Monthly Archives for February 2020.
Malaysia Airlines flight attendant Ina Meliesa Hassim filed a case against her employer after being fired for weighing in 1.5 pounds over the airline’s standard for her height.
She lost the case. The court chairman concludedthat there was just cause for the termination.
Milwaukee airport’s security manager has been fired after falling for a scam, buying gift cards and sending them to someone in Saudi Arabia posing as her boss.
She’s the security director and she’s not careful dealing with online scammers. That’s not a good look, and she was let go for “substandard or careless job performance.” However what she ran into is very common and part of a multi-billion dollar scam that I’ve run into many times over the past three years.
Chase and United have extended their credit card agreement into 2029. United will remain a Chase Ultimate Rewards transfer partner. And Chase is, it seems, paying United more for the miles that it awards to customers – the airline says its bottom line will improve $400 million in 2020 alone.
There’s currently business class tickets between New York and Russia – either Moscow or St. Petersburg – from just $1622 roundtrip with the transatlantic portion of the journey on oneworld member Finnair. That’s an amazing fare, and it’s available exactly when you’d want to make the trip whether you want the best weather or to steal an election.
Last month JetBlue increased its first checked bag fee to $35 but kept it at $30 if prepaid online. Now United has announced they’re matching the move on domestic and short haul Latin America and Caribbean routes.
With United getting rid of bag sizers at the gate and higher bag fees may exacerbate the ‘bring everything on board’ mentality.
The 13,295 square foot lounge is located between the D and E concourses on the top level (you take an elevator upstairs). It features a bar, showers, family rooms, and great views of downtown and of airport operations.
Following a similar move already announced by Hyatt, Marriott is extending elite status by a year for residents of China and its Special Administrative Regions (as well as Taiwan so as not to get in trouble by differentiating it) due to the coronavirus outbreak and concomitant drop in travel to and from the region. This is based on account address date as of February 1, 2020.
Marriott is also extending Suite Night Awards and Free Night awards for these customers won’t expire points in these members’ accounts until February 2021.
Washington Post national political correspondent Jenna Johnson tried to make a quick trip home to D.C. on United after the Nevada caucuses, a surprise for her husband who wasn’t expecting to see her until after Super Tuesday.
She didn’t make her Las Vegas – Washington Dulles flight, while roads into the airport were closed off while the President left town, but United rebooked her onto a connecting flight through Chicago. It went mechanical, jeopardizing her O’Hare connection.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
Despite marketing claims by the big chains, you can often get a better price on a hotel booking through third party websites. That’s even more the case with independent hotels.
What I’ve found is that the more expensive the hotel the greater likelihood you can find a deal through a small online travel agency website. You’ll usually give up hotel loyalty points and elite status credit, but you may receive other perks. At a minimum it’s worth checking before you book.
Right now there’s a new opportunity to join a site free that usually charges, to get 5% back on your bookings — and not just hotels, either, but other travel too.
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 »
