Monthly Archives for November 2023.
Southwest Airlines will devalue its points by about 4% on January 1, 2024. The Rapid Rewards program announced several changes a month ago to much fanfare, but this one they buried.
In the battle for limited takeoff and landing slots at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, U.S. airlines like Delta, American, and United vied for positions, with Delta receiving the most slots despite not having a Japanese airline partner. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) now faces decisions on slot reallocations, as Delta relinquishes its Portland-Tokyo route and other airlines propose routes that overlap with their joint venture partners, raising questions about competition and consumer benefit.
A group from the Society of Musicians of Ireland performed traditional Irish tunes during a ground delay on an Aer Lingus flight from Frankfurt to Dublin, sparking mixed reactions among passengers. This incident is part of a trend of spontaneous in-flight concerts, with previous instances on Aer Lingus and Southwest Airlines, raising questions about the appropriateness of such performances during flights.
The blog post details a debate at CardCon on credit card interchange legislation, where the author argues against government-mandated lower interchange fees, citing concerns about the negative impacts on the economy, consumer credit, and rewards programs. It contrasts the potential benefits to retailers with the broader societal costs, questioning the real-world effectiveness of such legislation and its impact on various stakeholders, including consumers and financial institutions.
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.
An American Airlines passenger was upgraded to first class along with his girlfriend, but she was subsequently moved to economy due to a supposedly broken seat, which was then occupied by a pilot. This incident raises questions about the airline’s priorities and policies, especially in light of a new contract allowing pilots first-class seats when deadheading.
United Airlines has announced modest changes to elite status for 2024. In a nutshell, co-brand card spend can contribute somewhat more towards status and they’re again giving current elites a jumpstart towards requalifying for status.
Flights between the U.S. and China have been severely limited since the start of the pandemic. Even as China re-opened, they’ve limited flights by U.S. airlines, and the U.S. government has limited flights here by Chinese airlines. Neither side’s decisions are supported by the bilateral agreement between the U.S. and China.
With limits on flying between the two countries slowly being lifted, United has filed to operate more flights. One of those is San Francisco to Chengdu. They’ve filed to fly to an airport there that no longer accepts international flights.
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.
Whether flying with someone that you’re plotting with, or traveling on your own, there’s nothing like an empty middle seat. Having extra space makes everything about the journey seem better. The flight attendants are friendlier. The food is somehow delicious!
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 »
