Hi all,

Such a first world problem: I was wondering if anyone here has experience of JFK->LHR(->DUB) during the Christmas peak and help me decide which to book.

This is basically another AA vs BA thread, but with the specific impacts of Peak Time (Christmas) and School Holiday chaos (Christmas).

It's just me + my better half travelling. No kids - and looking at getting a relatively peaceful trip back to Dublin

Given timings of the flights, waiting for the 747 Upper Deck would mean writing off half the next day. So it's evening time (6:00-7:00pm ish) AA 777 vs BA 777.

Preflight:
- T7 at JFK is horrible. 100% of my experiences there have been depressing. But, it does have pre-flight dining in GC lounge
- T7 First lounge is closed (further exacerbating the depression) "until further notice"; posts on FT suggest June reopening, but until it's open, it's closed "until further notice"
- T7 does have the Elemis Spa, but if we write off all our time waiting at security, it's not helpful
- T8 is a much, much nicer place to be, but will be full of crazy domestic AA footfall
- T8 Flagship lounge doesn't offer pre-flight dining unless in First (which we're not)

Security:
- T7 'First Wing' in JFK doesn't exist yet, so there's just that one very, very, very slow TSA / Security check by the Gold check in
- T8 has a dedicated line for AA EXP/BA Gold, where they embarrassingly push you through to the front of regular security if you don't have TSA PreCheck.

On flight:
- AA has a "less dense" J cabin
- AA will ensure every seat is full with their free upgrades to status holders
- BA has couples seats, but with a much increased chance of kids in J
- BA has the shiny new J which I haven't experienced yet on this route

Connecting in LHR:
2 hours to connect, ideally looking for time for a shower in T5 First Lounge
- BA is a straight connection T5->T5
- AA means landing in T3, taking the bus and connecting in T5.
- But, T3->T5 may actually be quicker on the bus than waiting for the B/C gates shuttle to A gates.

Irrops:
- BA doesn't have it's own de-icers at JFK, so they have to wait *HOURS* if it's going to be a white Christmas - so chance of take off delay is much elevated
- AA doesn't offer EU261 in the event of delay

I'm leaning heavily towards AA right now, but on the BA codeshare to get a few bonus Avios.

Any thoughts? Again, Optimizing for:
- Avoiding noise (and children)
- Minimal crap pre-flight experience
- Minimal chance of delay