Oct 14, 2013, 4:55 pm
Last edit by: NewbieRunner
Update 08APR2014: Star Alliance Awards must have been booked by March 30, 2014. They are no longer available through US. This thread is mostly useful for historic purposes, and discussing issues such as schedule changes/route changes that affect FTers existing *A awards booked before 3/31/2014.
Discussion on using US miles to book oneworld awards is available here.
If you are looking for discussion on US's new partner awards that use various partners not in oneworld (many of whom are former *A partners), see the devoted thread on using US miles to book NON-oneworld partners here.
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Update 07JAN14: American Airlines award tickets bookable online on usairways.com or through reservation.
Please see the devoted thread on using US miles to book AA here.
Discussion on using US miles to book oneworld awards is available here.
If you are looking for discussion on US's new partner awards that use various partners not in oneworld (many of whom are former *A partners), see the devoted thread on using US miles to book NON-oneworld partners here.
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Update 07JAN14: American Airlines award tickets bookable online on usairways.com or through reservation.
- Award travel must be wholly on American Airlines or a combination of American Airlines and US Airways.
- American Airlines awards cannot be combined with any of our current partner.
- American Airlines award travel chart (PDF)
Please see the devoted thread on using US miles to book AA here.
Star Alliance Award Bookings Using US Airways Miles - FAQ and Help Thread [MERGED]
Oct 12, 2010, 11:08 am
#3631
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: SEA, but up and down the coast a lot
Programs: Oceanic Airlines Gold Elite
Posts: 20,395
Moscow (start)-Atlanta (dest)-London/Anywhere in Europe(stop)-Shanghai (end)
So basically it involves taking off from europe, dest in USA, stop in Europe, end in N. Asia.
So basically it involves taking off from europe, dest in USA, stop in Europe, end in N. Asia.
Buying miles for a one-way award (on someone else, like UA or BMI) or paid ticket going MOW-ATL, and then a US award going ATL-(Europe)-PVG-ATL (with ATL as the discarded unflown segment) is probably the best way to do this at this point, IF Russia's now been booted to North Europe from Asia. That, or modifying your plans to change the stopover orders. You can't have everything.
Last edited by eponymous_coward; Oct 12, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Oct 12, 2010, 12:20 pm
#3633
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: SEA, but up and down the coast a lot
Programs: Oceanic Airlines Gold Elite
Posts: 20,395
I can confirm that Russia has moved to Europe in US *A award chart.
This means that KHV to Europe is a 45,000 mile award, since OZ flies to KHV from ICN.
I imagine you could do some creative routings to "maximize" this (e.g., route through BKK and force <24 h stopovers each way.)
Unfortunately, there's no award chart for intra-regional F in Europe.
Oct 12, 2010, 12:37 pm
#3634
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: *G, SPG, OW Sapphire
Posts: 2,565
If I wanted to get from HKG over the pacific to NYC, what would you guys recommend. I'd like a transfer through BKK, but it's not necessary. Preferred travel would be in F Class.
Last edited by johndeere19; Oct 12, 2010 at 1:55 pm
Oct 12, 2010, 2:30 pm
#3635
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: LHR
Programs: Ex-NWA Plat
Posts: 1,480
United flies HKG to the US over the Pacific but F seats are not easy to find. Look for a routing via ORD.
Oct 12, 2010, 2:34 pm
#3637
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Československá socialistická republika
Posts: 375
http://www.staralliance.com/en/booking/flight-search/
Oct 12, 2010, 2:57 pm
#3638
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: *G, SPG, OW Sapphire
Posts: 2,565
I find that the Star Alliance Flight Search is a good place to start looking for routing ideas.
http://www.staralliance.com/en/booking/flight-search/
http://www.staralliance.com/en/booking/flight-search/
Oct 12, 2010, 3:06 pm
#3639
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Los Angeles & Orange County, CA
Programs: Wouldn't you like to know?!
Posts: 23,822
In the end though, I've decided to cancel and just do NRT-LAX instead of NRT-JFK-LAX. I figured it's just not worth flying an extra 8 hour to try the new product 
Oct 12, 2010, 4:14 pm
#3640
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: SEA, but up and down the coast a lot
Programs: Oceanic Airlines Gold Elite
Posts: 20,395
More evidence of blocking seats?
I guess I wasn't really clear, but I wouldn't mind flying more for a better experience...guess I'm looking for insight into how you would rank some of the F classes on those routes (i.e. ANA old F, Air China F, UA F, TG non-77W F, etc.)
TG flies 3-class to HKG, NRT, PEK and PVG from BKK, so any of those latter 3 can work as connection points. I assume you're doing this as HKG-BKK-(XXX on TG so I can get the private rooms and buggy)-YYY-(any extra connections)-NYC. They don't fly 3-class to ICN, but they do to PVG, and OZ flies 3-class OUT of ICN (and UA flies F out of ICN as well, obviously), so if you don't mind a double connection in Asia...
From what I can see, OZ has good availability, CA does too but their product is dated, UA is middling, NH is pretty frustrating to find but you come across it every so often, and SQ will open up inventory close in sometimes on SIN-LAX-NRT. I am not sure I'd want to fly HKG-BKK-PVG-ICN-LAX-JFK, though, even if it all was in 3-class F with lounge access and tons of perks, unless I was really up for being in a metal tube for more than a day (and those flights are NOT well-timed for connections, so you will have longish layovers- which you might want if you want to spend 5-6 hours doing whirlwind tours of cities and so on).
Oh, and also: I hate ORD with the passion of a thousand white-hot suns, as I always seem to get totally screwed by the weather whenever I fly there. If it came down to it, I'd prefer taking AC J to YVR as a connection home to SEA than UA F to ORD. But that's just me. You might be different.
I contemplated doing something like this at one point (and looked at stuff that maximized my time in F), but the layovers/redeyes don't work for me. Yeah, those pictures tommyleo did looked great, but I'd rather be in Bali than an airport.
Last edited by eponymous_coward; Oct 12, 2010 at 4:30 pm
Oct 12, 2010, 5:24 pm
#3641
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: *G, SPG, OW Sapphire
Posts: 2,565
More evidence that LX is a tough nut and US is using antiquated systems to talk to LX if you ask me.
If you're routing over the Pacific to the US, you aren't flying TG F. TG only flies C, Y+ and Y to LAX. Your F options are NH, OZ, UA, CA and SQ (yes, SQ, because SQ flies their 747 Megatop SIN-NRT-LAX, and it is possible to redeem on that- availability is only going to show up intermittently within a couple weeks of departure, though).
TG flies 3-class to HKG, NRT, PEK and PVG from BKK, so any of those latter 3 can work as connection points. I assume you're doing this as HKG-BKK-(XXX on TG so I can get the private rooms and buggy)-YYY-(any extra connections)-NYC. They don't fly 3-class to ICN, but they do to PVG, and OZ flies 3-class OUT of ICN (and UA flies F out of ICN as well, obviously), so if you don't mind a double connection in Asia...
From what I can see, OZ has good availability, CA does too but their product is dated, UA is middling, NH is pretty frustrating to find but you come across it every so often, and SQ will open up inventory close in sometimes on SIN-LAX-NRT. I am not sure I'd want to fly HKG-BKK-PVG-ICN-LAX-JFK, though, even if it all was in 3-class F with lounge access and tons of perks, unless I was really up for being in a metal tube for more than a day (and those flights are NOT well-timed for connections, so you will have longish layovers- which you might want if you want to spend 5-6 hours doing whirlwind tours of cities and so on).
Oh, and also: I hate ORD with the passion of a thousand white-hot suns, as I always seem to get totally screwed by the weather whenever I fly there. If it came down to it, I'd prefer taking AC J to YVR as a connection home to SEA than UA F to ORD. But that's just me. You might be different.
I contemplated doing something like this at one point (and looked at stuff that maximized my time in F), but the layovers/redeyes don't work for me. Yeah, those pictures tommyleo did looked great, but I'd rather be in Bali than an airport.
If you're routing over the Pacific to the US, you aren't flying TG F. TG only flies C, Y+ and Y to LAX. Your F options are NH, OZ, UA, CA and SQ (yes, SQ, because SQ flies their 747 Megatop SIN-NRT-LAX, and it is possible to redeem on that- availability is only going to show up intermittently within a couple weeks of departure, though).
TG flies 3-class to HKG, NRT, PEK and PVG from BKK, so any of those latter 3 can work as connection points. I assume you're doing this as HKG-BKK-(XXX on TG so I can get the private rooms and buggy)-YYY-(any extra connections)-NYC. They don't fly 3-class to ICN, but they do to PVG, and OZ flies 3-class OUT of ICN (and UA flies F out of ICN as well, obviously), so if you don't mind a double connection in Asia...
From what I can see, OZ has good availability, CA does too but their product is dated, UA is middling, NH is pretty frustrating to find but you come across it every so often, and SQ will open up inventory close in sometimes on SIN-LAX-NRT. I am not sure I'd want to fly HKG-BKK-PVG-ICN-LAX-JFK, though, even if it all was in 3-class F with lounge access and tons of perks, unless I was really up for being in a metal tube for more than a day (and those flights are NOT well-timed for connections, so you will have longish layovers- which you might want if you want to spend 5-6 hours doing whirlwind tours of cities and so on).
Oh, and also: I hate ORD with the passion of a thousand white-hot suns, as I always seem to get totally screwed by the weather whenever I fly there. If it came down to it, I'd prefer taking AC J to YVR as a connection home to SEA than UA F to ORD. But that's just me. You might be different.
I contemplated doing something like this at one point (and looked at stuff that maximized my time in F), but the layovers/redeyes don't work for me. Yeah, those pictures tommyleo did looked great, but I'd rather be in Bali than an airport.
Oct 12, 2010, 7:13 pm
#3642
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: BKK, CDG, TLS
Programs: QR G, A3 G, EK G, IHG Amb, GHA Black, WOH LT something
Posts: 1,306
it's a pity DME in NE Asia was a great thing while it lasted... especially for those of us in Europe going to Asia!
oh well... that's life!
RIP DME!
oh well... that's life!
RIP DME!
Oct 13, 2010, 12:56 am
#3644
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: LHR
Programs: Ex-NWA Plat
Posts: 1,480
[QUOTE=eponymous_coward;14933994]More evidence that LX is a tough nut and US is using antiquated systems to talk to LX if you ask me.
You were right! 8 hours later, the seats somehow showed up again.
But yet again I experienced an age-old problem. The DM desk showed the flight date as T-1 when the date was actually T.
Rule of thumb" always request the airline to look +/- one date of your requested date of travel to see if the flight is sneaking around there on their reservation systems.
PS: The agents are always amazed at how I know these tricks - thank you FT!
You were right! 8 hours later, the seats somehow showed up again.
But yet again I experienced an age-old problem. The DM desk showed the flight date as T-1 when the date was actually T.
Rule of thumb" always request the airline to look +/- one date of your requested date of travel to see if the flight is sneaking around there on their reservation systems.
PS: The agents are always amazed at how I know these tricks - thank you FT!
Oct 13, 2010, 3:29 am
#3645
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: Tampa, FL, USA
Programs: Former Dividend Miles Chairman's, Marriott Rewards
Posts: 1,122
The agents are always amazed at how I know these tricks - thank you FT.
An agent once told me the ANA tool can be quicker and show more available flights than what they see!
An agent once told me the ANA tool can be quicker and show more available flights than what they see!