News and notes from around the interweb:
- There’s been an increase in Delta flight attendants calling out sick and in response the airline is increasing flight attendants on reserve at key times, which will make crewmembers unhappy – and AFA-CWA can barely contain their excitement.
“Delta management is on a tear in an attempt to demean and demoralize our workgroup for problems they created,” the union slammed on Thursday. “It’s clear that management’s goal is to point fingers and divide us as Flight Attendants in order to distract us from holding them accountable.”
- Atlanta Centurion lounge, this is mostly the correct take:
I love the facility and the ambience, but the mediocre food, perennial waitlist, crowd, slow clearing of used dish, line at the bar…. no different than the Delta lounges…
However (1) remember that Delta Reserve cardmembers get unlimited visits to the Centurion lounge while flying Delta, but their Delta lounge visits are capped (so you should save those if you can), (2) the design is nice at this lounge, and (3) the beverage program is better. Design here is much better than most Centurion lounges, which felt nice a decade ago but now feel tired to me.
- Random thought, but this is a roundup post. The Texas Longhorns introduced their Loyalty Points system in 2015, designed to reward season ticket holders and donors for their contributions, with points based on full-season ticket history, seat-related contributions, and philanthropic gifts dating back to 1986.
So it is a little bit strange that American Airlines adopted Loyalty Points as the name of their status currency. Surely someone at American is a UT fan?
- United Airlines Club Fly Denver math:
300,000 visitors during a 27-month period yields an average of 11,000 per month, . By comparison, a 400-seat lounge at a hub will serve about 2,800 visitors a day.
During the same period Denver International Airport disclosed United served an average 3.125 million passengers per month at DIA (arrivals and departures). Of these, about 0.4% were Club Fly visitors.
- Was Delta’s defense of the pilots in the Endeavor crash misleading?
BREAKING- Toronto had a Delta flight flipped upside down. I got these photos from a friend on the plane. He’s okay. Minnesota to Toronto. pic.twitter.com/DeSoYAlsVo
— Kellie Meyer (@KellieMeyerNews) February 17, 2025
- Tell me you haven’t been to United’s Denver training center, without telling me you haven’t been to the Denver training center:
@united traveler beware… United is on a mission to diversify at the cost of safety. UAL is primarily hiring women and minorities and passing over highly qualified white men to look diversified in the public eye, but highly qualified white male pilots with 20000 hours not wanted
— Michael Surapine (@MichaelSurapine) May 19, 2022
Related:
#UnitedPilots along with family members and pilots from other airlines #unite to flash picket @United Board of Directors meeting in #Denver Colorado!#ContractFirstUnitedNext #UnitedPilotFamily pic.twitter.com/xgp6gPJ9fl
— United Airlines Pilots (@UnitedPilots) May 25, 2023
- What Went Wrong at NEOM, Saudi Arabia’s Futuristic Metropolis in the Desert (HT: One Mile at a Time)
Internal audits revealed deliberate manipulation of financial data by Neom executives, aided by consultants at McKinsey, which billed more than $130 million in fees in a single year. It has already cost over $50 billion. Neom’s total estimated capital expenditure is now $8.8 trillion by 2080. ]
To artificially boost profitability projections, hotel room rates at the Trojena ski resort were inflated from $216 per night to over $700, and boutique hiking hotels from $489 to nearly $1,900 per night. The Sindalah luxury resort, initially budgeted around $1.3 billion, ballooned to nearly $4 billion and was over three years behind schedule.
The original design of “The Line” involved constructing the equivalent of three times all office buildings in Midtown Manhattan by 2030. A 30-story glass building, named “the chandelier,” is planned to hang upside down from a bridge, designed by Marvel film designer Olivier Pron because the crown prince likes his movies. Celebrities like Will Smith, Tom Brady, and Alicia Keys attended the $45 million launch party.
- American Airlines has had the most issues with wheelchair handling. This employee takes matters into his own hands.
@AmericanAir give this man a raise ♿️ pic.twitter.com/R3L22kPQle
— Gaspar (@gasparmelikyan) March 8, 2025
Look for… the Union Label…
RE the ATL centurion lounge. It was OK. Lines can be long. Food wasn’t anything special, but ok with a couple unique dishes.
Bar. I don’t drink Alcohol. Having to stand in line at the bar for a Coke and refills is enough to make it last choice for me.
Other Centurion lounges weren’t worth the wait.
YMMV
On United hiring: As those photos show, nearly all the pilots are already straight, white men–and I’m sure they’re excellent pilots, too. However, anyone can become a pilot with proper training and experience–though, not everyone can afford it. The military has been a helpful pipeline to commercial aviation, so that had been an ‘equalizer’ for some. However, I wish we would meaningfully (financially) support folks from all sorts of backgrounds to become pilots. Diversity is strength. Reject animus. It’s not zero-sum. Some don’t have to lose for others to win. It can be win-win. The industry must invest in the next generation, otherwise there will be shortages.
*Who am I kidding, fine, some of them may not be straight. (Shh! Don’t tell!)
**And ok, I counted two ladies.
DL FA lack professionalism and ethics when they sick out. That lack of honesty creates a risk of treason, espionage, discrimination against passengers using fabricated excuses, etc. Terrible.
@derek — Woah there, fella. Those be some big unsubstantiated accusations, sir. Easy now. Nearly all crew at Delta and any airline are honest, hardworking, good, decent folk, so be nice now, ya hear?!
“Diversity is strength.”
Did you read that on a bumper sticker?
“If there is any place in the Guinness Book of World Records for words repeated the most often, over the most years, without one speck of evidence, “diversity” should be a prime candidate.” Thomas Sowell
@Mike P — You’re back!
Naw man. I’ve lived it. Though, it might look nice on a sticker, too. Why not!
Oh no, not Uncle Tom (Sowell) again. Oof. Nothing like a token ‘black’ conservative.
Delta should play this hand carefully.
Union is close. My wife is a FA there and has been anti union since 2015…even she is signing a card.
Again you demonstrate your ignorance with your attack on Sowell, a mindless ad hominem. Here’s an idea. Sowell, arguably one of the greatest minds of our generation, has repeatedly stated that there exists no evidence that “Diversity is our Strength”.
I suggest that you forward to him your evidence to the contrary. He is in his 90’s and most likely, doesn’t have much time left. He would, without a doubt, be ecstatic to receive your research detailing how diversity improves the performance of various entities. Admittedly, your submission may cause him to question a lifetime of work that has failed to uncover the evidence that you’re obviously holding. I’m still confident that he would appreciate your efforts.
@Mike P — I’m well-aware of (Uncle) Sowell–he is most certainly not a ‘great’ mind and his ‘theories’ are not backed by empirical evidence. Regardless, may he enjoy his retirement!