Category Archives for Commentary.
The goal of the crowdfunding effort is to “collect at least 10-20,000 shareholders” which will invest in Wow Air or – if that plan fails – “a new low cost airline.” The likelihood of this effort succeeding seems very low, and that’s a good thing.
Ultimately businesses fail for a reason. That’s a good thing, and just as important as their succeeding. In this case Wow Air’s departure makes room for other carriers to succeed – or at least reduce their bleed.
Cabin crew – especially at lower paid airlines like Norwegian – are reportedly “selling their used tights and unwashed uniforms” on eBay. And that, it turns out, is good for democracy.
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.
Here’s what I’ve done in a similar situation. I once checked in at the Park Hyatt Sydney early in the morning after a long transpacific flight. They told me they did not have any standard rooms available (I had redeemed points) but they did have an Opera View King available and if I wanted that room it would be an extra AU$100 per night for my 5 night stay. (Since they were ‘full’ they wouldn’t offer any complimentary upgrades.)
Unquestionably this is a room type eligible for elite upgrade. And by definition it was available for the entire length of my stay (as with Marriott, a requirement for Hyatt) since they were offering it to me. I was tired and wanted to go to my room, so I accepted…
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.
San Antonio politicians decided to ban Chick-fil-A from opening in the airport over perceptions of the chain’s politics disagreement with the chicken restaurant’s donations to certain charities. Buffalo pressured concessionaire Delaware North to withdraw Chick-fil-A from its plans and will (disingenuously) paint the move as voluntary.
San Jose airport has a new approach.
HABITAS hotel and hospitality management group co-founder Oliver Ripley was charged with “grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property and falsifying business records” over what appears to have been alleged as a fraudulent charge back on his American Express card. He has pled to a mere misdemeanor and claims it was all a misunderstanding.
He says that his then-girlfriend Victoria’s Secret model Sara Sampaio refinanced her Manhattan condo and was left “with a $48,000 tax bill” which he put on his American Express card. Then she left him.
Delta plans to cut recline by 2 inches in both first class and economy on their Airbus A320 aircraft. They say this is a move to increase passenger comfort, and I actually agree with this.
We shouldn’t celebrate the need for less recline, because it goes along with less comfortable seating overall. Nonetheless Delta essentially failed to make this change earlier and is coming back and doing something necessary to correct that failure.
American Airlines executives have come to love DFW, because they say it’s in their top tier of profitable hubs. They are the dominant carrier by far, and have incredible scale. They’re on their way to operating 900 flights a day from the airport. And with that many flights adding a new city is easy to make profitable as a result of connecting feed from all over the world.
The future of the airport is being hashed out now. Next year the airport’s 10-year use agreement is up, and a new deal is being negotiated. That’s where the broad plan for the future of the airport gets set — what is the airport going to invest in, how much will airlines pay for the space. The biggest airlines get the biggest say. American Airlines is in the driver’s seat.
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.
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 »
