, the holder will then receive 7,300 points. For reference, a direct one-way flight within the Baltics (and southern Finland) can be purchased with 4,000 points, while a flight within region 2 (Poland, the Baltics and the Nordics, minus Iceland) costs 5,000 points.

Photo: airBaltic

Additionally, with airBaltic allowing (and perhaps encouraging) the ownership of multiple Planies, an owner of two will earn 40 points per day (14,600 annually), and 60 points per day for three (21,900). Thus, it seems like a worthwhile one-off investment, if the offer of points continues years into the future. In fact, one can theoretically recoup one’s initial monetary investment with free flights after a few years. Even better, the airline says so “Club Points can cover airfare costs (fare, fuel surcharge, airport taxes and ticket service fee),”

The messy process of buying into the program

Intrigued by the benefits of holding a Planie, I tried it myself. Personally, not owning any cryptocurrency, the process was quite an ordeal. While buying a Planie (coinage) was the easy part, “staking” it – linking it to my airBaltic loyalty account – was a bit more complicated. Roughly speaking, these are the steps required to reach the end goal of linking a Planie NFT to an airBaltic Club account.

1. Mint (buy) a Planie
2. Sign up for an airBaltic Club account (if you don’t already have one)
3. Sign up for a cryptocurrency wallet. This is not affiliated with airBaltic, and if you are new to the crypto world, please research what works best for you.
4. “Export” Planie to your wallet.
5. And finally, use the website mint.planiesnft.com/stake to link your wallet to an airBaltic Club account.

Photo: airBaltic

As someone who didn’t fully understand all the steps, it was a frustrating journey. But once the process is overcome, subsequent Planie purchases come much easier.

With all that said, it’s clear that buying into the program will require some knowledge of crypto and some technological savvy. Thus, the chance of your grandparents collecting Planies is lower – but not impossible.

Too good to be true?

The offer of 20 points per day per Planie, for a hypothetical unlimited time, sounds quite appealing. This is especially the case for someone who is able and willing to “go big” on a purchase of a number of these NFTs. For example, if someone buys 50 Planies – currently valued at around $9,000, does this mean they will earn 1,000 points per day and thus be able to fly airBaltic for free every week or two? Forever? That sounds awesome! It’s even better when you add airBaltic’s current offer of elite VIP status by holding 25 Planies.

In some ways this almost sounds like American Airlines’ AAirPass. The lifetime version of the airline pass, available at a price of $250,000 in 1981, would provide unlimited first-class travel for life. Today, in 2023, that equates to around $830,000. Notably, however, American Airlines ended the offering of this particular pass, as it ultimately became a loss-making business – especially due to those who misused (or “maxed out”) their AAirpasses.

In some ways, the benefits that come with Planies sound too good to be true – especially for those who regularly travel in and out of the Baltics. So what does the airline get out of this?

What the airline gets back

So what does airBaltic have in common? Well, if the price of Planies were to remain constant, airBaltic would theoretically make close to two million by selling all 10,000 Planies. However, the price will almost certainly increase in the future as fewer Planies become available and we get closer to all 10,000 sold.

But it’s not just about selling 10,000 NFTs and deciding what to do with the few million dollars. Like NFTs, the idea is that Planies should also be bought and sold on the secondary market. With this, the airline’s terms and conditions note that it will receive 7.5% of each secondary sale of a Planies NFT. Therefore, if the Planies become popular collectibles, which also become more valuable over time, the airline could see a steady stream of revenue from people buying and selling these items.

Photo: airBaltic

When it comes to issuing airBaltic Club points, it is clear that the airline is on the hook for all the rewards that can be purchased. However, not all Planie holders will travel alone and may want to take a trip with a friend or family member. Thus, the airline can see more passengers traveling with airBaltic when they follow airBaltic Club members who redeem their points.

The biggest risk associated with all of this is the price of Ethereum and whether it will become more or less valuable in the future. While the cryptocurrency is significantly down from its peak in November 2021, its value has doubled since the start of the year.

But what are your thoughts on airBaltic’s Planie NFT offer? Is there anything you think is worth buying in? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment!