Trying to decide -- AA or BA transatlantic with infant (premium class)
 

OK, I posted this in the Newbie thread last week, and have searched and perused all of these forums as well as the AA and BA web sites, but still am having a hard time getting insight and answers, so here goes -- and thanks very much in advance for all your assistance.

I'm planning a trip to Europe next summer for a long-lost family reunion, using miles so planning early. There's a good chance we'll be flying with a lap infant, about 2-3 months old. Likely routing will be from DFW through LHR, then on to places on the continent.

My general questions are:

(1) What is the better airline/class to fly? I know BA almost always wins hands-down over AA, but not sure what the airlines' policies are regarding lap infants in F or J. Any particular restrictions with infants flying in the front cabins? Are bassinettes generally available or not available in certain classes?

(2) I'm trying to make sense of the airlines' pricing policy for infants on trans-atlantic flights. It looks to me like AA charges 10% of the adult fare for a lap infant on these flights, but what is that 10% based on? And does BA charge a similar fare? If my wife and I are traveling on award tickets, I'm assuming we'll still have to pay for our lap infant.

Again, many thanks for your help!

You need to look at the airlines' websites regarding these policies. In both cases you will undoubtedly need to speak to a human, particularly if wanting to use mileage tickets.

http://www.aa.com/i18n/travelInforma...ling.jsp#Fares

http://www.britishairways.com/travel...n/public/en_gb

In terms of which airline to use, BA's business class product is generally regarded as superior to AA's in terms of seat comfort for individuals, and if you had bassinet-accessible seat(s) it ought to make for an okay flight. AA's seats are a bit wider, which also might make it more comfortable. In-flight service can go either way; in my more recent flights I've found AA's catering to have an edge; however I really dislike the terminal-change scrum at Heathrow if you're changing planes there.

On redemption trips, BA flights will incur very high fuel surcharges while AA-metal flights won't, so that might also be a consideration. BA redemption seat availability in premium cabins has been much, much better than AA seats of late, so another factor.

I've seen infants in business cabins on both carriers (haven't in FC but I don't fly up there much :( ) One hears the usual snarky comments here and there, but it wouldn't discourage me.

But your question is one that really only the airlines can answer, so I'd get on the phone with them.

[Moderator hat on] I'll let this thread remain as a stand-alone for a couple of days; cross-posting (or repeat posting) is discouraged on FT, so after a little while I'm going to close it. [/hat]

Not an expert on AA, but with BA awards, infants are 10% of miles....+ taxes
Also worth noting, BA have a car-seat like bassinet that is probably the best in the sky

As far as AA goes, the appropriate wiki page at http://www.flyerguide.com/wiki/index..._and_Fares_(AA) will have all your answers.

The bassinettes do not fit onto AA's international business class seats. You can use a bassinet on BA's first or business seats. I'm not sure about AA's international first. Note also that the bassinettes are different. On AA, it is a cot. On BA, it is like a bouncer seat. Both are fine.

You can use miles or pay cash for the baby's ticket. The miles are the same as for an adult, the taxes may be slightly less. If you buy the baby's seat with miles, he or she will have his or her own seat and luggage allowance etc. If you are paying cash for a lap infant's ticket, AA charges 10% of the cheapest adult fare for the cabin, so you want to book that part of the ticket during a sale. It sounds like you can't book the baby's ticket yet anyway. Even with a paid ticket, the baby will not earn miles unfortunately (unless you bought a full price seat).

If you are using AA miles, I think the above will be the same whether you fly on an AA or BA aircraft (although the fees will be much higher if you use AA miles to fly on BA to/from UK).

Notwithstanding that it will cost a bit more, if there is availability in business, I would go for BA in your situation using miles for the adults and buying a lap infant ticket for the baby as: (a) less chance of a terminal change at LHR with BA (depends on your destination in Europe), (b) it will probably be a relief to be able to put the baby in a bassinet for at least some of the time so you can eat and move about etc, and (c) the BA configuration is much more private for a couple so you can breastfeed and be disturbed less (and not see people glaring at you if the baby is a bit noisy).

This has all been very, very helpful -- thank you very much for your answers.

Thinking of taking AA in First on the outbound overnight leg, and then BA Business on the return. Anyone know if the bassinettes will work with AA's international F seats?