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The premium transcontinental travel market is a competitive one, with highly regarded products like JetBlue Mint and Delta One offering differentiated service from the typical domestic flight. American Airlines even offers first class on the flagship A321T aircraft it operates from New York (JFK) to Los Angeles (LAX) and San Francisco (SFO). The A321T will expand to the carrier’s flights from Boston (BOS) to LAX starting April 2, 2019, and this has opened up an interesting redemption opportunity.
As shared with TPG by reader Jared T., select business-class flights on this route are currently pricing at just 25,000 miles each way. While this rate is the usual price for one-way domestic business/first class MileSAAver awards, American typically charges higher rates for these premium flights, as indicated by the disclaimer on its award chart:
“If the award includes travel on an aircraft that offers lie-flat seats in the U.S. and Canada, the Business/First levels will be 7,500 miles higher than what is shown in the chart above.”
On the first day of the upgraded flight, the online award search engine bears this out:
However, there are sporadic dates showing the same flight at the 25,000-mile mark. Like this, from June 21:
As you can see, both of the frequencies operated by the A321T (designated as “32B”) are bookable for just 25,000 AAdvantage miles.
As you’d expect on a premium route like this, availability is sporadic to begin with, and this lower pricing is even more hit-or-miss. However, if you’ve been eyeing this route, it’s worth checking your preferred travel date(s) to see if you can save 7,500 miles on your redemption.
If you are able to snag one of these awards, you’ll be in for a solid inflight experience, including full lie-flat seats and multi-course dining (which you can pre-order online). For a complete overview of what to expect, be sure to read TPG Managing Editor Alberto Riva’s review from San Francisco to New York (JFK).
Thanks to Jared T for the tip! If you come across deals like this, be sure to email them to us at tips@thepointsguy.com.
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*Bonus value is an estimated value calculated by TPG and not the card issuer. View our latest valuations here.
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Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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