New BA London-NYC Connection

Starting next year British Airways will offer two daily Business Class-only flights from London City airport, only six miles from London’s financial district, to New York/JFK. The flights, using Airbus A318 aircraft, will have only 32 seats onboard and will offer the same benefits as BA’s existing international Business Class cabin, including lie-flat seats. BA says it will offer a 15-minute check-in for customers in both London and New York.

Northwest Raises You 10%

Northwest is bumping mileage requirements for PerkSaver and PerkPass travel by about 10%. As of February 1, First Class PerkSaver award travel on Continental-operated flights requires 50,000 miles (up from 45,000), and 100,000 miles for PerkPass award travel (up from 90,000). Also, beginning March 1, a First Class PerkSaver on Northwest, Alaska, or Delta-operated flights requires 50,000 miles (up from 45,000), and a First Class PerkPass award ticket 100,000 miles (up from 90,000). These changes do not apply to Hawaii and Canada. PerkSavers require a Saturday-night stay for domestic flights. PerkSaver and PerkPass awards may be combined for a round-trip itinerary. My take: This inflation is not bad—especially compared to some critics’ dire forecasts. More:
http://www.nwa.com/worldperks/direct/charts/us49.shtml

SAS Stand-by Upgrades

The carrier now offers confirmed upgrades (using points) that can be booked up to 24 hours before departure. It takes 10,000 points to upgrade from economy to Economy Extra; 20,000 to go from Economy Extra to Business; and 30,000 from economy to Business. An odd bit of fine print: Upgrades are not available if you’ve ordered a special meal. Also, upgrades don’t come with lounge access.

KLM’s Best Seats in the House

KLM is now letting Platinum and Gold Elite members flying economy class choose seats with extra legroom or extra privacy (a row with only two seats). Non-elites can also participate in “Seat Choice” for a fee of 50 Euros. The amenity is offered on all intercontinental flights from Amsterdam as well as flights to Amsterdam from Beijing, Bangkok, Chengdu, Curaçao, Hong Kong, Manila, Osaka, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Taipei, and Tokyo. Seats are available for reserving online up to 30 hours before departure. More: www.klm.com or www.airfrance.com.

Another Path to Elite on United

Purchase a 1-year Economy Plus Access membership with Premier Fast Track for $799, then fly just 15,000 miles or 15 segments on United, Ted, or United Express, and the carrier will grant you an elite status card. Membership also allows you to book Economy Plus seats, which have up to five extra inches of legroom on United, Ted, and United Express flights worldwide.

Great Air France Promotion—with a Catch

The carrier is touting one of the best deals I’ve ever seen: 45,000 miles for round-trip Business Class travel on its new Los Angeles-London non-stop, valid for travel through June 30.

One small problem: No seats are available from Los Angeles to London! Strangely, you can find decent availability from London to Los Angeles.

The good news (I try to find some in everything) is that my research turned up an above-average number of Business Class seats for August onward—the makings of a great summer, Holiday, or New Year’s trip!