British Airways announces new Pittsburgh route with excellent Avios availability

British Airways has announced a new route to Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania.

Pittsburgh will become the 26th (!) US city to be served by British Airways.  It has flown the route in the past but the service was discontinued in 1999.

The route will launch on 2nd April 2019 and will operate four days per week, all year round.

It will operate from Heathrow Terminal 5 and will use a new Boeing 787-8, which means there will not be any First Class seating.

The new flights will run on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday with BA0171 departing from London Heathrow at 5pm and landing into Pittsburgh at 8.15pm.  BA0170 will leave Pittsburgh at 9.50pm, arriving into London at 10.25am the following day.

Apparently ….

Harper’s Bazaar named Pittsburgh one of the “Best Places to Travel in 2017”.

Visitors can also explore the Carnegie Museums of Art, Natural History and Science, meander around the Botanical Gardens or soak up the lively strip district. Pittsburgh has also been labelled the ‘Best Sports City in the US’, and is home to three professional teams, the Steelers (American football), the Penguins (ice hockey), and the Pirates (baseball). The Steelers became the first team in NFL history to win six Super Bowl titles.

Pittsburgh is the ‘City of Bridges’, with more than any other city in the world at nearly 450.

The area is also home to 90 universities, colleges and career training schools and has one of the fastest growing millennial markets in America.

As usual with new routes, Avios availablity will be excellent.  The route was only opened up for sale yesterday and at a minimum the guaranteed two Club World and four World Traveller seats will be available on each flight.

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How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

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

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

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

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £15,000 Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large 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, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

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

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year 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.