American Airlines CEO Robert Isom says the airline has caught up at selling first class upgrades instead of giving them away. That may be good merchandising, but it guts the core value of elite status: if American will sell the seat for $40, the customer spending tens of thousands chasing upgrades is being told exactly where they stand.
Wedding guests booked nearly $64,000 at a new Marriott-branded hotel after being promised it was ready. They arrived to no AC, exposed wiring, plumbing failures, sewer smells, and doors that would not lock — and Marriott corporate said it was the hotel’s problem.
United passengers say they were trapped on Newark tarmacs for seven hours or more during weather delays, with one San Francisco-bound flight sitting 7.5 hours before being canceled for the night — and United offering just a $200 voucher. Federal rules generally require domestic passengers to be given a real chance to deplane after three hours, making these delays exactly the kind of incident the DOT tarmac-delay rule was supposed to prevent.
Delta is using AI to price tickets. United wants to use it to better explain what is actually happening when your flight goes sideways. If Kirby delivers on maintenance videos and improved plain-English delay updates for every flight, that is the rare airline AI project passengers may actually like.
Scott Kirby says United is not buying American Airlines or JetBlue — and calls a JetBlue deal “mathematically not doable.” But a bankruptcy scenario, recently floated by JetBlue’s founder, would change the math.
Saudi Arabia’s mirrored megacity was supposed to help sell the kingdom as the next global tourism powerhouse. But with NEOM’s The Line now pushed beyond 2030 and other resort investments slowing, the travel demand behind Riyadh Air has gotten more challenging, as the country tries to figure out if it’s still trying to out-Dubai Dubai.
Alaska Airlines accepted FAA findings that intoxicated passengers were allowed to board 11 flights, triggering a proposed $165,000 fine. But the bigger fight may be over what gets blamed next: first class predeparture drinks, even though the real problem appears to be spotting drunk passengers before they ever reach the aircraft door.
American Airlines banned some AAdvantage members seven years ago, and now it appears “lifetime” really means forever as recreated accounts are being shut down too. Also: Penn Station renderings show Trump’s name with the presidential seal, Delta waits on Amazon Wi-Fi while rivals move to Starlink, and Marriott points can apparently now buy robots.
Bilt’s June Rent Day is built around Madonna, with custom vinyl, album-release events and even a full month of rent covered at the New York building where she was once a tenant. But the real points play is a transfer bonus of up to 125% to TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go — enough to turn ordinary Bilt spending into an unusually rich haul, even if TAP is not the partner I’d usually choose first.
Denver airport’s train system broke down 131 times last year, stranding passengers in a terminal design that often gives them no way to walk to their gates. Now the airport is finally planning pedestrian walkways between concourses so the backup plan becomes walking up to 1.25 miles with your bags.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
