Airlines

Category Archives for Airlines.

Why Qatar is Buying 25% of Vnukovo Airport

by Gary Leff on April 7, 2018

Apr 07 2018

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar al Baker loves to ‘rub salt in the wounds’ and said that’s why he launched Doha – Atlanta. The airline loves to pick up awards, and so does the man himself. So it’s a double win for them to be Atlanta airport’s cargo airline of the year. There’s little question though that Qatar Airways is a tool of Qatar diplomacy. That’s why they struck a deal go give up nothing while settling complaints from United, Delta and American that they’re subsidized. It not only puts the issue behind them at little cost it put the UAE’s Emirates and Etihad in an awkward spot. Qatar agreed not to operate fifth freedom flights to the U.S., something they have zero interest in doing. Meanwhile Emirates does already operate fifth freedom flights. Their agreement…

The Secret to a Good Meal on American Airlines

by Gary Leff on April 7, 2018

Apr 07 2018

I’ve been a critic of American Airlines domestic first class meals, though I’ve had multiple people tell me that the current chicken meatballs aren’t bad and the short rib is better than some of the other choices.

American Airlines lets you pre-select your meal up to 24 hours prior to departure. That’s not like Singapore Airlines where you get a wide variety of choices. Instead you’re mostly just choosing from among the options that would be available onboard. But…

No ‘The Real Reason’ Dogs Are Dying on United Doesn’t Excuse More Dogs Dying on United

by Gary Leff on April 6, 2018

Apr 06 2018

There has been a lot of buzz about a Washington Post piece suggesting that high risk dogs are the ‘real reason’ more dogs die onboard United. But that is a substantial overclaim of what is actually in the data.

Understanding which breeds constitute the greatest risk is a good first step in reviewing the pet shipping program. 18 of the 24 cargo pet deaths in 2017 were on United, while United carried about one third of pets. Drilling down into what’s going on with different types of animals may help to identify some of the problems, but it isn’t the entire story and doesn’t begin to excuse United’s poor performance in this area. And it doesn’t speak to the instances of lost/mis-routed dogs either.

British Airways Testing Free Water for Elite Passengers (Not a Joke)

by Gary Leff on April 4, 2018

Apr 04 2018

British Airways has destroyed their brand with their cuts. They offered free tap water but even hot water for tea was charged. On. British. Airways. So you had to pay even if you brought your own tea bags.

Airline Defending Decision to Strip Search Flight Attendants

by Gary Leff on April 3, 2018

Apr 03 2018

Indian airline Spicejet is defending its decision to strip search flight attendants whom they believed were stealing money from inflight sales.

Flight attendants were forced to get naked and no – no money was found.

Why Don’t More Airlines Sell Ads on Tray Tables and Overhead Bins?

by Gary Leff on April 3, 2018

Apr 03 2018

American West was the first airline to do tray table advertising (in December 2003), a practice that moved over to US Airways on some aircraft. US Airways even experimented with ads on first class tray tables.

AirTran actually launched ads on the backs of the tray tables (at US Airways you actually had to put the tray table down in order to see the ad). United experimented with tray table ads as well.

Frequent Flyer Program Apologizes: Asking If Members Think Men are Superior to Women

by Gary Leff on April 2, 2018

Apr 02 2018

Aeroplan, the frequent flyer program that will remain associated with Air Canada until 2020, is apologizing for a survey sent out to members. They promise to delete “all data collected” from it as well.

Where Does All the British Airways First Class Award Space Disappear To?

by Gary Leff on April 2, 2018

Apr 02 2018

Perhaps because of how much BA awards cost they’re also usually pretty available. And they have released space pretty reliably when the flight schedule opens.

However first class awards between North America and London seem to disappear completely in 2019.

Several Passengers and Crew Got Really Sick From Turbulence Last Week. Really Sick.

by Gary Leff on April 1, 2018

Apr 01 2018

On a Thursday Minneapolis – San Jose flight on Delta two passengers became sick and threw up. And that caused five other passengers around them to throw up, too. Passengers reported the flight was so bumpy it felt like a boat.

That was just the start.

Police Search Apple Employee’s Underwear Looking for iPhone Stolen on British Airways Flight