Hi All,

First time poster here and first time attempting to make long haul business class redemptions. Thanks in advance for all the help!

I would like to use my stash of ~420k MR points for a 1 way business class lie flat redemption for 2 passengers to India with the other way being a cash ticket on economy. Potential flying dates and applicable airports below:
1. Outbound leg:

• Option 1: IAD/JFK/PHL/ORD/Most east coast airports to DEL. Date: Any day from Feb 09 to Feb 13 2024.
• Option 2: IAD/JFK/PHL/ORD/Most east coast airports to MAA. Date: Any day from Feb 01 to Feb 07 2024.

2. Inbound leg:

• Option 1: DEL to IAD/JFK/PHL/ORD. Date: Any day from Feb 19 to Feb 21 2024.
• ​​​​​​​Option 2: MAA to IAD/JFK/PHL/ORD. Date: Any day from Feb 23 to Feb 28 2024.

If transiting via DOH, AUX, DXB or somewhere around there, the short haul can be a revenue economy ticket.

So far, the best thing I could find was DOH-IAD for 140k Avios each (+30% off with the Amex current offers). Questions:
1. Can I do better than the above? If so, how do I go about doing that? Is it advisable to wait for saver availability for Feb via DOH?
2. Would it be possible to cobble together multiple itineraries (via IST/FRA for example) since I'm unable to find any availability on the UA that routes through these from USA - IND in a single itinerary.
3. Is LifeMiles the way to go for *A redemptions? If so, should I call them if the award space don't show up on the website?

Ideally I'd like to find some saver level awards with the goal of lie flat seats for flights > 5 hrs.
I've searched through these forums as best as I could but couldn't find something that I was looking for, hence the post.
Thanks again for any and all the help!
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