OhDoctor

Anyone with experience on both of these that can weigh in? This would be from CPH to NYC, with an AY stopover in HEL and an AA stopover in LHR. It seems like J in the new AA 777 is slightly nicer/more spacious than the AY A330. Then again, I could be totally off base, as I'm trying to compare from separate secondhand reviews.

AA would cost about $200 more. All else regarding scheduling is essentially equal.

Thoughts?

Yoshi212

I flew on the AA 77W in J and it's quite nice. I'm not an AA heavy traveler so not sure if all the 772s in general or even for the JFK-LHR-JFK legs are the upgraded versions. If so it's a nice seat. AA soft product, like many airlines, can be hit or miss. I do find the crew to be more attentive on West bound flights though. The AY J product does look nice and if traveling alone the "throne" seat is appealing. I do prefer sitting forward vs a bit angled but that's just me.

Would either airport have an advantage over the other for transiting ease?

NoWindowSeat

AA hard product is a bit nicer but for short daytime westbound flight AY is very good also. LHR transit is more hassle than HEL so I would favor AY here.

AY5 is also one of their "flagship" routes so tends to get great senior crews and service is often very good and attentive.

kauppias

I prefer AA 77W myself but AY is nice as well. AY has in the past though subbed in a subpar HiFly plane when needed sonthats something to keep on mind.

Both airlines offer paid wifi onntjose planes which is nice if you need to be connected
Food is good on both.
Seats and IFE good on both.
​​​​​​service good on both if you get a good crew

Now if you are flying in the winter time I would pick AY/HEL overbAA/LHR as HEL is better at handling snow.

1tsp of snow and LHR is restricted. 1TBL SPOON of snow and they pretty much shutdown okay so a slight over exageration but ypu get my point

Lounge in HEL is good if you have status same as LHR and onay if you dont again same as LHR.

WilcoRoger

In theory, vie HEL would be backtracking, but it all depends on the connection times. Given the choice (and total travel times being similar), I would connect at HEL any day over LHR.

remymartin

Some food for thought.
If you’re footing the bill, a decisive factor would be cost. I am surprised to learn that the pricing is so different, though. Have you compared different codes?
Marketing code should not be neglected either, as we’re on FT. Mobile ft doesn’t show your status, but this should also come in play when selecting a ticket.

cph to lhr is t5 and AA departs from T3 which means bus transfer and T3 lounges. If you are emerald T3 offers interesting choices.

Aa 777-300ER hard product is very good.
AY 333 is good.

ay food and especially wines is better.

service can be cold on both, albeit in very different ways.

mhle

My comparison (have travelled both with AY and AA multiple times from LHR/HEL to New York past year):
- Transit: Helsinki is clearly easier, quicker and less risky for delays. In Heathrow, there is slow security and long bus ride from T5 to T3. In Helsinki, no security, quick immigration and the airport is very calm at the time of AY5.
- Lounges: slight preference for Heathrow, depending on status (not sure if original poster has relevant status). Finnair's premium lounge is great before AY5, as it is almost empty, but not a lot of food at that time. If flying AY5, you will miss the a la carte dining which starts at 14:00. In Heathrow there are great lounges, especially Cathay's first class lounge providing a good lunch, but also the new Qantas lounge (have not tested yet).
- Seat: slight preference for AA, although Finnair's throne seat (2A, 4A, ...) is the most spacious
- Crew: in general, I would say that the Finnair crews tend to be nicer, but they are uneven
- Food: this depends very much on personal preferences. AA has what the US-based airlines tend to offer, no surprises. Finnair has very much different style (nordic) in food, which you may or may not like. The reindeer (available as pre-order) may be good if prepared well by the crew.
- Other services: Both have stable wifi. Finnair gives 1 hour for free I think (Finnair Plus Platinum gets the full flight for free). AA has better IFE selection.
- Arrival: there is often a chaos at JFK at the time of arrival of AY5 with long waiting time for immigration. AA might be better, depending on the arrival time.

casper79

Having travelled both I would prefer AA for a day flight if the total travel time is the same.
The seats are better adjustable, the seat can move up so you have a better relaxing position. The finnair just slides downwards. For sleeping I don't think there is a difference (never took AA on a night flight).
Food in my opinion is better presented in AA, but difference is not that big.

esledo

OhDoctor

Thanks for the great responses. I have no status to speak of, and never considered the transit process. So it sounds like..

Hard product: AA
Soft product: AY
Lounges: AA / LHR
Transit: AY / HEL

Tough call. I'm going to see if Amex IAP offers a discount on either fare.

What do you mean exactly when you say "marketing code should not be neglected"?

TTL

May have something to do with FFP... if collecting to AAdvantage, better have an AA flight code and if collecting to AY Plus, better have AY code for a maximum gain.

Aviating

This depends on many factors. AA flights are resulting in higher points to AY Plus in many cases with the lower earning economy booking classes than on AY booking code (regardless on who is operating). To the points below you get additional points based on your AY status (Silver +10%, Gold +15%, Platinum +25%).

In addition for the upgrades with points/vouchers on Finnair requires that you are AY Plus member, fly on AY metal and have AY booking code (the ticket stock do not need to be AY (105)).

So if you want to maximize the points you need to look at how many points the different booking codes for the flights and booking classes you consider will result in to the program you plan to credit to.

As an example here is how points without ticket types will credit to AY Plus (the ticket types is another story and does not apply to TATL flights).

AA:
150%: A F P
125%: D I J R
100%: Y B C H K M L V W G N Q S O

AY(AY0001–AY2000 ja AY3101–AY3300):
200%: C D I J
150%: Y B H
100%: K M P T
50%: V L N S Q O Z R
25%: A W G

AY(code share AY2501–AY7000):
300%: A F P
200%: J C D I
150%: Y B H
100%: K M P T W E
50%: V L N S Q O Z R
25%: G

TTL

As I inadvertently put it to the header...

OhDoctor

I see. If that's the case, again not really an issue, as I have no status with either airline, nor am I in danger of having status with either any time soon. I'm much more likely to have a future use for AA miles, although even then, I'm primarily a B6/DL guy.

kauppias

I stated both have good IFEs not that they were equal