American Airlines Schedules More Transcon 737 MAX 8 Routes Out Of Miami (Avoid If...
The Economy Class cabin on the new American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft have been described as "the most miserable experience in the world" by one of the airline's own pilots and, if you're a Miami-based flyer, you're going to find it increasingly more difficult to avoid these aircraft if you choose to fly with American.
American Airlines Downsizes Its Dallas – Buenos Aires Route For Summer 2019
It's always a good idea to pay attention to airline schedule changes if you have one or more flights booked a few months ahead as some of the changes we see can make a significant difference to your flight.
The closer you are to your departure date the less likely an airline is to change the aircraft it's employing (unless a mechanical fault or a weather front intervene) but when you have flights booked over six months out the seat/cabin you reserved at the time of booking may look a lot different when it actually comes time to fly.
This Is Why Service On American Airlines Won’t Get Better
The Chicago Business Journal has reported that American Airlines is adding 'service analysts' to some of its flights as the airline desperately tries to find ways to get flight attendants to offer customers a reasonable level of service. Unsurprisingly, some within the flight attendant pool are less than happy about this.
American Airlines Is Adding 18 New Routes & More Flights To Europe In 2019
Yesterday we heard United Airlines tell us all about the extra flying it will be doing from San Francisco next year and today we have American Airlines telling us how it will be expanding in 2019 too...but prepare to be disappointed.
If you thought that United had overhyped its new routes from San Francisco before the official announcement yesterday you're probably going to be equally disappointed when you see the "18 new routes" American Airlines has announced today
An American Airlines Aircraft Swap Which May Be Good News For LA-Based Flyers
American Airlines has made a change to the aircraft it is deploying on its Los Angeles - London route and the net effect should be very good news for LA-based AAdvantage Members looking to upgrade or to use their miles for a premium cabin award booking.
American Airlines Introduces Biometric Boarding At LAX
The rapid improvements we have been seeing in facial recognition software combined with the amazing capability government agencies have to collect and collate data about us have seen airlines make serious investments in biometric gate technology.
Delta and BA were both playing around with biometric gates back in 2017, British Airways then expanded its US biometric gate trials to include 3 gates at LAX back in March, Lufthansa followed suit just a couple of weeks later and, just recently, JetBlue got its facial recognition systems up and running at JFK.
Now, at LAX, it's the turn of American Airlines.
American Airlines Will Offer Lie-Flat Seats & Flagship First Class On Its Los Angeles...
American Airlines has a small sub-fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft which offer premium cabins which are a significant step up from what you'll find on most other narrow-body American Airlines aircraft.
These aircraft offer First Class, Business Class and Economy Class cabins and the two premium cabin come equipped with true lie-flat seats.
Since these aircraft were fist introduces a few years back they have been employed primarily on American's transcontinental routes between New York and the West Coast - specifically on flights to LA and San Francisco.
American Airlines & China Southern Expand Partnership (Reciprocal Elite Benefits On The Way)
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American Airlines Adds Yet More Uncomfortable Flights Out Of Miami
If you're an American Airlines flyer based out of Miami you have my sympathy. Not only do you have an incredibly overcrowded Centurion Lounge to put up with but you also have to deal with the fact that American Airlines has chosen your home airport as the primary base for its hateful 737 MAX 8 aircraft.
American Airlines & British Airways Are Offering “Low Fares To North America” (UK)
The British Airways Black Friday sale will launch tonight at midnight (UK) time but the airline is already promoting a series of transatlantic Economy Class fares in conjunction with its partner American Airlines.
As if to show just how closely British Airways and American Airlines are now intertwined the BA press release discussing these fares actually links to an American Airlines web page (here).
American Airlines Is Selling Pointless Status Again And Some Offers Make No Sense At...
You know that the year is drawing to a close when American Airlines starts sending you emails suggesting that you pay them quite a bit of cash in exchange for a bump up to a status level you probably don't need (or which offers few worthwhile benefits). Two such emails have recently dropped into the TFM household's inboxes and, try as I might, I just don't understand the logic behind them.
American Airlines Simply Doesn’t Care About AAdvantage Or Its Members
There was a time when the American Airlines AAdvantage program was the clear leader in the airline loyalty sector and when the airline saw it as a genuine asset to its business. Nowadays all of that is rapidly becoming a distant memory as the current leadership team at American Airlines continues to dismantle AAdvantage and with it what little loyalty that is still felt towards the increasingly hard-to-like airline.
American Airlines Now Offers Free Live TV On Domestic Flights
American Airlines has announced that it has switched on free in-flight live TV on 100 of its domestic aircraft and that it plans to roll out the service across its 700+ strong narrow-body fleet during 2019.
Review: American Airlines 777-300ER Business Class LAX-LHR (Overnight)
After a number of Economy Class flights across the Atlantic it was nice to have one of my systemwide awards clear – that’s how I found myself in the American Airlines 777-300ER Business Class cabin.
American Airlines Cancels A Miami – Washington Service
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Capitulation: American Airlines Admits Its Basic Economy Fares Aren’t Working
While there are few things more annoying than an airline introducing new measures under the guise of “passenger improvements” there are few things more pleasing than seeing that same airline forced into backtracking on those measures. This time it’s American Airlines looking more than a little sheepish.
American Airlines Cuts Business Class Seats On Its 787-8 Dreamliners
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Review: American Airlines A321S First Class (LIH-LAX)
Two weeks earlier I had flown my first flight on an American Airlines A321S and, as my upgrade had failed to clear, I got to experience (and review) the aircraft’s Economy Class cabin.
On this occasion my complimentary upgrade cleared a whole 2 days before departure (miracles do happen!) so it was time to try out the A321S First Class cabin.
Bad News: American Adds Its Worst Aircraft To Transcon Routes
I've just taken a few moments to try to think of some positive passenger news that has come out of American Airlines in the past few years and I'm really struggling to come up with much.
Yes, if you're a high fare passenger things may be slightly better for you following the changes to the AAdvantage program and, if you're so valuable to American Airlines that you're invited into the Concierge Key program, things are probably better for you too....but that's it.
Review: American Airlines A321S Economy Class (Los Angeles – Maui)
The Airbus A321S is American’s aircraft of choice on a number of its routes to/from Hawaii so, if you’re thinking of visiting the 50thstate, there’s a very good chance that this is the aircraft you’ll experience.
The First Class cabin on the American Airlines A321S holds 16 passengers but, as the cabin had been fully booked for months, I had known for a while that my complimentary upgrade was never going to clear….and it didn’t.
Review: American Airlines 777-200 Economy Class Day Flight (LHR-LAX)
One of the many reasons I'm not longer wedded to American Airlines is that the airline recently changed its upgrade policy to one which really doesn't suit me. The current upgrade policy is now one which puts me at a serious disadvantage when trying to use one of the 4 systemwide upgrades top-tier elites are given every year. It's also the reason I found myself sitting in American Airlines Economy class on one of the longer routes the airline flies.
American Airlines Has Ordered New Aircraft…..But Passenger Comfort Isn’t Getting Better
One of the bigger pieces of airline news from last week was the announcement that American Airlines has ordered a host of new Boeing 787 aircraft and finally got around to cancelling the Airbus A350 order we all knew it had no intention of seeing through.
Specifically, American Airlines has ordered 22 Boeing 787-8 aircraft scheduled to start arriving in 2020 and 25 Boeing 787-9 aircraft whose deliveries will commence in 2023.
American Airlines 737 Max 8 Routes (a.k.a Routes You Should Avoid)
American Airlines has, at the time of writing, taken delivery of six Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft. This may not seem like news you're should be particularly interested in but, if you fly with American Airlines with any frequency (especially out of Miami), this is probably a blog post you should pay attention to.
American Adds New Routes (And Quietly Cuts Routes Too)
American Airlines has announced an impressive looking set of new routes between the US and Central/South America set to start in late 2018/early 2019. What the airline failed to mention in its press release was that the new routes would be coming at the expense of service currently offered on other routes to South America.
American Airlines Adds Lie-Flat Seats To LAX – Philadelphia Route
Every now and again American seems to have a spare A330 or two hanging around with little to do and, luckily for domestic passengers, the airline decides to schedule it/them to operate a domestic route. Right now there's an A330-200 flying between San Francisco and Philadelphia and, from later this month, LAX will get A330 service from Philadelphia too.
Excellent British Airways & American Airlines Business Class Fares UK – USA
British Airways & American Airlines are currently offering some excellent Business Class fares for travel from the UK to various cities in the US (including the West Coast). There doesn't appear to be a set closing date for these fares so, technically, they could disappear at any time - if you see a fare that works for you don't take too long deciding whether or not to book.
American Airlines Is Improving Transpacific Premium Cabin Meals
It's clearly the time of year for airlines to rethink their menus. We've already seen United make changes to its domestic buy onboard offering and Delta announcing improvements to its international Main Cabin menus and now American Airlines has announced that it's revamping its premium cabin menus on transpacific routes.
American Airlines Business Extra Upgrades Just Went Paperless (And Two Promotions You Should Be...
Business Extra is the loyalty program from American Airlines aimed at small and medium sized businesses. Anyone can sign up for Business Extra (even private individuals who don't have a business) and, if you fly American Airlines, British Airways or Iberia with any frequency, it's a program you should probably be signed up to.
BREAKING NEWS: Oneworld Transatlantic Basic Economy Fares Are Coming – Here’s What You Need...
In an announcement to the travel industry British Airways has confirmed that it and its fellow transatlantic joint venture partners will offer "unbundled fares" on select transatlantic routes from as early as next month. In plain speak this means that oneworld Basic Economy fares are about to be unleashed on the flying public. Here's everything you need to know.
Fantastic Service From American Airlines As Iberia Really, Really Screws Up
I have done more than my fair share of American Airlines bashing over the past two years (it has been well deserved) but, right now, I'm incredibly grateful for some truly fantastic service from the airline after it got us out of a serious mess of Iberia's making.
American Airlines & Qantas Want Government Permission To Price-Fix
Two years after withdrawing their last request American Airlines and Qantas have gone back to the US Department of Transport (DOT) asking for permission to form a joint venture and to revenue share across the Pacific. Essentially the airlines are asking permission to create a similar agreement to the one American Airlines has with British Airways, Iberia & Finnair for flights across the Atlantic.
Comparing Basic Economy: American v Delta v United – Who Offers What?
While all three legacy carriers now offer Basic Economy fares not all the offerings are the same (in fact there are some notable differences between the 3 airlines), so it's worth knowing which airlines offers what.
With that in mind, I've read through the information on Basic Economy fares provided by the three legacy carriers and put the pertinent pieces into the tables below. Hopefully these will allow readers to compare what each airline offers and highlight areas where one airline is better than the other(s).
Which American Airlines Credit Cards Override Basic Economy Hand Baggage & Boarding Rules?
The degree to which Basic Economy fares strip out passenger benefits varies from airline to airline but they all inconvenience passengers in one way or another. Holding airline status or the right credit card can go a long way to mitigating some of these inconveniences and making the whole Basic Economy experience a little more tolerable.
American Airlines 777-300ER Premium Economy Cabin Revealed?
Earlier this year, at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Transportation conference, American Airlines announced the Premier Economy retrofit schedule for the whole wide-body fleet. While the airline's 797-9 Dreamliners came ready-fitted with American's newest cabin American is having to retrofit the Premium Economy cabin to its existing aircraft....including its flagship 777-300ER.
The Math Tells Me Not To Credit Flights To American Airlines
I've been trying my hardest not to be one of those travelers who complains incessantly about an airline devaluing its frequent flyer program only to keep handing that same airline his/her cash on an ongoing and frequent basis.
American Airlines has destroyed the AAdvantage program for travelers like me (for a very small minority it may have improved) so my plan has been to avoid flying American Airlines as much as possible...but it's been quite hard.
A New Reason American Airlines Is Getting Even Less Of My Cash
I've been avoiding flying with American Airlines as much as possible this year because I don't want to be one of those flyers who complains, complains and complains about an airline and yet still gives that airline his business. That's been the main reason why American has been seeing less of my cash lately but, even when I' prepared to bite the bullet, American is still getting less of my money that it would have done in the past.
News: United Cancels A Route To Europe, American Downsizes A Route (Temporarily) & More
Snippets of news that I noticed in the past few days that didn't really warrant a blog post of their own but that may be of help/use/interest to readers anyway. Includes information on the latest route to be cut between the US and Europe, Qatar Airways finding more use for its idle A320s and more.
Fare Alert: Manchester/Dublin To Chicago Business Class From $1,680
Hot on the heels of the great Business Class fares from Prague to multiple cities in North America and the Business Class fares between Europe and Las Vegas/San Francisco comes another very nice Business Class fare between Europe and the US.
American Airlines Adds Lie-Flat Seats On Its Philadelphia – San Francisco Route (Temporarily)
In its latest schedule update American Airlines has provided passengers flying between Philadelphia and San Francisco with a very nice temporary aircraft upgrade. Travelers on this route are normally subjected to the airline's narrow-body Airbus A321 aircraft but, from early October, one of the daily flights will be taken over by a wide-body aircraft fitted out for international flights.
Sign Of The Times With American Airlines – 75% Of My Systemwide Upgrades Will...
Not too long ago I was a pretty big fan of American Airlines. I liked the fact that the airline was investing in a newer fleet, I loved the AAdvantage program (it was the best airline loyalty program out there) and as a top-tier elites I had some very nice perks. But that was then.
American Airlines Adds Premium Economy To Beijing
Just last week American finally opened up reservations on its new route between Los Angeles and Beijing scheduled to start on 5 November and, just like with its routes to Beijing out of Chicago and Dallas, the airline scheduled a 787-8 Dreamliner to operate the route out of LA.
Now, in the latest routes update, American Airlines has scheduled a 787-9 Dreamliner to operate the Los Angeles Beijing route from 25 March 2018.
Great Economy Class Fares From BA/AA For Europe To Los Angeles
With a base in LA I'm almost always keeping a close eye on fares from Europe back to California (especially when I start missing the sunshine!) and it looks as if there are some excellent deals available right now from both American Airlines and British Airways. The great fares will require a connection and some will require you to return to a different city to the one you originated in.....but they could save you quite a bit.
News: Delta Launches New Route To Africa, American Airlines Just Gets Worse & Qatar...
Just a few of the more important and interesting news stories I noticed from the past couple of days which could affect your travel plans – the news out of American is particularly egregious!
American Airlines Announces New European Routes & Seriously Cuts Routes Out Of JFK
American Airlines has announced that it will operate three new routes between the US and Europe for the 2018 summer season but, while the airline appears to be building up its network out of Philadelphia, American's routes out of New York JFK will soon see some serious-looking cuts.
American Airlines Is Hawking Miles Again – Most Should Stay Away (As Usual)
When I write a post here on TFM there can be any one of a number of reasons why I chose to write it - I may think the information in it will save someone money, I may think that a review of a product will better inform travelers of what's on offer and, sometimes I consider the post to be a PSA. This post definitely falls into that last category.
I’m Very Glad American Airlines Eliminated This Rule
I already have most of my travels mapped out for 2017 and, as I've explained in the past, I'll be crediting my trips to American Airlines' AAdvantage program for one more year before almost certainly becoming a free agent in 2018.
While I'm more than used to having to hit 100,000 Elite Qualifying Miles every year to retain Executive Platinum status there's a new element to earning status this year that has seen me change how I book my flights - Elite Qualifying Dollars (EQD).
What Are The Best Business Class Seats On The American Airlines 777-300ER?
I recently reviewed the American Airlines 777-300ER Business Class product on a daytime flight between London and Los Angeles and I've been getting a few questions about which seats are the ones to choose and why I prefer some seats to others....so here are my thoughts.
The first thing to point out is that, unlike 3rd rate carriers such as British Airways, American Airlines does not charge for seat selection in its Business Class cabin.
Review: American Airlines 777-300ER Economy Class Night Flight (LAX-LHR)
On my flight from London to Los Angeles my upgrade had cleared at check-in despite having been requested 6 months ahead of my flight (a new reality now that American has changed how it prioritizes upgrades) but this was the flight on which my upgrade request really counted. It has been at least 7 years since I last spent a 9 -10 hour overnight flight in Economy Class and I can't say that I was looking forward to that run ending.
Big Changes To The Alaska Airlines & American Airlines Partnership
Alaska Airlines has long been a haven for flyers who like to credit their American Airlines flights to Alaska's Mileage Plan program for its better (and often easier) redemptions on a variety of airlines. Unfortunately, following an announcement today, that haven will soon disappear as Alaska and American Airlines dissolve most of their partnership.
American Airlines Selling Miles At 1.72 Cents/Mile (Again) – Should You Buy?
Since American Airlines merged with US Airways we've, unsurprisingly, seen a lot of US Airways-type behavior from the joint entity. One type of behavior that stands out in particular is that the airline almost always has some kind of "offer" available to anyone who wants to buy AAdvantage Miles. The last offer ran out on 30 June so it's not that surprising that we now have the airline's latest promotion....which appears to be an extension of the one that just ended.
Review: American Airlines 777-300ER Business Class Daytime Flight (LHR-LAX)
The American Airlines 777-300ER Business Class cabin is almost certainly the airline cabin I know best. Before this trip started I had flown in American's largest aircraft a total of 27 times (don't ask how I know that) and of those 27 times 25 had been in the Business Class cabin (don't ask how I know that either!).
On the vast majority of occasions I've found myself sitting in Business Class courtesy of a Systemwide upgrade and, on this occasion too, I had asked to apply a Systemwide upgrade to my flight....only this time things were not looking promising.
The Annoying Glitch When American Airlines Releases & Processes Upgrades
For a cheapskate like me it's bad enough that American Airlines now prioritizes upgrades based on Elite Qualifying Dollars earned rather than on the date the upgrade was requested but, when I'm reminded that there's a glitch in the airline's upgrade process that potentially allows others to skip over me in the upgrade line, that just adds insult to injury...although I'm not above exploiting that glitch myself!
You Can Buy AAdvantage Miles “Cheaply” Right Now…….And Here’s Why You Shouldn’t
AAdvantage miles are currently available to purchase directly through American Airlines for just 1.725 cents each but, although that's the lowest price we've seen for a number of years, you probably shouldn't be buying any miles from American - here's why.
Beware This American Airlines Rip-Off
I don't use the term "rip-off" often. In fact, outside of how I sometimes refer to airline surcharges, I don't think I've used that term to describe anything else on Traveling For Miles...but my recent experience with American Airlines is really best described as just that.
I'm in the UK right now and, a couple of days ago, I happened to be using ITA Matrix to search for flights between Europe and California/Hawaii for next year. Most Business Class fares for the complex itinerary I was trying to book were coming in at well in excess of $3,000 so I decided to see what Economy Class fares I could find.
How & Why American Airlines Has Lost Most Of My Business
American Airlines has been my primary airline for quite a few years now and the AAdvantage loyalty program was, for a long time, my favourite airline program by a considerable margin….but all that has changed very quickly over the past 18 months.
From the moment the management of US Airways got their hands on American back in December 2013 a lot of AAdvantage loyalists began to fear for the future of the program.
AAdvantage was the world’s first true airline loyalty program and, historically, had been one of the most generous programs out there…but we knew that couldn’t last.
AAdvantage was so much better than the loyalty programs United (MileagePlus) and Delta (SkyMiles) offered that we knew that, at some point, there was going to have to be a review of what AAdvantage offered.
American Airlines Will Fly Refurbished 757s To Edinburgh & Glasgow
American Airlines has announced that it will resume seasonal service between the US and Scotland’s two largest cities using its refurbished 757-200 aircraft.
From 26 March American Airlines will resume a daily service between New York JFK and Edinburgh while, from 6 May, the airline will restart its seasonal service between Philadelphia and Glasgow which will operate 6x/week.
No, American’s New Boarding Order Isn’t Complicated At All
Last week and as a result of the introduction of Basic Economy fares American Airlines announced that it would be changing the order in which passengers board its aircraft from 1 March 2017. I had a quick look at the details in the airline's press release to make sure it hadn't done anything particularly heinous (it hadn't) and then went about my day.
American Airlines Introduces “BASIC ECONOMY” Fares
Traveling For Miles is on a hiatus right now while a couple of other projects I'm working on take up all my time but I had to make time to post this official announcement from American Airlines - Details of American Airlines Basic Economy Fares have been announced and the fares will be available from 10 February "in select markets".
American Airlines Makes Chicago – London An All 787-8 Route
At the end of October American Airlines changed the aircraft scheduling on its Chicago - London route and, in doing so, eliminated First Class on the route. That aircraft change saw the route operated by a mixture of 787-8 Dreamliners and older 767 aircraft but it looks like American isn't done with its tinkering just yet.
American Airlines To Bring Back Second Daily Philadelphia – London Flight
American Airlines has announced that it will be reinstating the second daily Philadelphia - London Heathrow flight that was last seen in 2015 and operated by the then US Airways. The second daily rotation between the two cities is only being brought in for the summer season but, following Virgin Atlantic's announcement of a 3rd daily flight to Los Angeles, is another example of the significantly increased capacity we'll be seeing between the US and Europe in 2017.
Why A Lot Of Flyers Should Be Booking Codeshare Flights If Crediting Travel To...
Since American Airlines moved over to a revenue based system for mileage accrual most travelers have seen their AAdvantage mileage earnings plummet. On 1 August 2016 AAdvantage completed its transformation from one of the most generous airline rewards programs to a shadow of its former self. Never was that fact made more obvious than when the miles from a recent trip to Sao Paulo posted to my account.
American Airlines Black Friday AAdvantage Sale – Buy Miles From 1.77 Cents
American Airlines is running a special Black Friday promotion alongside the "buy miles and get a bonus promotion" it launched earlier this month. Anyone buying AAdvantage miles between now and 11:59:59pm CT on 28 November 2016 will get an additional 20% bonus on the miles that they purchase.
American Airlines Will Sell You Elite Status – What Was Your Offer?
American Airlines has been sending out emails to AAdvantage members reminding them that they will, once again, allow customers to pay to retain their existing status (if it looks like that won't happen naturally) or to buy up to the next elite status level if they're within a reasonable distance of qualifying anyway.
Will American Airlines Use Premium Economy To Devalue AAdvantage Again?
Since we found out American Airlines' plans for its Premium Economy product there has been a lot of talk about what changes this is going to bring about. We've had discussions on how the airline will implement the new cabin, what effect Premium Economy will have on upgrades, what routes American will introduce Premium Economy on and how much American Airlines will charge for Premium Economy.
What I haven't seen discussed is how American Airlines is going to fit Premium Economy redemptions into its award chart and it's this aspect of what's coming soon that has me concerned.
American Airlines Launches International 787-9 Dreamliner Service
On Friday American Airlines launched its brand new 787-9 (a stretch version of the 787-8) on the Dallas - Madrid route marking the start of the airlines first regular international 787-9 service (the new Dreamliner has already visited London on its ETOPS certification flight).
American Airlines Cancels Dreamliner Service To Manchester
It was pretty good news when, back in February, American Airlines announced that it would be replacing the ageing 767 that operated the Chicago - Manchester route with a brand new 787-8 Dreamliner complete with a Great Business Class cabin and improved entertainment for Economy Class.
Unfortunately the news didn't remain good for too long. The Dreamliner kept being withdrawn from the route as it suffered what appeared to be an unprecedented number of maintenance issues and things got frustrating for passengers.
No Surprise: American Airlines Adds New Elite Top-Tier
There have been rumours going around for some time suggesting that American Airlines will be adding a new top-tier status level to the AAdvantage program (I mentioned it just last week) and, as of yesterday, that's exactly what the airline has done.
American Airlines’ Has A Truly Ill-Conceived Boarding Policy
Sometime towards the beginning of this year American Airlines decided that it had been too long since it had changed something that didn’t need changing and it went and altered the order in which passengers are allowed to board.
The order in which passengers board may not seem like a big deal - and it probably shouldn’t be - but thanks to the way airlines have attempted to monetize every-single-part of the flying experience, it actually is.
American Airlines May Introduce A New Top-Tier AAdvantage Status…..And Why I Don’t Really Care
A rumor has resurfaced that suggests that American Airlines may be about to introduce a new top-tier to the AAdvantage program. This isn’t the first time this has been muted – there was a lot chatter about this in the first few months of this year – but, even as a current top-tier elite with American Airlines, I’m relatively unconcerned.
FARE ALERT: Milan – New York From $1,460/€1,335 Roundtrip (Oneworld)
British Airways has published a very good fare for travel between Milan and New York (JFK) on American Airlines and on British Airways. The fact that it's British Airways that's published the fare (and not American) is excellent news for a lot of AAdvantage members - I'll explain why a little later on.
American Airlines Removes First Class From Chicago – London Route
Back in June American Airlines replaced the Boeing 777-200 aircraft that operated the Chicago - London route with a 787-8 Dreamliner for three weeks. After the 3 week period was up the 777-200 didn't return and, instead, the flight was taken up by American's flagship 777-300ER aircraft complete with its international First Class cabin.
American Airlines Delays The Introduction Of Basic Economy Fares
In October 2015 Scott Kirby, the then American Airlines’ president, used a Wall Street earnings call to announce that 2016 would be the year American Airlines would introduce a new type of fare which would be priced to compete with low-cost carriers like Spirit and Frontier. We ere told that "Basic Economy" fares would be coming to American Airlines.
Well, Basic Economy fares are still coming to American Airlines but they won't be coming in 2016 according to the airline's earnings call to Wall St. yesterday.
American Airlines Cancels Routes, British Airways Changes Washington Service & United Flys Its 777...
A round-up of some of the airline news I've noticed over the past few days including American Airlines cancelling three of its routes out of Philadelphia, British Airways changing the aircraft it uses on its London - Washington DC route and United Airlines scheduling a brief flurry of 777 service between San Francisco and Las Vegas in January 2017.
I’m Cheating On American And It Feels Great!
I've made no secret of my feelings towards the American Airlines hierarchy following the changes to the AAdvantage program but I've also pointed out that I'm not really sure where else to turn if I want to earn and burn miles in a loyalty program that hasn't already been decimated. Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan is a go-to program for a lot of disenchanted AAdvantage members but that program doesn't work so well if you have travel patterns like mine...so I'm a little bit stuck
American Airlines’ Refitted 757s Are Excellent News For OneWorld Flyers
American Airlines's fleet has been undergoing a seismic change over the past few years with the introduction of a host of new aircraft ranging from wide-bodys like the the 777-300ERs and the 787 Dreamliners through to narrow-bodies like the A321T and the 737-800. But, while the new aircraft have done a fantastic job of dragging American's premium cabins towards the top of the transatlantic pile, the airline still has a few black sheep in its international fleet - cue American's 757-200.
Is This When American Airlines Will Officially Introduce Premium Economy?
Considering how much the product has been discussed it's surprising we still don't know quite a few things about American Airlines' new Premium Economy product. We don't know for sure which aircraft will have the cabin and which won't, we don't know what percentage of seats in each aircraft will be given over to Premium Economy and, perhaps most importantly, we don't really know when American Airlines plans on fully unleashing its Premium Economy product on the flying public....but we may now have a hint.
Earn Up To 30,000 AAdvantage Miles On USA – Europe Travel
American Airlines is offering up to 30,000 AAdvantage Miles on flights between the US and Europe for travel this fall. With American's OneWorld partner, British Airways, offering a Triple Avios promotion during the same period travelers have the chance to bulk up their reward account balances if flying over the next few months.
American Airlines Schedules New Routes To Amsterdam, Barcelona & Rome
Last week American Airlines announced that it was putting through some changes to its European routes. The airline cancelled three existing seasonal services and replaced them with three new seasonal services to Amsterdam, Barcelona and Rome. What the airline didn't announce last week was what the schedules for these new routes would look like....but now we know.
Delta & American Open Reservations For Flights To Havana
Over the weekend and in the early hours of this morning Delta and American Airlines added their respective USA - Havana flights to their schedules and opened up bookings to anyone who qualifies for travel to Cuba. As much as I'd like to go on another rant about the sheer stupidity of the rules governing who can and who cannot travel to Cuba from the US I'll restrain myself and focus on the route news.
American Airlines Schedules New 787-9 Dreamliner Routes – Bookable Now
American Airlines will be taking delivery of its first 787-9 Dreamliner somewhere around the end of this month and we already know that the inaugural flight will be on the Dallas - London route (a one-off roundtrip) and that the airline will be using the Dallas - Los Angeles route for crew familiarization. We were told back in July that the first international routes would be between Dallas and Madrid and Dallas and Sao Paulo and now American has scheduled the 787-9 on two more of its long-haul routes.
Round Up: Delta Closing Heathrow Arrivals Lounge, American Changes 787-9 Inaugural Flights & Cathay...
A round up of some of the airline news that I've noticed over the past few days including news that Delta is to close its arrivals lounge at Heathrow, Cathay Pacific is reintroducing fuel surcharges on flights to Hong Kong and American Airlines has changed the route for its inaugural 787-9 Dreamliner flight.
American Airlines Reduces First Class Between LA & London
American Airlines has put through an interesting change to its winter schedule that I've only just noticed and it may well affect some readers of this blog. The change involves an aircraft swap on the Los Angeles - Heathrow route which sees the First Class cabin eliminated on 50% of this route's flights as well as a reduction in Business Class capacity.
American Airlines “Basic Economy” Coming To International Routes
New American Airlines President Isom presented at the 9th Annual Cowen Global Transportation Conference earlier today and, while there wasn't that much said that we haven't heard in one way or another before, one thing he mentioned was news to me. On top of that there were bits and pieces of information that were interesting and a few things said that gives an little insight into how American Airlines sees things.
American Airlines Asia Promotions – Earn Bonus AAdvantage Miles
American Airlines has launched a couple of Asia-related promotions which allow AAdvantage members to earn bonus miles on flights between the US/Canada and select cities in Asia as well as on round trip flights within Japan. These promotions are in conjunction with JAL so flights on both airlines will earn bonus miles.
Be Careful Which Version Of An Airline’s Website You Use – It Could Cost...
We sometimes hear of a great fare, usually in a premium cabin, that's only available to those residing in a specific country. It's at times like these where people will suddenly remember that they have, coincidentally, just moved to that country and they'll attempt to book tickets (sometimes successfully) using any old address in the country of question. I'm not about to pass judgement on those who do that but I just wanted to mention this practice simply to point out that this is not what I'm referring to in this post.
American Airlines Offering Free In-Flight Premium Entertainment
American Airlines, today, continued its recent trend of following Delta like a sheep following its shepherd.....but at least this time the move is a positive one for flyers. Delta has been offering its customers 100% free in-flight entertainment on all 2-class aircraft since the beginning of July and now American Airlines is proudly announcing the same thing....sort of.
American Airlines Heathrow Arrivals Lounge Re-Opens
A fact that quite a few American Airlines frequent flyers seem to forget is that American Airlines has an Arrivals lounge at Heathrow T3 and, if you're flying in on a long haul flight, it can be a good place to freshen up and get a bit to eat before heading on into the city.
Since 29 February the arrivals lounge has been closed for renovations (as part of a broader lounge renovation project that American started in 2015) but now it has reopened and is once again ready for use.
BOOK QUICK! Great American Airlines Award & Upgrade Availability USA – Europe!
We've seen this before from American Airlines and this is clearly becoming "a thing". American Airlines has, once again, opened up a substantial number of Miles SAAver Business Class awards for travel to Europe from various American cities.
American Airlines Business Class From $1,787/£1,350 (UK – New York)
At the end of the first week in July I posted some great American Airlines Business Class fares between Manchester and Chicago (still available!) and now I've just noticed that both American and Delta/Virgin Atlantic have some great fares between Manchester and New York too.
American Airlines Still Offering Miles At 1.91 Cents Each – Don’t Buy!
American Airlines is emailing AAdvantage members reminding them that, through 29 July the airline is still offering a bonus to anyone wishing (willing?) to purchase AAdvantage Miles ....but you should almost certainly ignore this promotion.
American Airlines New AAdvantage Partner Earnings & EQD – Full Analysis
On Friday American Airlines finally published how many AAdvantage Miles and Elite Qualifying Dollars (EQD) AAdvantage members can expect to earn for flights marketed by partner airlines. I never had high hopes for the new partner earnings charts and the fact that American waited until around 5pm Central Time on a Friday before publishing the information told me all I needed to know before I even so much as glanced at the new information.
The American Airlines 787-9 Dreamliner Is Bookable & I Got A Great Deal
American Airlines added its soon-to-be delivered 787-9 Dreamliners to its schedule in the early hours of Sunday morning (10 July) with the new aircraft set to be tested on the Dallas - Los Angeles route from 6 October. The new Dreamliners will then enter into service on two of the airlines long-haul routes, Dallas - São Paulo and Dallas - Madrid from 4 November.
That all sounds great and straightforward except that this is American Airlines I'm writing about so there's was bound to be a screw up somewhere along the line.....and there was.
American Airlines Backtracks On Premium Economy Baggage Allowance
I said a few weeks back that I don't trust American Airlines any more and the airline doesn't seem to be doing much to make me feel any better about it. American has become very adept at making announcements that only give customers half the information they need and equally adept at announcing changes to the AAdvantage program for which it then can't give an implantation date.....but now management have gone one better. American Airlines has managed to remove a published benefit before it ever even came into force!
American Airlines 787-9 Dreamliner Routes Announced & More Details On Premium Economy
We've known for a while that the American Airlines 787-9 Dreamliner would be the first aircraft to feature the airline's new Premium Economy seating and, as American has now announced the first international routes that will be operated by the 787-9, we now know when and where we'll see the Premium Economy product in service.
Great Business Class Fare: Manchester to Chicago From £1,236/$1,606 RT
American Airlines has published some very attractive Business Class fares for travel between the UK and Chicago with the pick of the bunch being a £1,236 fare from Manchester at the end of December. Departures from London see a few reasonable fares too but it would probably be cheaper to fly up to Manchester and connect on to Chicago from there.
Singapore Airlines “mySQupgrade”, American Airlines Installing New Security Technology & More
A few news stories doing the rounds right now including Singapore Airlines introducing a new system to allow its passengers to bid on upgrades, American Airlines working with the TSA to improve the wait-times at airport security and Norwegian being optimistic and publishing a tentative Cork to Boston schedule despite recent issues with the DOT.
American Airlines Economy Class Fares Los Angeles – Australia/New Zealand From $799 RT
American Airlines has filed some pretty good Economy Class fares for travel between Los Angeles and their new South Pacific destinations of Sydney and Auckland. Good fare availability is sporadic, which isn't ideal, but the better prices are available in Summer and Winter so, if you can be a little flexible with your dates, you should be able to find something which works for you.
How AAdvantage Devaluations Will See Me Change My Tactics
From the moment that American Airlines announced that Executive Platinum members would only be receiving 4 systemwide upgrades (instead of 8) starting in 2017 I knew that the way I book my flights was probably going to have to change. That "probably" turned in to a "definitely" when I worked out just how badly I was going to be affected by the airline's move to a revenue-based system for redeemable mileage accrual.
American Airlines Fares & Awards To Cuba On Sale
American Airlines was one of six carriers that, last week, got the green light from the US Department of Transport to commence service to various regional cities in Cuba - the decisions on flights to Havana are not expected for a few more weeks.
American has now scheduled all of its flights from Miami to Cuba's regional cities and tickets and awards are now available for those who want to visit (and meet the ridiculous travel requirements).
Great American Airlines First Class Award Space (USA – Paris)
Right at the end of last month American Airlines opened up a surprising amount of Business Class award space for flights between the US and various European cities - award space which, by and large, is still available - and now some First Class award space appears to have opened up as well.
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