Virgin Atlantic is 49% owned by Delta. It is no surprise that an already largely-mediocre program has been getting worse — first late last year and now announced for Delta earn and burn.
On the other hand it is only 49% owned by Delta so they still offer award charts and inform members in advance when they are devaluing the program.
After landing off my Etihad flight from Abu Dhabi I needed to connect in Melbourne to finally reach Sydney. First class award space on the non-stop Abu Dhabi – Sydney flight never opened, and I had decided to take this connection rather than Qantas A380 first class non-stop to Sydney from Dubai.
Hyatt is letting folks know that the signup bonus for the Hyatt Credit Card will be changing on June 29, 2017. Get in while you can.
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.
Boeing has talked about a possible new “middle of the market” jet, something between the largest 737 and the new smaller 787 widebodies, since at least 2003.
This plane would be a replacement for the Boeing 757, which often flies from the Northeast to Western Europe (and runs into challenges sometimes Westbound during winter, United’s Newark – Europe service has been said to operate focus cities in Goose Bay and Gander). Production of the 757 ended in 2004.
There are two lavatories at the front of business class and two lavatories at the back of business class. And there are two lavatories in the middle of the economy cabin.
Assuming that premium economy passengers are allowed to use the two lavatories at the back of business class, then there are 4 lavatories for 226 coach passengers or one lavatory per 56.5 passengers in back.
For a 13 hour flight though I will choose Etihad’s First Apartment over pretty much anything else every single time, and even adding a connection I’ll choose it over Qantas first. It’s not merely an academic argument that Etihad’s A380 has the best first class, it’s how I actually behave in practice when making flight choices.
United has taken away the ability for customers booking basic economy fares to check in online if they aren’t checking a bag.
This a restriction that United hasn’t told customers about during the booking process or elsewhere. And as @RyanRadia points out it directly contradicts what United says on its own website about online check-in.
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.
I read late last week in a post on Facebook that United didn’t allow Basic Economy customers to check in online and thought surely that was wrong. It turns out it isn’t wrong.
If you say you’re checking a bag when you check-in online, and pay for the bag, you can complete the check-in process. But if you say you aren’t going to check a bag, United won’t check you in and tells you to deal with it at the airport.
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 »
