Summary
- American Airlines will launch new European routes from various US airports with Boeing 777s and 787s.
- AAdvantage miles have varying values based on booking timing; 50,000 miles for the Chicago-Madrid flight on average.
- AA is set to resume operations at Edinburgh Airport, the only carrier offering direct flights from Philadelphia, creating global connectivity.
American Airlines
(AA)
recently announced that it will launch new European routes
, as the carrier hopes to deploy its Boeing 777
and Boeing 787
aircraft on these new routes.
Brian Znotins, American’s Senior Vice President of Network and Schedule Planning commented:
“We look forward to providing customers more ways to visit their favorite destinations in Europe next summer….. to other popular destinations across the continent will offer customers convenient access from American’s industry-leading domestic network to all that Europe has to offer.”
Photo: David S Swierczek | Shutterstock
Let’s look at the five exciting European destinations you can book with the AAdvantage
miles offered by this carrier.
From its base to the Spanish capital
Madrid is one of the great footballing capitals of the world, as it is home to the record-breaking soccer club – Real Madrid. Real Madrid has already partnered with Emirates, which has forged sporting partnerships with other clubs around the world such as Arsenal and AC Milan, reported aviospace.org.
American Airlines will operate its Boeing 787 on flights to Madrid Barajas Airport
(MAD) from Chicago O’Hare International Airport
(ORD). The flights are scheduled to operate daily from March 30, 2025, on its Boeing 787-8
.
Photo: American Airlines
According to NerdWallet, the AA’s AAdvantage
Miles can have different valuations depending upon when you choose to make the booking:
- 15 days before departure, the AAdvantage mile is worth 1.7 cents.
- 180 days before departure (six months), the AAdvantage mile is worth 1.8 cents.
- Peak winter holiday travel (Dec. 22-29), the AAdvantage mile is worth 1.5 cents.
Taking the average of the above-described figures, booking AA’s flight from MAD to ORD would cost around 50,000 AAdvantage miles.
Athens is another of the historic cities in Europe where AA will offer flights starting in 2025. The carrier will fly to athens international airport
(ATH) from Charlotte Douglas International Airport
(CLT) on its Boeing 777-200ER
. AA will start operating this route on June 5 next year.
Photo: American Airlines
Currently, no carrier is offering a non-stop flight between CLT and ATH. Let’s look at the details of the carriers offering a one-stop flight connection from CLT to ATH.
In roughly 40,000 AAdvantage Miles
Rome is an iconic city whose essence has been encapsulated in various literature, music, and sporting events. The city is also home to two airports- Rome Fiumicino Airport
(FCO) and the Giovan Battista Pastine Airport, also known as Ciampino (CIA). It is the first of these two that AA will operate from Miami International Airport
(MIA) beginning July 2025.
Currently, only a single carrier offers a direct flight on this route. According to flightconnections.com, the flag carrier of Italy, ITA Airways, offers an almost ten-hour flight from MIA to FCO on its Airbus A330Neo
. ITA AIrways is currently
focusing on North American routes
as it also announced its plans to launch the Rome Fiumicino Airport
(FCO) Toronto Pearson International Airport
(YYZ) flights.
Photo: American Airlines
AA already offers a one-stop flight connection between MIA and FCO. According to flightroutes.com, here’s where the options for a stopover are possible:
The second route in Italy on this list
American Airlines will begin its non-stop operations on the Philadelphia International Airport
(PHL) – Milan Malpensa Airport
(MXP) route on May 23, 2025. AA will operate on the Boeing 787-9 daily. The carrier already has a one-stop flight connection on this route via New York La Guardia
(LGA), New York. According to flightroutes.com, the flag carrier of the US operates its Embraer 175
on flights from PHL to LGA, and a Boeing 777-200
and
Boeing 777-200ER from LGA to MXP.
Photo: American Airlines
Three other carriers currently offer a one-stop flight connection on this route. Let’s take a look at them in detail:
Resuming operations in Scotland’s capital city after 2019
American Airlines is resuming its operations at Edinburgh Airport
(EDI) after a hiatus of nearly five years. Edinburgh is a historical city that houses the National Musuem of Scotland, National Library of Scotland, among other things.
Photo: Skorzewiak | Shutterstock
After the announcement of AA’s flights to Edinburgh, the chief executive of the airport, Gordon Dewar, was buoyed:
“We are delighted to be welcoming American Airlines back to Edinburgh as they reinstate their direct seasonal service to Philadelphia. This sees us reconnecting – and significantly surpassing – all of our pre-Covid transatlantic routes, demonstrating the significant North American demand for Edinburgh and Scotland.”
American Airlines will be the sole carrier that will offer direct flights on this route, as no carrier currently offers non-stop flights between Philadelphia International Airport
and Edinburgh Airport
.
Photo: American Airlines
However, there are a few carriers that currently offer a one-stop flight connection between PHL and EDI. According to flightroutes.com, these are:
Is The American Airlines Admirals Club Or Alaska Lounge+ Membership More Valuable?
The United States is one of the few countries that has two airlines in the same alliance. American Airlines and Alaska Airlines are both part of the oneworld Alliance, which serves over 900 destinations. Elite status members in the American Airlines AAdvantage and Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan frequent flyer programs are offered access to lounges across the alliance, and both carriers offer a lounge plan for everyone else.
The American Airlines Admirals Club is arguably one of the most famous lounge networks in the world, and the membership comes at a hefty price. The annual membership for the program, which offers access to nearly 50 Admirals Club lounges and more than 60 partner lounges worldwide, begins at $850 for those without status. However, there are multiple ways to save on memberships, including a cobranded credit card that offers the membership as a perk.
The Alaska Airlines lounge network is much smaller, but the Lounge+ option, which starts at $750, includes access to Ad