The FCF Premium Economy Oscars to Asia

Best Experience, Best Fares, Lowest Mileage Cost

• Best PE experience: All Nippon, Japan Airlines, and Singapore.
• Lowest PE fares: American starting at $1,176 to Tokyo.
• Lowest mileage award rate: Japan Airlines, 65,000 miles round-trip to Tokyo.

For starters, understand that Premium Economy is a two-caste system: There’s Premium Economy Elite (PE Elite) and Premium Economy Lite (PE Lite). The former refers to airlines that have created a separate cabin and an upgraded seat—among them, many international airlines and now American and Delta—while the latter (United among them) are faking it, having just put in a bit more legroom at the front of economy.

This month we will do a deep dive into U.S./Canada-Asia routes, which often have high Business Class fares, especially on the top carriers like Cathay Pacific and Singapore.