Category Archives for Airlines.
A federal appeals court says Spirit Airlines has to turn over TSA security fees it kept when passengers canceled their trips and unused travel credits expired. The ruling cost Spirit $2.84 million, and it could be an important warning shot for Southwest, which is fighting a $48 million case over the same practice.
A United takeover would be terrible for competition, but it could solve the problem that has defined American Airlines for more than a decade: the carrier still acts like a high-cost airline trying to compete with Spirit and Frontier instead of leaning into the premium strengths of its network, people, and loyalty program. That is why American has so often underused great assets, underinvested in product, and struggled to tell employees and customers what kind of airline it actually wants to be.
Air Canada has finally pulled back the curtain on brand new cabins for its Boeing 787-10 and Airbus A321XLR, and business class seats and new cabins are only part of the story. The airline’s COO filled in what the launch materials do not: why Air Canada obsessed over design details, how it is thinking about door certification and retrofit plans, and where these cabins fit into a bigger fleet and product strategy.
Scott Kirby has reportedly pitched regulators on the idea of buying American Airlines, turning one of the strangest what-ifs in the industry into something at least serious enough to discuss in Washington. What makes the idea impossible to ignore is the backstory: Kirby was fired as American’s president, and a United takeover of the airline that cast him out would be the ultimate revenge deal — even if it would almost certainly trigger one of the fiercest antitrust fights aviation has ever seen.
Delta has finally made its new business class suites official for the Airbus A350-1000 and refreshed A330s, with longer beds, more privacy, and the usual premium-cabin polish. But the more important news for most travelers may be that Delta is also putting real effort into the back of the plane, adding more cushioning, larger screens, USB-C power, Bluetooth audio, and they even claim a little more spaciousness in coach.
United’s cheapest business class fares are turning out to be more punitive than first advertised: beyond losing Polaris lounge access, seat selection, and no changes, many travelers will also earn no redeemable miles and get no flight credit toward status.
American Airlines finally has pilot trading cards, but the airline did not create them — the pilot union did, filling a small but telling gap that even Spirit and Frontier had already managed to cover, underscoring how American spent years missing the little customer-facing details.
European low cost airline Volotea has crossed a line I’ve never seen from a commercial carrier before. They’re trying to charge customers extra for fuel that already bought their tickets. They say they’ll deny boarding to anyone that doesn’t pay an extra €7 to fly because the cost of jet fuel has gone up so much.
A dashcam video is making a United Airlines arrival into Newark look almost unreal, with a Boeing 777 dropping low over a highway on short final to Runway 29. It is an eye-popping approach that resembles Sint Maarten to people seeing it for the first time, but the landing appears to have been a legitimate and unusual Newark procedure during a period of runway disruption.
A dispute over carry-on bags at an American Airlines gate in Dallas escalated into a police takedown, visible injuries, dropped charges, and a lifetime ban from the airline, according to a new lawsuit filed by the passengers. The bodycam video suggests a messy, poorly explained confrontation, but it’s not clear that is enough to make the airline legally responsible once police took over.
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 »
