From Terry Maxon US Airways, American Airlines and the U.S. Department of Justice disclosed Monday that they’ve picked a mediator to see if they can resolve any or all issues in the DOJ lawsuit seeking to block the air carriers’ merger. …It is common in lawsuits for judges to urge the warring parties to present their cases to a mediator in hopes of resolving the issues before trial. It always seemed as though anti-trust issues could be settled by the parties outside of Court – that this proposed merger proposed far fewer competitive issues than most in aviation; that divesting some slots at Washington National plus some unspecified vague promises would get government buy-in. The lawsuit was a surprise, not just to me (as someone who hoped the merger wouldn’t happen) but virtually everyone in…
Is the American Express Centurion Lounge in Dallas the Best Airport Lounge in the United States?
American Express opened its second U.S. Centurion airport lounge this month. Dallas Fort Worth is the second location after Las Vegas. There are more lounges to come, including San Francisco. I visited the Dallas facility on a recent connection, and absolutely loved it. It’s the best U.S. airport lounge I have been to. I would make the claim that it’s the best U.S. airport lounge, period, but I haven’t been to the Amex lounge in Las Vegas and I haven’t been to the Virgin Clubhouses at New York JFK or San Francisco (I’ve been to the Virgin lounge at Washington Dulles). I can say that it’s a better facility than the United Global First lounge in San Francisco (generally regarded as United’s best) and the American Airlines Flagship lounges in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New…
Milepoint Premium Status Giveaway
My friend Pizza in Motion is giving away a Milepoint premium membership. Milepoint Premium Membership is normally $49 and gets you: Hilton HHonors Gold elite status through the beginning of 2015. 1000 United miles National Car Rental Executive status 10% discount on purchase of Hyatt gift cards One free day of parking with Parking Spot (no minimum stay required) And more. The nice thing for you in the giveaway is that this isn’t one of the ‘big blogs’ which means that there may be relatively few entries — better chance to win (his last giveaway had 22 entries). So check it out and win. You can join the 30,000+ people who see these deals and analysis every day — sign up to receive posts by email (just one e-mail per day) or subscribe to the…
How to Avoid Jetlag and Get the Most Out of Your Trip
When readers shared their own travel tips and several really stood out as worth highlighting. Kerry said, One of my travel rules is “always go into town the first night.” If you’ve been traveling all day, it is very tempting to just hang out at the hotel and go to bed early, but I made that rule after I found out the next morning that I had missed the annual summer fest at a little town on the coast of France. I have scored standing room at La Scala, the Munich Opera (Aida!) and a box seat at the Folk Opera in Madrid, by pushing on and checking out what was going on in town that first night. I see this as a jetlag tip more than anything else. My first international travel as a…
What’s in My Laptop Bag?
When readers shared their own travel tips and several really stood out as worth highlighting. Erndog said, Invest in a ‘power brick’, something to keep your phone and/or tablet charged,while traveling. For an iPad, be sure it has at least 2 amp output Fortunately most of the planes I’m on have seat power, and even standard outlet plugs — my Empower adapter died after many years and it’s an outdated enough technology I didn’t want to replace it. Flying American’s older planes without power isn’t the only time I need extra juice. I do get a solid four hours of battery even watching movies and while online with inflight internet. There will be plenty of MacBook Air fans in the comments probably singing that machine’s praises for battery life, but it’s not a viable solution…
Saudia Business Class Trip Report: Saudia Lounge, Riyadh
Pakistani Correspondent continues her guest post describing the experience flying Saudia business class, which she redeemed using American Express Membership Rewards points transferred to Delta. Here’s her previous installment: New York JFK – Jeddah Saudia Lounge, Jeddah and Jeddah-Lahore CIP Lounge in Lahore, Pakistan Lahore – Riyadh And now P.C. continues with her visit to the Saudia lounge in Riyadh Welcome to Kind Khalid International Airport, Riyadh. As soon as my inbound plane got to the gate, people starting lighting up: Riyadh is a smoke-friendly airport. There were no signs about transit passengers or lounges or gates. Nevertheless, it was much easier finding the Saudia lounge and the airport had more to offer than Jeddah did. It had an odd coffee shop (which offered Wifi), and a few jewelry stores in the duty free area.…
Travel Tip: Why Paper Still Matters in an Electronic Age
When readers shared their own travel tips and several really stood out as worth highlighting. Harlan V. said, When traveling abroad, always PRINT OUT your ticket information. I got stuck in a place where I didn’t speak the local language and needed proof of an onward journey. While I couldn’t TELL them, I definitely could whip out my travel info and SHOW them that I would be leaving the airport soon. This has saved me a few times! There are many times it helps to have a printed e-ticket itinerary, and even a printed boarding pass. An itinerary can be helpful: Getting into the airport Many airports in Asia — such as Male and Manila — will have security checking for itineraries on the way into the terminal. Showing your onward travel plans at immigration.…
Why United’s $1.1 Million Fine for Long Tarmac Delays Prove the Absurdities of the Government’s 3 Hour Rule
The U.S. federal government’s tarmac delay rules prohibit an airline from allowing a domestic flight to remain on the tarmac for more than three hours without deplaning passengers. Wandering Aramean does a great job explaining the federal government’s recent fine of United for several violations of this rule on one day in July 2012 at Chicago’s O’Hare airport. He concludes that United was so deficient that the situation underscores the need for the government to play a role. Historically I’ve been pretty cynical on the 3-hour rule based on the theory that that airlines should be able to put in place a program and manage it themselves rather than have a government-mandated version. It seems that United failed doubly in this case, both by not drawing up a feasible plan and then by not bothering…
Bits ‘n Pieces for October 26, 2013
News and Notes from Around the Interweb: How to get more luxury out of your vacation without spending a lot: Part 6 of 6 Really good post about customer service China Southern’s newly-announced route between New York JFK and Guangzhou, China will be a useful options for redeeming Delta Skymiles in business class to Asia. Hopefully award availability will be as good as it is on their Los Angeles flight (which isn’t as good as it used to be, and the New York route will be operated by a smaller aircraft, but this is still a welcome addition). Air Canada Aeroplan’s online shopping portal isn’t usually the most rewarding, but through October 28 they’re offering 5 points per dollar. You can join the 30,000+ people who see these deals and analysis every day — sign…
Get Free Instant Top Tier Elite Status With Sofitel, Novotel, and More!
In case you missed one of the past opportunities for Le club Accorhotels instant top tier Platinum status for new account signup, free instant top tier Platinum elite status from Leclub Accor Hotels is back. How to Sign Up This offer won’t last long, usually just a few hours once they start getting lots of signups but sometimes a little longer. You must open a new account, it cannot be applied to existing accounts. And when you do so you must use an email address that’s not currently on file with them. Even if you don’t frequently stay at Sofitel, Novotel, Pullman, Mercure, and other related properties frequently, you never know when you might find yourself in one and having top tier status can’t hurt. What Platinum Status Gets You Platinum status usually requires 60…
