Business Class Fares Between Madrid & Boston/Chicago From $1,768

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If you’re looking to fly to the US in comfort early next year or if you’re just looking to edge yourself closer to the oneworld status you’re aiming for there are a couple of good Iberia Business Class fares out of Madrid that may interest you.

I should warn you now that these fares are only available on a limited number of dates so don’t expect to have a wide selection of flights from which to choose…but that doesn’t make these fares unworthy of further attention.

Basic Fare Rules

  • Travel outbound Tuesday – Thursday
  • Travel inbound Monday – Wednesday
  • Fares valid from 14 Jan – 28 Feb 2019
  • Maximum stay is 12 months

Madrid – Chicago Business Class From $1,861 Roundtrip

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This is what the fare availability looks like right now:

a screenshot of a flight schedule a screenshot of a calendar

And here’s an example of a flight priced up on Iberia’s website:

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I’m not entirely sure why there’s a small price difference between the Matrix calendar view and the Iberia website price but I suspect that at least some of it is down to exchange rate differences.

Madrid – Boston Business Class From $1,768 Roundtrip

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This is what the fare availability looks like right now:

a screenshot of a flight schedule

a screenshot of a flight schedule

As you can see that’s very limited availability (even less than for the Chicago fare) but I’m sure someone will find a use for this.

Here’s a flight priced up on the Iberia website:

a screenshot of a phoneThis may not be the lowest Business Class fare we’ve seen to Boston this year but great transatlantic Business Class fares have been thin on the ground recently so this isn’t bad at all.

What Miles/Elite Credits Can You Earn?

Iberia is a member of the oneworld alliance so Iberia fares can be credited to any oneworld airline. The most common oneworld loyalty programs that readers use are American Airlines AAdvantage and the British Airways Executive Club so here’s how much these fares will earn if you credit to one of those programs.

American Airlines AAdvantage Earnings

American Airlines has a specific table for what travelers can earn when flying with Iberia….

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….and this is primarily based on distance:

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a map of the world with a red line

If you hold American Airlines status you’ll also earn bonus redeemable miles too:

  • Gold Status – 40% Bonus
  • Platinum Status – 60% Bonus
  • Platinum Pro Status – 80% Bonus
  • Executive Platinum Status – 120% Bonus

Based on all of this here are the approximate earnings from the two fares:

Chicago Fare

  • Elite Qualifying Miles (all travelers) – 12,605 EQM
  • Elite Qualifying Dollars (all travelers) – 2,185 EQD
  • Redeemable Miles:
    • No Status – 10,504 miles
    • Gold Status – 13,865 miles
    • Platinum Status – 15,546 miles
    • Platinum Pro Status – 17,226 miles
    • Executive Platinum Status – 20,587 miles

Boston Fare

  • Elite Qualifying Miles (all travelers) – 10,229 EQM
  • Elite Qualifying Dollars (all travelers) – 1,733 EQD
  • Redeemable Miles:
    • No Status – 8,524 miles
    • Gold Status – 11,251 miles
    • Platinum Status – 12,615 miles
    • Platinum Pro Status – 13,979 miles
    • Executive Platinum Status – 16,707 miles

Compared to what you would earn had these flights been on American Airlines (where a revenue-based system would kick in) these earnings are impressive.

British Airways Executive Club Earnings

It’s easy to see what you’d earn if you credit these fares to the BAEC as you can simply use the Avios Flight Calculator Tool but, as I’m sure you’re all too busy to do that, I’ve done the work for you 🙂

Chicago Fare

  • Tier Point Earnings (all travelers) – 280 Tier Points
  • Avios Earned:
    • Blue Status – 12,576 Avios
    • Bronze Status – 14,672 Avios
    • Silver Status – 16,768 Avios
    • Gold Status – 20,960 Avios

Boston Fare

  • Tier Point Earnings (all travelers) – 280 Tier Points
  • Avios Earned:
    • Blue Status – 10,234 Avios
    • Bronze Status – 11,940 Avios
    • Silver Status – 13,646 Avios
    • Gold Status – 17,056 Avios

280 Tier Points is ~47% of the way to British Airways Silver status (oneworld sapphire) which gets you Business Class lounge access, priority boarding and you can select your seat on the aircraft at the time of booking and that’s why so many people go looking for fares like these.

Bottom Line

These may not be amazing Business Class fares but in the current drought we appear to be having they’re not bad at all…and they can be very useful if you’re looking to boost your earnings towards elite status.