A couple of months ago I wrote that I’ll be speaking at the frequent flyer and casino loyalty event, ZorkFest, this October. The event room block is almost full, and closes September 19th. Registration closes soon as well. I’ve been given a promo code for readers to take $55 off: lateearly88
Vietnam Airlines is near a deal to purchase 50 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. This is reported to be ‘worth’ $10 billion, but that’s a game we play. Airlines do not pay list prices. The journalists reporting on the sale know this. Particulars aside, a good rule of thumb is to assume the real price is half of what’s reported.
The three year old airline with a hub at Enugu operates four Embraer ERJ-145, albeit the long range variant of these 50 seat regional jets. The aircraft has a published range of 1,550 nautical miles.
CLEAR may have greater employee accountability than TSA – they say they fired the people responsible for last year’s lapses and their managers – but you’re still handing over your biometrics to a company and trusting them to manage those well, just as you’re trusting the federal government when you join PreCheck or Global Entry.
So how well are they managing them?
Miss Universe Canada 2023 Madison Kvaltin was hired by Emirates as a flight attendant. As part of her onboarding she was asked to complete a health history, and it included the question ‘have you ever struggled with an eating disorder?’
Details of the new United Airlines lie flat business class seat for narrowbody Airbus A321XLR and a subset of the airline’s new Boeing 737-10 aircraft have been revealed.
Here, there’s a herringbone arrangement with passengers seated at a 49 degree angle, away from the window. And to pack in as many seats as possible, the patented seat creates an area that is shared between passengers – one passenger gets shoulder space, while the passenger beside them gets lower arm space – all in the name of cabin density.
If a seating arrangement is so untenable that a customer downgrades inflight, it does seem reasonable that the difference in fare should be refunded. The discomfort was because of the dog and their owner, but it’s an arrangement that’s still the responsibility of the airline, and the passengers who moved certainly didn’t get the product or experience that they paid for.
Friday night’s Delta Air Lines flight 157 from Accra, Ghana to New York JFK diverted to Praia da Vitória, on Terceira Island, in the Azores reportedly because of oxygen levels.
There were over 1,350 flight cancellations in the U.S. on Saturday, led by regional carrier Republic which flies for the three largest airlines which saw 35% of flights cancel. When bad weather hits, it’s larger planes carrying more people that are usually given priority. Behind Republic were – in order – United, American, and Delta, together taking the four top spots for cancellations in the world.
Traditionally airport lounges have offered snacks, but you’re not supposed to take food with you for the flight. That’s to limit costs. Hotels with club lounges frequently have drinks, but many make a point not to offer bottled water – knowing that their beverage costs would skyrocket.
Without to go containers, though, passengers and hotel guests get creative. Where there’s free food, some people are going to go wild.
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 »
