Originally Posted by
guv1976
Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)
Welcome to FT!
The aa.com website cannot be used to book award travel on about half of AA's airline partners -- including 9W (which flies LHR-DEL nonstop), and EY, GF, and QR (each of which offers connecting service between LHR and DEL). If you can find award space on any of these carriers (and you don't have to use the same one for the outbound as for the return), then you can avoid the hefty surcharges that AA assesses for award travel on BA.
The only way to avoid the UK APD is to depart from another country. 9W offers AMS-DEL nonstop service. You could fly back from DEL into LHR as the UK APD is only collected on UK departures.
Whether making a connection or departing from another country is worth the cost savings is something only you can decide.
Thanks for the welcome Guv!
Really helpful points raised. So, I've just rang AA and enquired re: LHR direct to Delhi one way using 9W (I'm getting down with the lingo now!) ... and there is availability, the outbound scheduled works even better for me AND the taxes are cheaper than the BA equivalent!
Regarding the return flight - I need the BA flight for the convenient schedule ... but oddly AA on the phone are not able to see ahead into Jan for return dates for BA. However, I've got tickets for my preferred return dates on hold from earlier so I'll see if I can have those released and pay for them over the phone - will try that tomorrow.
I did ask the AA rep to quote me for BA one way from Delhi to London to gauge the taxes surcharge and the taxes were quoted as £238 per person ... but when I go online and enter a one way flight in Jan the taxes are quoted as £127 per person.
Any idea why the quote on the phone is so high compared to what I'm seeing online?