Monthly Archives for January 2021.
Hertz is accused of falsely reporting cars stolen on a number of customers – and the customers wind up in jail. This appears to have been going on for a couple of years at least. Hertz has been sued for the practice. And yet it seems to continue.
The stories have a common thread involving switching out of the originally-assigned vehicle, or extending a rental, where Hertz employees didn’t properly complete the paperwork for the transaction.
Passengers from all over flew to DC this past week on American Airlines, Delta, Southwest and others to protest – and some to riot – at the Capitol. Many were maskless, some were kicked off flights. Others harassed Mitt Romney on the way to DC (and on the way home, harassed Lindsey Graham). Still others projected “TRUMP 2020” onto the ceiling of their aircraft. And others sat peacefully.
But Dallas-area realtor and radio host Jenna Ryan took a private plane. And this was all because – with no self-awareness of having flown private to DC – “they’re taking everything” away from her. Now she’s been arrested, and is asking the President for a pardon, because she’s the real victim here.
In November the CEO of American Airlines joint venture partner Qantas announced they planned to require vaccination in order to fly. U.S. airlines have had internal discussions about following suit. However I do not see how American Airlines could require passengers but not crew to have been vaccinated in order to travel.
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.
I understand using an airline blanket (they’re cleaner than you think when they are offered) or bringing one of your own. It’s never once occurred to me to plug an electric blanket into an aircraft’s seat power. Apparently though this is far more of a thing than I’d ever imagined.
On Thursday’s Delta Air Lines earnings call, the carrier said “if the TSA is able to identify individuals [who stormed capitol building] you’ll have people added to the no fly list.”
American Airlines CEO Doug Parker confirmed this in a meeting with pilots this week.
Southwest Airlines hadn’t yet shared reduced requirements for elite status and companion pass in 2021. That’s changed. And like Marriott they’re giving members credit towards status rather than lowering requirements. They’re also extending Companion Passes that were earned in 2019 for 2020.
When Marriott acquired Starwood they also acquired the Ambassador program which offered a single point of contact for the chain’s top customers, to make reservations, interface with hotels on requests, and act as a concierge more broadly.
First Marriott had mass layoffs of concierges. Now they’ve decided emails to individual concierges can no longer be answered – everything goes into a single customer service pool.
After 9/11 passengers on flights to Washington’s National airport were required to remain seated for the last 30 minutes of their trip, and for the first 30 minutes on any flight departing the airport.
Dubbed by frequent flyers the “no pee rule” it was meant to immediately identify anyone that might be trying to take over the aircraft when it was close enough that it could hit the White House, U.S. Capitol or other high value target. More than 30 minutes out, presumably, the government thought it would be able to shoot down the plane.
I’ve been using a Samsung Galaxy S7 for 5 years. I was going to replace it in early 2020 but the pandemic hit and I didn’t bother. So I’m planning to buy the new Samsung S21 when it comes out in a few weeks. Since I get a new phone only every 4-5 years I may get the S21 ultra.
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 »
