Citi Scored the Costco Deal — and Their Card Business Hasn’t Recovered

by Gary Leff

costco
Oct 14 2017

American Express would only let go of the Costco business when there was no way to make a profit at the numbers Citi was talking about. It’s the perfect example of winner’s curse. Everyone knows what the business is worth, the one who wins the auction is the one that overpays.

Citi got a huge portfolio — over 11 million American Express cards across more than 7 million accounts. But they didn’t get the same card exclusivity Amex had, Costco will accept any Visa — even those of competitors.

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Lufthansa Long Haul Business Class Award Space is Completely Drying Up

by Gary Leff

Oct 13 2017

One of the best things about United miles is that you can use them on Star Alliance partners. United’s award space isn’t great on its own flights (though better than American’s). But with myriad partners you can almost always get where you’re going in Europe or Asia.

I do not know whether this is a glitch, a temporary phenomenon, or a new revenue management philosophy but searching for partner award space there’s almost nothing available in Lufthansa business class across the Atlantic after February 7 .. and it’s become much harder to get before that, too.

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The Attempted Terrorist Bombing of an Airport Last Week You Didn’t Even Hear About

by Gary Leff

lego tsa agents
Oct 13 2017

A decade after 9/11 the federal government concluded that terrorist threat groups inside the United States were simply not plotting attacks against planes. They classified that conclusion and continued to beat the drum for bigger security budgets, more equipment. The security state benefits a federal employee union, it benefits equipment manufacturers, and it benefits politicians.

On Friday an attempted terrorist attack occurred at a U.S. airport and you probably didn’t hear anything about it because it doesn’t fit the narrative, in fact it may upend everything we’ve been told to believe about security threats to aviation.

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