United Unveiled Its Response to the Passenger Dragging Incident and Plan to End Involuntary Denied Boardings

by Gary Leff

Apr 26 2017

United has announced the results of reviewing its procedures in the aftermatch of Dr. David Dao’s bloody removal from a flight earlier this month. There are several policy changes and they tell me their goal is to reduce involuntary denied boardings to zero.

When a man was dragged off a United Express flight from Chicago to Louisville and bloodied after refusing to give up the seat he was sitting in so that employees could travel on the flight and operate a flight back to O’Hare, it was a cultural moment of sorts.

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Etihad’s Airbus A380 First Apartment Really Is the Best In the Sky, Its Critics are All Wrong

by Gary Leff

Apr 26 2017

Etihad offers my favorite first class in the world onboard their Airbus A380 — the “First Apartment.” There are two apartments across the cabin with a single aisle between them upstairs on the A380, in contrast on the same plane Emirates — known as one of the world’s best airlines for first class — has four suites across.


Etihad First Apartment — Single Aisle

There’s an onboard shower, an onboard chef (generally a flight attendant with real restaurant kitchen experience who can customize your meals as you wish), solid internet and good amenities.

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Why Delta’s Hype is Wrong on New Blade Helicopter Partnership

by Gary Leff

Apr 26 2017

Delta is promoting its new New York JFK – Downtown helicopter transfer partnership with Blade as though it’s especially innovative.

Airlines have offered helicopter transfers for years, for instance Continental used to offer free helicopter transfers with paid business tickets out of Newark and even let you redeem 10,000 extra miles for a helicopter transfer on business class awards.

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Perennial Basket Case Alitalia is on Brink of Collapse

by Gary Leff

alitalia plane
Apr 25 2017

They’ve been a basket case for years, with powerful unions and a long history of political meddling. Every so often they get a bailout from one place or another. Air France put money in though it was obvious to nearly everyone they’d lose their shirt. They walked away, though leaving the airline even worse of with a joint venture that benefits Delta and Air France more than Alitalia.

Next in line with deep pockets was Etihad, who learned a lesson not to trust promises made by the Italian government and which ultimately pushed out its own CEO in part based on bad investments in foreign airlines. New uniforms, service training for flight attendants, and new business class seats were not going to turn around the airline.

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