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FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
OCTOBER 2016 UPDATE
LAX-JFK TRANSCONTINENTAL FLIGHTS: Recent fare rule inclusions, effective October 2016, now prevent any routing via JFK on the non-stop transcontinental A321T aircraft. Any future booking will demand a significantly higher fare to route on the non-stops via JFK. Unless the fare rules are modified and these clauses are removed (highly doubtful), the ability to fly on the transcons via JFK is a thing of the past. IF THE FARE COMPONENT INCLUDES TRAVEL BETWEEN LAX AND NYC THEN THAT TRAVEL MUST BE ON ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING ANY AA FLIGHT OPERATED BY AA BUT NOT ON AIRBUS INDUSTRIE A321 (SHARKLETS) AIRCRAFT. AND IF THE FARE COMPONENT INCLUDES TRAVEL BETWEEN SFO AND NYC THEN THAT TRAVEL MUST BE ON ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING ANY AA FLIGHT OPERATED BY AA BUT NOT ON AIRBUS INDUSTRIE A321 (SHARKLETS) AIRCRAFT. 1. Same day turns possible on the E-jets and morning 738s. 2. Bonuses now based on fare paid. 3. As of OCTOBER 2016, best fares are now around $1000. Fare tends to rise a few hundred for 2 pax. Fares can also occasionally rise for no discernible reason, but the price spikes have thus far proven to be temporary. Fares have the trend to drop during the year. Keep checking for fares in the $700-$800 ranges for best possible pricing. 4. Airport hotels with shuttles - Crowne Plaza Panama Airport & Riande Aeropuerto. The CP is slightly closer; the Riande is slightly nicer. The CP shuttle leaves the hotel every :00 and :30 and runs 24 hours but they seem to leave a few minutes early as it had left when I went down at 4:00AM on the dot. Also, note UberX charges a US$14 surcharge on top of the ~US$2 fare. CP has poor sound isolation, I could hear my neighbors on both sides including talking, crying baby etc. Had to wear earplugs to sleep. 5. Lounges: Please refer to this thread for more detailed and accurate information on lounge access in general: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/american-airlines-aadvantage/1656378-help-desk-will-i-have-lounge-access-access-rules-2016-a.html LAX AIRPORT = When trying to gain oneworld J / QF F access based on status, it is simply departing/connecting/arriving at any point on same ticket to and from an eligible international destination. PTY is eligible and not excluded regardless of length. = When trying to gain oneworld J / QF F access based on class of service disregarding status, it is the international long haul clause that applies. Therefore, no "oneworld/QF lounge" access for non-elites for trips to and from PTY unless booking transcons since PTY is under 5 hours. BUT AA doesn't enforce this in their own lounges so Admirals Club access is expected. AA GOLDs(RUBYs)/NON-ELITES Admirals Club access is granted regardless of routing as AA does not enforce international long haul rule. However, the oneworld J lounge does for Golds(rubys)/non-elites as they are aware the PTY flights are under 5 hours. Booking transcon flights in J/F gains access to the OWJ/QFF lounges. <Transcon 3-class (JFK/MIA) in F = Admirals + Flagship + LAX oneworld J lounge + QF F Lounge LAX> <Transcon 3-class (JFK/MIA) in J = Admirals + LAX oneworld J lounge> <Non-Transcon F (2-class) + PTY = Technically NONE (PTY under 5 hours therefore class of service rule applies) BUT AA still opens Admirals Club doors to all customers because they dont enforce the long-haul rule> AA PLATINUMs Platinums gain access to all AC/Business lounges regardless of routing due to flying to and from PTY. They gain access to First/Flagship lounges when traveling in F 3-class transcon <Transcon 3-class (JFK/MIA) in F = Admirals + Flagship + LAX oneworld J lounge + QF F Lounge LAX> <Transcon 3-class (JFK/MIA) in J = Admirals + LAX oneworld J lounge> <Non-Transcon F (2-class) + PTY = Admirals + LAX oneworld J> AA EXPs EXPs have access to all lounges at all airports regardless of routing so long as they are traveling to and from PTY on the same itinerary (an international destination neither excluded from AA's list of ineligible regions nor limited by the flight length rule) <EXPs Transcon F (2-class) + PTY = Admirals + Flagship + LAX oneworld J + QF F lounge LAX> <EXPs Non-Transcon F (2-class) + PTY = Admirals + Flagship + LAX oneworld J + QF F lounge LAX> <EXPs on Transcon 3-class (JFK/MIA + PTY) in Y = Admirals + Flagship + LAX oneworld J + QF F lounge LAX> <EXPs on Transcon 3-class (JFK/MIA + PTY) in J = Admirals + Flagship + LAX oneworld J + QF F lounge LAX> <EXPs on Transcon 3-class (JFK/MIA + PTY) in F = Admirals + Flagship + LAX oneworld J + QF F lounge LAX> NON-AA ONEWORLD ELITES All sapphires and emeralds have some form of lounge access on any flight systemwide <non-AA sapphires on ALL AA FLIGHTS = Admirals Club + oneworld J lounge LAX> <non-AA emeralds on ALL AA FLIGHTS = Admirals Club + oneworld J lounge LAX + Flagship Lounge + QF F lounge LAX> OTHER AIRPORTS SFO - Admiral's Club (Centurion Lounge for a fee) JFK - Admirals Club & Flagship Lounge for EXP/First 3-class/Emerald MIA - Admiral's Club (Centurion Lounge for a fee), Oneworld Premium Lounge for EXP/First 3-Class/Emerald PTY - No lounge access (Copa with PP, or for a fee, for 7am or later flights) YVR - No lounge access (PP for a fee) DFW - Admiral's Club (with F/C Dining for EXP/Emerald) (Centurion Lounge for a fee) 6. PTY Customs: Inbound to PTY - 7. Finding flights:
Outbound to MIA -
NOTE: LAX-JFK NO LONGER VALID FOR LOWEST FARES (effective OCT 2016) If you want the transcon bonus, enter the search with a connection in JFK. (e.g. LAX-JFK,JFK-MIA,MIA-PTY,PTY-JFK,JFK-SFO.) You can play around from there to get the best deal. Some of the better deals do not start and end in the same city (e.g. start in LAX, end in SFO may be cheaper than start/end in LAX). Also, it's possible on the outbound portion to time it so you have no more than a 60-minute layover at JFK or MIA (though note that some of these flights aren't available on weekends). While yes, JFK is notorious for delays, this rarely applies for inbound red-eye flights. Also, note that AA 28 below is sometimes "hidden" if you're looking on Google Flights inside a much more expensive trip; that does not necessarily mean, however, that you can't get it for one of the trips under $1,000 (in other words, try it out to see). NOTE: LAX-JFK NO LONGER VALID FOR LOWEST FARES (effective OCT 2016) Below is the shortest-possible outbound itinerary that has the LAX-JFK transcon on AA's A321T with flat-bed seats: LAX-JFK on AA 28 10:45pm - 7:22am JFK-MIA on AA 200 8:15am - 11:24am (Note: AA has now switched all of the metal it used on this leg - on all JFK-MIA nonstops - to 757s instead of the 767s with international-style F & J seating.)***767 and 772 are back. Flight 200 is a 772** MIA-PTY on AA 4434 12:33pm - 2:48pm (Note: Even more distressingly, AA switched from using a 737 on this leg to an RJ, presumably because summer is off-peak season in Central America. The 6:05pm flight still uses a 737 if a full-size aircraft is a must.) |
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