While it doesn’t happen often, lithium ion batteries catch fire. The fire can usually be contained in the passenger cabin. It’s harder to deal with as cargo, which is why airlines don’t allow these sorts of batteries to travel in checked luggage.
As a result of this risk American Airlines now boards fire containment bags and heat resistant gloves on all of their aircraft.
Government-granted airline privileges are a driver of industry consolidation. The primary reason Alaska Airlines acquired Virgin America was for access to gates and slots at congested airports. Badly run carriers, that provide poor passenger experience, are protected from market discipline because more innovative startups aren’t permitted to compete and incumbents can continue earning off inferior products because passengers lack other options.
The 20% redemption discount is interesting, It could be well worth upgrading from a base United Explorer to this card — but wouldn’t be worth spending money on this card over more compelling alternative transferable points products.
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.
Lower coach award prices are translating into greater redemptions for coach travel. That’s exactly what you’d expect. However it’s the changes in redemption patterns that are happening when prices have not (yet) changed that’s most revealing.
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.
Continuing the theme that employees just need motivation rather than resources or tools to do a good job, American Airlines has “One Team, One Turn champions” who are managers “with the mission of underlining the direct correlation between on-time performance and customer experience.”
At Chicago that’s meant quizzing employees on the parking shuttle.
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.
Frequent flyer program revenue – and in particular the sale of miles to banks – is the biggest driver of US airline profitability. However United’s MileagePlus is stagnating. Their revenue growth can be accounting for entirely by points transfers from Chase Ultimate Rewards. As Chase Sapphire Reserve gained popularity that meant more points earned which could be transferred to United.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
