Monthly Archives for June 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.
The new brand is not yet named but internal project names are often revealing, and this one is “currently being referred to as Project MidX Studios.”
They literally tell you the new chain is mid.
I think this is great. If this is something you want to support, you can earn more miles doing so. And if it’s not, you can ignore the offer. Of course in 2023 it’s not so simple.
A Spirit Airlines gate agent was assaulted by a passenger they’d just denied boarding to out of a belief that the customer was intoxicated. The story is just coming out, though it occurred May 11 around 9:40 p.m. The passenger tried to force her way onto the jet bridge, and punched the gate agent in the face when that didn’t work.
A senior American Airlines pilot has filed a class action lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas over the 100,000 member, $26 billion airline pension, arguing that it is pursuing “leftist political agendas” by making investments that follow ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) guidelines.
He argues that the plan breaches its fiduciary duty by privileging activism on issues including race, LGBTQ+ rights, and environmentalism over financial returns.
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.
Long-term the Airbus A380 will retire. And rather than add a new, top-end first class along the lines of something that might compete with Gulf rivals like Emirates, Etihad and even Saudia, or even like European carriers Lufthansa and Air France, Qatar is planning to eliminate long haul first class.
There are four major hotel loyalty programs, at least for Americans: Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott and IHG. Hyatt has the smallest footprint but the best benefits for frequent guests. Marriott is great on paper but most inconsistent at the property-level delivering promised benefits. IHG never had much in the way of benefits at all until last year when everything changed. And Hilton stands alone, promising almost nothing.
Austin’s airport has been one of the fastest growing in the country for several years. Their main terminal needs to grow to accommodate this – at peak times passengers are packed in so tight it’s barely possible to move. Gates are in constant use with no real room for more flights, either.
One way the city-controlled airport planned to manage growth was with a separate ‘South Terminal’ for low cost carriers. They leased space to a private company for 40 years, which built the terminal, and has been housing Allegiant and Frontier. The terminal is just six years old, but the airport changed its mind.
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 »
