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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United Replaces Top MileagePlus Leaders—Names Apple Card Veteran to Run Loyalty [Roundup]

by Gary Leff

Jan 15 2026

News and notes from around the interweb: MileagePlus members, be afraid. ($$) Veteran of Apple Card (all branding, very little consumer value) and… Delta. Richard Nunn, a former Comcast executive hired in May 2023 as CEO of the loyalty platform and to launch Kinective Media, is leaving. So is Luc Bondar, the vice president of loyalty, who has run MileagePlus day-to-day for nearly 10 years. United has made a splashy permanent hire to replace Nunn and Bondar, naming Jarad Fisher as its new vice president for loyalty and president of MileagePlus. Fisher helped build Apple’s credit card from 2015 to 2020, and earlier in his career, he worked in loyalty at Delta. I flew American Airlines on four different days in the eight days following their launch of free wifi, and I finally got an…

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Ryanair CEO Slams Starlink WiFi Over a 2% Fuel Hit—Elon Musk Jumps In: “You’re Misinformed”

by Gary Leff

Jan 15 2026

Ryanair’s CEO says Starlink inflight WiFi would add a 2% fuel penalty from added weight and drag, making it too costly for the airline’s short flights. Elon Musk jumped in to say the CEO is “being misinformed,” arguing the incremental drag is effectively negligible—setting up a public spat over what Starlink connectivity really costs airlines to install and operate.

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ICE to Patrol Jet Bridges at Minneapolis Airport for 3 Weeks, Airport Says

by Gary Leff

Minneapolis airport says ICE agents will be “checking and verifying documents” for the next three weeks, including patrolling jet bridges at the gates. It’s a post-security choke point that makes it easy to intercept travelers right before boarding or immediately after landing—and it raises serious questions about how this overlaps with the right to travel, especially for citizens and lawful residents who can still get caught up in enforcement mistakes.

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Amex Business Platinum Big 200,000 Point Offer — And Credits To More Than Cover The Card’s Fee

by Gary Leff

Jan 14 2026

The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is really aggressive right now with an elevated offer to earn 200,000 points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the card within the first 3 months. They’ve refreshed the product and they’re definitely creating buzz with it. This is an $895 annual fee card (see rates and fees). I thought I’d gotten a great offer for the card when it was 150,000 about 20 months ago. I’m a bit jealous of the bigger offers available now. Here’s what the card delivers. Lounge Access American Express touts to over 1,550 lounges. The truth is most of those are via the Priority Pass Select membership you can enroll for. And most premium cards come with one of those – it’s not a differentiator. What’s unique about this card…

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