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Etihad A380 is back between London and Abu Dhabi – hello first class apartment

a seat in an airplane

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Etihad A380 has returned

Like an action hero of the 1990s…the Etihad A380 is now un-retired and ready for another payday.  Wahoo! This means you can book the inimitable First Class Apartment and Residence with points and miles because these bad boys are on the schedule between London and Abu Dhabi. The award space has been coming in waves, late last night it was wide open, now early today it seems to have vanished. We actually saw this in December when the announcement was made and people had problems booking online and phone reps had issues as well. Currently, your best bet is calling American to book.

In the past, calling the AA Australia number was your best bet

In case you’re unfamiliar with why this is such an amazing deal…check out the A380 First Class Apartments which I flew in 2019.

I also have had the pleasure of flying the A380 in business studios a couple of times…and a downright steal for just 42.5k AA miles

a man sitting in a chair holding a glass of champagne

How many miles would it cost to fly AUH to LHR in first or business class?

  • American Miles ( Bilt Rewards )
    • 62.5k in First
    • 42.5k in Business
  • Aeroplan ( Amex, Bilt, Chase, Capital One )
    • 65k in first
    • 45k in business
  • Etihad ( Amex, Capital One, Citi )
    • 87.750 in first
    • 62,500 in business

You could also book with Asiana miles, but so few people have them, and they aren’t a transfer partner of any 1:1 currency that I haven’t detailed them. ( You can populate via Marriott, however ).

Currently, it’s just 62.5k American miles to book First Class between Abu Dhabi and London – you want to make sure the cabin shows Airbus A380 as Etihad does operate a dreamliner on the route as well.

a screenshot of a flight schedule

 

a seat in an airplane

Overall

It’s unclear how long Etihad will continue to operate the A380s, but this is an awesome development for anyone who has had their eyes and points set on flying this incredible product. I’d say it would make for a really cool way to fly from Europe to Africa, Asia, The Maldives, India, etc with a connection in AUH en route.

 

Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.

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