Category Archives for Airlines.
Loyalty programs are having a hard time delivering cherished upgrades to elites, they’re monetizing premium cabins more than ever before, so what does the future look like for the all-important recognition component of airline elite status?
American Airlines is surveying elites with these questions to help them decide.
Delta is running an award sale they seem to have changed from offering a set of routes at a discount each month to each week.
Salt Lake City – Tampa is a deal or discount at ‘just’ 26,000 miles roundtrip. So much for the 25,000 mile award.
premium business for American airlines is increasingly centered around LA rather than New York, which is what happens when you scale back in what’s perhaps the most important air market in the world.
The airline’s Vice President – Planning Vasu Raja suggests they don’t have a lot more opportunity today for extra premium domestic flying any plans for lie flat 757s domestically notwithstanding.
If passengers hadn’t recorded video of Dr. David Dao being dragged off a United flight, and also of his bloody return, do you think United would have ever changed its story from ‘apologizing for having to re-accommodate passengers’ to declaring the events truly horrific?
The widespread use of cell phone video has become important to document events and create proof when bad things happen.
Airlines could schedule longer ground time for aircraft, but that’s expensive. I’m not sure that’s how I’d most want them to invest in passenger experience since it would ultimately mean buying more planes for the same flight schedule. Ultimately I’m just glad they clean the planes at all.
A week ago I wrote about American’s super gross ‘barbecue chicken sandwich’ that they sell in coach. I suggested that for an airline based in Texas this is doubly embarrassing since it doesn’t even constitute barbecue.
At American’s ‘Crew News’ employee forum on Wednesday a Lima-based flight attendant asked about the airline’s plans to send new aircraft to Lima — the 757s and 767s they’re getting just aren’t reliable. The airline’s CEO Doug Parker began answering by saying “there are challenges with Lima because of the altitude” (although it’s worth noting that British Airways, Air France and KLM all fly Boeing 777s there) but they recognize that the Boeing 767 “doesn’t look like the rest of the airline” in terms of customer experience. Parker has talked in the past about the need to get rid of the Boeing 767s from the fleet although while I think the business class experience is subpar coach is roomier. American Airlines Boeing 767 Business Class The airline ordered 787s which will replace 767s in a…
This makes awards and upgrades super difficult on the aircraft (awards are nearly impossible now in business class as it is). A 20 passenger business class cabin is a loss of 28% of the business class seats on the aircraft. In contrast United’s Boeing 787-8s have 36 business class seats. British Airways 787-8s have 35 business class seats.
Recently I saw someone’s comment on my Facebook feed that what you think about American Airlines corresponds directly to whether you fly mostly international business class and premium cabin transcon flights (New York – Los Angeles / San Francisco) or whether most of your travels are on their domestic network. That seems right to me.
American Airlines has made a huge investment in its product — but not where most people sit. Internationally we get good fully lie flat business class seats, better bedding, and better lounges while domestically even in their premium cabin we get less legroom and removal of seat back entertainment. They’re moving seats closer together throughout their aircraft which they say they’re making up for with thinner, less comfortable seats that have less recline.
Delta, Air France KLM, and Virgin Atlantic filed their request for anti-trust immunity for a transatlantic joint venture yesterday.
Joint ventures seek anti-trust immunity to allow airlines to work together on schedules and pricing, and to split up the revenue they earn together on designated routes. This removes competitors, since members work together instead.
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 »
