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.
7 Surprising Facts About The Austin Airport
Austin airport has been one of the fastest growing in the United States for several years. This past year they inaugurated 9 new gates. There’s now transatlantic scheduled service to London (Heathrow and Gatwick), Paris, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt.
Here are 7 surprising facts about my home airport.
Grand Hyatt Baha Mar Is Making Club Upgrades Available Again
In mid-January I reached out to Hyatt after hearing from several folks that they were unable to book rooms at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar and apply club level upgrade certificates.
Another game of whack-a-mole, and fortunately this is one where the hotel was actually out of compliance with a rule and the chain was able to do something to fix it.
American’s New Inflight Wifi Ad Makes A Strong Case To Fly Delta
American has an amusing commercial about how much we’ve come to rely on inflight wifi. And American does a great job with domestic wifi, as Delta does and United does not. In fact the major reason I’ve continued to fly American Airlines is because United’s connectivity is so poor (and because Delta’s route network doesn’t work super well for me in Austin).
This new ad could have just as easily been made by Delta, and there it would have been even more persuasive.
The Argument For CLEAR In One Photo
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.
The Nightmare Of Airport Facial Recognition
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.
TSA Screener Charged With False Imprisonment Of Female Passenger
California’s Attorney General says a TSA screener ‘tricked’ a woman into baring her breasts. What he did was use the authority of the government to intimidate her, for his own sexual gratification. That agent has been arrested for false imprisonment.
This Video Got Fresno Ramp Workers Fired
Contract ramp agents at the Fresno airport have been fired over a viral video they posted to TikTok on January 24.
Apparently the workers filmed the video while they were on the clock – though after they “were done with work.”
Why American Is Showing Customers 4 Business Class Seats When They’re Only Considering Two
American Airlines is evaluating new business class seats, expected to debut in 2023. The new business class will have doors. They’re looking at one from their current seat provider, Rockwell Collins, and they’re looking at the Adient Ascent seat (a joint venture between auto seatmaker Adient and Boeing).
What seemed confusing is that in the seat focus groups last week American was actually showing four business class seats.
Federal Government Flushed Pending Global Entry Applications Submitted By New Yorkers
Wednesday night the Trump administration announced a new policy that New York residents are no longer eligible to apply for (or renew) Global Entry, SENTRI, or Nexus. That means no more expedited immigration, and it means New Yorkers getting their TSA PreCheck through these programs wouldn’t have that benefit renewed either.
It was unclear what would happen to New Yorkers who already had submitted applications (and renewals). That’s now clear. Those applications have reportedly been flushed.