American Airlines updated the look of its award charts today with no update to actual award prices. (Here are expert predictions for the timing and extent of the next award chart changes from American Airlines.)

I liked the old charts better, especially the partner one where all prices could be displayed in one small image.

Now both the American Airlines chart and partner chart are spread across several pages.

Fiji Airways is releasing great award space for two passengers in economy from Los Angeles to Nadi, Fiji that you can book with American Airlines miles.

Fiji

Fiji Airways is releasing great award space for two passengers in economy from Los Angeles to Nadi, Fiji that you can book with American Airlines miles.

Fiji

French Polynesia is an award I get asked to book frequently through my Award Booking Service, including awards to the main tourist islands of Tahiti, Bora Bora, and Mo’orea. Award space is excellent to French Polynesia with American Airlines miles year round.

Here's the thing: you can only book awards to Tahiti.

French Polynesia is an award I get asked to book frequently through my Award Booking Service, including awards to the main tourist islands of Tahiti, Bora Bora, and Mo’orea. Award space is excellent to French Polynesia with American Airlines miles year round.

Here's the thing: you can only book awards to Tahiti.

Update at 5:55 PM ET: An email today from Dividend Miles says that Dividend Miles will be ended within 30 days:
In October, we announced we would combine our frequent flyer programs in the second quarter of this year. And now, we're on track to bring the US Airways Dividend Miles® program into the AAdvantage® program within the next 30 days.

On many routes, Etihad releases tons of Business and First Class award space within one week of departure. You can book this ultra-luxury award space without fuel surcharges with American Airlines miles.

Twitter follower Patrick found four Etihad First Class award seats this week on a flight from Los Angeles to Abu Dhabi and asked whether that was normal.

@OneMileataTime @garyleff @milevalue Has Etihad started releasing more first class space closer to date? See http://t.co/V8oIw8sAAW

— Patrick Srail (@patricksrail) March 8, 2015

The answer is that it depends on the route.

On many routes, Etihad releases tons of Business and First Class award space within one week of departure. You can book this ultra-luxury award space without fuel surcharges with American Airlines miles.

Twitter follower Patrick found four Etihad First Class award seats this week on a flight from Los Angeles to Abu Dhabi and asked whether that was normal.

@OneMileataTime @garyleff @milevalue Has Etihad started releasing more first class space closer to date? See http://t.co/V8oIw8sAAW

— Patrick Srail (@patricksrail) March 8, 2015

The answer is that it depends on the route.

For the past few years, I've noticed that American Airlines basically blacks out award space for several weeks from mid-December to mid-January on all or most of its routes.
What I Mean by Blackout
This isn't a hard blackout during which you can't use miles at all. It's a MileSAAver blackout. No MileSAAver award space will appear on a route for about a month, so you need to spend 2-4x the MileSAAver price if you want to book an AAnytime award.

For a quick refresher, MileSAAver is American's cheapest level of award space and its most heavily capacity controlled.

American Airlines, United, and Delta fly flat beds on their daily flights between New York-JFK and San Francisco and Los Angeles. Delta also flies its flat beds between New York-JFK and Seattle.

All three airlines compete in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Only Delta flies between Seattle and JFK with flat beds.

Which has the best flat bed award space on the routes?
What are the prices? 
What are the products?

The Products & Prices
Delta

Delta throws 757s and 767s configured with flat bed seats at its transcontinental routes.