Award route card · one-way
Ahmedabad's one long-haul, and it's Air India's own metal: the AMD–London nonstop lands at Gatwick, not Heathrow (AI's LHR service ended in 2018), flown by Air India mainline — so this is a Star corridor, not a BA/Avios one. Maharaja prices its own nonstop at the flat Europe tier, 35,000 economy / 100,000 business, no hub. But the sharper play is Aeroplan: the identical AI seat for 70,000 in business, surcharge-free and 30,000 points cheaper, in its 4,001–6,000-mile band. No oneworld nonstop and the Doha–London Avios routing can't be priced, so Avios is honest absence; Emirates and Etihad price one-stops off a calculator.
The play · business
Feed it: 35,000 Axis EDGE Miles (1:2) · 70,000 SBI Travel Credits (1:1) · 1,75,000 Axis EDGE Reward Points (5:2)
| Program | Metal / routing | Points | Surcharge | All-in ₹ | vs play |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Canada Aeroplan | Air India nonstop AMD-LGW (Star Alliance partner award) — no fuel surcharge | 70,000 | — | ₹70,000 | the play |
| Air India Maharaja Points | Air India nonstop AMD-LGW (Star Alliance) — own metal, no hub | 1,00,000 | — | ₹80,000 | 1.1× |
| Emirates Skywards | Emirates via DXB (one stop) — Classic Rewards, calculator-priced | dynamic | — | — | — |
| Etihad Guest | Etihad via AUH (one stop) — GuestSeat, calculator-priced | dynamic | — | — | — |
The play · economy
Feed it: 35,000 IndusInd Reward Points (1:1) · 17,500 Axis EDGE Miles (1:2) · 35,000 ICICI Reward Points (1:1)
| Program | Metal / routing | Points | Surcharge | All-in ₹ | vs play |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air India Maharaja Points | Air India nonstop AMD-LGW (Star Alliance) — own metal, no hub | 35,000 | — | ₹28,000 | the play |
| Air Canada Aeroplan | Air India nonstop AMD-LGW (Star Alliance partner award) — no fuel surcharge | 42,500 | — | ₹42,500 | 1.5× |
All-in ₹ = points × the program's house value (valuation index) + the sourced one-way surcharge; a dash means the carrier doesn't publish it and the ranking counts it ₹0 — the row's note carries the caveat. “Dynamic” rows never compete for the play. Feed-ins come from the same transfer data as the optimizer, multi-hop chains included.
AMD-LGW's ~4,343 miles fall in Aeroplan's 4,001-6,000-mile band — 70,000 in business after the June-2026 hike (was 60,000), fixed and with NO carrier surcharge, booking Air India's OWN Ahmedabad nonstop rather than a hub connection. That's 30,000 points under Maharaja's 100,000 for the same seat; the play on this corridor. Taxes run a few thousand rupees.
Feed it: 35,000 Axis EDGE Miles (1:2) · 70,000 SBI Travel Credits (1:1) · 1,75,000 Axis EDGE Reward Points (5:2)
Europe business was cut 23% in April 2026 (130,000 → 100,000) and, unusually for Ahmedabad, Maharaja books AI's OWN nonstop here — no Delhi doubleback, since AI mainline flies AMD-Gatwick itself. Still, 100,000 Maharaja points cost more to mint than Aeroplan's surcharge-free 70,000 books the same seat.
Feed it: 1,00,000 IndusInd Reward Points (1:1) · 50,000 Axis EDGE Miles (1:2) · 1,00,000 ICICI Reward Points (1:1)
Emirates flies AMD-DXB nonstop then DXB-Gatwick, a popular one-stop from Ahmedabad — but Skywards prices it off a calculator, not a chart, lifted premium cabins ~15% in the 20-May-2026 devaluation, and stacks heavy carrier surcharges on top. Whatever it quotes, weigh against Aeroplan's fixed 70,000.
Ways in: Amex Membership Rewards 2:1 · RBL Reward Points 4.8:1 via Club ITC → Marriott Bonvoy · Axis EDGE Miles 1:1.25 via Club ITC → Marriott Bonvoy
Etihad flies AMD-AUH nonstop and connects to London, but GuestSeat pricing comes off a calculator, not a chart — the documented India-to-London datapoint ran ~100,000 miles PLUS ~₹44,000 in carrier charges. Listed for honesty; every fixed-price row above beats it.
Ways in: Axis EDGE Miles 1:2 · HSBC Reward Points 1:1 · SBI Travel Credits 1:1
Europe flattened to 35,000 in economy from April 2026, and it's the AI Ahmedabad-Gatwick nonstop — no connection to verify. Taxes are light on AI metal. Aeroplan's 42,500 costs more points but zero surcharge; this is the fewest-points economy seat to London an Ahmedabad balance can buy.
Feed it: 35,000 IndusInd Reward Points (1:1) · 17,500 Axis EDGE Miles (1:2) · 35,000 ICICI Reward Points (1:1)
The 4,001-6,000-mile band is 42,500 economy (up from 35,500 in June 2026). Steep for economy at ~₹1/point, but it's the AI nonstop with zero fuel surcharge, and it undercuts Maharaja's 35,000-point tier only on out-of-pocket, not on points. Business is where Aeroplan earns its keep.
Feed it: 21,250 Axis EDGE Miles (1:2) · 42,500 SBI Travel Credits (1:1) · 1,06,250 Axis EDGE Reward Points (5:2)