American is tight-fisted with award availability on its own flights. Getting to Europe with American miles is tough without coming out of pocket big money paying British Airways extortionate fuel surcharges. The other usual options are Iberia (pretty good business class availability for 2 passengers booked a year out most of the time) and air berlin (with the hope that the airline is still around by the time you travel).
However there’s another route that almost no one thinks about, because it’s flying an airline that’s a partner but not a member of oneworld and availability isn’t shown on the AA.com website.
Indian-based carrier Jet Airways has been a partner of American AAdvantage for years. They fly between North America and India via Amsterdam which means they offer awards to Europe.
Their space was tough to search for, but since they’ve recently partnered up with Delta and Delta does a good job showing most partner award space on its website that’s changed.
- Jet Airways has fantastic business class award space Toronto – Amsterdam
- You can book this space with American AAdvantage or Delta miles (or transfer Citibank points to Etihad Guest)
- Search Delta.com for the space, and if you’re using American miles call AAdvantage to book.
Availability is out of this world good. Here are calendars showing dates where (4) business class award seats are open:
Availability looks the same in the opposite direction — Amsterdam to Toronto — as well.
I’ve only flown the Jet Airways 777 business class product when Thai Airways had leased their equipment.
However it’s 1-2-1 in a herringbone configuration, here’s a look at the product:
Mileage cost:
- Delta charges 70,000 miles each way.
- American charges 57,500 miles each way.
American doesn’t charge additional miles for connecting to Toronto — American serves Toronto from Dallas, Charlotte, Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington National, New York JFK, and New York LaGuardia. And may not cost additional miles for flights beyond Amsterdam, such as on Finnair, Iberia, or British Airways. (Delta shouldn’t charge additional miles, but sometimes does.)
You can hold an award with AAdvantage for 5 days without ticketing, and you don’t need to have miles in your account to do it. So you can lock in an award and then even buy miles with their current stackable offer if you need to.
(HT: Milecards)
Let’s see how fast TPG and Lucky copy and paste this post from you as you’ve done so from another travel blogger.
“American doesn’t charge additional miles for connecting to Toronto — American serves Toronto from Dallas, Charlotte, Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York JFK, and New York LaGuardia.”
AA also serves Toronto from DCA, right?
@Daniel – yes they do, and I of all people should have remembered to include that…! Fixed 🙂
So in theory you could get MIA-AMS-HEL for only 57,500 in business class? This is amazing
they also fly PHL-YYZ non stop
Since when can you mix Oneworld and non one-world airlines on the one award?
@Ben You can if Jet Airways (the overwater carrier) publishes a fare for your routing. Not particularly likely in most cases.
@Kenny are you saying that something like DFW-YYZ-AMS-LHR using AA/Jet/BA won’t be possible because Jet doesn’t publish a fare for this routing?
@Gary, can you confirm this?
Thanks!!
JetAirways website will sell you DFW-YYZ-AMS or YYZ-AMS-LHR, but it finds nothing for DFW-YYZ-AMS-LHR. Bummer.
Gary,
Longtime reader, first time poster.
You note that “Search Delta.com for the space, and if you’re using American miles call AAdvantage to book.”
Is this almost always/generally accurate? Can you please reconfirm that this will work (calling AA after searching Delta)? That is, whatever appears on Delta, will it also be available for AA agents to book?
If so, this is very interesting.
Thanks.
You know AA really values your loyalty when this convoluted routing using 1-3 carriers might be the only way you can actually find a business mile saver award USA – Europe. Doug Parker give yourself another bonus! You deserve everything you can get, and your customers deserve ZIP!
Would something like DEN-DFW-YYZ-AMS-MAD be allowed or even the DEN-DFW-YYZ-AMS routing?
What airline’s site are your calendar screen shots from?
When I search on I’m only getting Delta flights, even though I ‘ve selected partner flights. (The lowest is 102,500 plus fees on Delta One.)
Searching on American I only see AA and BA flights. There are 57,500 flights but with fuel surcharges.
No Jet on either.
@Cindi You should be searching only YYZ-AMS on delta.dumb, the finding AA flights to YYZ if needed on AA’s site. Once you find flights that work, you should be able to hold (but don’t pay for) flights to YYZ online, and call and ask them to add the YYZ-AMS flight.
It’s impossible to find award space DEN-DFW in any cabin, but DFW-YYZ is a lot easier to find in Y and J.
Thanks Gary, its posts like this that keep any value to my miles.
Although AA had only 8 or 9 days with availability to Toronto, 1 of those days worked. I have a long layover in Toronto but that is just fine. Beats paying $3400 for a ticket, instead its just 115K miles. Thats nearly 3 CPM. Makes it worth it to buy AA miles with their current promotion even $3400 paid or buy miles for a $2300 business class ticket!!
Cool route, I had absolutely no idea they were partners.
@Cindi Anderson – Delta, specifying non-stop flights only
I flew Jet as part of a YVR-AMS-BOM-DEL-BOM-LHR-YVR work trip last year. YVR-AMS was on KLM and LHR-YVR was AC. The rest was Jet.
I loved their business product, service, and food. One of my best trips. Only BA’s YVR-LHR first and AA’s SYD-LAX J were comparable for me in 2016.
I wouldn’t think twice about flying Jet internationally. Their domestic business product is pretty nice, too.
Gary, Is it possible to get first on their B773 flights? Assume not using Deltas website, so any other way? These are currently being used out of YYZ.
Thanks for the help. Interestingly it showed the 70,000 on all dates in calendar view, but then when you clicked it wasn’t there most of the time. But I did find a date that has it available. From YYZ to my town, those flights are showing as 55,000 miles in first class. Can I add those for the same 70,000 miles, and how do I do it? Call Delta?
My situation is I’m on a 57500 mile AA ticket London-SUN, with the overwater portion being AA79 LHR to DFW. But that has an overnight in Seattle (12:15am-8:05am) which I am not looking forward to. The Delta/Jet combination gets me home same day with no overnight. So for the 70,000 miles, that could be worth switching. (I paid $281 for fees and fuel per ticket, so that would pay for the AA cancellation/redeposit fee.)
Gary – looking for PHX-YYZ-AMS-LHR – Impossible in June?
@rico YYZ-AMS in June remains wide open. PHX-YYZ will be tougher.
ty! will look into it asap!
I realize that it’s been a few months since this was posted but I’m wondering if it will still work. Was able to find availability from YYZ to AMS and back at 85000 skypesos. AA availability from JFK/LGA to YYZ at 40K Economy anytime. Will AA combine this into a single booking – LGA-AMS – and charge me the typical 115K miles for R/T with mixed service classes?
Thanks!!