Bits: new BA Stansted route, HfP in The Economist, new British Airways / China Eastern codeshares

News in brief:

New British Airways route from Stansted

Over the Summer, British Airways has been running a series of routes from Stansted at the weekend.  These use aircraft which would otherwise be flying from London City but which are left idle by the 24 hour curfew at the airport from Saturday lunchtime.

Despite the often appalling flight times, such as 06.00 departures, the services seem to be doing OK.  BA has announced the following changes for the Winter season:

a new route to Chambery, with an outbound flight on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 17th December

Berlin Tegel to operate all year round (13.15 on a Sunday departure)

Malaga and Faro to be extended by an extra two weeks, with flights to end on 19th / 20th November

I expect further announcements of additional Winter routes to follow.

Cash and Avios bookings to Chambery can be made now at ba.com.

HfP in The Economist

The Economist website picked up on the service reductions at British Airways yesterday in this well-written post.

HfP is referenced in the article (although I did not speak to the author) but irrespective of that I recommend that you read it as it offers a good summary of the current position.

This article is outside The Economist paywall so no subscription or sign-up is required.

British Airways announces a codeshare with China Eastern

British Airways has announced a new codeshare agreement with China Eastern even though the airline is a member of the competing SkyTeam alliance.

You will now be able to book flights to Kunming, Xi’an, Nanjing, Hangzhou and Chongqing on a BA flight code, connecting to China Eastern via Chengdu or Shanghai.

Chinese flyers will be able to book flights to Aberdeen, Belfast City, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, Manchester and Newcastle using the MU flight code, connecting to China Eastern flights to Heathrow.

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up, no annual fee and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending ….. Read our full review

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the UK’s most valuable credit card perk – the 2-4-1 companion voucher Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

The most generous Avios Visa or Mastercard for a limited company Read our full review

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus:

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

(Want to earn more Avios?  Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)