Monthly Archives

Monthly Archives for October 2018.

The Price to Renovate New York JFK is Up to $13 Billion — And Will Make Travel Worse

by Gary Leff

outside airport
Oct 06 2018

We’d be much better off with airports that efficiently moved people from their initial location to their gate, and on arrival to their final destination, than with sprawling complexes that are cumbersome to traverse but accommodate more retail.

You can only sell off the airport’s future income stream once. Investing the money is new mega-terminals means not investing the money in things that would actually improve the airport most. As a result these choices mean the New York JFK travel experience will be worse than it otherwise could be.

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TSA Will Allow You To Bring Disabled Bullets Through Security, Unless They Can Keep Liquids Cold

by Gary Leff

bullets in a plastic bag
Oct 06 2018

TSA policy allows you to bring empty shell casings with the primer removed or discharged. So bullets that have been disabled and cannot be fired are fine.

Unless that bullet could keep your drink cold in which case they’re going to confiscate it. Since they have plenty of abandoned drinks at the checkpoint they want their drinks to be cold.

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Should You Tip Flight Attendants?

by Gary Leff

flight attendants posing
Oct 05 2018

Flight attendants often aren’t well paid, though they do benefit from travel and in some cases scheduling flexibility.

Tipping is often against airline rules, but that doesn’t mean your crew won’t accept tips especially if you offer it again a second time once they decline.

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Whose Arm Rest Is It Anyway? Here’s Why the Middle Seat Passenger Gets Both

by Gary Leff

behind man in airplane seat
Oct 05 2018

Airlines charge extra for the ‘better’ coach seats. It would be nice if they gave you something extra when you’re stuck in one of the seats that’s worse than average — a free cocktail, free inflight internet, or a discount on your next trip. At a minimum airlines could make the unwritten rule that the coach passenger gets priority for two arm rests explicit.

This isn’t a written rule, and it isn’t enforceable. We need to be courteous to fellow passengers, and this is the principle that gets us there.

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Swiss Erases Israel From Its Moving Map In Order to “Remain Neutral”

by Gary Leff

moving airplane 3d map
Oct 05 2018

Swiss is under fire after its flight from Zurich to Tel Aviv on Thursday, September 27 displayed the name of a Palestinian Arab village which was abandoned in 1948 prior to the Arab-Israeli war in place of Tel Aviv on the aircraft’s ‘moving map’ display.

The destination Tel Aviv is listed, but where it would go on the map has been replaced by the name of a town that was abandoned 70 years ago.

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American Express Launches New Gold Card With Great 4x Bonus Categories

by Gary Leff

amex rose gold card
Oct 04 2018

American Express just refreshed their Premier Rewards Gold Card and renamed it “American Express Gold Card.”

Most importantly the card raises the bar for points-earning at US restaurants and US grocery stores, while retaining strong points-earning on airline spend. And they’ve added a new monthly credit for dining. Today’s changes to the product – for me – make it the most rewarding card for ongoing spend.

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