I’m an AARP member. I’m 41 years old. I don’t even support the organization’s policy positions. I joined, really, for just one reason: discounts. The biggest and most useful discount is with British Airways.
I’ve written about the different offers from Plastiq to pay bills with your credit card (they chrage your card, mail a check to your payee). My favorite offer is 1.5% fees, which they make possible when you pay via MasterCard.
The last offer — any new payee paid via MasterCard for a 1.5% fee — is over. However, through Tuesday October 13 you can make payment of $500 or more to any vendor (new or existing in your Plastiq account) with a MasterCard for a 1.5% fee.
Most readers are familiar with the Newark – Columbia, South Carolina flight that United operated at the behest of the Chairman of the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey (which oversees United’s hub at Newark). It was a money-loser that Governor Christie’s appointee David Samson, intimately tied to ‘Bridgegate’, asked for so he could more conveniently commute to and from his weekend home — and that United killed days after Samson’s resignation.
It now looks like there was a cover up in play…
A woman questioned by the FBI after an Allegiant Air Las Vegas – Honolulu flight blames a flight attendant for her having exposed herself inflight, and her refusal to put out an e-cigarette.
After Hilton’s dramatic award chart gutting of nearly two years ago, there weren’t huge changes again this year.
Hilton decided to change the way they made changes to how they re-assign hotels to award categories. Instead of an annual change to tons of hotels (a schedule they really weren’t wedded to in the past anyway) they decided they would make rolling changes throughout the year. And instead of informing all members proactively of these changes, they would just post them on a web page in the name of ‘transparency’.
Nouriel Roubini tweeteed that 2013 economics Nobel Prize winner Robert Shiller and his wife were involuntarily denied boarding on United Express flight from Denver to Aspen.
Shiller’s wife thinks United has the economics of involuntary denied boarding all wrong. But are there important things the Shillers are missing?
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.
US Airways companion tickets get a reprieve – a few extra days to use yours. United’s new safety video. Boeing 747s for sale on the cheap. A hotel program eliminates expiring points and goes revenue-based. And more…
Delta makes its case that the government should give them gates at Dallas Love Field on its own terms, even though it refused to voluntarily pay United for those gates.
Cathay Pacific just announced a revamp of how their elite status is earned. And although it’s being reported in some circles as ‘revenue-based’ what they’ve done is adopt something like the British Airways system.. not the United/Delta model.
Thailand is one of the world’s fastest growing aviation markets, so Thai Airways’ challenges can’t be pinned on the overall economy there or the military coup.
China is only number 14, and number 22 looking just at year-over-year data (not surprising given its slumping economy). Still, China is the second largest airline market in the world behind the United States although the US market remains more than 70% larger than the Chinese one.
The fastest growing aviation markets – based on the number of departing seats over the past 5 years are…
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 »
