Passengers on an American Airlines flight turned cruising altitude into a church service after one traveler pulled out a tambourine and started praising mid-air. The joyful worship session quickly filled the cabin — a reminder that sometimes, good news really does travel.
Bilt Card 2.0 is nearly here. The transition to Cardless brings three new versions — no-fee, $95, and $495 — all earning points on mortgage payments. Current members can choose their new card with no hard credit pull ahead of the February 7 rollout.
A Florida legislator has filed a bill to rename Palm Beach International Airport as Donald J. Trump International Airport. The proposal cites Trump’s “extraordinary leadership and hometown roots,” though the timing — amid a federal shutdown — has raised eyebrows.
Capital One has launched a new co-brand credit card with T-Mobile, offering 2% back on spending — but the real story may be what comes next. The partnership could signal that Capital One is preparing a broader push into travel cobrands to compete with Chase, Amex, and Citi.
A newlywed tech executive asked Twitter whether he should take a solo upgrade or sit with his wife in coach. Minutes later, he posted the answer — from Emirates first class.
Southwest’s decision to fire its skycaps and outsource curbside check-in has created an unexpected new loophole: tip the contract agent, and your bag might still fly free. It’s cheaper than paying the fee inside — and another example of how cutting labor costs can cost an airline in ways it didn’t plan.
Frontier Airlines CEO Barry Biffle has confirmed what many flyers have waited years to hear: Wi-Fi is finally coming. After long resisting the cost of onboard connectivity, the ultra-low-cost carrier appears ready to join the rest of the industry online.
I’ve already reported that Delta plans to announce service to Singapore and Manila. They’re also planning to launch New York JFK and Los Angeles to Seoul, which leverages their joint venture with Korean Air and Korean’s Seoul-Incheon hub for onward connections in Asia.
As American Airlines touts its “premium” transformation, the cost-cutting behind the scenes continues. The carrier is laying off headquarters and hub managers across departments—including IT, accounting, and customer-service roles—raising questions of whether this is the price for a premium future or that they’re still more focused on cost-cutting than revenue generation?
I’ll be in Las Vegas December 5–7 for ZorkFest — the conference where miles, points, and casino loyalty meet. If you’re attending, join me for lunch on Saturday (use code vftw2025) — and yes, lunch is on me.
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 »
