American Air Business Class, Up To 6 Seats
My friend Tim texted me this morning that he'd found some award to Australia. Naturally, I had dig a little and see just how much space was available.
Considering that Australia and New Zealand are among our most requested destinations, I'm always excited to see class space from the US. Today, we have space on American Airlines.
It's possible to include connections from other cities on some dates. I will caution that not all of the space is available via partners.
Check out this month's best card offers - including one for 100k AA miles.
Now, let's get into it.
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Straight To The Points:
Routes: LAX-SYD/AKL
Operating airline: American Airlines
Class of service: Business class
Dates: November 2023 - June 2024
Seats available: 2 (up to 6)
Cabin layout: 1-2-1
Book with (per person, one-way):
- *American AAdvantage: 60,000 miles
Some dates might not be available to partners.
- *Alaska Mileage Plan: 80,000 miles
- Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (call to book): 90,000 miles
- British Airways Executive Club: 154,500 Avios
- Qantas Frequent Flyer: 108,400 points
*No surcharges
Taxes/fees (per person):
- US-SYD: ~$25
- US-AKL: ~$43
- From SYD: ~$77
- From AKL: ~$45
- Surcharges
- From US: ~$120
- From SYD: ~$142
Alaska has a $12.50 per person per direction partner booking fee.
Bank transfer partners:
- Alaska: Marriott
- American: Bilt, Marriott
- British Airways: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Chase, Marriott
- Cathay Pacific: Amex, Bilt, Capital One, Citi, Marriott
- Qantas: Amex, Capital One, Citi, Marriott
- Qatar Airways: Citi, Marriott
Let me know if you book!
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Available Dates
LAX-SYD
November: 9, 10, 16, 23-25, 30
December: 1, 2, 7, 8
January: N/A
February: 2, 9, 16, 22, 23, 29
March: 2, 7-9, 14, 16, 21, 22, 28, 29
April: 11, 18
May: 21, 28, 31
June: 22
SYD-LAX
November: 2, 4, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, 23, 30
December: 16, 23, 28
January: 22, 25, 27-29
February: 1-4, 8, 11, 12, 15, 17-19, 22, 26
March: 2, 4, 6, 7, 11, 13, 16, 21, 25, 27, 28
April: 25
May: 2, 16, 19, 23, 26, 27, 29, 30
June: 6, 9, 10, 13, 16, 20, 24
LAX-AKL
December: 25, 27-31
January: 3, 4, 6, 7, 11-13, 21, 23, 26-31
February: 4, 11, 16, 18, 21, 23, 25
March: 1
AKL-LAX
December: 22-30
January: 11-15, 17-29, 31
February: 2-12, 14, 16, 18, 23
March: 1, 3
AKL-DFW
November: 2, 3, 7-9, 19
December: 10, 24
January: 13, 17
February: 4, 11
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Flight Experience
American isn't known for having the best service in business class but the bedding gets high marks and that's important for a long flight!
The business class cabin is arranged in a 1-2-1 reverse herringbone layout so each seat will have direct aisle access and a decent bit of privacy.
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Best Ways To Book
American: More Space, Great Rate
If you have AA miles or Bilt points, this is the way to go. Not only do you have access to more award space, but 60,000 miles for a one-way business class award ticket is excellent.
Cathay: Solid Rate, Tough To Book
At 90,000 miles, Cathay Pacific's Asia Miles program is a solid option when you consider that you can transfer Amex, Bilt, Capital One, and Citi points. The tough part is that you have to call to book.
Alaska: Solid Rate, Tough To Earn
With no transfer partners if you don't count Marriott Bonvoy, Alaska miles are tough to earn. If you have 80,000 Alaska miles, it's a solid one-way rate.
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How To Search & Book
Use AA's site if booking with American miles:
- Go to AA's site
- Select Advanced / Multi-city search (just click this link)
- Select Redeem miles
- Select One way or Round trip
- Enter From & To cities
- Select departure date(s)
- Choose the number of passengers
- Select Class as Business/First
- Under Airline, select American Airlines
- Click Search
- Select Calendar to see other dates
If you want to book with a partner, start your search with Alaska:
- Select Use miles
- Select One-way (if necessary)
- Select origin/destination
- Select number of adults
- Click Find Flights
If you find space on Alaska and want to book with Cathay Asia Miles, you'll need to call Cathay to book (866-892-2598).
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Final Thoughts
While AA has been releasing some award space to Australia close to departure, it's great to see some space in advance for those who like to plan a bit.
Happy Booking!
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