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.
Bullets Found Inside Reader’s Room at an Airport Holiday Inn
Reader Joe checked into an airport Holiday Inn and found an unlisted amenity on sitting atop his room’s safe: bullets. I don’t normally embark on special forces missions, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night!
Delta Declares the Airport Experience the Next Battleground, But Can’t Actually Make It Better
Delta thinks they have the flight experience part of travel down and won, and their CFO declares “the next area of competition in air travel is in the airport.” But they’ve turned over too much of the travel experience to government airports, government security, and government air traffic control to really make a difference.
Delta is likely to identify some some incremental improvements to reduce hassle and declare them revolutionary. And if it’s even a little better than the United and American airport experience they’ll be hailed for it.
Is Airbus Doing Enough to Stop the Fumes that are Making People Sick?
There are scores of Airbus narrowbody fume incidents across diverse carriers — including some fume occurrences leading to flight diversions and hospitalized passengers and crew — across JetBlue, Austrian, British Airways, American Airlines, Spirit, Lufthansa, easyJet, Aer Lingus, Jetstar, Germanwings, Turkish, Air France, Delta and others.
Airbus, airlines, the FAA and international regulators are familiar with and have paid attention to these events and yet they keep occurring. We don’t hear about them as a systematic issue, and I have to wonder if Airbus is doing enough, proactively enough, about it?
Fiji Airways Moving its Full Business Class Meal Service From the Air to the Ground
Many airlines have offered pre-flight dining in business class. Eat your meal in the airport before boarding, go right to sleep on board. That’s a nice option for short overnight flights.
Of course not everyone want to show up at the airport early to eat. And where this has been tried it’s generally presented either as a choice (eat beforehand instead of on the plane) or a shortened service where the food remains substantive. Not so at Fiji Airways.
American Express is Facing Record Costs to Provide Rewards
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.
Head of Flight Attendants Union Threatens to Contaminate Airline Food
Star Alliance member EVA Air has a much underrated frequent flyer program and one of the best business class products in the world.
However the world focused on the treatment of the airline’s flight attendants after a truly shocking passenger incident this year that was so bad it spurred flight attendant activism including demands that the airline hire male cabin crew.
US Airlines are Helping Fund China’s Belt and Road Foreign Policy Initiative
Two years ago American Airlines provided $200 million in funding for the state-owned carrier whose overseas investments are being used to further Chinese government foreign policy interests.
Four years ago Delta made a $450 million investment in China Eastern which has been called China’s most subsidized airline.
VIDEO: Buzz Aldrin Punched a Moon Landing Denier in the Face
If nothing else, walking on the moon is the ultimate cocktail party mic drop but it’s understandable that some don’t believe it actually happened. After all, without atmosphere how could the flag they planted on the moon be waving in the wind? And what about “the lack of stars in any of the photos, the Van Allen radiation belts that would have killed the astronauts with lethal doses of cosmic radiation”…?
Travel Agency Scam: Take Customer Money, Don’t Actually Book Their Travel
There are supposed travel agents online that will sell you packages, hotel rooms, tickets for activities. They will charge your card. You’ll show up, and they’ve simply taken your money and not booked anything for you. You have a paper confirmation that doesn’t mean anything.
Would you book from a travel agency using Osama bin Laden’s initials?