y642637

I have an upcoming NYC-HKG-NYC trip and since any itinerary booked with a 1W partner only accrues 125% of miles flown, NYC-HKG would yield only 10K LPs which is quite dismal. Checked aa.com I notice there aren't very many great options getting to HK when booked through AA as they generally have 2 stops. I would be OK with 1 stop. Speaking to AA they claim that despite CX having seats available they haven't released them to AA for codeshare. Just curious if anyone has any ideas on how to find better routes to maximize LPs with AA or if I should even consider trying another airline 1W airline program that would maximize status on even a CX direct flight?

gophish11

This should help you out a lot: https://lpcalculator.com/#/landing

For example, a roughly $7k roundtrip ticket in J on Finnair traveling June 15-22 (assuming no AAdvantage status) should still fetch you around 50k miles. Flying longhaul in premium cabins on OW partners is one of the best ways to accrue AAdvantage miles. You should fetch quite a haul of miles if you're on a cash ticket in J on AY, BA, QR, or CX.

Keep in mind that although AAdvantage does have some very good redemption values on OW partners, availability is much, much tougher to come by than it was a year or more ago. You might do some research on how many Avios you could accrue if you book through BA or QR, as I think Avios are starting to overtake the value of AAdvantage miles for trips originating in the US.

ryanbriar

The LP tool is quite nifty. As it will show in tabular view, LP earnings vary widely on depending on AA level and fare class booked if not on AA / codeshare. It looks like for this route at $7k RT, it roughly makes sense to not book as an AA code if you’re platinum or below (assuming you’re in a decent fare class).

You should also think about future travel plans etc. as it may make more sense to accrue in a different program.

y642637

Thanks for your replies. To be sure, I am booking full fare business J.

I've seen that calculator and indeed it was from there that I noticed how little LPs I would be accruing on a codeshare if not booked through AA. JFK-HKG direct booked on CX with gold status only yields ~13K LPs (or 26K LPs RT), even with EP it would still only yield ~19K LPs. A similar AA RT flight that costs around $10K USD but with 2 stops would yield 70K LPs (7 multiplier x $10K USD). Since I don't think I'd be able to get away with 2 stops would it make sense to look into another 1W program instead?

platbrownguy

https://www.google.com/travel/flight...CQoBMBIBMRIBMg

That's an itinerary on JAL via Tokyo (only one stop), booked as an AA codeshare for under $10k via AA. You can tinker with dates to get better flight times. Just a thought

stant

out of curiosity, what is the huge objection to 2 stops? personally I hate ultralong segments. You haven't said, but I'm assuming one stop would be in dfw, lax or ord. sipping Champaign in the flagship lounge is hardly a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. if the earning is literally 300% more the few extra hours would seem to be worth it imho.

guv1976

Where did you get that idea? The higher Business Class fare bases earn 250% of flown mileage on AY, JL, and QR. JFK-DOH-HKG-DOH-JFK booked in J, C, or D would earn over 50,000 miles and LPs. Details here:

https://www.aa.com/i18n/travel-info/...ines/qatar.jsp

guv1976

y642637 , is your priority attaining oneworld status, or in maximizing redeemable miles/Avios? Aside from the upcoming Business Class roundtrip to HKG, what other flights do you intend to take, and in what class of service? Domestic Economy flights? International Business Class flights? What would you like to redeem your miles for? And what do you hope to get from oneworld status? Lounge access when flying domestic AA flights? Upgrades on domestic AA flights?

Your answers to these questions will help decide which program's miles would be most valuable for you, and whether attaining oneworld status through AA or a foreign FFP would be most beneficial for you.

y642637

Priority for me is to achieve oneworld status mostly for the free checked bags, priority boarding, priority check-in, also being gold last year with around 50K LPs, I got upgraded from domestic economy on 8 out of 10 of my flights. I generally fly business for work but economy domestically unless I pay for upgrades which I rarely do.

y642637

Thanks and indeed Qatar appears to yield more LPs, I guess AA doesn't have a good relationship with CX to only be yielding a 25% cabin bonus for J?

y642637

No huge objection for me personally but when working with my corporate travel agent they seem to be confused when I request a flight with 2 stops on AA vs a direct CX flight especially considering cost is the same. Would be much easier if I could just book my own itinerary to avoid this interaction.

guv1976

OK. Status in any oneworld program would get you the free checked bags, priority boarding, priority check-in; status in some -- but not all -- oneworld programs would also get you free MCE seats when flying on AA. Status in AAdvantage would give you the opportunity for free domestic upgrades; mid-tier status (oneworld Sapphire) in a foreign FFP would give you free lounge access, even when flying AA domestically, and even when flying in Coach.

If the potential for free domestic upgrades is more important to you than free lounge access, then credit to AAdvantage. Flying JFK-XXX-HKG roundtrip on AY, JL, or QR with AY, JL, or QR flight numbers (not AA codeshare flight numbers) in one of the higher Business Class fare bases would get you AAdvantage Gold, but you'd still have a ways to go to reach AAdvantage Platinum. You could help move the needle by getting a Barclays or Citi AAdvantage credit card, and putting some of your spend on it.

If, on the other hand, lounge access when flying domestically is more important to you, then I would credit the HKG trip to Iberia Plus, especially if you end up flying on QR. By crediting to Iberia Plus, you would have oneworld Ruby status after just the JFK-DOH-HKG legs, and you would be achingly close to oneworld Sapphire -- which gets you lounge access -- after flying the entire roundtrip. But then you would be earning Avios -- not AAdvantage miles -- which have plusses and minuses when it comes to redeeming for award travel.

For details about crediting long-haul Business Class flights to Iberia Plus, see here:

https://insideflyer.co.uk/2019/03/qa...f-iberia-plus/

("WHY QATAR AIRWAYS BUSINESS CLASS REGULARS MIGHT BE BETTER OFF WITH IBERIA PLUS")

If you do not care that much about whether you have AAdvantage miles or Avios available for redemption, then your decision about where to credit the HKG trip really comes down to what you value most highly: lounge access when flying AA domestically, or the possibility of free upgrades when flying AA domestically.

y642637

Thank you for your reply and that makes a lot of sense. I think in the end I value having AA status the most considering it's my "home" airline and I do fly domestically a lot and it's nice to have these perks while also getting the occasional upgrade. I'll try to maximize this trip by finding a partner with higher redemption as was pointed out in this thread (I didn't realize they were so different with CX being quite bad in this respect!). I think I'm quite happy with gold status for the priority boarding (I don't necessarily always need to be in group 1 or 2) and I rarely fly domestically with more than 1 checked bag.

Will look into one of the credit cards to help maximize my LPs to hopefully increase my chances at getting domestic upgrades and/or increased LP accumulation multipliers (11 multiplier for EP would make this all much easier). In general though for the domestic legs I've flown, since I've gotten 8 out 10 I'd say even 50K is pretty good. The other 2 I didn't get it I was like 55 out of 80 or something but that's on a highly contested route like LGA-CLT I think and I'm not interested in entering that race!

guv1976

A significant benefit of AAdvantage Platinum (or oneworld Sapphire status through some partners like BA and IB) is the ability to select Main Cabin Extra seats for free at time of booking, and not just at 24 hours before departure. Having a good MCE seat can take some of the sting out of not getting upgraded.

Edited to add: In addition to obtaining an AA credit card as suggested above, there are other activities that can earn LPs. If you dine out at, or take out from, restaurants in the NYC Metro area, consider enrolling in AAdvantage Dining. Lodging at certain hotel chains (like Hyatt and Marriott) can also earn AAdvantage miles/LPs if you opt to credit the stays to AAdvantage. (I think that Hyatt even lets you double-dip (earn both Hyatt points and AAdvantage miles) if you have elite status in both programs.)

The important thing is not to leave miles/LPs on the table if you are hoping to achieve a higher status in AAdvantage.

gophish11

Sounds like you're well on your way to getting this sorted out. There's lots of great advice in here, and this probably goes without saying, but do prioritize finding a good value on your ticket to HKG. It absolutely never makes sense to pay more than necessary for a ticket to maximize your mileage accrual.