Category Archives for Airlines.
Bodycam footage shows a United flight attendant arrested at Tampa International Airport after a dispute on the crew bus escalated into a battery allegation over a shoulder tap. Florida law treats intentional, unwanted touching as battery—turning a petty argument over a loud phone call into a court-date arrest.
JetBlue Flight 1112 from Curaçao to New York JFK had a close call off Venezuela when pilots reported a U.S. Air Force tanker crossing directly in front of them at roughly their altitude. In ATC audio, they say it was “within 5 miles — maybe 2 or 3 miles” ahead, forcing them to halt their climb to avoid a collision.
The crew said the tanker wasn’t transmitting, and controllers told them they couldn’t see it on radar, later estimating the military aircraft around 34,000 feet. JetBlue says it reported the incident to federal authorities.
The NTSB’s report on Southwest flight 3278 describes a near-miss at Orlando where the crew began a takeoff roll on a taxiway, apparently believing it was the runway. ADS-B data shows the 737-800 accelerating to roughly 70 knots before the takeoff was rejected, with air traffic control canceling the clearance mid-roll and ordering the aircraft to stop.
An internal American Airlines update says the carrier will now surface paid first class offers to customers who are in the process of trying to confirm an elite upgrade certificate. In other words, while you’re using the upgrade instrument you earned through loyalty, American will simultaneously try to sell you the seat—another step in the industry’s shift toward monetizing premium cabins even at the expense of elite benefits.
A SkyWest labor battle just swerved into “computer fraud” territory. A federal judge let a conspiracy theory under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act move forward against AFA-CWA.
American’s new Airbus A321XLR enters service this week on JFK–Los Angeles, bringing its new premium-heavy cabin to the airline’s flagship transcon run. An insider report says JFK–San Francisco is next, with the A321XLR expected to begin flying that route in the spring as American starts replacing the A321T on premium cross-country routes ahead of its longer-haul missions to Europe and South America.
United flight attendants haven’t had a raise in five years, and 71% voted down a union-backed contract many saw as inadequate. Now, as talks resume, United is putting a major flashpoint back on the table: algorithm-assigned work schedules that replace traditional trip picking with “preference bidding,” a system crews say is opaque and strips them of control.
A gay Catholic United Airlines flight attendant was fired for his tweets online. He argued he was singled out and treated separately due to his specific viewpoints. His union agreed, but refused to defend him – also, he says, because they disagreed with his views. Tiwtter funded the lawsuit, and he’s gotten a settlement.
Two major U.S. airlines are quietly drawing up contingency plans in case Spirit can’t secure its next $100 million lifeline and has to shut down operations. A crucial cash deadline hits as soon as Saturday, and with no sale or standalone reorganization plan yet on file, Spirit’s future now depends on what its lenders are willing to accept.
I’m exactly who Southwest’s “new” model is supposed to win over: Austin-based, flying their monopoly DCA–AUS route, happy to pay for extra legroom and rarely checking a bag. But I still book away because their wifi is effectively useless, turning a “premium” seat into lost work time instead of an upgrade.
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 »
