American Airlines Pauses Its New York Operation, Drops Flights 95%

by Gary Leff

americna airlines hangar
Apr 06 2020

On Sunday I wrote that American Airlines was operating more flights out of Newark airport than United Airlines. That seemed insane, considering United’s major hub at the airport. With the coronavirus crisis limiting air travel generally, and the New York area the current epicenter of fighting the virus in the United States, continuing to operate even 15 flights from Newark hardly seemed to make sense for American.

It seems the Dallas-based carrier realizes this, and has pulled down its schedule from the three major U.S. airports to just 13 flights in total from April 7 through May 6.

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Hotel Comes Under Fire For Helping Wealthy Guests Quarantine From Coronavirus

by Gary Leff

Apr 05 2020

While other hotels are closing, with no transient business, Swiss luxury hotel brand Le Bijou is setting up “quarantine apartments” based on what they’re learning about guests needs – in-room meals and COVID-19 testing, a private gym, access to medical care.

Le Bijou’s CEO says he noticed a drop off in three night bookings, but green shoots in the form of 14-day stays. He learned these were guests quarantining from the SARS-CoV-2 virus. And he realized there was an opportunity to stay in business by meeting guest needs. Some people are appalled.

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Delta Extends Elite Status, Club Memberships And Rolls Over Qualifying Miles To Next Year

by Gary Leff

delta airplanes on tarmac
Apr 05 2020

Everyone pauses in place and gets a do-over. That’s the message from Delta which announced an extension of elite status, club memberships, vouchers and more.

There’s a natural reason why Delta is first among U.S. airlines to do this – and an advantage they have in rollover qualifying miles that better positions them to still take advantage of their elite program when travel comes back.

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You Probably Already Have Face Masks At Home And Don’t Realize It

by Gary Leff

Apr 05 2020

In a huge about-face, the CDC is recommending that Americans wear masks when out in public. They want to preserve N95 respirator masks for health care workers who have the greatest exposure to COVID-19, but believe that the general public wearing lesser masks can help stop the spread.

If you’re a frequent traveler you probably have face masks. In fact you may have a bunch of them in a closet without even realizing it.

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For Those Who Truly Must Travel, Flying Is A Special Gift Right Now

by Gary Leff

insideairplane
Apr 04 2020

One woman had to fly last minute from DC to Boston to see her mother who was close to dying. She was the only passenger on board her American flight. She filmed the flight attendant making her safety announcement, “My name is Jessica and I will be your flight attendant, and we have Sheryl as our passenger today, living it up in first class. Everybody shout out to Sheryl, the only passenger on the plane.”

The experiences traveling today are some of the most human, as each person’s stories can no longer get lost in the millions of passenger hordes stampeding through airports the way they once did.

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