Do you need to be in NYC and BOS? Otherwise SFO - LHR - MAD is far easier. Full fare J looks to be 9000 USD and F is 11000 USD (J only LHR - MAD).

For the summer season, Iberia fly SFO - MAD direct.

Yes, we're visiting friends in NYC and attending a wedding on Cape Cod before visiting friends in London.

A bit of an update: We called American's US toll-free number. We were eventually told that because we had purchased the tickets in NZ, we have to contact their call center. We ran out of time. So I will call tomorrow morning 11 February. I did learn that I can change the flight to a Boston to Madrid nonstop or I can connect to the 12:20 pm flight to Madrid in business class. We save $1,700 per person by flying nonstop to Madrid or $1,450 for the flight through London. But they can't process it because I purchased it NZ though in USD. I'm a bit perplexed.

Unless you need to be in London, I would definitely recommend BOS - MAD direct.

EDIT: Sorry, I missed that you were seeing friends in London. Could you do that on the way back and still route direct to MAD?

I wish I could take the Iberia BOS-MAD nonstop. Unfortunately, I'll be coming from a wedding on Cape Cod and I'll be cutting it too tight so I need to take the later evening flight out of Boston.

For what it's worth, an agent added the 12:20 BA 460 (772) from LHR to MAD in business class. We got a refund on top of it.

Appending: Forgot to add that they also added a MAD-LHR return in business class, as well.

Thank you all for explaining everything to me. I am so fortunate to have received your wisdom.

No worries. It's a complicated thread with lots of information dispersed along the way.

We originally booked the nonstop to London to visit friends, but after booking it, they indicated that they were going to be away for a few days. This is the genesis of our taking a side trip to Madrid. I had looked at nonstops but it left too early for us, as we will be three hours away from Boston, plus the two-hour check-in, plus factoring in any traffic delays. We just didn't want to push it.

We'll return to London from Madrid a few days later to visit our friends. The return flight to JFK works perfectly, as does our onward nonstop to Auckland.

Glad to hear it has all worked out, and you have some pennies back in the bank on top.

The direct NYC - Auckland must be a godsend for you after the number of flights you�ll have taken earlier in your trip.

I still mourn the loss of Air NZ at LHR. I loved flying with them to LAX, such friendly and engaging cabin crew who gave a taste of NZ to those never even stepping into the country.

Sounds good. And as it�s on one ticket, your bags will be checked through to MAD.

Extra tip - your BOS flight will almost certainly disembark at T5 B or C satellite, and your onward MAD flight will almost certainly leave from B or C too. (In fact if your BOS flight is a 777 it�s quite possible it could be the same aircraft, though don�t expect that.)

As such, look to clear security at B gates and then head straight up to the Galleries Club lounge there - it�s the best of the business lounges at T5, and avoids the schlep back to the main A gates.

Just check on wayfinding.maps.ba.com when you arrive to get a gate indication for the MAD flight. But you�d be very unlucky for it to be a bus gate from A.

It's a pitty that Air New Zealand discontinued its through service from LAX to LHR. They are great at service. Personable, friendly, and engaged. One of the factors that made us choose Oneworld was cost. United was more considerably expensive than Oneworld. And doing a nonstop from SFO-EWR made it even more expensive. I'm also hoping that some of Air New Zealand's charm will rub off on Qantas. United's service is underwhelming. Not sure what to expect in terms of service when traveling on AA, BA or IB, but I'm guessing that it is better than what I've experienced on United.

Wow, thank you Ldnn1, and everyone for that matter, for you guidance, suggestions and tips. It is not lost on me that my luggage is checked through to Madrid and I won't have recheck myself. Thinking about the whole rigamarole was vexing.

I love the link, too. Super duper helpful. I was doing some research on how to make the best connection at T5. Everything I could find pointed me to taking a train back to Terminal 5A to clear immigration and then going to one of the Galleries Lounges there, either Galleries North or South. Not necessarily needing to do a terminal swap would be awesome, and it will give me more time to shower and take breakfast, which gives me more time to sleep on the flight.

I'm excited to be trying Qantas, British Airways and Iberia, too.

Your collective help saved me from a whole lot of hassle, a considerable chunk of money, and a few hours of needless waiting.

Again, sincerest thank yous to all of you.

Jim

Ah, well clearly you haven�t found the right guide. Here you go�

LHR Terminal 5B Flight Connections - a pictorial guide - including T5B bus service

(although note some of the details are no longer current, e.g the �15 Starbucks credit is long gone, and you no longer need to remove laptops and liquids etc

If you’re connecting same day from a long-haul Club Suite sector onto Euro Traveller, lounge access usually keys off the long-haul business flight, so you should still get in as long as you can show both boarding passes. For the airport run I’ve done similar trips by taking Patriots Limousine to the terminal so I can arrive early sort bags calmly.

Thank you for the link, Lndd1. Very helpful.

And thank you for the advice on Patriots Limousine Service in Boston, too, sophia_smith.

Hello everyone. A quick update. American made changes to the itinerary as requested, though the changes weren't confirmed immediately. Rather than reticket at the time of the call, the yet-to-be ticketed reservation was placed in a queue. As it was explained to me, since my ticket was in September, the airline had time. How much time? Up to six weeks.

I received a confirmation about two weeks later, along with a refund to my Amex. The only issue is that BA and Iberia had released the space on both LHR-MAD and MAD-LHR flight segments because too much time had passed, according to a BA reservations agent. I tried explaining what had happened to an American Airlines agent who insisted that everything from their end looked fine. I politely got off the phone and made repeated calls (three in total) until an agent connected me with an agent at AA's Oneworld department who contacted BA and sorted out everything on my behalf. She was excellent.

Just sharing in case this happens to another flyer.

FWIW, the 772 from Boston to London doesn't have a first class. The 772 from London to Madrid does, though I'm still seated in business class.

I don't think BA sells First short-haul, so it may be a FLUB flight (meaning some business class passengers will sit in the First cabin but receive J service).

I see that there are rows one and two. Then the next row is row five. When I went to select seats, the seats in rows one and two are x-ed out. So perhaps they reserve those seats for frequent flyers either in advance or upon check-in. I don't know.