Airport security lines have become insufferably long. It’s costing both passengers(who can wait for hours at peak times) and airlines (when passengers miss flights and their seats aren’t used efficiently, plus they have unhappy customers).
While TSA PreCheck is no guarantee of a fast airport security experience, it’s usually a reliable way to get through in minutes rather than tens of minutes let alone an hour. And it’s just improved.
United is promising to “reimagine the way United customers fly” in a big reveal June 2nd presented by airline CEO Oscar Munoz in New York.
I was invited to the event, dubbed an ‘interactive experience’ which could mean a great many things. Here are some possibilities.
Through June 30 the Prosper Daily app will give you 1000 miles if you download their app. It tracks your spending, but you apparently don’t actually have to given them information on your credit cards or bank accounts to earn the miles.
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.
American’s pilots claim to be unhappy.
This is important because although American and US Airways have merged, and from a customer-facing standpoint are a single carrier (albeit with very different legacy products that the airline is slow to update), work groups are not yet on the same system and pilots do not yet have a single seniority list that will allow the airline to function as one.
There are still planes attached to destinations and crews, and that prevents American from matching the right equipment to the right route and optimize aircraft so that expensive capital equipment gets the most efficient use possible as well. In other words, many of the merger’s promised synergies remain on the table.
Ever since I first stay at the Andaz 5th Avenue I fell in love with that property’s overall value proposition, especially for a Hyatt Gold Passport Diamond member. Their rooms are generally large for New York anyway, and they have a ton of suites, so Diamonds often get upgrades even when not confirming a suite upgrade at time of booking. And they offer Diamonds breakfast via room service as well as in the restaurant. (The restaurant is small and this makes it possible to accommodate everyone.)
And I absolutely loved the Park Hyatt when I first got to stay there back in the Fall.
However in Manhattan I tend to choose a hotel for a given stay based first on location and then price (or rather ‘value for money’).
In the fall Delta will provide first class upgrades and extra legroom seating based on the higher passenger status rather than the lower status when two passengers are traveling together on the same reservation.
This is still a reduction in benefits for elites — who used to get extra legroom seating for themselves and up to 8 companions on a reservation. It’s now restricted to just one.
But instead of making Diamond and Platinum members wait for check-in to get extra legroom seats (if any are left) when traveling with a companion, the companion will no longer ‘drag down’ the elite. Instead the elite will ‘pull up’ the companion.
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.
Yesterday I was in New York and supposed to fly home on American’s 5:15pm New York JFK – Austin flight. I decided I really didn’t want to wind up in coach for the Westbound flight which runs about 4 hours, so I plunked down a Business ExtrAA one-segment upgrade when only 2 first class seats were left for sale a few weeks out.
The thing about paper upgrade certificates though is that they have to be turned in at the airport. You cannot check-in online or using American’s mobile app.
I had checked traffic and it was looking like almost an hour to JFK. I fired up my phone and grabbed an Uber at 2:50pm. I was in the car at 3pm. Waze said I’d be at the airport by 3:50pm. That all changed as we approached the Midtown tunnel. There was an accident just as we were entering, and traffic stopped.
American Airlines had apparently feared losing their fuel tax exemptions in North Carolina which amount to big government breaks on the cost of fuel there. The North Carolina House passed its budget without touching American’s tax subsidies. The state Senate has yet to take up the budget.
But wait. I’m confused. American Airlines CEO Doug Parker says it’s unfair that he has to compete with big Middle East airlines which he claims are the ones getting government subsidies.
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 »
