Sapphire

We will be flying from the east coast of the US (can depart from EWR, JFK, or PHL) to Seoul, South Korea in April in economy class. We have flown on Asiana (and Korean air) in the past but now that US Airways has merged with American, we want to fly with a One World airline.

If you were flying in economy class from the east coast to Seoul on a One World airline, which one would you choose? I did compare the airlines on SkyTraxx and see that Cathay Pacific ranks very well. I also see some concerns here about their hard shell seats, and have seen some comments about the difficulty of making connections/navigating the airport in Hong Kong.

If we fly on Cathay or JAL, how difficult might it be to get food without soy? I have developed a sensitivity to soy that makes me itch and I have had to be careful on our last 2 trips to Korea and Japan. If this would be a problem (and if communicating about this sensitivity could be challenging, then we should probably fly American.

We are both US airways gold preferred status, so One World Sapphire. This might help us on an American flight (access to main cabin plus on the domestic leg? possible upgrade?). Have never flown business class on any airline and have done a lot of international travel, so we tolerate economy class pretty well even though my husband is tall (6ft). But might it be possible to use US Airways ff miles to upgrade from economy to business class on the overseas portion of our trip, if we fly American?

Would appreciate any input you might be able to give us. We have explored possible itineraries with all 3 airlines. How long of a layover does one need in Hong Kong to make a connecting flight? Sounds like we should plan on a 3hr layover in DFW if we fly American, to be sure that we have time to clear customs and make our connecting flight.

Many thanks!

Gardyloo

I'd go with AA via DFW. As elite members of the US program, you'll get Main Cabin Extra on the domestic flight, and also on the international flight if your particular plane is set up with MCE seats. (AA currently uses a 777-200 on the DFW-ICN route, some of which have had MCE installed, some of which haven't yet, but by April the odds would be in your favor.)

You'll also get lounge access both at your departing airport and at DFW, a nice perk.

Upgrades on AA "metal" using US miles is currently a mess - the programs haven't been integrated enough yet to make it possible, but again, maybe by April...?

While Cathay Pacific is a terrific airline, Hong Kong is far out of your way (much farther than Seoul) and changing at Tokyo would be unnecessarily time-consuming, too. I'd go with AA and be done with it.

See your other thread regarding connection times at DFW.

Sojourntraveller

Why did you not mention you wanted to fly with a One World airline in your other thread? Come to that, why have you posted twice?

Now you are in to the what's worth more, air miles/air miles use vs. my personal time and any potential hassle. For me, that's no contest. My time and ease of travel trump any cost savings or points gained.

So unless there is a One World airline that has a NON-STOP flight to/from Seoul, I would not consider any of them.

Sapphire

Gardyloo, thank you for your input. The lounge access is a nice perk - one we didn't have last year (when we dropped down to Silver). That's one reason for trying to accrue ff miles whenever possible! I am currently seeing MCE only on the domestic leg of a trip on American, but as you pointed out, things may change before then. Good point about Hong Kong being well out of our way!

Sojourntraveller, thank you for your thoughts on this. The non-stop flights to Seoul that we've flown on our last 3 trips have been wonderful! But my husband works for a non-profit organization, and we always try to get the lowest price possible. At this moment, it would cost more to fly Asiana or Korean Air than American or Cathay Pacific. And we would lose an opportunity to accrue ff miles to maintain preferred status which does save us time and hassle on trips within North America.

(Oh, and I posted a separate thread specific to DFW airport because it is a narrower topic that I thought might also help others.)

After starting this thread, I remembered to check how Cathay and JAL handle accrual of miles flown in economy class. I tend to forget that various airlines handle this differently. We flew British Airways to Kenya in July (instead of Qatar) and to South Africa in November because they do honor 100% of the miles on all economy fares. I definitely missed the nonstop South African airways flight but that flight helped us reach US Airways gold.

Thank you for your help!

Gardyloo

Also, depending on fare bucket, you will earn hugely reduced, or no US/AA miles at all on Cathay Pacific or Japan Airlines flights.

Sapphire

Yes, that is what I realized when I remembered to look that up! Thanks, Gardyloo. I had checked Qatar, British Airways, and South African Airways this summer but completely forgot to check the airlines for our flights to Asia.

Looks like we will be booking AA for this trip!

rkkwan

There is no issue navigating HKG, but it is certainly out of the way. I'd take JL if given the original choices.

Sapphire

Have booked our flights on American to make sure we get all of the miles flying to and from Seoul, Korea from Newark, NJ. Thanks for the input!