Summary

  • British Airways operates the Airbus A380 on US routes like Miami, Los Angeles, and San Francisco this winter.
  • Use oneworld loyalty programs including American Airlines AAdvantage or Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan to book A380 flights.
  • British Airways Executive Club and Qatar Airways Privilege Club also offer Avios-based redemptions for A380 flights.

The Airbus A380 is a great aircraft and is always a popular choice for flying. Although no US-based airlines operate the type, British Airways flies several routes between the UK and the US using the A380. This winter, these include Miami, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Points and miles from any oneworld member loyalty program can be used to book flights with varying rates and terms. This includes American Airlines AAdvantage and Alaska Airline Mileage Plan – plus many more.

British Airways and the A380

British Airways
is a major operator of the Airbus A380 – especially on routes to North America. This gives US-based flyers an excellent opportunity to fly the aircraft when heading to the UK or onwards within Europe.

British Airways Airbus A380 landing at Los Angeles International Airport.

Photo: Angel DiBilio | Shutterstock

The UK-based operator currently operates the aircraft on several routes. For the winter 2024 schedule, this includes the following destinations in the US:

  • Los Angeles LAX (daily)
  • San Francisco SFO (daily)
  • Miami MIA (twice daily)

It also includes routes from London to Dubai, Singapore, and Johannesburg. All the A380 aircraft are configured the same, with four cabins. This notably includes a first class service – the only airline to now operate this on these routes.

Using British Airways Executive Club to book the A380

The obvious option for flying the British Airways A380, is, of course, to use British Airway’s own loyalty program, British Airways Executive Club
. This uses Avios as a loyalty currency – a shared currency between a number of loyalty programs.

Executive Club Tall-2

British Airways Executive Club

Executive Club is the British Airways loyalty program. It uses the Avios point also used by other IAG owned airlines and some of its partners.

Executive Club uses a fixed-price award redemption system. Unlike many airline loyalty programs (including the major US airlines), it has not switched to a variable or dynamic pricing system. This generally means you will get better value awards, but with the disadvantage that awards are either available or not.

Note the following about Avios pricing and rates:

  • Award flights are priced by sector, with rates based on flight length and cabin flown.
  • Connecting flights can be included on the same ticket (given flight protection) but will charge additional Avios. The only exception is when adding a free UK domestic flight connection to a long-haul booking.
  • Executive Club no longer publishes fixed rates, but in reality, flights are priced based on several zones.
  • Taxes and fees are also charged, including a sizable surcharge on long-haul routes.
  • There are peak and off-peak dates with different Avios rates. These are published in a calendar and are roughly based on UK holiday dates.

The one-way Avios rates for the US A380 flights are as follows. Note that there are several combinations of Avios and cash offered that can represent different value. The rates below are the standard, and they require higher cash co-pay. You can use more Avios to reduce the cash element.

Route

Avios for economy

Avios for premium economy

Avios for business

Avios for first class

London to Miami

16,250 off-peak 25,000 peak

32,500 off-peak 50,000 peak

62,500 off-peak 75,000 peak

85,000 off-peak 100,000 peak

London to San Francisco London to Los Angeles

16,250 off-peak 25,000 peak

32,500 off-peak 50,000 peak

62,500 off-peak 75,000 peak

85,000 off-peak 100,000 peak

Using American Airlines AAdvantage

A popular choice for US-based travelers is to use American Airlines AAdvantage
to book British Airways flights. As American Airlines
is a member of the oneworld alliance, AAdvantage miles can be used to book award flights on any oneworld airline.

This is also based on a fixed price system (although AAdvantage uses dynamic pricing for American Airlines flights, partners use fixed prices). AAdvanatge generally offers better value than British Airways Executive Club, but there are several differences.

AAdvantage Tall - Logo Center-1

AAdvantage

The American Airlines AAdvantage frequent flyer program was launched by the United States carrier on May 1st, 1981. It was the second loyalty program to be launched by an airline worldwide, and today it is the oldest still in existence.

  • Awards are priced using a published fixed-price system. This system is based on origin and destination zone and cabin flown, of course.
  • Multiple flights can be added to the same bookings for the same mileage rate. For BA transatlantic flights, this could include American Airlines connections and further European connections with British Airways, Iberia, or Finnair. No stopovers are permitted; these must be connections.
  • Taxes and fees are charged, but surcharges are generally lower.
  • There are published off-peak dates for economy cabins only.

All British Airways transatlantic routes would be the same price (with connections possible too), as shown below:

Route

Miles for economy

Miles for premium economy

Miles for business

Miles for first class

London to Miami London to San Francisco London to Los Angeles

22,500 off-peak 30,000 peak

40,000

57,500

85,000

Using Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles

There are many other programs that can be used. As a oneworld member, you can use any oneworld loyalty program to book British Airways flights. Another useful option for North America-based travelers is Alaska Airlines
Mileage Plan. If used well, this can be the most valuable program, with further advantages.

Mileage Plan Tall-1

Mileage Plan

Launched in 1983 as the Gold Coast Travel program, Alaska Airlines’ frequent flyer program is now known as Mileage Plan. 

Before 2023, Mileage Plan published fixed route-based tables for all airlines. This has now been changed, and pricing is variable. Starting price levels are published for all partners based on region. At present, most flights seem to be priced at this level, or not at all – but this could quickly change.

Starting rates for the BA A380 Europe to US flights are as follows:

Route

Miles for economy

Miles for premium economy

Miles for business

Miles for first class

London to Miami

27,500

35,000

55,000

82,500

London to San Francisco London to Los Angeles

35,000

45,000

70,000

104,000

A major advantage with Mileage Plan is that it allows one free international stopover. This is unusual among loyalty programs and can create some great value opportunities.

Qatar Airways Privilege Club

There are 13 members of the Oneworld alliance
, and all these loyalty programs can be used to book British Airways flights. We will look here at just one further major program – Qatar Airways Privilege Club
.

This also uses Avios as its currency. Avios can now be freely transferred between any of the programs that use it – including British Airways Executive Club, Iberia Plus, Finnair Plus, Aer Lingus AerClub, and Qatar Airways Privilege Club. This opens up many different earning, redeeming, and status earning opportunities for travelers in different regions.

With Privilege Club, flights are priced similarly to those of the British Airways Executive Club. There is a fixed rate for every flight sector (with connections costing more), based on flight distance and travel class. Unfortunately, there is no published official chart.

The rates for the BA A380 US to Europe flights are as follows (these rates are based on data published by Upgraded Points):

Route

Miles for economy

Miles for premium economy

Miles for business

Miles for first class

London to Miami London to San Francisco London to Los Angeles

25,750

51,500

77,250

103,000

The other oneworld programs can all be used as well, and each has their own perks and differing rates. Feel free to discuss the ways you collect and book in the comments section.

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