Monthly Archives for May 2023.
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.
A federal court sided with the Biden Administration’s Department of Justice, ruling that the American Airlines-JetBlue partnership should be broken up on anti-trust grounds. It’s an odd conclusion, but the ruling itself is fascinating reading. It contains great details about how the deal evolved between the two airlines.
Alaska Airlines awards lifetime MVP Gold at 1 million miles, and lifetime MVP Gold 75K at 2 million miles. These members will receive additional benefits.
Give a Mile is a non-profit that helps people in need with air travel, using miles donated by members. First they began working with Air Canada. They also have a partnership with United. I’d like to see this grow and expand.
They are on a campaign to raise 1.5 million miles to help connect people to share the moments of life. Give A Mile raises miles and books award travel so that no one has to die alone.
A passenger posted a short video to TikTok, since-deleted, showing a woman standing on a baggage scale at a check-in counter.
American Airlines and JetBlue entered into what they called ‘the Northeast Alliance’ in order to become more competitive against larger rivals in key markets. As the number three and four carriers in New York, neither were large enough to be really competitive with United and Delta. But slot restrictions and gate availability meant that neither could grow. This was their solution to create a third real competitive alternative.
The government just won at trial to break up the alliance. The judge permanently enjoined this partnership from continuing and from further implementation, beginning in 30 days. One expects an appeal.
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.
Don’t put your bare feet up on the seats or the bulkhead wall of a plane. And do not drape your hair over the seat back so it’s directly in front of the passenger seated behind you. This is even worse on a cramped regional jet.
The type of aircraft means there’s no seat back entertainment screen, so I suppose that is a saving grace: the hair isn’t covering up the show the passenger in the row behind was watching. But that also means they have nothing to distract themselves from The. Hair.
It’s believed that the contract is for four years, with pay rates comparable to Delta’s new deal (which we’ve already expected and the company had publicly committed to) and some improvements for pilots on scheduling (limitation on the kinds of trips the company can require pilots to work).
Delta’s pilot contract costs it $7 billion more over the course of four years. The exact costs to American isn’t yet clear because the details haven’t been released – although the increase likely wipes out the carrier’s current run rate of profits.
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.
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 »
