Monthly Archives

Monthly Archives for May 2021.

Hilton Employee Arrested For Recording Women In Hotel’s Restroom

by Gary Leff

May 14 2021

An employee at the Hilton Garden Inn El Paso University Hotel in Texas has been charged with 9 counts of ‘invasive visual recording’ after reportedly using his cell phone to record women in one of the hotel’s restrooms.

According to police the man “planted a hidden camera in a public restroom and recorded multiple women using the facilities” on February 21. The man, said to have previously been in prison for “hitting a woman over the head with a hammer,” was held on $45,000 bond.

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4 American Airlines Passengers Had Their First Class Seats Taken Away – And Given To Employees

by Gary Leff

airline seats
May 14 2021

Last week four American Airlines passengers were downgraded on a flight from Charlotte to Honolulu because they ‘arrived at the gate too late’ even though they were there 25 minutes prior to departure. Their seats were given to employees or relatives or employees to enjoy instead.

The gate agent who did it was wrong, but there’s a confusing rule that should be clarified.

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Delta Will Require Employees To Get Vaccinated Before They Start Work

by Gary Leff

May 14 2021

Delta announced that all new employees will have to be vaccinated against Covid-19, but isn’t saying there will be any requirement for current employees to get a shot.

They suggest this is a great way to protect their already-high level of vaccination within the workforce and to protect customers, but they also make an odd claim about herd immunity in the process.

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People Are Bringing More Bags To The Airport Than Ever, And American Is Increasing Some Fees

by Gary Leff

May 13 2021

Leisure travel isn’t just vacation, it’s also “visiting friends and relatives” or ‘VFR’ for short. And those passengers tend to check a lot of luggage. What’s more, the mix of passengers traveling has changed. Business travelers don’t tend to check nearly as much luggage. So the same number of passengers as before on a plane comes with more luggage now than it used to.

American Airlines has adjusted some baggage fees in the Mexico, Caribbean, and Latin America market, perhaps most notably increasing third checked bag fees to $200.

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The American-JetBlue Alliance Can’t Even Assign Seats. Here’s The New Procedure.

by Gary Leff

May 13 2021

A week ago I wrote about why codeshares are great for airlines, not customers, and why you should almost never book one. There are edge cases, but in general they’re a hassle – whether because you need to get rebooked due to a schedule change or even just have a seat assigned.

What prompted me to write about this is that American Airlines, despite its close alliance with JetBlue in the Northeast, is unable to assign seats on JetBlue flights. American’s workaround wasn’t working, so now there’s a new one.

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U.S. Airlines May Start Weighing Passengers At The Gate

by Gary Leff

May 13 2021

U.S. airlines may need to start weighing passengers in order to comply with FAA rules. For safety reasons, carriers need to calculate an aircraft’s weight and balance, and it has to be within allowable limits for the plane. However the assumptions they’ve been using for passengers are outdated. Americans are getting fatter, and the federal government wants airlines to find out how much fatter their passengers have gotten, at least for smaller aircraft.

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