Airlines

Category Archives for Airlines.

American’s 2018 Schedule Includes 52 New Routes, Chicago O’Hare Becomes a Shuttle City

by Gary Leff on January 18, 2018

Jan 18 2018

American is offering “52 new nonstop flights and enhanced schedules” in its 2018 schedule Only 8 are actually newly announced today. Like United, American Airlines is beefing up service to smaller markets where there’s less competition from ultra low cost carriers like Spirit and Frontier, and consequently less fare pressure.

In addition starting April 4 Chicago – New York LaGuardia is being upgraded to a ‘shuttle’ product along the lines of New York LaGuardia – DC and Boston

United Launching Premium Economy This Year

by Gary Leff on January 18, 2018

airplane seats

Jan 18 2018

United is telling its employees that it will launch a premium economy cabin called ‘Premium Plus’ later this year.

Here they follow American and Delta which have both started offering the international cabin between economy and business class, similar to domestic first class.

Students at Putin’s Top Pilot School Filmed in Bizarre BDSM Music Video

by Gary Leff on January 18, 2018

Jan 18 2018

Pilots aren’t supposed to let attractive passengers join them up front. Even when the passenger is a porn star. Or a Playboy Bunny. They’re supposed to fly the plane not film flight attendants having sex, look at porn in the cockpit, or check Facebook. Let alone this.

But what they do on the ground when not in class doesn’t concern me so much. As long as they pay attention in the cockpits of Aeroflot and S7 this doesn’t bother me.

Emirates Saves the Airbus A380 With Big New Order

by Gary Leff on January 18, 2018

shower in plane

Jan 18 2018

Airbus has been telling anyone that would listen that if Emirates didn’t place a new A380 order they’d shut down the program. The plane would enter a death spiral. Without an ongoing program for the aircraft, the value of the Emirates fleet would drop and replacement parts for the aircraft would become harder to get.

Emirates placed an order for 36 more Airbus A380s adding to the 101 currently in their fleet and the 41 already on order. That will bring their total A380 fleet to 178 — if they take delivery of all the aircraft.

China Will Experiment Letting Airlines Set Their Own Prices

by Gary Leff on January 17, 2018

temple

Jan 17 2018

China is beginning to liberalize in much the same way the US did 40 years ago.

In 1976 – two years prior to deregulation – the Civil Aeronautics Board ‘experimented with price competition’. China is doing that, allowing airlines to set their own prices on about 300 routes: “domestic routes that have at least five carriers competing.”

American Airlines Gets Played By Delta — Again

by Gary Leff on January 17, 2018

china temple

Jan 17 2018

American Airlines keeps playing Delta’s ‘greater fool’. The biggest move was giving up their reach into India and the surrounding region, tricked by Delta. in a play that helps Delta and no one else.

This time they’ve been put in check by Delta in China.

Etihad Almost Bought the Worst Airline in the World

by Gary Leff on January 17, 2018

pakitstan international airlines

Jan 17 2018

Pakistan International Airlines is the worst airline in the world. Best known for sacrificing a goat for safety and flying with more passengers than seats (and making customers stand for 1700 miles), the airline’s CEO was actually detained as a result of his efforts to provide good seats and service by wet leasing aircraft from SriLankan.

American CEO Doug Parker: At Least We’re Not Attaching Crew Seats to the Lavatory Doors

by Gary Leff on January 17, 2018

lavatory

Jan 17 2018

Over the weekend I wrote about problems with American’s Boeing 737 MAX and in particular “design flaws” with the lavatory. It was revealing to me that American Airlines CEO Doug Parker says he hasn’t flown on the controversial plane.

I shared this Q&A with an employee who described the 737 Max as “Mini.”

How Airlines Assign Flight Numbers and Emirates Exaggerates Its Economy Class

by Gary Leff on January 17, 2018

Jan 17 2018

A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.

EVA Air’s Bold Vision With Their New Safety Video Was to Create Actual Art

by Gary Leff on January 17, 2018

airplane from the front looking back

Jan 17 2018

Star Alliance member EVA Air is out with a new safety video that they say took three months of planning and rehearsing — and which they view as art (“EVA Makes Inflight Safety a Work of Art”).

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 »