we will be going on a transatlantic cruise from Florida to Copenhagen next spring and have been researching for good price on Business Class fares to fly back to Vancouver from Copenhagen. We don’t have points of significance on any FF plan so best product for cheapest price is what we are looking for.
The cruise line web site has incredible prices for one way flights, around $1500 per person, Business Class.
But I am really confused about the way they list them and what drawbacks or advantages might come with some of them.
for instance for same exact flight times and layovers (one, in LHR) and price I can choose between:
American Airlines, operated by British Airways.
OR.
First leg, BA second leg, AA, operated by BA.
OR.
BA on both flights.
OR.
BA on first leg, Iberia, operated by BA on second leg.

i am at a loss which to book and want to lock in this price before it is gone. Any help is appreciated.
as for FF programs, I am Canadian, so usually fly from Vancouver or the US, if that makes a difference.
i also have heard that the rules on responsibility for delays and cancellations can be different when flying from different countries - so does choosing BA or AA make a difference with that?

As a general rule, unless there is a price difference or some other reason to prefer a codeshare such as miles earning, then booking on the operating carrier code is best as this reduces complexity and makes managing disruption issues easier.

In your case you should therefore book as all BA flight numbers, as both flights are operated by BA (assuming this is CPH-LHR-YVR).

The rules on delays/cancellations you’re thinking of are probably regulation EU261. In that case the liability depends on the operating carrier so whether you book a codeshare isn’t strictly relevant, although the more airlines involved the more likely you are to get the run around. In any event yours is a departure *from* the EU so you would be covered by any airline. If you were flying *to* the EU you would only be covered if the operating airline were an EU carrier (i.e. BA yes, AA no).

Note: as yours is a discounted cruise line ticket it may well not be eligible to earn miles in BA or other schemes - you would have to check with the cruise line about that, or ask BA after you book. Sounds like you’re not too concern about that though.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I have found out that BA charges for seat selection, even in business class, outside of the 24 hour check in window. Not sure if that would be the case if booked through AA.
If we have one ticket CPH-LHR-YVR, will our luggage be checked right through to Vancouver without us having to transfer it ourselves and thus avoiding going through all the customs/security checks again at LHR?
we plan on making use of one of the lounges at Heathrow, and wonder what your experiences have been, regarding getting to gate on time. What I mean is, if gate time is one hour before, how long would you give yourself between leaving lounge and arriving at gate?

Thank you so much for all the answers.
First hand experience is so much more reliable I’ve found compared to the canned answers you get on the website or phoning in to the airlines, much appreciated.

Absolutely! That’s what FT is for :)

How long is your connection time by the way? I would suggest a good 2.5/3 hours to allow you time to enjoy the excellent lounge facilities in T3.

we had a choice of about 2.5 hours or 5.5 and decided to go with the second. Yes, hopefully all will go well with our CPH-LHR leg and we will have a relaxing, unrushed trip home.

i have only been at Heathrow once, albeit travelling economy, we thought we had lots of time but lineups to go through security were so long and filled with hundreds of stressed out travellers who were lined up knowing that their flights had departed without them.
Of course we would have preferred boarding this time, but imagine no preferences with security. I think I would rather relax and check out a couple of the lounges, which will be a real treat for us.
but thanks for the suggestion.

Looking at the schedule, it’s simply a choice between a ~10.45 departure from CPH with 5.5h layover, or 13.45 dep with 2.5h layover.

If you have the chance to see Copenhagen in the day(s) before your flight and would just be hanging around at the hotel in the morning of departure, then your choice of the earlier one makes sense to me.

By contrast if the later one would allow you to do something fun in the city which you would otherwise miss out on, then better to make use of that time.