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Coming Soon: American Express Will Let Platinum Cardmembers Book Sold Out Restaurants By App

by Gary Leff on September 22, 2018

man eating at asian restaurant

Sep 22 2018

American Express offers its Global Dining Collection program to The Platinum Card from American Express cardholders and to Centurion (Black Card) customers.

These are top restaurants where American Express has an arrangement to set aside some tables for cardmembers. You’ve had to make bookings through their concierge service. They’ll be launching searches for reservations, including special set-aside availability, through the American Express mobile app first in the UK starting next month and then in the US next year.

I Love Delta Award Sales But They Don’t Actually Drive Much Value to Members

by Gary Leff on September 22, 2018

delta plane

Sep 22 2018

Delta has been running sale after sale on award redemptions recently. Make no mistake charging fewer miles for a ticket is better than charging more miles. But there’s been tremendous euphoria in the blogosphere about how valuable Delta SkyMiles have become. That’s just falling for Delta’s hype and doesn’t make sense at all.

American Has a New Electronic System for Giving Out Hotels, Meals, and Transportation During Delays

by Gary Leff on September 22, 2018

concessions

Sep 22 2018

American Airlines is in the process of rolling out a new “Hotel, Meal & Transportation (HMT) system” that will replace vouchers for hotels and meals during irregular operations with “a virtual credit card for hotels and meals.”

Vouchers can be emailed to customers or printed, so that vendors no longer need to return paper vouchers for payment.

10% Off Already-Discounted Hotels Worldwide and Reducing Airline Change Fees

by Gary Leff on September 21, 2018

woman in first class with fairy lights

Sep 21 2018

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.

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! No, It’s a Bird ON a United Plane!

by Gary Leff on September 21, 2018

hawks on united plane

Sep 21 2018

Last night United’s San Francisco – Newark redeye, flight UA1796, was delayed for a much shorter period of time than you’d expect when when a bird found itself trapped and flying around inside of the airline’s Big Metal Bird.

United’s Newark-bound stowaway was captured and released. When it arrived at Newark on its own it declared, “boy are my arms tired.”

People Keep Trying to Steal American Airlines Planes. That Never Ends Well.

by Gary Leff on September 21, 2018

plane at sunset

Sep 21 2018

A man hopped a fence at the Melbourne, Florida airport — and got on board an American Airlines plane. This happened around 2 a.m. These incidents never end well.

The perpetrator is a 26 year old man from Trinidad “who entered the country via Canada” and is a student pilot. He wasn’t very sneaky. Maintenance workers saw him. And then tackled him.

Delta Pilot Indicted for Lying About Depression. Could That Make Problems Worse?

by Gary Leff on September 21, 2018

young female pilot ready for takeoff

Sep 21 2018

A Delta pilot has been indicted for lying to the FAA in order to be certified to fly, claiming that he didn’t suffer depression even though he had sought help from the Department of Veterans Affairs for a “major depressive disorder.”

The pilot had claimed his VA disability benefits for covering “knee strain and tinnitus.”

Star Alliance Member EVA Air Reveals Brand New Business Class for Boeing 787s

by Gary Leff on September 21, 2018

business class seats

Sep 21 2018

Taipei-based Star Alliance member EVA Air has one of the world’s best business class products. They should be on everyone’s radar because they also frequently have very good award availability from their US gateways and offer good connectivity into Asia.

EVA Air will take delivery of its very first Boeing 787-9 on October 2. They worked with BMW’s Designworks on the look and feel of the business class seats.

3 Things That Will Happen Now That American Airlines Has Raised Checked Bag Fees

by Gary Leff on September 20, 2018

deodorant checked with tag

Sep 20 2018

American Airlines just announced what should surprise literally no one, that they’re raising first and second checked bag fees by $5 as well, from $25 to $30 and $35 to $40 respectively. When United followed JetBlue, it was clear American would have to — they’re under real pressure from Wall Street over revenues and would have a difficult time explaining why they’d be “leaving money on the table.”

Once Delta made the move, American was never going to stand alone. And besides, Delta did it. Delta is smart, everything they do must be right.

Not Everyone is Welcome to Participate in Marriott Promotions

by Gary Leff on September 20, 2018

outside marriott hotel

Sep 20 2018

Last week Marriott launched its first big promotion since launching their new program on August 18.

Nowhere does this offer say that it is targeted. In order to be eligible you just have to be a loyalty program member. Except not all members are allowed to register.

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 »