View from the Wing

Flight Attendant Puts Coffee Grounds Above Passenger’s Head to Mask the Smell of Chick-fil-A

by Gary Leff on March 8, 2019

Mar 08 2019

A reader brought a bag of Chick-fil-A on board with him (“12 grilled nuggets w/ buffalo sauce, 2 grilled chicken deluxe sandwiches no bun”). He admitted that it smelled quite a bit in the small first class cabin of an American Airlines Bombardier CRJ-700 regional jet operated by SkyWest.

He finished eating, a flight attendant picked up his trash, and “moments later without making eye contact crushed up a bag of coffee grounds, opened the overhead bin, and placed the bag directly over my head in seat 2C.”

Bonvoyed.com Launches With Customer Complaints and $1250 Chase Bonus

by Gary Leff on March 8, 2019

Mar 08 2019

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.

What American is Discovering About their Grounded 737s as More Aircraft Turn Up with Problems

by Gary Leff on March 8, 2019

Mar 08 2019

Yesterday American Airlines grounded 14 Boeing 737-800s. These are planes that have undergone the ‘Oasis’ modification – to replace interiors with more seats; less comfortable seats; less distance between seats; less recline; no seat back video; and smaller lavatories plus bigger overhead bins.

I’m now learning more about issues with the aircraft being inspected.

How Marriott Award Availability Restrictions Actually Work

by Gary Leff on March 8, 2019

Mar 08 2019

arriott is no worse than it used to be, except for IT issues that seem to be gradually getting sorted but remain frustrating. Starwood properties are mostly the same, although with lower points redemption prices at the best properties come more restrictions on availability.

Eventually we should see improvements in Marriott availability, compared to what we have seen in the past, starting next year with fewer ‘high demand dates’ at some hotels. Perhaps Flueck’s commitment that we’ll reach the Starwood model of availability for legacy Marriott will come to pass in the future as well.

What Kind of Bills You Can Pay With Credit Cards to Earn Miles Using Plastiq

by Gary Leff on March 8, 2019

Mar 08 2019

Plastiq.com is a service that will charge your credit card and mail checks on your behalf. (With some vendors they also make electronic ACH payments.) Their usual fee for this is 2.5%. It’s worth it to incur that fee if you’re earning a signup bonus with the credit card charges, or you’re meeting a spending threshold for a bonus. However I generally advise that it’s not worth it for the ongoing miles without a spending bonus. You don’t want to incur a 2.5% fee to earn 1 mile, you’re buying that mile at 2.5 cents. No mile is worth that. This may be totally obvious but for business spending companies can generally write off the fee. If you’re paying business bills via Plastiq.com your net cost is 2.5% minus (2.5% * your marginal tax rate).…

There May Be More Wrong With Those Grounded American Airlines Boeing 737s than Just Overhead Bins

by Gary Leff on March 8, 2019

Mar 08 2019

When I asked American Airlines whether “there[‘s] any work besides overhead bins being done,” specifically mentioning wiring, I was told “Our team is conducting a full inspection of these 14 aircraft.”

While they’re not confirming specifics, they’re also not claiming the issues are limited to overhead bins.

New British Airways First Class Coming March 31 and Passengers Told Their Plane Would Explode

by Gary Leff on March 7, 2019

Mar 07 2019

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.

Airbnb Acquires HotelTonight, What’s the Difference Between Homesharing and Hotels Anymore?

by Gary Leff on March 7, 2019

Mar 07 2019

Major hotels chains have been in and out of experimenting with homesharing products, even as they engage in dirty tricks to get the practice banned in some jurisdictions. Online travel agency sites have expanded their product suite by offering access to homesharing, and not just traditional hotel rooms. And now Airbnb itself has acquired online hotel booking company HotelTonight. Airbnb said it plans to acquire HotelTonight, a service that offers last-minute hotel bookings, in a deal that will expand the online room rental company’s offerings with traditional and boutique hotel listings. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The acquisition values HotelTonight in the range of its last private valuation, $465 million, said two people who were briefed on the deal and were not authorized to publicly disclose the price. That would make it Airbnb’s…

Watch Out: Delta Now Gives You Basic Economy When You Redeem Miles on Many Routes

by Gary Leff on March 7, 2019

Mar 07 2019

In December I wrote that Delta has added basic economy restrictions to the lowest award prices for some routes. This was limited to just a few cities.

Now the travesty has spread.

Breaking: 14 American Airlines Oasis Interior 737s Have Been Grounded Due to Faulty Work

by Gary Leff on March 7, 2019

Mar 07 2019

I’ve been a huge critic of the American Airlines “Project Oasis” to take their existing Boeing 737s and replace interiors with more seats; less comfortable seats; less distance between seats; less recline; no seat back video; and smaller lavatories (plus bigger overhead bins).

However it seems there’s now a whole new problem with this project.

Flight Attendant Puts Coffee Grounds Above Passenger’s Head to Mask the Smell of Chick-fil-A

Bonvoyed.com Launches With Customer Complaints and $1250 Chase Bonus

What American is Discovering About their Grounded 737s as More Aircraft Turn Up with Problems

How Marriott Award Availability Restrictions Actually Work

What Kind of Bills You Can Pay With Credit Cards to Earn Miles Using Plastiq

There May Be More Wrong With Those Grounded American Airlines Boeing 737s than Just Overhead Bins

New British Airways First Class Coming March 31 and Passengers Told Their Plane Would Explode

Airbnb Acquires HotelTonight, What’s the Difference Between Homesharing and Hotels Anymore?

Watch Out: Delta Now Gives You Basic Economy When You Redeem Miles on Many Routes

Breaking: 14 American Airlines Oasis Interior 737s Have Been Grounded Due to Faulty Work

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About Gary Leff

	Bilt Mastercard® Earn Points Paying Rent (up to 100,000 each year) plus earn 3x at restaurants; 2x on travel; as long as you make at least 5 purchases per month. No annual fee.
	Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months (See rates and fees)
	Citi® / AAdvantage Business^TM World Elite Mastercard® Earn 65,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $4,000 in purchases within the first 4 months of account opening. AAdvantage miles are the currency I've redeemed most.[See rates and fees]