Airlines

Category Archives for Airlines.

Austria Passes Minimum Ticket Prices And New Airline Taxes

by Gary Leff

lufthansa plane
Jun 09 2020

Austria’s government bailed out Austrian Airlines with about half a billion dollars, even after its German parent obtained a $9.8 billion aid package. Part of Austria’s bailout includes moves to protect the airline from competition, under the guise of environmental responsibility.

Last summer Lufthansa’s CEO declared that only the wealthy should fly arguing that the cheapest flights offered by competitors are “economically, ecologically, and politically irresponsible.” And all it took was a global pandemic to get those cheap flights banned.

Continue Reading »

American Airlines No Longer Lets Employees Offer Compensation For Broken Seats, Missing Meals

by Gary Leff

Jun 08 2020

Effective Monday American Airlines has taken away the tool airports, flight attendants, and reservations used to compensate customers when a crew member spills a drink on them, their seat is broken, or their inflight meal didn’t get loaded onto the aircraft.

To save money, instead of compensating customers when things go wrong, employees are supposed to show they care and acknowledge what the customer is saying… just not do anything about it.

Continue Reading »

TSA Will Start Taking Your Photo At Security Checkpoints

by Gary Leff

Jun 08 2020

Say cheese! The Department of Homeland Security revealed in a ‘privacy impact assessment’ published last week that TSA will begin using facial recognition for identity verification at airport security checkpoints.

They will photograph each passenger and determine whether it matches the photo associated with the identity document used for screening.

Continue Reading »

Namibia’s President Calls For Liquidating His Country’s Airline

by Gary Leff

Jun 08 2020

In the President’s state of the nation address he explained the carrier was a money loser even after a cost-cutting campaign prior to the current crisis. The airline has reduced labor costs while grounded but hasn’t laid off any employees.

With a per capita GDP of around US$6000, subsidizing money-losing aviation just can’t be a priority no matter what IATA thinks.

Continue Reading »

Honey Boo Boo Star “Mama June” Now Works Delivering Airline Lost Luggage

by Gary Leff

Jun 06 2020

Forty year old June “Mama June” Shannon has been a fixture of reality TV since 2011 when her daughter “Honey Boo Boo” appeared on TLC’s Toddlers & Tiaras.

Here latest show chronicled bariatric surgery and a 300 pound weight loss, but it went on hiatus with her arrest for felony drug possession. Her trial, scheduled for this past April, was delayed due to coronavirus. She reports she’s been earning money delivering airline lost luggage. Does that seem like a good idea?

Continue Reading »

Wide Open Business Class Award Space Non-Stop To India For 4+ Passengers

by Gary Leff

first class seats
Jun 06 2020

United operates three different routes between the U.S. and India and all three have wide open business class award space looking out into 2021 – for months at a time.

I decided to show connecting availability also because it’s worth flagging business class award space for four or more people on Swiss through Zurich and Turkish via Istanbul. There’s even Air Canada business class Delhi – Vancouver for four passengers on Tuesdays.

Continue Reading »