American and United are in many ways rising. Delta isn’t as good as it once was, though that could change. Ultimately brand follows the underlying reality, even if imperfectly and with a lag.
Delta is not a good enough airline to keep doubling down on the path of low value miles, expecting more from the consumer, and seeing the consumer continue to respond.
A roundup of 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.
The Emirates Airbus A380 is special. First class features suites with doors, though there are better first class suites. Emirates has an amazing food and beverage program, often including $500 wines and even more expensive cognacs. And it has two on board showers. There’s also the business class bar.
But it’s an expensive product, both spending cash and spending miles. You’ll have to spend a lot more miles than most programs require for comparable travel. Except there’s a route where they give the seats away for less than the wine you can drink on board.
United Airlines flight 5505 from Aspen to Denver was delayed two hours on Wednesday because a passenger broke the latch on an overhead bin. Everyone on board – or almost everybody – was certainly connecting and most likely missed their connections.
Mikayla Renfrow is an understudy for Disney’s Aladdin on Broadway. She was heading home from vacation in Europe last week, and her Delta flight delayed. That was going to be a problem – because she was about to be given a chance to play Jasmine.
Sidney Powell was indicted in the Georgia election case, alleging that she and the former President, along with other co-defendants, sought to overturn the state’s 2020 results. It’s already cost her PreCheck and she hasn’t been convicted.
United Airlines currently flies from Newark to Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa, and from Washington Dulles to Cape Town. Newark – Johannesburg is the airline’s second longest route.
The longest distance that United Airlines currently flies is 8,446 miles on board San Francisco – Singapore. That’s a sixteen and a half hour flight (an hour less on the return from Singapore).
A roundup of 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.
Hawaii has awarded a new tourism marketing contract for a campaign that lays out what kind of travel they want to attract. In particular, as they’re desperate to drive a resurgence in Maui visits, they want Europeans to be more respectful and spend more.
Delta explains that, as a Diamond member, customers are already hitting $20,000 in spend on tickets. So just spend $150,000 on their $550 annual fee credit card and “You may not be that far off in your ability to reach Diamond status for 2025.”
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 »
