AA - SJC to PTY - $898 - Business
Mar 31, 2023, 6:30 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: CLT
Posts: 1,914
AA - SJC to PTY - $898 - Business
In Sept / Oct of 2023 or Jan / Feb of 2024 you can book SJC to PTY for $898 roundtrip on American Airlines. The itinerary has a connection in Phoenix or Dallas in addition to Miami.
If you are in the US and trying to collect BA Tier Points you'd earn 240 for the roundtrip itinerary, if my calculations are correct. That comes to about $3.75 or 3 GBP per tier point.
According to the fare rules the departure must be Mon-Thurs to help you with your searches.
Example Google Flights searches -
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
Google Flights
ITA Matrix
If you are in the US and trying to collect BA Tier Points you'd earn 240 for the roundtrip itinerary, if my calculations are correct. That comes to about $3.75 or 3 GBP per tier point.
According to the fare rules the departure must be Mon-Thurs to help you with your searches.
Example Google Flights searches -
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
Google Flights
ITA Matrix
Last edited by cruser1; Mar 31, 2023 at 6:59 am
Mar 31, 2023, 8:18 am
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: CLT
Posts: 1,914
Looks like the cheapest itinerary with a connection at LAX is $927 which comes to $2.10 per TP. - still pretty good!
Shortest itineraries are in January -
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...0vUVU9EgIIASIA
Few other options toward end of 2023 / early 2024 -
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...SIICgZxZGNJamQ
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...0xd1U9EgIIASIA
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...ytRVT0SAggBIgA
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...n&gl=en_US%5Cn
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...I0YwoGUEJXU3Zj
Mar 31, 2023, 8:22 am
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: CLT
Posts: 1,914
The flights are all months away so there's no guarantee they won't swap the plane, but it's likely you'll receive a lie-flat seat on a 777.
Last edited by cruser1; Mar 31, 2023 at 8:27 am
Mar 31, 2023, 8:34 am
#6
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: AS MVP Gold 75K, ex-AA EXP, ex-UA 1K
Posts: 707
This is a good find, but OTOH I was hoping it'd prove to be a reboot of sorts of my favorite mileage-run route when I was still EP with AAdvantage: I'm sure some folks here recall when AA had LAX-PTY flights via JFK and on their A321Ts with lie-flats in J & F. From JFK, most routes had a quick stopover at MIA before continuing on. Still, I've seen very few loopholes over the years for snagging a discounted transcon lie-flat fare – the ticket prices were similar to these IIRC, except you could definitely snag a flat-bed seat on an ex-LAX (um, no pun intended 
) flight into JFK, plus this was before they instituted EQDs, which obviously made obtaining EP status vastly more difficult.
Unfortunately I make a point of never booking fares this far in advance – yes, even though AA now offers 100% refunds with no change fees. (I still remember them, along with nearly every other US airline, reneging on the original plan after the 2008 economic meltdown that the newly added checked-baggage fees were only "temporary" until they were on steadier financial ground. Instead, they kept them in place, and instead of serving their customers' best needs, they opted to instead cater to Wall Street's, e.g. stock buybacks once they started generating sizable profits again. I've also already been screwed by other airlines that adopted these no-change-fee policies during Covid rolling them back, in particular SQ & BA. Yes, that's definitely odd for SQ in particular, given its longstanding rep as a leading – or arguably the leading – carrier anywhere.)
) flight into JFK, plus this was before they instituted EQDs, which obviously made obtaining EP status vastly more difficult.Unfortunately I make a point of never booking fares this far in advance – yes, even though AA now offers 100% refunds with no change fees. (I still remember them, along with nearly every other US airline, reneging on the original plan after the 2008 economic meltdown that the newly added checked-baggage fees were only "temporary" until they were on steadier financial ground. Instead, they kept them in place, and instead of serving their customers' best needs, they opted to instead cater to Wall Street's, e.g. stock buybacks once they started generating sizable profits again. I've also already been screwed by other airlines that adopted these no-change-fee policies during Covid rolling them back, in particular SQ & BA. Yes, that's definitely odd for SQ in particular, given its longstanding rep as a leading – or arguably the leading – carrier anywhere.)
Last edited by kirker; Mar 31, 2023 at 9:00 am Reason: Fixed typos, added more detail
Mar 31, 2023, 8:55 am
#7
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: AS MVP Gold 75K, ex-AA EXP, ex-UA 1K
Posts: 707
Looks like it! In the links I just posted in my previous post (Post #4) a 777 is used between MIA and LAX in every itinerary, so you'll receive a lie-flat seat between MIA and LAX in both directions.
The flights are all months away so there's no guarantee they won't swap the plane, but it's likely you'll receive a lie-flat seat on a 777.
The flights are all months away so there's no guarantee they won't swap the plane, but it's likely you'll receive a lie-flat seat on a 777.
I don't suppose you've tried pricing it out via transcon routings on the A321T? (all ex-LAX or ex-SFO IIRC) I'm guessing it'd be extremely unlikely for those specific flights to have aircraft changes, given that they're purpose-specific for single-aisle transcons where many or most want to sleep – at least on the eastbound portion. Btw as noted in my last post, I flew LAX-JFK-MIA-PTY & back at least a dozen times back when there was some sort of loophole allowing for ~$600 r/t fares even for A321T seats in J, despite them costing at least $1,200 (and usually more) for folks simply flying the LAX-JFK-LAX portion. Anyway, just thinking ahead to what the status of flying may be 10 months from now, which is surprisingly difficult!
Mar 31, 2023, 8:57 am
#8
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: CLT
Posts: 1,914
This is a good find, but OTOH I was hoping it'd prove to be a reboot of sorts of my favorite mileage-run route when I was still EP with AAdvantage: I'm sure some folks here recall when AA had LAX-PTY flights via JFK and on their A321Ts with lie-flats in J & F. From JFK, most routes had a quick stopover at MIA before continuing on. Still, I've seen very few loopholes over the years for snagging a discounted transcon lie-flat fare – the ticket prices were similar to these IIRC, except you could definitely snag a flat-bed seat on an ex-LAX (um, no pun intended ) flight into JFK, plus this was before they instituted EQDs, which obviously made obtaining EP status vastly more difficult.
Unfortunately I make a point of never booking fares this far in advance – yes, even though AA now offers 100% refunds with no change fees. (I still remember them, along with nearly every other US airline, reneging on the original plan after the 2008 economic meltdown that the newly added checked-baggage fees were only "temporary" until they were on steadier financial ground. Instead, they kept them in place, and instead of serving their customers' best needs, they opted to instead cater to Wall Street's, e.g. stock buybacks once they started generating sizable profits again.
) flight into JFK, plus this was before they instituted EQDs, which obviously made obtaining EP status vastly more difficult.Unfortunately I make a point of never booking fares this far in advance – yes, even though AA now offers 100% refunds with no change fees. (I still remember them, along with nearly every other US airline, reneging on the original plan after the 2008 economic meltdown that the newly added checked-baggage fees were only "temporary" until they were on steadier financial ground. Instead, they kept them in place, and instead of serving their customers' best needs, they opted to instead cater to Wall Street's, e.g. stock buybacks once they started generating sizable profits again.
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
Mar 31, 2023, 9:42 am
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: CLT
Posts: 1,914
I'm not sure which dates you tried, but I just plugged in several sets. This may not represent all of them, but there are a total of eight daily nonstops. For dates in April – I know the fare's not available then, but in this case I was merely checking which metal AA uses on the route – only one of the eight is on a widebody 777 or 787. The other seven use standard recliners on the A321neo. For November, it's three out of eight at this writing (not counting B6 codeshares), but as the OP noted, it wouldn't be unusual for AA to swap planes long before then; as per usual, it depends largely on demand. (Both domestically as well as internationally: probably stating the obvious on FT, but the use of widebodies on transcons came about certainly in part because AA had cut back on its international flights, or at least those beyond the Americas. Now that China's reopened, they may start reinstituting routes dropped during Covid – including both PEK & PVG at minimum, from multiple US cities – along with boosting service to parts of the world still gradually reopening to tourism, particularly in East & SE Asia. (And had they reopened a few months earlier, the region would've likely gotten more traffic had they not waited until so close to monsoon season throughout much of it.))
I don't suppose you've tried pricing it out via transcon routings on the A321T? (all ex-LAX or ex-SFO IIRC) I'm guessing it'd be extremely unlikely for those specific flights to have aircraft changes, given that they're purpose-specific for single-aisle transcons where many or most want to sleep – at least on the eastbound portion. Btw as noted in my last post, I flew LAX-JFK-MIA-PTY & back at least a dozen times back when there was some sort of loophole allowing for ~$600 r/t fares even for A321T seats in J, despite them costing at least $1,200 (and usually more) for folks simply flying the LAX-JFK-LAX portion. Anyway, just thinking ahead to what the status of flying may be 10 months from now, which is surprisingly difficult!
I don't suppose you've tried pricing it out via transcon routings on the A321T? (all ex-LAX or ex-SFO IIRC) I'm guessing it'd be extremely unlikely for those specific flights to have aircraft changes, given that they're purpose-specific for single-aisle transcons where many or most want to sleep – at least on the eastbound portion. Btw as noted in my last post, I flew LAX-JFK-MIA-PTY & back at least a dozen times back when there was some sort of loophole allowing for ~$600 r/t fares even for A321T seats in J, despite them costing at least $1,200 (and usually more) for folks simply flying the LAX-JFK-LAX portion. Anyway, just thinking ahead to what the status of flying may be 10 months from now, which is surprisingly difficult!
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...0lDCgZBVlVNc2Q
Mar 31, 2023, 12:38 pm
#11
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: CLT
Posts: 1,914
Looks like the original deal I posted also works from Palm Springs (PSP) for a few dollars more and as soon as April of this year. Connection will be in Austin, Phoenix or Dallas, then Miami (PSP-PHX/AUS/DFW-MIA-PTY-MIA-PHX/AUS/DFW-PSP). You'd earn the original 120 TP in each direction of travel or 240 TP total.
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
If you want United / Star Alliance miles, you can also fly on United / COPA from Palm Springs in business for just over $1k.
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
Mar 31, 2023, 4:27 pm
#12
Moderator: Qatar Airways
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: LHR/NCE/MIA
Programs: BAEC GfL & GGL, SQ Gold, Amex Centurion, Mucci des Chevaliers des Bons Mots et Qui Savent Moucher
Posts: 8,950
The only way to get from California to Panama is the 16 leg run which sadly no longer exists.
That was fun!
M
That was fun!
M
Mar 31, 2023, 9:15 pm
#13
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: CLT
Posts: 1,914
Anyways, the fare I originally posted also appears to be available from Sacramento (SMF) and Ontario, CA (ONT). So it's available from SJC, PSP, SMF, and ONT.
SMF to PTY - $934+ with connection at AUS, DFW, PHX, or ORD starting in August 2023
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
If you want 440 Tier Points you can book a connection at LAX and MIA for about $1060 (SMF-LAX-MIA-PTY-MIA-LAX-SMF)
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
The fare from ONT also starts at $934 in Aug 2023
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
https://www.google.com/travel/flight...gl=us&curr=USD
Ontario to Panama
Sacramento to Panama
Sacramento to Panama vis LAX & MIA (440 TP)