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One of the single hardest routes to land at sAAver rates is LAX to LHR on American metal. Normally this would be unicorn space, but given the dramatic drop in demand it’s no surprise that AA is releasing more award inventory on their own planes. Here’s the catch…it’s only bookable via an AA “web special” meaning these can’t be changed and they wouldn’t be accessible to partners. So if you’re sitting on a cache of Avios…no dice. But still…
Also…as you’re perusing if you see 57.5k odds are it’s a BA flight – look for oddly priced fares.
Update: 87k roundtrip in direct business populating
Hat Tip to Chris Kidder via Twitter for finding even lower prices when searching roundtrip
Old post continued…you’ll still find great deals and space searching one way, but not nearly as cheap as when booking roundtrip
There are a few dates in March, but you’ll see more seats in April
Let’s look at March 31st
Both of these flights are direct and operate a 777-300ER
When you click on it…
Note the normal price of the award at 110k. This would mean you could change it.
Check the planes on the dates you book. AA operates two different aircraft.
The 777-300ER features a Cirrus Herringbone seat that is one of my favorites and I would highly recommend the mini cabin. You can read our review on this route here…
The 777-200 fit with b/e super diamonds also serve this route. Also one of my favorites. You can read about them on the Tokyo or Buenos Aires routes I’ve written.
In my opinion…going on seat alone, AA operates the best business class between LA and London and at this rate, with only $5.60 in fees – the best price as well
If you look at other cities you’ll find rates drop down to 50k, or if you’re departing from LA, you can connect and I found some dates at 50k
Also…if this persists, my guess is we are going to see many more of these
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
$300 Chase Travel℠ Credit + Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- $300 Chase Travel℠ Credit + Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- That’s worth $750 when redeemed through Chase Travel℠. Plus, get up to $300 in statement credits on Chase Travel℠ purchases within your first year
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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