WannaTheater

I am just starting to research this-
As a frequent traveler on American Airlines (Executive Platinum), I am sitting on many AA miles. All my spending is done on AA credit cards. Since I am starting to see upcoming needs for Avios miles, is it wise to credit AA marketed and paid flights to my British airways account (which currently has a zero balance)? I currently get 11x ticket cost as redeemable mile and AA loyalty points. Would this same amount of points be credited to BA if I put in my BA number to the reservation? Or is the calculation different?

Thanks-

bisonrav

You'll get 9 avios per qualifying pound (this is the amount paid less surcharges and taxes) of the fare, with a few exceptions (holiday bookings). You can use the same credit card you use for AAdvantage and earn some AA miles on top, I guess you get preferential earnings for AA flights on CC spend.

According to How Much Are British Airways Executive Club Avios Worth? (moneygeek.com) - the value of Avios is about half of an AAdvantage mile, so on the face of things you get a little less value crediting as Avios. But it's all about what you use them for as to how much value you can derive from them. If you're sitting on a ton of miles, then you may want to build up an Avios pot as well.

craigthemif

9? The OP looks like a BA nobody, in which case it's 6 Avios per £.

Generally speaking, I would continue to accumulate AA miles and buy Avios during a promo if needed. Especially since the OP may well be giving up on elite benefits by having the BA number on the bookings...

bisonrav

I was assuming the OP would status match from exec platinum.

craigthemif

BAEC doesn't status match Oneworld partners.

cauchy

OP, how many AA miles have you stockpiled? This isn’t always a good idea, as they can be devalued at any moment.

If you had a specific need for Avios - eg you want to redeem short haul for 9000 avios + £1, then get a BA credit card. Seen some with 85k avios sign up bonus…

bisonrav

Ah, ok, I'd not read the terms of the current status match and assumed it applied to AA as well as the other airlines, my bad. In any case for an exec platinum flying pattern it's not going to be difficult to shift through the gears and get silver and then gold. In terms of benefits, if you're flying in J then you get lounge but probably you'd be taken by surprise by having to pay for seats.

Surely buying Avios is spending something near or above the value of the AA miles, and much more than the floor value of the Avios? So I dont really see the point of that. You might as well just credit them, bearing in mind that if you have too many AA miles than you can spend, any more that are earned are essentially valueless anyway.

Tafflyer

AA miles are arguably worth more than Avios and you also get more of them per pound spent.

My recent MCO-SFO booked on AA (Operated by AS) got me 4,477 Avios for a $621 ex-tax ticket. As a soon to expire AA Platinum I should really have credited AA for 4,970 miles but preferred the 140 BA tier points this time.

The earn to burn ratio is better for AA miles than Avios IMHO due to high BA fees and highly inflated RFS Avios redemption amounts.
AA status has become unattractive unless you take an AA branded credit card, entitlement to which depends on residency.

WannaTheater

~900K. Wife about the same.
Finding QR tickets through AA awards in and out of USA is becoming very difficult.
But awards seem to be available through QR (Avios).

guv1976

That's one possible solution, but not the only one. There are Amex and Chase credit cards with lucrative sign-up bonuses, too. And Amex MR points and Chase UR points can be converted to Avios on a 1:1 basis -- even without the occasional transfer bonuses which Amex and Chase offer.

WannaTheater

Any predictability on the AMEX transfer bonuses? Looking at a July 2025 trip, and have enough MR for the tickets, but would rather do during a bonus offering.

guv1976

As they say, "Past performance is no guarantee of future results." But if you do a web search, you should be able to find a list of past Amex (and Chase) transfer bonuses by date.

Dave Noble

I would also look at how much of cash component also needs to be paid using Avios. Book using AA miles and no carrier surcharge to to - book using Avios and could be very significant. The one way fare disguised as charges does seem to be around $490 looking on ITA

HaleiwaFlyer

I would calculate how much AA point redemptions and LPs award categories mean to you. AA is a closed system, and not easy to get; so this means your flying credit is valuable if you redeem AA miles for other non QR flights.

I would look at yearly spend, and see if a general spend card to get Avios is worth it or not, such as Chase-Amex-Citi.

Personally, my Chase card points go towards Avios redemptions.