Everyone Expects A Vaccine To Bring Back Travel. That May Not Be How It Happens.

by Gary Leff

Jul 27 2020

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby talked during his airline’s earnings call about the airline expecting to plateau at 50% of last year’s revenue ‘until there’s a vaccine’ and then expecting recovery to come very quickly to the airline business. American Airlines, too, talked about a vaccine for Covid-19 in its earnings call.

I’ve already written about a vaccine not being a silver bullet, that it’s likely not to be 100% effective and not everyone will take it. That means the virus will continue to circulate, people will still get infected. A vaccine may help – but perhaps less than you think – and isn’t the ‘trigger’ for travel everyone hopes.

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American Airlines Now Lets Flight Attendants Wear Face Shields In Addition To Masks

by Gary Leff

Jul 26 2020

Back in March an American Airlines flight attendant wrote about her ordeal trying to wear a face shield while working flights. She viewed it as taking precautions to protect herself while some passengers refused to comply with the carrier’s mask requirement. The airline told her she should just go on leave if she felt unsafe, and that she made “customers feel uncomfortable.”

Now American Airlines has reportedly reversed its ban on flight attendants wearing face shields.

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Black Conservative Activist Delays American Airlines Flight, Videotaping His Refusal To Wear A Mask

by Gary Leff

Jul 26 2020

David Harris, Jr. is apparently popular in certain circles as a black man who supports President Trump, though I hadn’t heard of him until he made a ruckus on an American Airlines flight – refusing to wear a mask, and advising his followers that only N95 masks are prophylactic, which isn’t supported by the balance of evidence at this point.

Apparently Mr. Harris held up a flight departure on Saturday when he boarded without a mask on, and passengers complained. He reports that he “declared [to] have a medical reason to not wear a mask.”

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American Airlines Now Lets You Use Up To 8 Trip Credits To Make A New Reservation

by Gary Leff

airline ticket
Jul 26 2020

Since Wednesday, July 22 American Airlines has been able to apply up to 8 credits from cancelled ticket to a single new ticket purchase.

When you cancel a trip, any residual value is stored alongside your ticket number. The ticket number is what’s used to apply a credit to a new reservation. American’s AACoRN system now lets an agent enter multiple ticket numbers – up to 8 – that have credits attached to them, and apply them all to a booking.

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American Airlines President: Boeing 737 MAX Could Fly Again In December

by Gary Leff

inside plane
Jul 25 2020

I’ve been expecting the Boeing 737 MAX to return to the skies before the end of the year, and it’s looking a bit touch and go whether it’ll re-enter commercial service by then. However American Airlines President Robert Isom told employees of the airline on Thursday that they currently expect the plane to be approved to fly by the FAA in October and back in the air flying for commercial airlines in December.

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Hilton To U.S. Government: Stop Using Our Hotels To House Detained Children At The Border

by Gary Leff

Jul 25 2020

Hilton says that their hotels shouldn’t be used to house children detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, after it was revealed several franchised properties near the U.S.-Mexico border were housing children and their private contractor chaperones prior to deportation. These properties have hosted over 200 bookings of this nature.

Here’s a challenge for you: If you think an airline or hotel chain ought to decide whom they’ll do business with on the basis of their values, wouldn’t you also have to support bakeries choosing to provide wedding cakes only to heterosexual couples if that’s what’s dictated by their values? Or should businesses only make decisions about whom to serve based on your values?

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