Use Avios to Save on British Airways Tickets With This Improved Promotion
There are some great uses for British Airways Avios (BA's mileage currency) when it comes to partner reward flights. I've used 4,500 Avios to hop between Hong Kong (HKG) and Taipei (TPE) on Cathay Pacific, and got over 12 cents per Avios in value on Iberia premium economy. Recently, a TPG reader got almost nine cents per Avios in value on American Airlines flights. And TPG's Richard Kerr has scored over 10 cents of value for flights in the Caribbean.
However, when it comes to flights on British Airways itself, Avios aren't as valuable due to high fuel surcharges on BA flights. But there's a little-known Part Payment program that allows Avios holders to save on British Airways paid flights. This means you'll earn American Airlines elite-qualifying and award miles, British Airways Tier Points and Avios, or earnings on another program while redeeming points for the flight.
While this program has been devalued over the years, British Airways is back with a new temporary offer that's worth a look if you are planning to book British Airways flights soon.
Now through October 17, you can book British Airways flights for travel between the US and the UK between November 1 and February 28, 2018 and save up to 1.16 cents per Avios toward paid long-haul British Airways flights. As is the new normal for this program, you'll actually get less value out of your Avios the more Avios you elect to use.
While this is a bummer for making a significant dent in the cost of your flight, it's a great way to clear out a smaller Avios account balance.
There are two separate promotional charts. This is how much you'll save when applying Avios to an economy "World Traveller" flight:
| Avios | Savings | Value per Avios |
|---|---|---|
| 2,500 | $29 | 1.16 |
| 4,000 | $43 | 1.08 |
| 7,000 | $72 | 1.03 |
| 11,500 | $118 | 1.03 |
| 17,000 | $161 | 0.95 |
| 33,000 | $264 | 0.80 |
And for "World Traveller Plus" premium economy flights:
| Avios | Savings | Value per Avios |
|---|---|---|
| 5,500 | $58 | 1.05 |
| 8,500 | $86 | 1.01 |
| 11,500 | $118 | 1.03 |
| 16,500 | $161 | 0.98 |
| 24,000 | $221 | 0.92 |
| 40,000 | $324 | 0.81 |
In order to take advantage of this offer, you need to log into your British Airways Executive Club account and search for flights. The part payment option will show up on the payment page. Applying Avios to the purchase is treated like a payment form; you'll still earn points/miles and have the same cancellation/change policies of the paid flight.
Remember to take advantage of the British Airways/AARP discount as well if you qualify. For round-trip flights starting in the US, you'll save $65 off economy and $130 off premium economy flights.
