Airlines

Category Archives for Airlines.

How Much Are Miles Really Worth? Assigning a Value to Points from Each Program

by Gary Leff

Jan 31 2019

What is the value of miles and points by airline, hotel and credit card program? Miles used to be thought to be worth 2 cents. I think that conventional wisdom developed out of the idea that a cross country flight cost about $500… or 25,000 miles. 25 years ago that was generally true, and award availability wasn’t really a problem either.

Today the CEO of Delta talks about their miles being worth a penny. When American Airlines awards a mile for travel they book one cent of liability on their books under new accounting rules adopted for 2018. Those rules required the airline to accrue the expected value of transportation to be provided in exchange for their miles.

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United Launches New Promise: a New Standard of Caring for Customers

by Gary Leff

united-plane
Jan 30 2019

I love the sentiment, but according to United’s announcement there’s not much to it behind service training for employees, free DirecTV on less than one third of mainline aircraft, and paying out lower bonuses.

Of course anything is better than the recent history at United of dragging and beating a passenger in the aisle, killing a dog in the overhead bin, and shoving a 71 year old man to the ground and threatening to take away his miles for complaining.

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Delta’s New Color Coded Boarding is Live, Internal Memo Admits They’re Trying to Upsell You

by Gary Leff

Jan 28 2019

When Delta announced a new boarding process last month I gave it only a minor note since there’s very little actual change despite the hype about colors, simplicity and a better experience.

In an internal memo to employees Delta explains the strategy of their new boarding process — including making it clear to customers what they’re buying when they spend more.

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The One Flight in America to Avoid More Than Any Other

by Gary Leff

back of airplane seats
Jan 28 2019

Starting in May American Airlines is launching what may be the worst flight in the world, Miami to Brasilia in South America with a Boeing 737 MAX. The flight is blocked at over seven and a half hours and spans 3600 miles.

Now American Airlines is launching a domestic flight that’s nearly as rough because it takes the same product and flies it nearly as long without leaving the country.

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Breakdown: Woman Can’t Face the Idea of Four Hours in a United Coach Middle Seat

by Gary Leff

people on plane
Jan 27 2019

Every single day an inner battle boils in the skies, just below the service, threatening to bubble over.

A passenger videotaped a woman melting down after boarding her United flight. She said she had four hours ahead of her in a middle seat. She declares “I can’t do this.” She complains also about the size of the two passengers on either side of her. She says she’s small in comparison (she isn’t), “I eat salad.”

But that’s not what makes this story absolutely perfect. There’s an Easter egg in the video.

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