FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - BA Tier Point Runs

Jan 17, 2016, 2:48 pm

KARFA

Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend

Join Date: Apr 2012

Location: Leeds, UK

Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond

Posts: 42,889

** AA Domestic First on two cabin will earn business TPs (140/40) and avios after mid January - changes to posts to follow - see here for details**

Starting your run from Continental Europe
Here are a few popular examples to give you a flavour of what can be achieved at a relatively respectable price. Note, any fare prices shown in this post are indicative and reflect the rates checked at the time of writing. Fares do vary considerably, so check this thread from time to time for prevailing fares/offers/promotions etc.

Staring from Continental Europe is typically referred to as an exEU - so this includes starting from anywhere in Europe but excludes bookings starting from the UK which are termed exUK. Typically good places to start are Dublin (DUB) and Copenhagen (CPH) if going to the US, and Oslo (OSL) or Stockholm (ARN) if heading to the Far East or Australia. However, sales from these and other starting points often come up and you should check this thread for up to date information.

Naturally, to get to the most cost advantageous origin, positioning flights (and most likely, overnight accommodation) is an inevitable factor. Dublin is the flavour of the moment for cheap (I class) transatlantic flights in business class. Thanks to the BA/AA/US Joint Business Venture, it is now possible to construct connections within the United States for very little extra. However, the lowest I class fares usually come with stop over and Saturday night stay restrictions, but it is possible to spread out your itinerary by constructing connections of up to 24 hours, if you prefer a trip that is gentler on the body.

The example above would earn 40+140+210+60+60+210+140+40 = 900 TPs in total.

The general principle to maximise your points here are to do a run along the lines of:

DUB-(HEL)-LON-EEE-WWW-DES

HEL is optional and will get you an additional 80 TPs for the HEL-LHR flight but is much more time consuming. If you do want to fly via HEL consider starting from CPH as the CPH-HEL flight will be much shorter than DUB-HEL and both earn 40 TPs.

EEE is any connection on the East Coast of the US, WWW is a connection on the West Coast of the US, and DES is whatever destination you want with those in Hawaii being particularly preferred (HNL, KOA, LIH, and OGG). Also make sure that EEE and WWW are more than 2,000 miles apart and the route is operated by two class planes so that you book as domestic first in A or P class and get 210 TPs. There is a list of > 2,000 mile routes further down this thread. Doing a run like this would allow earnings of:

DUB-HNL (exc. HEL) = 40+140+210+210+210+210+140+40 = 1,200 TPs
DUB-HNL (inc. HEL both ways) = 40+80+140+210+210+210+210+140+80+40 = 1,360 TPs

1,360 TPs is the maximum you can generally earn on an exEU run to the US as the fare rules typically allow two connections in each region only (i.e. two in Europe and two in the US).

Where to Book
A question which come up many times is where to price up these more complex itineraries and where to book them. There are a few options and these include aa.com (multi-city tool), itamatrix, and google flights. The latter two don’t allow for booking but once you have them priced up you can book on aa.com or call BA to book over the phone. There are some notes on itamatrix and google flights further down.

If booking over the phone just tell the agent what flights you want, the dates, and the booking classes. The advantage of booking with BA rather than with AA online is that only BA tickets (those starting 125-…) can be upgraded with avios and you get 3x avios for BA spend if you have a BA Amex Premium Plus credit card.

BA.com is not a good option for pricing up or booking these kinds of itineraries unless you are doing something very simple like DUB-LHR-JFK-LHR-DUB. The multi-city tool on ba.com is very limited.

Upgrading Using Avios (UUA)
A quick note on doing UuAs is that you can do these for exEU itineraries (or you can apply a GUF if you have any). The following restrictions for UuAs apply though:

Summary guide to bookings which can be upgraded with Avios:

BA issued tickets (can include other carriers) ^
TA issued (on BA stock) booking with only BA flights ^
TA issued (on BA stock) booking with other carriers
Tickets issued on non-BA stock

TA has to issue the ticket in the country of your BAEC membership as well. A BA Holiday booking (flights & hotel) is UuA'able and treated as a TA booking, so a booking including non BA flights could not be UuA'ed. Also a BA Holiday booking which was made using a TA can not be UuA'ed.

There is more information on UuA'ing TA bookings here.

North American domestic first/business class runs
Central America and the Caribbean have become hot spots for TP earning frenzies out of the United States in recent years. AA's Instant Upgrade fares from the west cost to Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Panama amongst many other destinations in the region deliver excellent Tier Point yields. So much so, that with a little bit of planning and of course time, it is possible to rack up TPs at an alarming rate.

Planning and booking tips
There are a few online tools which you should be aware and familiar with, and these will help you a lot when booking Tier Point runs.

When pricing up comparative routes, Google Flights is by far the most speedy and simple method. Enter origin and destination; dates of travel; select business class; select oneworld in Airline filter; then Expand map to display requested route and comparative fares for nearly destinations.
If you need greater complexity, the ITA Matrix tool is highly recommended. It displays a wider range of options than Google Flights and detailed fare rules. It’s great for trip planning at a forensic level. A guide to using the ITA Matrix tool can be found here, and here,: and externally here. Note, the ITA Matrix tool cannot be used to book tickets
If you're old school, like me, the first step is to download and immerse oneself in AA's flight schedule: The current timetable is available, here.
Familiarise yourself with AA.com's Multi-City booking tool. Don't leave more than 24 hours between flights. Use the Sort by schedule option to locate the exact flights you found on the ITA Matrix tool.
Select city pairs (if possible) in excess of 2,000 miles apart (see charts below)
It is worth adding a few cautionary words about AA Domestic First where the service shares a flight number with an international flight, as J, D, and I class inventory may be sold before regular F, A, and P inventory is offered for sale on the down gauged domestic flight(s).
Avoid AA codeshare flights on non-oneworld metal. There is no TP credit on these flights
A321 (32B) - These AA narrow-bodies ply Transcon routes between JFK and LAX/SFO with business and first class. Well equipped, they are a very comfortable way to travel between coasts
757 - As fantastically racy as these aircraft are, the first class seat requires a health warning. Think very carefully before committing yourself to a 5 hour red-eye 757 flight. Row 1 on the 757 is also worth avoiding.
777 - Yes the big birds do operate on a few domestic routes (eg. MIA-LAX). Unlike their senior, and more petite 767-300 siblings, seats on the 777 aircraft are sold as business as well as the usual first and economy classes
MD-80 - Once the workhorse of AA's fleet but numbers are dwindling fast. Its first class cabin provides a reassuringly quiet ride
MCO - As American Airlines' low yield focus city, Orlando is your friend
Schedule changes - AA routinely gives its domestic timetable a jolly good shake (twice a year) so if you've booked your flights with plenty of advanced notice, expect a few changes to happen between now and the date of departure
For more information about using the ITA Matrix tool, planning trips that begin in Continental Europe and Ireland, as well as airports favourable to back-to-back turnarounds, see http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...ing-guide.html

The following diagrams illustrate AA routes greater than 2,000 miles. Note, the forward cabin on AA flights serving Canada and the Caribbean are sold as business rather than first class. Routes are subject to change so again downloading the latest timetable from aa.com is recommended.

AA non-stop 2,000+ mile routes (210 TPs in F)
East US
BDL - LAX
BOS - LAX, PHX
CLT - LAX, PDX, SAN, SEA, SFO, SJC, SMF
DCA - LAS, LAX
EWR - PHX
IAD - LAX
JFK - LAS, LAX*, PHX, SAN, SEA, SFO*
MCO - LAX
MIA - LAS, LAX, SAN, SEA, SFO, SLC
PHL - LAS, LAX, PDX, PHX, SAN, SEA, SFO
PIT - LAX
RDU - LAX
TPA - LAX

West US & Alaska
ANC - DFW, LAX, PHX
LAS - DCA, JFK, MIA, PHL
LAX - ANC, BDL, BOS, CLT, DCA, HNL, IAD, JFK*, KOA, LIH, MCO, MIA, OGG, PHL, PIT, RDU, TPA
PDX - CLT, PHL
PHX - ANC, BOS, EWR, HNL, JFK, KOA, LIH, OGG, PHL
SAN - CLT, JFK, MIA, PHL
SEA - CLT, JFK, MIA, PHL
SFO - CLT, JFK*, MIA, PHL
SJC - CLT
SLC - MIA
SMF - CLT

Mid-US
DFW - ANC, HNL, OGG

Hawaii
HNL - DFW, LAX, PHX
OGG - DFW, LAX, PHX
KOA - LAX, PHX
LIH - LAX, PHX

* only if in the F cabin on a three class A321, if in the business cabin only get 140 TPs

AA stopping 2,000+ mile routes (210 TPs in F)
Sometimes routes which are not non-stop like SEA-PHX-ATL will code as the same flight number for both segments, which results in a 2000+ mile segment, i.e. 210 TPs in First. For more information and a list of these stopping routes see here courtesy of EsherFlyer, and for those starting and ending at a station that doesn't otherwise have accessible > 2,000 mile segments see here.

DFW to/from ANC, SJU, HNL, and OGG

Note that the DFW-SJU route is a business cabin and not a domestic first cabin so would only earn 140 TPs.

JFK to/from SEA, LAS, SAN, PHX, SFO*, and LAX*

* only if in the F cabin on a three class A321, if in the business cabin only get 140 TPs

LAX to/from ANC, BOS, BDL, JFK*, MIA, DCA, PHL, CLT, IAD, RDU, MCO, TPA, PIT, Hawaii (HNL, OGG, KOA, LIH)

* only if in the F cabin on a three class A321, if in the business cabin only get 140 TPs

PHL to/from SEA, PDX, SFO, LAS, LAX, PHX, and SAN

PHX to/from BOS, EWR, ANC, JFK, PHL, and Hawaii (HNL, OGG, KOA, LIH)

Something to be aware of with premium cabins on flights operated by AA - flights operating entirely within the US are marketed as first class; those operating outwith the US are marketed as business class.

The example above would earn 60+210+40+40+210+60 = 620 TPs in total.

I've highlighted the LAS-LAX-MIA-SJU routing not because it is the best earner. There are other routings that yield a greater sum of TPs and invariably at a better price but because this is a gentle itinerary. The outbound legs can be accomplished in a single day, albeit with an early start. The inbound is even easier and a noon start is possible, a beneficiary of the westerly routing where the changing time zones work in our favour.

Note, the flights between MIA and SJU are sold as business class and thus accrue 40 Tier Points. For those planning a trip from the Midwest or East Coast to San Juan, it is worth considering DFW as a connection point, since DFW and SJU are in excess of 2,000 miles apart and therefore accrue 140 Tier Points.

Examples US internal TP runs from 2015:

Last edited by KARFA; Nov 3, 2016 at 8:12 am