Category Archives for Airlines.
Delta and American Airlines are limiting the number of seats they’ll sell on each flight, to give customers confidence they can travel without having another passenger squeezed up next to them in a middle seat. United is not doing this, and says if you don’t want to be crammed in next to someone else then don’t take the flight.
Frontier Airlines will start requiring passengers to pass a temperature check to fly. Airline lobbyists, though, want to give the job of checking temperatures to the TSA. That will remove all responsibility for accuracy from the airlines and distract TSA from its security mission. This is a bad idea.
Wide open business class awards for four or more passengers between the U.S. and Europe in Virgin Atlantic’s new product for multiple cities.
Since this is available for 2021, it’s reasonable to book, and there are great mileage values out there – and you can book the seats using points from any of the major transferable bank currencies.
We’re past the stage where every discussion of travel leads to trip shaming, and have entered a stage where people disagree about whether they’re ready. That means it’s at least possible to offer promotions now without being universally shouted down for encouraging travel that nearly everyone agrees people shouldn’t be doing.
Redeeming airline miles or hotel points for retail products is almost never going to be a good deal. The loyalty program has to actually buy the item, perhaps they’re getting a modest deal compared to street prices but there’s usually a third party managing the process for them too that takes a cut. There’s not going to be any leverage redeeming miles this way.
Two and a half weeks ago I warned that Avianca seemed likely to file for bankruptcy. Now it has filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
United Airlines, which knew the situation well, had already written down $700 million worth of debt down to $3 million. The Colombia-based carrier already ceased commercial flying two months ago and furloughed most employees. It is winding down its operation in Peru.
I knew these bonuses sold out in an hour. They would have gone much more quickly had the IT held up and people like me were able to get through and buy. However it’s amazing they had over 2000 people at a time trying to buy miles.
Despite taking CARES Act payroll protection subsidies from the federal government, airlines including Delta, United, and JetBlue have cut worker hours. This means that employees receive less pay, and airlines spend less on payroll, despite requirements not to furlough workers or reduce rates of pay through September 30.
American Airlines CEO Doug Parker said “I was there when we were working on CARES and that wasn’t the intent or meaning of it.” Parker is right, that wasn’t how the CARES Act was supposed to work. The original language – that got changed – has now been leaked.
The executive branch wants to give the CDC a mission: checking temperatures of airline passengers at 20 airports. The CDC, though, declined saying it wasn’t likely to be effective (due to asymptomatic spread) and it may not be legal. They responded to the Department of Homeland Security “Please kindly strike out CDC from this role.”
Here’s a dismissal notice one pilot reported receiving from their airline. Qatar Airways terminated them effective immediately, and is paying seven days of severance in lieu of notice.
If that was the end of the story it would be unfortunate, but part of the grim reality that aviation and the world are facing today. However that wasn’t the end. Qatar sent the pilot a bill for $162,000.
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 »
