And for good reason: United does not charge a fuel
surcharge on award flights, even on partner airlines.
That's because British Airways charges significant fees for additional taxes, fees, and fuel
surcharges on award flights to and from their main hub at London Heathrow.
ANA levies fuel
surcharges on award flights, though they tend to be relatively low on United and Air Canada.
You can transfer points from Amex Membership Rewards directly to Skywards, Emirates» loyalty program, but the carrier imposes hefty
surcharges on award flights.
Keep in mind that Virgin Atlantic imposes rather high fuel
surcharges on its award flights, and you will also be subject to the high government and airport taxes when flying through the U.K.
And for good reason: United does not charge a fuel
surcharge on award flights, even on partner airlines.
You don't have to pay fuel
surcharges on any award flights on United.
Flying Blue does assess fuel
surcharges on award flights, however the highest we've seen is around $ 250 for a business class flight to Europe.
It's worth noting that Aegean will charge fuel
surcharges on award flights (but then so will British Airways, for example).
Flying Blue does assess fuel
surcharges on award flights, however the highest I've seen is around $ 250 for a business class flight to Europe.
-LSB-...] British Airways collects fuel
surcharges on any award flight that has fuel surcharges on the equivalent cash flight.
They collect fuel
surcharges on any award flight that has fuel surcharges on the equivalent cash -LSB-...]
Both Singapore and Lufthansa charge fuel
surcharges on their award flights, but Air Berlin, booked with AAdvantage miles, does not.
Not exact matches
Just make sure you book
award flights on American Airlines and not British Airways so you don't get hit with high
surcharges.
When looking for ways to book
award flights to London, you will want to keep an eye
on carrier - imposed
surcharges as well as the miles required by the frequent flyer program you are using.
ANA Mileage Club does pass
on carrier - imposed
surcharges when booking
award tickets with many partners, but not
on flights with United Airlines, so you won't have to worry about that when flying to London.
While a round - trip economy class
award on a
flight operated by American Airlines will include about $ 180 in taxes and fees, an economy
award on British Airways will require about $ 520 thanks to carrier - imposed
surcharges.
> Value: Avianca LifeMiles are useful for United and other Star Alliance partner
flights, with no fuel
surcharges on international
awards.
Awards to Asia generally have low
surcharges, while some of the highest are
on partner
flights to Europe.
It doesn't add a fuel
surcharge to
award flights redeemed
on most of its international partners (other than British Airways and Iceland Air).
Virgin Atlantic itself pretty much only flies to / from the UK, and they tack
on heavy fuel
surcharges to their
award flights.
KrisFlyer collects fuel
surcharges for
awards on its own
flights.
The most important of those advantages is that US airlines don't typically charge fuel
surcharges on award tickets booked
on their own
flights, and often don't pass along their partners» fuel
surcharges.
Aeroplan
award redemptions are hit with fuel
surcharges (YQ)
on certain
flights, including those operated by Air Canada.
As I mentioned before,
award flights on Air Canada carry high fuel
surcharges so that is something to be aware of.
Avoid
awards that place you
on British Airways
flights unless you want to pay steep fuel
surcharges that add hundreds of dollars to the cost of your redemption.
It is also unlikely that you will save much
on the taxes and fees since all
flights have to be operated by US Airways and Aeroplan
awards do not charge fuel
surcharges on flights operated by US Airways.
A United round - trip ticket in business class will only cost you 88,000 ANA
award miles, or 55,000
award miles in economy, and ANA doesn't add fuel
surcharges on United
flights.
American Airlines miles aren't the easiest
award miles to use to get to Europe, since you will often have to route through London (higher fees), fly British Airways (high fuel
surcharges on longer
flights), and they limit
award availability
on their own metal, especially for premium cabin
flights.
ANA Mileage Club often passes
on fuel
surcharges when you book
award flights, but these
surcharges are not required when booking with their Star Alliance partner United Airlines.
That's because British Airways levies maddening fuel
surcharges for
award tickets
on its
flights.
It's important to note that it is not possible to get a refund
on reduced
flight awards, so if you cancel one of these
awards you will not be recredited your miles or refunded the taxes and fees (including fuel
surcharges).
British Airways — the largest airline in the United Kingdom — is notorious for charging large fuel
surcharges for their
flights across the Atlantic and offering scanty
awards seats
on their own
flights.
Singapore Airlines no longer imposes fuel
surcharges on awards booked
on its own
flights the total taxes and fees won't be steep.
Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, Turkish Airlines, and United Airlines do not pass
on exorbitant fuel
surcharges to
award tickets, so I recommend booking
flights operated by those airlines if possible.
Singapore Airlines»
award chart is not the cheapest and they do add fuel
surcharges on award tickets (except
on domestic United Airlines
flights).
The only silver lining in this whole massacre is that United has not imposed any fuel
surcharges on Star Alliance partner
award flights.
For one, they pass
on fuel
surcharges on their partner
award flights and I'm not sure how much those fees can be.
Virgin Atlantic has great
award redemption values for
flights between the U.S. (especially Eastern U.S.) and Europe in both classes, economy and business, although outrageous Heathrow Airport fees and fuel
surcharges in Upper Class make business class TY redemptions
on Virgin a less attractive option.
Award flight tip *: Round - trip business class
awards from the US - Europe cost 88,000 miles, just beware of high fuel
surcharges on some partners.
It's recommended to stick with short haul
flights as they pass
on fuel
surcharges for
award travel, greatly increasing the cost of long
flights.
American also doesn't impose fuel
surcharges for most
awards (
flights on British Airways are a notable exception), while British Airways will levy fuel
surcharges on most international
awards.
The biggest problem with British Airways» program is that it adds prohibitively high fuel
surcharges to
award flights on its own metal and
on some partners.
There is an added element to all of this that really causes confusion — it's what happens when you try to book an
award with an airline that doesn't charge «
surcharges» and you then select
flights on that airline's partner that does.
The
surcharges on the
awards were high thanks to the taxes imposed by the UK
on premium cabin
flights... but they were worth it as it meant that we didn't have to position to Europe before flying
on to Tokyo.
You may notice that the business class
flight does not decrease by the entire amount of the U.K. Air Passenger Duty — this is because there are 2
flights on British Airways with this
award, so there are added carrier - imposed
surcharges.
In addition, they add carrier - imposed
surcharges to
award flights on British Airways and Iberia.
While redeeming miles
on British Airways
flights carries mighty fuel
surcharges, there is a lot more opportunity for finding
award space.
On exactly the same dates British Airways is currently charging 26,000 Avios AND $ 492.55 in
surcharges for an
award flight.
On the flip side, Asiana passes along fuel surcharges on most partner award flights, while United generally doesn'
On the flip side, Asiana passes along fuel
surcharges on most partner award flights, while United generally doesn'
on most partner
award flights, while United generally doesn't.