Cathay Pacific Unveils Their New Livery!

by Gary Leff

Nov 01 2015

Cathay Pacific is a storied brand. They’re renowned for quality. I certainly believe they have one of the better first and business class products. I enjoy their service (though it is unobtrusive – rather than effusive – in style). Their seats are excellent. I do not always think their food is very good, though at least in premium cabins it is fine.

I find their logo distinctive, and regardless of what you think of the current design it’s intertwined with the carrier and evokes positive images as a result. Cathay Pacific is refreshing their logo, and painting their planes. I believe only one Boeing 777-300ER has been painted so far.

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The Deal of the Year on Airfare: What It Means For the Value of Your Miles

by Gary Leff

Oct 31 2015

A couple of weeks ago many readers took advantage of the deal of the year: business class roundtrips to Europe for as little as $450 cash out of pocket. Not even a mistake fare.

Struggling to figure out how this all makes sense, trends in the airline industry and the global economy provide some context. And also underscore some very important lessons for marketing to airline passengers.

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Which US Airlines Spend the Most on Inflight Food?

by Gary Leff

Oct 31 2015

DOT filings include the amount each airline spends per passenger on meals.

We can see United, Delta, and American spending more on food than Virgin America and JetBlue. That just tells us that Virgin America operates shorter flights that the nation’s 3 biggest airlines. JetBlue is only extensive serving meals to premium cabin customers on their limited set of “Mint” routes. Blue potato chips aren’t very expensive.

More interesting is the comparison over time…

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If You Fly Chicago-Los Angeles, the Government Thinks You May Be a Drug Dealer (and Can Take All Your Money)

by Gary Leff

hand holding hundreds of dollars in cash
Oct 31 2015

More of us are at risk than you’d think. According to the Washington Post‘s “Wonkblog” if you fly between Chicago and L.A. you might be a drug dealer according to the DEA

The DEA confiscated $30,000 from a man after waiting at a gate at LAX monitoring passengers getting off an American Airlines flight from Chicago because “Chicago is a known consumer city for narcotics and Los Angeles is a known source city where narcotics can be purchased”. The case is actually called “United States of America v. $30,750 in U.S. Currency.” When you charge the property instead of the person, the property doesn’t have rights.

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American Has Started Renovations on the D15 Club in Miami. Here’s What It’ll Look Like.

by Gary Leff

Oct 31 2015

American has started construction to revamp one of their two Admirals Clubs in Miami. There are clubs at gates D15 and D30. D30 is the larger club, and in my opinion with better food, but neither has had enough space at peak times.

They’re increasing the lounge footprint by about 50%, as well as bringing in a more modern design and more efficient furnishings. Combined with American’s ramped up its investment in food in the lounges this year this will make it a much nicer experience overall. Here’s what the club will look like.

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When You Buy Miles from a US Airline, You Can Get the 7.5% Tax Refunded!

by Gary Leff

Oct 30 2015

The federal government taxes miles purchased from US airline as though they are used to reduce the cost of domestic airfare, and thus the price of those miles is subject to the same 7.5% excise tax that applies to domestic airline tickets.

Did you know that if you buy miles and use them for something other than domestic travel that you can get the tax refunded?

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Leaked Details of the New Citibank-issued Costco Card

by Gary Leff

Oct 30 2015

It was earth-shattering in the payments world when Costco ditched American Express as their co-brand card issuer and signed on with Citibank. Citi offered them an amazing deal that gives Costco nearly free credit card acceptance.

It turns out that we know more than this, even though Citi won’t start issuing the card until April 2016. That’s because the Citibank Costco credit card deal was filed with the SEC and is publicly available online.

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