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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Shuttle Bus Collides With American Airlines Jet At LAX, Four People Hospitalized

Feb 11 2023

An American Airlines Airbus A321 without passengers on board collided with a shuttle bus in Los Angeles on Friday evening. The plane was being pulled by a tug to park in a remote location, and the shuttle was carrying passengers between the American terminal and the remote ‘Eagles Nest’ building for regional flights.

The fire department treated five people at the scene. Four people were hospitalized.

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TSA Keeps Rejecting Passengers With Colorado Drivers Licenses

Feb 10 2023

Colorado updated its drivers licenses in February 2022, but the TSA hasn’t updated its drivers license readers to recognize the new design. As a result, people that have renewed their Colorado licenses over the past year keep getting flagged at airport security.

As if TSA screening isn’t enough of a mess in Denver, the preponderance of Colorado licenses makes things even worse, because the screener then has to identify the passenger without relying on the government ID.

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U.S. Airline Crackup: The Four Largest Carriers Are Each At A Crossroads

priorityclub
Feb 10 2023

The role that each of the four largest U.S. airlines plays is changing rapidly, upending the fixed narratives that prevailed prior to the pandemic. Delta’s leadership role is being challenged. American and United, laggards prior to Covid, are each focused on strategies that could catapult them to the top or fail. And Southwest Airlines faces a struggle for its identity.

The U.S. airline industry heavily regulated and protected from competition, and as a result can seem sclerotic. Change happens very slowly… and then all at once.

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Savage: Union Leader Tells American Airlines Pilots, ‘Go Get A Job At Delta’

cockpit with pilot
Feb 10 2023

The American Airlines operation was taken down by bad labor relations in the summer of 2019. Mechanics weren’t fixing planes, and writing up minor issues, causing rampant cancellations. The two sides came to an agreement on a contract just before the pandemic, and things have been running smoothly.

But pilot and flight attendant contracts have been in negotiations for years, and things are beginning to turn ugly.

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Southwest Airlines Pilots Walk Out On CEO Bob Jordan As Carrier Tries To Restore Culture After Holiday Meltdown

Feb 09 2023

On Wednesday, Southwest Airlines held a major employee rally. They’re working to support the culture, as they always do, but it’s especially crucial now after the airline’s holiday meltdown and because around one-fifth of the carrier’s employees are new within the last year.

However Southwest pilots used the opportunity to walk out on CEO Bob Jordan.

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