Considering moving from UA to BA - anything I haven't thought of?
Jan 9, 2015, 8:01 am
#16
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Herts, UK
Programs: BAEC GGL, HH Diamond.
Posts: 3,179
for me WT+ is in a different league to the economy plus you have on UA.
for that alone I would move to BA if i were you. The Added bonus is that once booked in WT+ you can upg to CW for 10K avios (availability dependent of course!)
(FWIW my company policy is similar, and we all moved over to BA for this some years ago.)
for that alone I would move to BA if i were you. The Added bonus is that once booked in WT+ you can upg to CW for 10K avios (availability dependent of course!)
(FWIW my company policy is similar, and we all moved over to BA for this some years ago.)
Jan 9, 2015, 8:14 am
#18
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: London
Programs: BA Silver, ZSL Silver
Posts: 2,552
The upgrade to Business from WTP is only 10k each way, meaning that as BA Silver/Gold you come out at almost Avios neutral. I've often found last minute award availability, including the good seats on the upper deck (62K T-48).
Jan 9, 2015, 8:15 am
#19
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 1,663
WTPlus is a very popular cabin, in fact on most routes I nearly often see it full. If you can gain status, you have a good chance of the occasional op up to Club, which of course is a big step up, as well as the ability to upgrade with Avios.
I look forward to seeing you on a BA aircraft soon. Welcome ^
I look forward to seeing you on a BA aircraft soon. Welcome ^
Jan 9, 2015, 8:32 am
#21
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: not far from MUC
Posts: 6,620
Oh, and if the OP were to do an AA Challenge, there's no AA/US metal requirement, so perhaps that sidesteps the issue in year 1 (and perhaps 2) anyway.
Jan 9, 2015, 6:14 pm
#22
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: near to SFO and LHR
Programs: BA Gold, B6 Mosiac, VS, AA, DL (and a legacy UA 2MM)
Posts: 2,274
I think you will find that Premium Economy (WTP) on BA is much better than E+ on UA - wider seats with extra legroom. Being based in London, you'll also have the small benefits offered for your European travel at the Silver level, like advanced seat selection etc.
The loss of TSA pre-check and the high co-pays on award flights would also give me pause, but I think these are more than made up for by the better seat.
I'm lucky to fly enough where I can (usually) upgrade to business class on my frequent flights from SFO->LHR, otherwise I'd be right there with you!
Keep an eye out for the BA VISA card promotions from Chase. Occasionally you can earn 50,000 or even 100,000 Avios miles for spending "only" $5000/$10000 in a short period of time etc
The loss of TSA pre-check and the high co-pays on award flights would also give me pause, but I think these are more than made up for by the better seat.
I'm lucky to fly enough where I can (usually) upgrade to business class on my frequent flights from SFO->LHR, otherwise I'd be right there with you!
Keep an eye out for the BA VISA card promotions from Chase. Occasionally you can earn 50,000 or even 100,000 Avios miles for spending "only" $5000/$10000 in a short period of time etc
Last edited by StingWest; Jan 9, 2015 at 6:26 pm
Jan 9, 2015, 9:50 pm
#23
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Anywhere I need to be.
Programs: OW Emerald, *A Gold, NEXUS, GE, ABTC/APEC, South Korea SES, eIACS, PP, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 16,046
Main question is will your company policy stretch to premium economy?
BA's World Traveller Plus is considered a separate cabin (you have to pay the higher rate of APD) and is not just the better seats at the front of the main cabin that products like economy plus are. If you book economy, you get economy. No status or seat selection fees will get you into the WTP cabin unless you pay to upgrade.
BA's World Traveller Plus is considered a separate cabin (you have to pay the higher rate of APD) and is not just the better seats at the front of the main cabin that products like economy plus are. If you book economy, you get economy. No status or seat selection fees will get you into the WTP cabin unless you pay to upgrade.
(and APD is easily solved by ex EU tickets, which I will gladly do when I need to pay for my own tickets or it allows me to pick BA/AA over other carriers for work.)
Jan 9, 2015, 9:52 pm
#24
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Anywhere I need to be.
Programs: OW Emerald, *A Gold, NEXUS, GE, ABTC/APEC, South Korea SES, eIACS, PP, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 16,046
but UA E+ does not attract ripoff ('standard') APD and is free for elites unlike BA WTP which ofte has a fare differential.
Jan 9, 2015, 9:53 pm
#25
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Anywhere I need to be.
Programs: OW Emerald, *A Gold, NEXUS, GE, ABTC/APEC, South Korea SES, eIACS, PP, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 16,046
I wasn't suggesting the OP transfer through NYC every time, just that if you want to trigger AA/US sectors quickly then adding ORD-x-y-LHR transfers on the US side, for almost no extra cost, would likely get the OP his 4 AA/US sectors a lot faster than flying them on infrequent ORD-LHR-ORD TATLs
Oh, and if the OP were to do an AA Challenge, there's no AA/US metal requirement, so perhaps that sidesteps the issue in year 1 (and perhaps 2) anyway.
Oh, and if the OP were to do an AA Challenge, there's no AA/US metal requirement, so perhaps that sidesteps the issue in year 1 (and perhaps 2) anyway.
Jan 9, 2015, 10:05 pm
#26
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Chicago, IL, US
Posts: 2,210
If you're not flying domestically on your US trips, then it's much less of a big deal when flying BA out of T5 than UA out of T1. T5 security is a lot easier.