About Gary Leff

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 »

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Creepiest Passenger Ever? Man Accused Of Groping Sleeping Woman In First Class — Then Came The Note

May 04 2026

A 48-year-old passenger is accused of groping a sleeping woman on a Miami-bound flight from Zurich — and then, after crew separated him from her, allegedly trying to pass her a note saying she looked beautiful while sleeping. The first class detail makes the case even stranger, because SWISS’s long-haul seats are not exactly built for subtle contact across the armrest.

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American Airlines Passenger Talked Into His Phone For An Entire Flight — But It Wasn’t A Phone Call

May 04 2026

Everyone says phone calls on planes would be unbearable. But passengers already talk to each other out loud, sometimes for entire flights, and one American Airlines passenger managed to dictate voice memos from New York to Miami. Either way the issue is volume and courtesy, not what technology is used while emitting sound.

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Up to 110,000 United Miles For New Card: Unlocks Faster Flight Earning, Lower Award Prices

May 04 2026

United’s big MileagePlus changes are now live, and the program is plainly moving more of its value behind a co-brand card: faster mileage-earning, cheaper United award prices, and better access to saver inventory for cardholders, while non-cardmembers earn less. United and Chase are raising the upfront incentives just as the airline makes a credit card matter more than ever to getting the best value out of MileagePlus.

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Hotel Scammers Now Know Your Reservation Details — Demand Payment Through Zelle, PayPal Or Venmo

May 04 2026

Hotel payment scams are getting harder to spot because fraudsters may already know your real reservation details. Scammers impersonating hotel staff are demanding payment through Zelle, PayPal, Venmo or bank transfer — and the messages can look legitimate because they reference actual stays, events, names and booking information.

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DoorDash Is Bad For Restaurants, Drivers, And Customers — Why Does Everyone Keep Using It?

May 04 2026

A viral restaurant owner rant lays out what makes DoorDash so frustrating: restaurants lose margin, drivers create headaches, customers pay more, and the food often arrives worse than it left the kitchen. Yet even with all of that, delivery apps keep winning because they offer reach, convenience, and incremental orders that many restaurants feel they cannot walk away from.

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American Airlines AI Gave Away Their Seats — Even Though They Made It To The Gate On Time

May 04 2026

American Airlines passengers made it to the gate on time in Miami, with boarding still underway — but their seats were already gone. The likely culprit is American’s automated rebooking system, which can give away seats from passengers it predicts will miss a connection before they actually do, leaving these travelers turned away and one missing a wedding.

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Delta Air Lines Once Offered Hot Towels And Multi-Course Meals In Economy — Now Passengers Are Roasting This Sad Sandwich [Roundup]

May 04 2026

Delta once tried to make economy class feel premium, with hot towels and multi-course meals on long-haul flights. Here’s just how far the airline’s onboard experience has fallen. Plus United looks to save money on business class amenity kits, airlines rushing in to back fill for Spirit Airlines and more.

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United 767 Hits Bakery Truck On Newark Approach — Wheel Smashes Driver’s Window Near NJ Turnpike

May 03 2026

A United Airlines Boeing 767 landed safely at Newark after striking a light pole on approach — but video and news reports suggest the incident was worse than first disclosed. The aircraft also appears to have hit a bakery truck on the New Jersey Turnpike, with its wheel smashing into the driver’s window and leaving the driver cut by broken glass.

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Delta Cancels Hundreds Of Flights — Executives Say The Problem Could Last All Summer

cockpit with pilot
May 03 2026

Delta has canceled hundreds of flights while rivals kept running normally, and the airline’s own executives have already warned that the underlying reliability problem will take time to fix. Delta is blaming weather, but the deeper issue appears to be crew recovery and pilot scheduling — meltdowns can be expected to repeat as summer storms roll in.

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