Monthly Archives for February 2025.
United Airlines flight 23 from Newark to Dublin diverted to St. Johns, Newfoundland with a medical emergency on Thursday. Passengers are still stuck there days later, with little hope in sight and no plan to fly out today.
For years I’ve written that American Airlines has high costs, and can’t win with a strategy of aping Spirit and Frontier (despite that having been Isom’s focus while President of the airline). Over the past three years they’ve been focused primarily on costs when they largely have a revenue problem. They need to earn a revenue premium because saving an incremental $100 million through purchasing efficiencies and product cuts doesn’t move the needle, and can be more than offset in revenue losses.
They seem to be realizing this.
Southwest Airlines flight attendants union board member Chris Click just came out of an executive board meeting and took to social media, fueling speculation that the carrier could be close to announcing a deal to acquire another airline.
When Alaska rolled out a new distance-based award chart that covered all of their partners and all regions of the world, they said they would introduce the ability to combine different partner airlines on a single award ticket redemption. That’s something they had teased since joining oneworld and again promised for this winter.
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.
Fresh on the heels of naming a new Chief Customer Officer, American Airlines has named a new head of the AAdvantage frequent flyer program. Scott Long moves over from investor relations to become Senior Vice President of AAdvantage.
I had the chance to try BLADE helicopter transfers in New York for the first time, and it was very cool but it’s not perfect. There are two things that concern me.
I don’t believe any company, in any industry, has paid out more cash profit sharing in nominal terms than Delta (ever).
The man and his wife flew from Toronto to Vancouver in 2022. Their bags were lost. They didn’t get reasonable compensation, so they complained to the Canadian Transportation Agency who awarded them $2,079. After two years, the airline did not pay. Instead, they’ve filed suit against the couple. In fact, the passengers were served on Christmas Eve.
The three escorted Ndeye to the galley, began timing contractions, and guided her through breathing exercises. Her water broke. Then baby Fanta was born on the Airbus A330. As soon as the newborn’s first cry filled the cabin, the doctor confirmed that Fanta was healthy. With Ndeye was unable to care for her child immediately, the flight attendant Jennifer cradled them.
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 »
