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News and notes from around the interweb:
- A LATAM Boeing 767-300 had a bullet hole in the wing.
- Chase CEO Jamie Dimon wishes they lost more money on the $450 annual fee Chase Sapphire Reserve Card. (HT: Alan H.) They reported costs of at least $200 million related to new cardmember acquisition. What he means is that they book the upfront cost right away, while they expect the average cardmember to keep and use the product for the next 7 years.
If he actually wished they incurred greater marketing cost they wouldn’t be withdrawing the 100,000 point signup bonus. Instead he’s just making the point that they expect the portfolio of customers acquired to be profitable over time.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, which has a $0 annual fee the first year (then $95), now has the biggest and best signup bonus from the bank that you can get online. It’s 50,000 points after $4000 spend within 3 months.
- Earn double miles on Qantas flights purchased by January 23 for travel February 1 through end of January 2018. Registration required and remember that the purchase by deadline is in Australian Eastern Daylight Time (HT: Points from the Pacific)
- 20% discount on AAdvantage award redemptions for intra-Japan travel
- French aerospace company Safran is buying aircraft seatmaker Zodiac for $9 billion
- British Airways employee who didn’t like the idea of an emotional support animal may have taken things a bit too far when denying a woman transportation. There’s now a lawsuit:
She began screaming at Kao in the crowded terminal, accusing her of lying about her panic-disorder disability, the suit says. Kao began having trouble breathing, but the irate supervisor refused to get the Estée Lauder executive help until she nearly fainted and a fellow flier, believed to be a doctor, stepped in.
…As she was being treated, Kao handed her tiny white furballs to her husband, prompting the supervisor to yell, “See, I knew you did not need the dogs,” Kao claims in court papers.
My ’emotional support animal’
I think we should all start bringing our emotional support animals to highlight how ridiculous it is. How about a FTU which you can only attend if you bring your support animal. Yes I’m suggesting everyone register fake support animals and bring them with. I’m tired of pit bulls and other dogs on plains which clearly aren’t trained. I think the only solution is if everyone starts breaking the rules they will have to do something?
I can understand one dog, but two???
@nick: I’m sure you’re an expert on who needs an ESA and under what terms the law applies. But perhaps you should learn to spell “planes” first before confusing the ADA , Air Carrier Access Act, Federal Housing Act, and the need for any type of registration.
I just had my dog cloned, and it produced 10 copies, all of which I will train to bite you at an FTU.
Just look for the guy with 10 dogs that look exactly alike. It was four but 6 more were born last week.
Since they are genetically identical , DNA testing won’t prove which dog bit you. Try suing.
(the 10 clones is not a joke. i was expecting one. Gary has the pic)
Gary, do you think one ESA letter will cover 10 identical clones? If so, Nick, please your flight schedule for the next 6 months.
One dog for each disorder, maybe. On a brighter note, at least it wasn’t a Komodo Dragon day, famously lauded by renowned herpetologists Bob & Ray as The World’s Largest Living Land Lizard.
I am experiencing this abuse of ESA with my tenants. One lied about a pet on her lease agreement which requires additional deposits for pets. When I caught her in her life she quick signed up…It takes 15 minutes on line and $12.00!!! All my tenents are doing it. They get out of putting down pet depoists that pay for damages their pets cause…and nothing I can do about it! My leasing got so mad she tried it and got her pet signed up. Now she too, can take her pet on planes, trains, and about anywhere. Seeing eye dogs or true support dogs are different. This is not the case. These people are getting out of paying fees through loopholes..THATs the emotional support they are getting..Before anyone attacks me, I am sure there are some that could truly use the help of ES pets. However, there should be more ridged criteria and processing to cut down on the abuse.
@Clonedaddy Have you flown Southwest recently? What percentage of those people with their dogs actually need ESA’s?
A 25-year old Manhattan-based Estee Lauder executive, who has the mettle to take on the hustle and bustle of working in a very competitive fashion industry business, and who presumably attends executive business meetings and affairs presumably with no comfort animal in tow suddenly need not one — but two — comfort animals to fly ?!?!? I smell dog crap !!!!
The issue is not whether you need the emotional support animal aboard, but whether you are entitled to have the emotional support animal aboard. There is no question as to whether I am entitled to take my emotional support alligator aboard. When he smiles at you, best smile back or we’ll sue!
@nick: Are you admitting to flying economy? I wouldn’t let any of my ESA’s suffer that fate. They’d need their own ESA’s….sort of like the Companion Pass daisy chain you used to be able to do till Daraius mentioned it. Seems you’re safe.
(Oh, so that makes the answer to your question, “no”).
Seriously, are you capable of judging someone’s need for an ESA? Remember, it’s not all about needing the animal for the flight, rather at the destination too..
If I were traveling away for months, I’d need all 10 dogs.
This should be a cool test of the law, though.
I am so tired of fake ESA on planes, in restaurants, in food stores and just about anywhere pets are not allowed. It seems the pet owners are playing a game to see what they can get away with. Today in Whole Foods there was a woman with a dog in her shopping cart. Everyone working in the store looks the other way because these people are looking to sue for emotional damages. The manager told me they will not confront anyone even though state health code states animals can not be in a cart, must be on a leash. The sad part about this situation is that these people would rather have us believe they are so emotionally screwed up that they need a dog to get them through the day, or even going out for milk. How do they cope with serious problems.
if she has a disorder she should keep it to herself and not disturb other passengers. i am very allergic to dog/cats what if she comes onboard & put her dogs next to me? I will sue airline if my allergy flares up or I need to bring my own counter measure against animals? in this country young kids expect the world to orbit around them.
@cloneedaddy, the ADA does NOT apply to ESA! It also does not apply when in FRANCE.
She was traveling from Newark to Paris with a dog, thus the problem was in France not NJ. Kao needs to be in compliance with France laws to travel on a plane.
Why would the US Dept of Transportation have jurisdiction here? The inclident happened in France, NOT the USA!
Can I take my ESBF (Emotional Support Boyfriend) free on the plane with me also. He can sit in my lap! When we are in F we can share a pod and become members of the Mile High Club
LOL nothing brings out the hermit curmudgeons like an ESA story. People who dislike dogs are universally untrustworthy.
I like dogs. I have huge respect and empathy for those with re as long disabilities who travel with a support animal. We had a blind lady on a recent flight, interesting to note how a real ESA behaves versus those whose vests and papers were purchased on Amazon to avoid an airline fee. OTOH I have no respect and enmity for the precious who bring their loathesome faux ESAs on flights so I can watch them defecate in the aisle, pant over my food and yap incessantly. Everyone knows abuse when they see it, can’t we end this insanity?