{"version":"1.9","identifier":"6ee0f712-742f-49c3-a63f-8df78eaab733","language":"en-US","title":"Air India will let some Standard Chartered clients skip straight to Maharaja Club Gold or Silver","layout":{"columns":7,"width":1024,"margin":32,"gutter":20},"componentLayouts":{"text":{"columnStart":0,"columnSpan":7,"maximumContentWidth":720,"margin":{"top":12,"bottom":12}},"photo":{"columnStart":0,"columnSpan":7,"margin":{"top":20,"bottom":20}}},"componentTextStyles":{"default":{"fontName":"HelveticaNeue","fontSize":18,"lineHeight":29,"textColor":"#171717"},"headline":{"fontName":"HelveticaNeue-Bold","fontSize":36,"lineHeight":42,"conditional":[{"conditions":{"maxViewportWidth":480},"fontSize":28,"lineHeight":34}]},"intro":{"fontName":"HelveticaNeue","fontSize":20,"lineHeight":28,"textColor":"#555555"},"caption":{"fontName":"HelveticaNeue","fontSize":13,"lineHeight":19,"textColor":"#666666"},"byline":{"fontName":"HelveticaNeue","fontSize":13,"lineHeight":20,"textColor":"#666666"},"body":{"fontName":"HelveticaNeue","fontSize":18,"lineHeight":29,"paragraphSpacingAfter":14,"linkStyle":{"textColor":"#00704a"}}},"metadata":{"canonicalURL":"https://www.loungefrog.com/news/air-india-standard-chartered-maharaja-club-status-october-2026","datePublished":"2026-10-21T11:01:56.444059Z","dateModified":"2026-10-21T11:02:26.691098Z","authors":["Patrick Karsh"],"excerpt":"Eligible bank clients in Singapore and the UAE can get Air India elite status with lounge access. Gold also carries Star Alliance Gold.","thumbnailURL":"https://pub-fac99da959e344fe99d810d309cef7df.r2.dev/photos/article/6ee0f712-742f-49c3-a63f-8df78eaab733/b16754d332dae6c91c2d879f179fa511.jpg","keywords":["loyalty"],"generatorName":"Frog News","generatorVersion":"1.0"},"components":[{"role":"title","text":"Air India will let some Standard Chartered clients skip straight to Maharaja Club Gold or Silver","textStyle":"headline","layout":"text"},{"role":"intro","text":"Eligible bank clients in Singapore and the UAE can get Air India elite status with lounge access. Gold also carries Star Alliance Gold.","textStyle":"intro","layout":"text"},{"role":"byline","text":"By Patrick Karsh · Published October 21, 2026","textStyle":"byline","layout":"text"},{"role":"photo","URL":"https://pub-fac99da959e344fe99d810d309cef7df.r2.dev/photos/article/6ee0f712-742f-49c3-a63f-8df78eaab733/b16754d332dae6c91c2d879f179fa511.jpg","caption":"Terminal 3 at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, Air India's main international hub and home of The Maharaja Lounge · Ravi Dwivedi — CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)","accessibilityCaption":"Terminal 3 at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, Air India's main international hub and home of The Maharaja Lounge","layout":"photo"},{"role":"caption","text":"Terminal 3 at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, Air India's main international hub and home of The Maharaja Lounge · Ravi Dwivedi — CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)","textStyle":"caption","layout":"text"},{"role":"body","format":"markdown","text":"Air India has found a new way to hand out elite status: through a bank. The airline [announced on Oct. 21](https://www.airindia.com/in/en/newsroom/press-release/air-india-and-standard-chartered-partner-to-launch-travel-and-wealth-proposition-for-global-indians.html) that Standard Chartered will offer Maharaja Club Gold or Silver status to eligible clients in Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.\n\nBoth markets are home to large Indian communities, and both sit a short nonstop flight from Air India's hubs. The bank is aiming at affluent Indians whose work, family and money cross borders. Air India says the offer will be available in the coming weeks.\n\nWhat neither company has published yet is the fine print. There are no eligibility rules in the release, and no word on how a client ends up at Gold rather than Silver.\n\n## What the status includes\n\nAir India says both tiers come with the same family of perks, with more at Gold:\n\n* extra baggage allowance\n* priority check-in and boarding\n* airport lounge access\n* upgrade vouchers\n* bonus Maharaja Points\n\nThe release gives no baggage amounts, voucher counts or bonus rates. A footnote adds that Gold members get free seat selection and some fee waivers on eligible Air India journeys, subject to the program's terms.\n\n## Why Gold is the real prize\n\nGold carries [Star Alliance Gold](https://www.loungefrog.com/programs/star-alliance-lounge-access), and that is where the lounge value sits. Air India says it opens more than 1,000 airport lounges around the world, along with priority airport services, extra baggage and recognition on the alliance's 25 other airlines.\n\nIn practice, Star Alliance Gold members can usually use partner lounges when they fly an eligible Star Alliance itinerary, even in economy. The alliance and each lounge set the rules on guests and on short or domestic trips, so check them before you count on a seat.\n\nSilver is a different story. The release ties Star Alliance Gold to the Gold tier only. Silver members should expect lounge benefits on Air India's own terms, and the release does not say when those apply.\n\n## Who can get it\n\nOnly Standard Chartered clients in Singapore and the UAE are named. Customers in India, the UK or the US are not part of this launch. The bank says clients must meet its criteria, but it has not said what those are.\n\nThe status comes bundled with banking perks. Air India says eligible clients also get a dedicated relationship manager, market views from the bank's Chief Investment Office, invitations to events and tailored wealth products.\n\nRajesh Kannan, who leads Standard Chartered's wealth and retail banking in the UAE and Jersey and heads its Global Indian clients business, described the deal as a pairing of two heritage brands. Nipun Aggarwal, Air India's chief commercial officer, said it brings Maharaja Club status and benefits to key overseas markets.\n\n## How it compares\n\nThe usual way to reach [Maharaja Club](https://www.loungefrog.com/programs/air-india-maharaja-club) Gold is to earn it by flying Air India. This deal lets a small group of wealthy bank clients skip that step.\n\nIt is also a bigger offer than Standard Chartered's other airline perks in the Lounge Frog catalog. Its [Cathay Mastercard for Priority Banking clients](https://www.loungefrog.com/programs/sc-cathay-mastercard-priority) gives four Cathay Pacific business class lounge passes a year. Status with Star Alliance Gold attached opens far more doors, as long as you keep flying alliance airlines.\n\n## Where you would use it\n\nAir India's best lounge is [The Maharaja Lounge in Delhi](https://www.loungefrog.com/lounges/del-air-india-maharaja-lounge), one of the higher-rated airline lounges on Lounge Frog. The airline also runs Maharaja Lounges in [Bengaluru](https://www.loungefrog.com/lounges/blr-air-india-maharaja-lounge), [New York JFK](https://www.loungefrog.com/lounges/jfk-air-india-maharaja-lounge) and [San Francisco](https://www.loungefrog.com/lounges/sfo-air-india-maharaja-lounge), all open to Star Alliance Gold members.\n\nFor clients starting their trip in the two launch markets, Lounge Frog's guides to [Singapore Changi](https://www.loungefrog.com/airports/sin) and [Dubai International](https://www.loungefrog.com/airports/dxb) list each lounge and who gets in. You can also follow Air India news on its [airline page](https://www.loungefrog.com/airlines/ai).\n\n## What we still don't know\n\nA few questions will decide how good this is:\n\n* what a client needs to qualify, and who gets Gold\n* how long the status lasts, and whether it renews\n* how many upgrade vouchers and bonus points come with each tier\n* whether the offer will spread to other markets\n\nWe will update this story when the full terms are out.","textStyle":"body","layout":"text"}]}