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Both American Airlines and United Airlines have some very good fares available for flights between Los Angeles and Miami in the first few months of 2016 and some are even mileage-run worthy (4.9c/mile on American and a stunning 3.3c/mile on United)….but availability is rapidly diminishing.
If you’re happiest flying non-stop then American is probably going to be better for you but United’s flights (with a stopover) have more availability at good prices.
American Airlines
Availability for these flights is diminishing rapidly but there’re still a few dates left with good fares:
Fare rules require a 21-day advance purchase…..
….and there’s a good variety of trip lengths you can do while still getting a good fare:
Some of the flights are serviced by 777-200 aircraft – which should make upgrades a little easier (with a lot more premium cabin seats).
Note: There is some very limited availability for same-day-turns at $231 for LAX-MIA-LAX and, with the flight distance coming in at 4,684 miles…..
Screenshot from Great Circle Mapper
….that would return a price of 4.9c/mile which could interest someone looking for an early year mileage run.
United Airlines
There’s a lot more availability (at the time of writing) on United Airlines and, thanks to the nature of their routes, a great mileage run to be had.
As with American Airlines, the fares offer a variety of trip length so there should be something to suit most people:
The flights with fares pricing out to $228 are same-day-turns and all appear to have unsociable flight times out of LAX (click to enlarge)…..
….but, if you’re looking for a mileage run early in the year and don’t wish to stop overnight then this could be for you.
The best value route would be LAX-IAH-MIA-ORD-LAX which comes in at 5,284 miles and would give a value of just 4.3c/mile.
However, if you’re prepared to stay overnight, you can do a whole lot better.
If you opt to take a flight that routes through Newark you’ll have a trip of around 7,079 miles….
Screenshot from Great Circle Mapper
….and a fare of just $234 (click to enlarge)…..
…giving a value of an amazing 3.3c/mile!
Note: These fares are available at the time of writing but they may not be around for too much longer….not all of them may even still be available by the time you’re reading this. If you think you’ll need a mileage run at some point in 2016 then you’re unlikely to do much better than 3.3.c/mile.
[…] It looks like United Airlines has some good fares for anyone looking for an early 2016 mileage run. Same day turns can be done on the LAX-IAH-MIA-ORD-LAX route for $228 or 4.3cpm (distance is 5,284 miles per GCM). But, if you're happy doing an overnight stop, you can route via EWR in both directions for $234 and a total distance of 7,079 giving you 3.3cpm. Fares are available for travel January – March 2016 (most cheap fares are in January) and I can't see any onerous restrictions. Flight times aren't too bad either with no through-the-night flights needed. All fares found via ITA Matrix so you should be able to replicate the results there. I've reproduced screenshots on Matrix availability on the blog here. […]