Which Frequent Flyer Programs Charge The Least For Flights From NYC to London?

The London-New York city pair is one of the busiest international city pairs in the world. According to data from Cirium, there are seven airlines operating up to 35 daily roundtrips between the New York area (including Newark) and London. English airlines dominate the market, with British Airways having the largest market share, nearly double that of Virgin Atlantic’s and United Airlines’ market shares.

Heathrow Airport (LHR) in London is known for having some of the heftiest departure taxes in the world, and the longer the flight departing LHR, the more expensive the taxes. Every airline charges different mileage rates for its flights between the two cities, as well as differing cash taxes. Below are all of the airlines operating flights between the two cities and how many flights they have scheduled this month:

British Airways

Three routes

British Airways has the largest market share between the two cities. Data shows that for most of the month, the airline will operate 11 daily roundtrips on three routes. The airline flies to John F. Kennedy International Airport (EWR) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) from both Heathrow and London Gatwick Airport (LGW).

Its busiest route is from Heathrow to JFK with eight daily roundtrips on most days. Newark is served twice daily throughout the month and there is one daily flight from LGW to JFK. BA’s total seat offering between the two cities is 168,914 this month.

British Airways’ frequent flier program is called Executive Club, and the airline uses Avios as the point currency. Other airlines in the oneworld Alliance also use Avios. BA is known for having some of the heftiest fees on award flights out of London, so let’s take a look at some examples.

One of the unique things about Executive Club is that is has peak and off-peak pricing. Additionally, the airline has a distance-based formula for calculating award pricing. A search for flights departing London on September 18 and returning on the 25 shows there are seats available in economy on four of BA’s flights from LHR on the 18th. On the return, only two of BA’s flights have availability, which is limited.

The total price for this off-peak roundtrip is 50,000 Avios + $200. But the airline does offer other price points:

• 38,000 Avios + $500
• 26,000 Avios + $625.22
• 19,500 Avios + $701.12
• 13,000 Avios + $772.78
• 9,100 Avios + $856.44

Virgin Atlantic

One route

Virgin Atlantic only operates one route but has a significant amount of flights. At the beginning of the month, it operated seven daily roundtrips but has since decreased to six daily roundtrips. The airline deploys various aircraft to JFK, all Airbus widebodies; the A330-300, A330-900 (A330neo), and A350-1000. In total, Virgin has 107,730 seats available in September.

Virgin Atlantic’s frequent flier program is called flyingclub and its flight prices in points are fixed. A roundtrip from LHR to JFK from September 18-25 costs 20,000 points + $366. All of Virgin’s flights on the 18th have availability in economy on the 18th departing LHR and two flights have seats in Premium. All of the flights on the return also have availability.

United Airlines

One route

Like Virgin, United Airlines only operates one route. The Chicago-based carrier has six daily roundtrips from its hub at Newark Liberty International Airport including one daytime crossing from the US to the UK. Only one aircraft type is deployed on the route, the Boeing 767-300 with 167 seats, 46 of them being Polaris business class seats. United’s seat offering is 60,120 for the month of September.

United’s MileagePlus program has dynamic pricing and for the dates selected (September 18-25), the cheapest flight available is 60,100 miles + 203.20.

American Airlines

One route

American Airlines operates a hub at JFK, and from there, operates four daily roundtrips to LHR. Its four daily flights are operated on the Boeing 777 aircraft, of which American operates two variants, the -200 and -300ER. The -300ERs still have American’s Flagship First product, with eight seats, and another 52 in business class. On the -200, there are 37 Flagship Business seats.

American’s frequent flier program is AAdvantage. From September 18-25, the airline has roundtrips available from 54,000 + $203.60. This rate is available for all four outbound flights from JFK, including the one daytime flight. The same for the way home, all four flights are available for the 54,000 AAdvantage miles roundtrip.

JetBlue

Two routes

JetBlue deploys its Airbus A321LRs with its signature Mint lie-flat product on two routes from JFK. The airline flies to Heathrow and Gatwick, with two and one daily roundtrips, respectively. This totals 180 flights and 24,840 seats on both routes. For September 18-25, JetBlue has awards fares starting at 44,500 points and $202.30.

Delta Air Lines

Two routes

Just like JetBlue, Delta Air Lines operates two routes from JFK, one to Gatwick and the other to Heathrow. Two daily roundtrips are to Heathrow and one to Gatwick. From JFK to Heathrow, Delta deploys two aircraft types, the Boeing 767-400ER and Airbus A330neo. To Gatwick, Delta uses its 767-300s with 216 seats, 18 in first, 26 in business, and 172 in economy.

A search of Delta’s SkyMiles frequent flier program shows roundrips from JFK to London available for 60,000 points roundtrip + $203.60 in cash. This fare is available for Delta’s two outbound flights on September 18 and the two flights on the return. Flights with its SkyTeam partner, Virgin Atlantic, are available for the same price.

Norse Atlantic Airways

One route

Norse Atlantic is a young low-cost carrier from Europe, with bases in the UK, France, and Norway. The airline has a small fleet of Boeing 787s and only operates one route from the UK to New York. This month, the airline started with two daily roundtrips and then dropped to one daily roundtrip and a second flight in either direction on alternating days.