Grand Union

This thread is in Beta mode for the moment: please feel free to contribute your comments, suggestions and experiences so that we can improve it. There are still big chunks of information for which we are awaiting details, notably the Avios and TP earning charts, we will endeavour to get them online as soon as we can.

On Monday 31 March 2014, US Airways joined the oneworld alliance as an Affiliate of the American Airlines Group, which also operates American Airlines. US Airways will be progressively merged into American Airlines, and eventually its distinctive corporate image will leave the skies. In the meantime US Airways runs some 600 aircraft, with hubs in Charlotte, Phoenix and Philadephia, and services to and from 24 countries.

This thread is to help BA Executive Club members in their efforts to earn, redeem and fly with US Airways. See the wiki above for a roadmap of links.

How to collect Avios on US Airways

Executive Club Members can collect and spend Avios and earn Tier Points on all US Airways flights. This includes transatlantic flights and British Airways codeshare services operated by US Airways booked under the BA code.

Economy (full fare)
B, E, G, H, K, L, M, N, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, Y = 100% of Avios awarded

Business Class "Upgrade Class"
J = 100% of Avios awarded

Business
C, D, Z = 125%

First "Upgrade Class"
P = 100%

First
F, A = 150% of Avios awared

Premier, Gold, Silver and Bronze members earn minimum 500 Avios for routes under 500 Miles. Blue members earn the flown mileage.

There is an introduction offer for BAEC members to earn double Avios on US Airways until 30 June 2014. See here for details:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...30th-june.html

Examples (excluding temporary promotion):
Silver/Gold cardholder, BOS-PHL in low cost economy - 1,000 Avios (same as AA)
Silver/Gold cardholder, PHX-HNL in First 7,295 (so about 1,000 more than AA from LAX).

Grand Union

This is the current chart.

Long haul = flights over 2000 miles. Charlotte and Phoenix are NOT 2000 miles apart, but Philadelphia and Phoenix are over 2000 miles apart.

Economy
Short haul - 20 TPs
Long haul - 70 TPs
Note that the lower level of tier points for inflexible/restricted fares does NOT currently appear on US Airways. So if the US fare is similar to AA, it would imply an advantage to fly US since you would earn more TPs in discounted Economy / Coach.

Business
Business on US is offered only on US to Europe flights and is 140 TPs. Currently the online calculator is incorrectly showing the TPs to be 70 TPs per leg from UK/Ireland to USA, but in reality full points are posted, see this confirmation.

First
First is offered to almost all US Airways destinations in the Americas, including to the Carribbean and Bermuda, whereas AA offers business class to these destinations.
Short haul - 60 TPs
Long haul - 210 TPs


Examples:
BOS-PHL - First: 60 TPs
BOS-PHL - Economy: 20 TPs
PHX-HNL - First 210 TPs
PHX-HNL - Economy: 70 TPs

Grand Union

US Airways flights are now available to be booked for Avios on the BAEC website and telephone service centres.

Examples:
First: Phoenix to Charlotte: 30,000 Avios and Ł1.50 in fees
Economy: Phoenix to Charlotte: 10,000 Avios and Ł1.50 in fees.

International services to Europe will attract higher fees. For example:
Manchester - Charlotte via Philadelphia: economy single, 24,500 Avios + Ł95.60
Manchester - Charlotte via Philadelphia: business single, 44,500 Avios + Ł164.60
Edinburgh - Philadelphia: business single: 40,000 Avios + Ł160.86 (this information came from a confirmed booking)
Philadelphia - Edinburgh: business single: 40,000 Avios + Ł1.50. Yes one quid and fifty pence! BA via LHR would want the same number of Avios plus Ł300.

These fares are relatively low, and the usual BA carrier surcharge has not been put in place (yet).

Note that it does not appear to be possible to Upgrade Using Avios on US Airways prime numbers, it is possible to do this on American Airlines, however. There are a number of restrictions on this, and it must be done via a BAEC service centre.

Seat selection and locator / booking reference / PNRs.
If you make an Avios redemption then you can select seats via BA.com - it provides a link via the usual Choose A Seat option. which transfers you directly to the relevant section of US Airways' website. Note that Emerald status is not yet giving access to preferred seats, so a telephone call may be in order. Just before you get redirected to US Airways you get a handy screen which provides both the BA and US booking references. With that US booking reference you can also go directly to the US site yourself, amend seating and see more details about your booking - including the BA ticket number, starting 125.

Grand Union

In order to earn Tier Points and Avios on US Airways you need to ensure your BAEC number is entered into the US Airways booking. This is how you can do it on bookings main directly with US Airways.

1) Do not create a US Airways Dividend Miles account!
2) Go to the main US Airways login - http://www.usairways.com/
3) You should then make your booking via Book Travel, or you have an existing booking, go to Your Trip, enter the locator (booking reference, PNR) and the date of travel - yes this is different to other airlines!
4) In Passenger Information section click on Passenger Information, which is immediately below the heading. If there is no line then you will be precluded from doing it yourself.
5) In the Airline drop down box select British Airways
6) Enter your BAEC in the Frequent Flyer # box.

See below for an example.



You can also present your BAEC card at check-in, or in a US Airways lounge, however there is a greater risk that your Avios and Tier Points will not automatically post to your account. Therefore it is best to ensure your BAEC details are in the system 48 hours before departure. If you can't do it online, then it is worth a telephone call to US Airways.

Grand Union

Here are some interesting bits and pieces about US Airways.

1) Services to Hawaii: US Airways fly to Hawaii. Service run from Phoenix to Honolulu and the neighbouring islands. These are interesting because of they can be cost effective routes for earning tier points in First, though currently AA is cheaper.

2) Service to and from Charlotte: This is a new oneworld route option, including services from London Heathrow and (during the summer) from Manchester to Charlotte. Also there are seasonal services from Charlotte to Brussels, Lisbon and Barcelona.

3) Seasonal service from Edinburgh and Glasgow to Philadelphia, thereby providing a route to the US that avoids Heathrow.

4) Other international service : US Airways fly to places such as Dublin and Rio. Their international network is not as extensive as AA, but they are still a useful alternative.

5) There are some unusual 2000 mile route with US Airways, which earn higher tier points in all classes, but notably 210 in First. This includes Sacramento SMF to Washington BWI, Anchorage to CLT, and a once a week service from CLT to BGI (Bridgetown Barbados)

6) US Airways, like AA, has the concept of preferred seating (front of cabins, exit rows) for status passengers. oneworld status passengers can get these seats, but not currently online, you need to call in. The reason being that the status connectivity is not yet fully implemented as far as seating is concerned.

Grand Union

Can I use US Airways lounges?

If you are BAEC Silver, Gold, GGL or Premier: yes you can use US lounges - generally known as US Airways Clubs - so long as your upcoming flight is on US Airways, American Airlines, British Airways, or another oneworld airline.

Note that in the following places there is a US Airways lounge, but no AA Admirals club, so if you want to use a lounge you need to seek out the US lounge (often known as Club) whether you are flying AA or US: Tampa [more to follow]

What are the lounges like?
Fairly similar to AA's Admirals Club. Basic, by BAEC standards, but comfortable, with food and drink on order (and some drinks and snacks to which you can help yourself). As with Admirals, there is generally a staffed bar, which will provide basic beer and white on a complementary basis, and premium food and drink for cash. There is free wifi and wireless printing available too. Note one difference from Admirals Club: you cannot consume food purchased elsewhere in the US Airways Club.

I don't have BAEC status, can I use the US Airways Club?
Yes, but you will need to pay for it, or travel international business class. You can buy a day pass, 30 day pass or a one year pass. The 30 day and 1 year pass also get access to Admirals Clubs, but the one day pass does not.

US Airways Club Directory

• BOS Boston Logan
  Terminal B, upper level past security, serves gates 4-13
  
• BUF Buffalo
  Next to gate 6, just past security on the right
  
• CLT Charlotte
  Concourse B - through security, between gates 3 and 5
  Concourse C - intersection of C and D concourses
  
• GSO Greensboro
  US Airways concourse across from gate 45
  
• BDL Hartford Springfield
  US Airways concourse, adjacent to gate 30
  
• LGA New York La Guardia
  Terminal C next to gate C28
  
• PHL Philadelphia
  B/C concourse - third floor, between B and C concourses
  Concourse F - terminal F, level 2 over the food court
  Concourse A west (A west terminal) mezzanine level, between gates A15 and A16
  
• PHX Phoenix
  Concourse A, terminal 4 above gates A7 and A9
  Concourse A between gates A19 and A21
  Concourse B above gates B5 and B7
  
• PIT Pittsburgh
  Main lobby past security, mezzanine level
  
• RDU Raleigh Durham
  Airside, directly across from gate D1
  
• TPA Tampa
  Airside F, adjacent to US Airways gate 85
  
• DCA Washington DC
  Concourse C, inside security check point, mezzanine level
  Concourse B: inside security check point, mezzanine level

Grand Union

Catering bands
Up to 699 miles (under 2 hours):

• A light snack such as a fig bar, cookies or pretzels.

700-999 miles (2 – 2:45 hours)

• A heartier selection of snacks such as sandwiches and fresh fruit is served on most flights (Lite Bites), with exceptions (see below).

1,000 – 1,298 miles (2:45 – 3:30 hours)

• Warmed mixed nuts, followed by a three-course meal including a warm cookie for dessert.

1,299+ miles (over 3:30 hours)

• An appetizer paired with your entrée followed by cake for dessert.
• On flights over 2,200 miles and over 4:30 hours, you'll also receive a choice of dessert e.g. specialty ice cream or a fruit and cheese plate.
• Redeye flights in the category of 2,200 miles and above will have a snack basket to begin, then will receive an arrival continental breakfast box. (This does not apply to certain transcons, listed below.)

A321 Transcontinental Service
Between JFK and LAX/SFO

• Refreshing fruit or cucumber-infused water or sparkling wine
• Warm mixed nuts followed by a three-course meal, with a choice of our signature customized sundae or seasonal fruit and cheese
• A snack served shortly before arrival

Note: this focuses specifically on AA operated JFK-LAX/SFO services.


Hawaiian Flights
Between Hawaii and Continental USA

• Full meal with Hawaiian rolls plus two other bread options
• Choice of a customised sundae or a fruit and cheese plate
• Selection of snacks prior to arrival

Route exceptions
Exception flights will fall between approximately 600 to 999 miles. Those flights will receive the same level of service as the published 1,000 to 1,299 miles band.

• Between CLT and MSP
• Between DFW and DTW, MEX, ORD, SLC
• Between FLL and PAP
• Between JFK and MCO
• Between MIA and DCA, IAD, IAH, PAP
• Between MSP and CLT, PHL
• Between ORD and AUS, BOS, DCA, DEN, JFK, LGA, RDU

For more information, see the First and Business Class inflight dining section on aa.com

GaxxyFlyer

Do you mean Philadelphia and Phoenix? Philadelphia and Charlotte aren't that far apart.

layz

A few mentions of American Airways, as opposed to American Airlines. US Airways was one of the few US based airlines that used the term Airways in their name.

EDIT: I'm happy for the mods to delete this to keep the page tidy as I thought Grand Union had finished posting.

corporate-wage-slave

Many thanks to Prospero for help with the above.

Thanks also to layz and GaxxyFlyer for spotting some errors, duly corrected, please let me know if you see any others.

For the redemption bit: you will notice that for the international examples I've put some rather odd routings, Manchester to Charlotte via Philadelphia. The reason being that there seems to be a glitch in the system that prevents me from finding an online point to point service to the UK. So if I look for Manchester to Philadelphia I don't get these services, but I can if I add on Charlotte, almost like a married segment. If the US services are combined either with BA (e.g. London to Manchester to Charlotte) or with 2 US Airways sectors then there's no shortage of availability. I assume this will be fixed in the near future, but it does suggest some cost effective means of getting from Europe to USA.

Scots_Al

There's also a GLA-PHL service.

GUWonder

Works over the phone? No fuel surcharges on the TATL service? If the latter question is answered in the affirmative for now, it will be interesting to see when that changes.

Swanhunter

No mention of the champagne served? Standards are slipping.

travelwithross

If I recall, they serve Prosecco 'Sparkling Wine' in Envoy/Business. Hopefully this will change (NV Bottega Prosecco Brut Il Vino dei Poeti)

I however always enjoy the Tawny Port they have on board, I always seem to empty the bottle (NV Quinta do Portal Fine Tawny Port).

Full List as of 31/03

http://www.usairways.com/en-US/trave...ages/wine.html

doodlehead

Currently in the US lounge at Tampa, gate dragons told me I was their first one world visitor, they got quite excited! At present no champagne report, it's way too early, even for me.