American Airlines Goes After Scam Travel Agencies That Mislead Passengers

by Gary Leff

older gentleman taking a selfie with smartphone
Aug 28 2023

Scam travel agents create fake Google listings and take out Google ads to look like they’re the airline you’re trying to reach. They also take over old, defunct airline numbers because people will still find those listed and call. Tell Siri to call an airline? It may dial one of these scam agencies instead.

This winds up costing you big – getting charged fees for things as simple as seat assignments, getting charged to get rebooked when the airline cancels your flight. They stick unwary travelers with bills as much as $1,000 or more necessarily.

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Is Riyadh Air A Bet On Modernity For Saudi Arabia And The Mideast?

by Gary Leff

Aug 27 2023

When Riyadh Air was first announced, I was very skeptical of a brand new airline in the Gulf. It would compete for low yield connecting traffic with Emirates, Qatar, and Etihad. And the Saudi Arabian government already had a global airline with a hub in Riyadh – and Jeddah – in Saudi. Why give it competition?

I’ve written that their strategy confuses me, but to be honest it doesn’t confuse me anymore.

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Changing The Return Trip On An American Airlines Award Ticket After Flying The Outbound

by Gary Leff

Aug 27 2023

After making a roundtrip booking you won’t be able to go back and see online how many miles the outbound and return segments are worth separately. You can find out by calling. But there’s a clear amount of residual value that the return portion of your award ticket will have after you’ve flown the outbound, and this will be used towards any changes you need to make.

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Shameful: FAA Prioritizes Cronyism Over Safety Giving In To Pilot Union Demands

by Gary Leff

Aug 27 2023

The federal government is considering banning air carrier operations that diverge from the model of American Airlines, United, and Delta in order to operate niche service from small cities and private terminals. And the only reason they’re doing this is as a concession to lobbying by unions and an incumbent airline – groups that don’t want to compete with more pilots and innovative business models.

The FAA is considering requiring carriers currently operating as scheduled charters to instead operate as scheduled air carriers, effectively putting upstarts out of business. The loudest lobbying voice with the ear of the powerful wins?

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American Airlines Award Travel Pricing Is Unfair To Many AAdvantage Members

by Gary Leff

Aug 26 2023

American Airlines eliminated saver and anytime award travel in favor of dynamic pricing. And always and everywhere that airlines have done this, they’ve devalued their miles. I don’t think AAdvantage members realize how much their miles are devalued, though, if they live in an American Airlines hub and are trying to redeem for non-stop flights.

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Flight Attendant Had Enough Of Passenger’s Demands, “Not Gonna Sit Here And Be Berated”

by Gary Leff

Aug 26 2023

A TikTok video shows a Southwest Airlines flight where a passenger is ordering around a flight attendant, first saying she needs her son seated by her, then that the crewmember needs to store her bag for her, and also that she needed help getting her seatbelt belted.

The passenger complains, “somebody’s using God’s name in vain behind me.” As the flight attendant helped the passenger with her seatbelt, it appears that the passenger’s phone fell. The flight attendant picked it up off of the ground for her, and the woman said “Thank you that hit my foot.”

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