With few exceptions, the only way to use your AA miles is by booking on AA’s partners—here’s how with BA, Japan Airlines, Qantas, and more + an inside look at availability discrepancies.
Ask a room full of people “who has American miles?” and a lot of hands go up.
If you follow it up with “are you sure you’re making the most of them?” a lot of those hands come back down.
Forget about using the miles for magazine and newspaper subscriptions, or even gift cards: those are small fry distractions. The truth is, a lot of people have a lot of AA miles, but sadly, they’re being underutilized, and one of the reasons is failing to take advantage of American’s considerable airline “partner power,” and the amazing flexibility it gives you. We’ll give you the details below, but in short, using AA miles to book on AA’s partner airlines often gives you a better bang for your buck—and almost infinitely more available dates to travel—than using them on AA itself. Counterintuitive, I know, but true.
Partner Power: It’s The American Dream
I hear this often even from long-time American miles hoarders, and it never ceases to amaze me: “I didn’t realize I could book so many other airlines with my AA miles.”
So yes, for the record, you want to think about using your AA miles to fly AA partners in Business or First Class because it exponentially ups your chances of getting the dates you want–and of getting into the front cabin using miles, the point.
The reason this works is that AA is part of the oneworld alliance, which includes British Airways, Cathay Pacific, JAL, LATAM, Qantas, Qatar Airways and many more. And, separately, also partners with Etihad Airways and Fiji Airways.
Hidden Mileage Opportunities
First, let’s talk routes. With partners, you’ll find hidden opportunities to use miles on AA partner airlines for routes AA does not fly.
Example: Los Angeles-Melbourne non-stop on Qantas, and bookable online through American. We see Qantas intermittently open up on a flash availability basis (example)—so this is a great way to use your AA miles.
Example for Asia: New York-Tokyo. It’s a non-stop route, and again, one not offered by American. But you can fly Japan Airlines, and book it online through American. We see Japan Airlines intermittently open up on a flash availability basis (example).
Example for the Middle East: Chicago-Doha non-stop on Qatar, which can be booked on AA.com. We see Qatar intermittently open up on a flash availability (example).
See the pattern? You have access to a lot more free ticket availability in Business and First Class when you bring partners into the mix.
It goes without saying that the examples above only scratch the surface of hidden potential, so just follow FCF’s alerts to know when to pounce.
Wait. There’s More!
AA Partnerships, 201
So now you know that AA’s partners are where it’s at. Now which partners do you want to focus on? Many people, even upgrade guppies, know about the British Airways partnership because they often see it in AA’s search results—especially when an FCF alert points them to open dates with otherwise difficult-to-find availability.
Cathay Pacific, for example, offers good Business Class award availability intermittently from Boston, Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago to Hong Kong, as well as a First Class cabin with seats you can use AA miles to purchase.
Happily too, the mileage cost to fly Cathay Pacific is the same as flying American.
If it’s not obvious, Cathay Pacific’s First Class is a much bigger score than AA’s, so this ought to be your first look, not an afterthought or an oversight.
Other go-tos are:
- If traveling to Europe, check British Airways, Iberia, or Finnair.
- If traveling to Asia, look into Cathay Pacific and Japan Airlines.
- If traveling to the South Pacific, Qantas is your best bet.
- If traveling to the Middle East, check Qatar and Etihad Airways.
Check out the chart at the bottom of this report for a recap of which AA partner airlines are best when traveling to which regions.
One word of caution: Sometimes taxes are higher on partner airlines. An example is New York–London: AA charges $297 for its own flight, however if you book British Airways using AA miles the cost is $1,400+ for First Class travel.
Comparing Award Space Using AA Miles on Partner Airlines vs. Using Partners’ Own Mileage Programs
While using AA miles with AA partners opens up new routes and availability, sometimes you’ll find that award space that shows as available on the partner airline’s booking site does not show as available on AA.com. This is because some AA partners release similar availability to their partner AA as they release to their own mileage program members, and some release less to their partners. So, it’s important to know which airlines will have the best availability using AA miles to make the most of your “partner power.” Here’s how it breaks down:
Availability Discrepancies
Less Availability: AA partner airlines that generally release less space to AA than to their own mileage members: Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Finnair, and Qantas.
Similar Availability: AA partners that generally release the same amount of space to AA as to their own mileage members: British Airways, Etihad Airways, and Qatar.
Much Less Availability: AA partner that rarely has space: Iberia.
How To Book: Online vs. Calling
To help you know what routes and airlines have the most promising dates for availability, check FCF Daily Deals alerts, and remember, award space using AA miles may be different than using the operating airline’s own mileage program.
After you have a sense of what is or might be available, depending on the airline and level of partner availability, go to AA.com (if the partner allows online bookings; see list below). Or call (800) 882-8880 to verify availability using AA miles.
- AA partner airlines that allow online booking with AA miles: Air Tahiti Nui, Alaska, British Airways, Etihad Airways, Fiji Airways, Finnair, Hawaiian, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian Airlines, and SriLankan Airlines can be booked online with AA.
- Major AA partner airlines that you need to call to book with AA miles: Cathay Pacific and LATAM require you to call AA at (800) 882-8880.
Fancy First Class? These AA partners have it: British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines, Qantas and Etihad Airways.
Latest AA Partner Deals
Our “Sweet Redeems” alert team has found a slew of recent oneworld partner airline opportunities, linked below—so you don’t have to ever again feel like your AA miles are completely unusable or worthless.
Fly British Airways First Class From the West Coast to Europe Easy With Miles/Points, 4+ Seats
Free Awards On Cathay Pacific Business Class from Boston, Chicago, New York, and More
Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York and More to Europe Business Class
First Class On Japan Air In 2020 From Chicago, Los Angeles, New York & San Fran
Boston, Chicago, New York and More Business Class to Asia, 4+ Seats
AA’s Partner Power: Know Your Options
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