American Airlines Decommissions Old Award Search Tool & Calendar

May 19 2020

A year and a half ago American Airlines launched a new award search tool clearly geared towards dynamic pricing of redemptions.

While many readers preferred the old award calendar, which lets you show availability by award type (special, saver, standard) and not just the single lowest price on a given day for each cabin, it was clear that the airline was investing only in the new tool moving forward.

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United Airlines Taking Seats Out Of Regional Jets, Preparing New Credit Card Offers

united-plane
May 19 2020

In order to lay off pilots, United’s union contract requires them to remove seats from regional jets. They’re preparing the engineering work now in order to have seats out of planes by October 1.

While they expect to be a smaller airline, and for leisure travel to come back before business travel, they see opportunity to encourage existing co-brand credit card customers to spend more on their cards and are preparing new promotions to encourage that.

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How Hertz’s CEO Blew It, And Why Friday Is Make-Or-Break

hertz rental car desk
May 19 2020

At the end of April Hertz was looking at a large payment on $17 billion in debt. Their loans are backed by their fleet of vehicles, but the plummeting value of used cars meant Hertz had to make up the difference in cash. Lenders didn’t want to force them into bankruptcy, though, believing debt would have a better shot getting paid if the rental company continued as a going concern.

Hertz has a deadline of May 22 to develop a financing plan – but the lack of financing is an own goal, since their CEO walked away from up to half a billion in cash back in March.

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Two Air China Pilots Standing In The Cockpit During Takeoff

May 18 2020

Chit chat while being towed doesn’t actually violate the U.S. sterile cockpit rule that only activities necessary for safe operation of the aircraft can be carried out when below 10,000 feet (technically, during critical phases of flight). However they’re being recorded.

What’s unusual is standing in the cockpit for takeoff. U.S. rules are clear that pilots must be belted in at the controls, and everyone else has to be belted in for takeoff and landing. There is no standing in the cockpit.

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