My wife and I are flying just after Christmas to London. Our questions is who to fly? If we go with Continetal, who we have flown for several years and enjoyed, we must wait until 30 days before departure to find out IF we get our upgrade. if we fly Delta, who we have heard mixed things about, we get an immediated upgrade but must fly through Atlanta and must fly ASA (cattle car) on our return flight from Atlanta.<BR>Any help/advice is appreciated.<BR>By the way we fly out of Austin.

I'm an American Airlines fan myself, but I've flown Delta many times to Europe and I've never had a problem. I love flying through Atlanta versus Chicago or NYC. You'll be so tired on the way back that any accomodations will annoy you on that last leg.

Virgin if you can. Excellent.

If you are going to get an upgrade on Delta, take Delta. I've flown Delta several times to Europe and have never had a problem. We got to fly in Business Elite (they do not have first class, only an upgraded business class section) this past May to Germany and it is wonderful.

OOO, that's right. Business Elite on Delta looked fabulous. I walked through that section many times green with envy. If you can get an upgrade go for it; I never could.

Can you get British Airways? Just flew last month (Seattle, London, Amsterdam, Geneva). Especially their flights that leave evenings and fly the polar route landing Heathrow AM was grand (OK as good as a 9 hour flight can get). Maybe they don't fly so far south as Austin though.<BR><BR>I take European owned airlines over U.S. anyday (so much nicer service, actual food, free movies and drinks, less layovers, etc.).

I always fly British Air or Virgin. If you fly coach, they are great because they both have personal tv screens and excellent menu service.

Take the Delta flight. A relatively short domestic flight is not a big deal. The upgrade is well worth it as you may actually get a little sleep on the way over and have room to breath on the long day flight back. We save all our miles strictly so we can upgrade on American when traveling to Europe. Have a great trip.

I have travelled on most western airlines' buz class and rank then accordingly: ( flying to London from the USA)<BR>1. Virgin ( the best)<BR>2. British Airways (new sleeper seats)<BR>3. Delta Business Elite<BR>If you are looking for fun and the little extra go with Virgin, if you are looking for great seat comfort go with British. Delta has the best service ( I think)and is an overall good experience. <BR>

I've flown Continental once overseas, and it was the worst flight I've ever had. I've never flown across the Atlantic on such a small plane. Not only was the seat cramped, but there was no where to just stand and stretch a bit, as there was only one aisle.<BR><BR>Here's my ranking for coach class:<BR><BR>1) United<BR>2) Virgin<BR><BR>British Airways used to be the best, about 7 years ago, but I won't even fly them any more. Customer service is nonexistant, they rarely clean the toilets, and it's always far too hot on their planes.

The Best First Class is on British Airways. Virgin, like Delta, is only a business class service. And there are so many nouveau upstarts on those planes! It's almost as bad as the concorde, all those nouveau people with tacky luggage and jewels.

Fly United.....they need all the help they can get .... and they're great!

Ann: If you had a single aisle transatlantic experience on Continental, it must have been because you were flying a 757 (probably out of Cleveland). I'd recommend avoiding those at all costs, even domestically because they are crowded and cramped.<BR><BR>Personally, I find Continental's transatlantic and transpacific economy class service quite good. Every seatback in their 767 and 777 fleet has a personal video monitor. The only downside on Continental is the limited seat pitch.<BR><BR>My choice for long-haul economy service is always American where &quot;coach has more class.&quot; Too bad all their 767's have yet to be equipped with seat back monitors.

Just a note which might or might not be importaant to you...<BR><BR>Most of the American airlines that fly the US London route now charge $4 per for booze in coach...the British airlines do not.

American Airlines 777, LAX to LHR.I'm six foot three and a bit. Ten hours plus, three decent movies on seatback screens. So glad I didn't use my miles to upgrade to biz-class. Arrived London raring to go.<BR>Same service out of Chicago and Atlanta(?).<BR>