Pincus

Thanks for such a helpful thread...

I know this is here, but a search hasn't turned it up.

Could you direct me to a thread discussing pros/cons of seats in business class? Read somewhere that seat expert and seat guru might not be up to date.

Thank you.

JDiver

If you use ngbc as a search term (advanced search, search thread titles only, return for threads) you will get a lot of threads including:

Tricks and Tips: NGBC "Lie Flat Beds" in Business class (consolidated)

best seat on 763 w/ NGBC?

Instructions: How to reset NGBC seat.

etc.

Apieinthesky

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...s-economy.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...ated-763s.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...ed-thread.html
Also do a search for "NGBC". The J seat on the 763 is essentially the same as the ones on the 772 and 75L.

Also:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...d-j-seats.html

TBH, every seat is just about the same. Choose based on FEBO and whether or not you want window or aisle access.

Pincus

Thanks to you both for all of the help.

Appreciate not only the kind replies, but also the kind tone in answering someone who is very new to the subject.

We don't always find this on all the forums here.

wkw198

newbie question, i am non-status aadvantage member, program-to-date miles of 64k, current mileage balance of 34.5k and YTD qualifying of 11,670 with 7 segments (2 were to MAN-LGW and back, and the 5 were MAN-ORD-DFW-SAN SFO-LHR-MAN. oh and i live in the UK and make at most 2 US trips a year but usually only 1 if i'm lucky.

the other day i got sent an email inviting me to shortcut to Gold, by racking up another 6000 miles or 6 segments before end of calendar year.

so, am i special or do they send a lot of these ? i mean, normally gold is 30 segments or 25k miles so why would they offer me for just 13 total flight segments? and is it worth it to make 3 BA trips MAN-LHR (BA have since cancelled MAN-LGW) just to get gold for next year? the MAN-LHR-MAN round trip is working out about 115-125 GBP return mostly due to all the taxes and fuel surcharges of BA. i do go down to london every few months but usually buy cheap advanced tickets on the train. not convinced so far whether to invest in these 3 extra flights and if i will really reap any benefits in 2014-15 from doing this

JDiver

Welcome to FlyerTalk. We're ALL special to AA.

They are sending these like drunk sailors allegedly spend at bars. If you are genuinely going to spend some time flying AA, check the FAQ and follow up with reading the thread on the Challenge" - you could earn Platinum (provides you with significantly better benefits than Gold) possibly, with flying 6,667 - 20,000 miles (depending on fare class, as it's based on Points earned over three months' time).

flyfaraway

I am contemplating a flexible trip to SE Asia over the Christmas break. I can't really get anything to show up on AA (except to Tokyo, which could be one leg of the trip). My understanding is that I may need to use Cathay or another partner. I'm thinking either SIN or BKK.

Anyhow, I tried on BA's website, but kept striking out with it saying no availability. Seems odd that there would be nothing on any days for a month. Likely culprit is that I'm doing something wrong.

Is my best option to call and feed them a date range and possible cities?

muji

Would like to book a SEA-LHR roundtrip on BA, using AA miles. I seem to recall, however, that this was not allowed for some reason (at least on this route). (I just did both a Flyertalk and internet search on this, but came up with nothing.) Would anyone have any information on this?

guv1976

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)

If award-seat availability comes up on aa.com, you can certainly book the BA flight using AA miles. But there will be a hefty surcharge on such a redemption.

Up until a few years ago, you could not book a BA award flight between the U.S. and the U.K. with AA miles. But that changed once AA and BA's joint business venture got approved by government regulators.

muji

Thanks for the information. I'm glad to hear that that has changed.

I guess a better option might be for me to fly not the BA nonstop (with its high surcharges), but instead a routing such as SEA-ORD, ORD-LHR on AA. That would involve a modest amount of taxes and fees, correct? (Would it be something like $50-100 for the R/T?)

guv1976

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)

Taxes/fees to London will be minimal if you fly AA; taxes/fees from London will be significant, even if you fly AA, because of the UK APD, and LHR PSC.

You can do a dummy award booking to see what the fees would be. Some people choose to take the train from LON to PAR and fly home from PAR, to avoid the high UK departure fees.

Apieinthesky

Are you talking about booking an award ticket? If so, many of AA's partners (such as CX, MH, etc) are not bookable online, and you will need to call in to book and ask for availability. You may wish to sign up for a service like Expertflyer to check availability before calling. I would say that the best option is to know what's available and what you prefer before calling. Some AAgents will go the extra mile for you, and some won't.

But if you are indeed booking an award ticket, Christmas break tends to be a tough time for redemption.

cfw

Is there any idea when US Airways and AA FF's will begin getting reciprocal status on each airline? I'm debating whether or not to get an early start and do a status match challenge this year. I'd assume at this point in time if I were to do the challenge, I would be good through 2014 anyway?

JDiver

The reverse takeover has not received approval yet, and even hit a legislative bump on the road.

When / if the reverse takeover of AA by US is approved, it will most likely take 1-2 years for integration, and we can only guess when reciprocal miles earning will occur - because it will also include US departing Star and joining oneworld, which has also been announced as occurring in 2014. See here for one aspect of this pending merger.

No guarantees, but it's likely a Challenge accomplished now will confer status through 28 Feb 2015. (This question has also been asked, and similarly answered, in the Challenge thread.)

brewdog11

I have a seating-related question. I'm flying on a CRJ-700 Wednesday and I'm hoping to get the sought-after row five. However, EF shows that row 5 (AB, CD) are blocked. Will they likely unblock these seats 24 hours prior to departure, or will I have to ask the AAgent when checking in?

I've never had an upgrade not clear on this route, but it's looking like it because F capacity is dwindling and I'm upgrading with a companion. Any insight would be appreciated.