There was a coup in Niger two weeks ago. The new government has closed the country’s airspace – not just for arrivals and departures, but also for overflight – out of a fear of invasion with the Economic Community of West African States seeking to overturn the takeover.
This locks the nation’s citizens in as well. In addition to intra-Africa flying, Turkish Airlines and Air France serve the country.
Cathay Pacific will debut a new “Aria Suite” business class on Boeing 777-300ER aircraft during the second quarter of 2024.
I didn’t expect to see an all-new business class on Cathay Pacific until they took delivery of Boeing 777-9 aircraft, but that plane type has been delayed and the new seat will be on retrofits.
A Southwest Airlines passenger – a professional comedian – confronted the pilot of his flight during boarding to ask whether the captain was drunk. That did not go over well, and the pilot’s reaction was caught on video.
When inner rage hits and there’s just nothing to do with it except let it out, I suppose this is more productive than taking it out on someone else.
A passenger whose flight was cancelled does just that – lets it out – by acting first as though she’s possessed, and then turning to interpretive dance to express herself. We’ve all been there, amiright?
American Airlines CEO Robert Isom laid out the reason he doesn’t like offering free travel as a form of compensation for employees – which might be surprising since he leads an airline.
Before the pandemic American basically squatted on slots, flying as little as possible without giving up their New York assets. More domestic short flights and less international long haul from New York could be a move back in that direction. Hopefully not – hopefully they’ve learned an important lesson they’ve articulated over the past two years.
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A United Airlines flight attendant parent-shamed business class passengers on a delayed Delhi – Newark flight, after their special needs three year old woke up nine hours into the journey. The crewmember chastised the passengers for their lack of parenting when the boy was hungry (United didn’t board his child meal) and the mother had to improvise for food and tend to the kid at the same time.
A buffet actually interested in preventing spread of germs would make single-use tongs available to each guest. Use the tongs, deposit them for disinfecting once you’ve served yourself. But the goal isn’t preventing spread of germs, it’s conforming to (1) health codes, and (2) social convention.
You’re simply not going to get a quality night sleep on a mattress that’s been used every night, by different people, for over ten years. They’ll develop bumps and pockets, and guests will complain – no matter how many times mattresses are flipped and rotated (and cleaned, though this often happens just a couple of times per year). Some hotels even keep using ripped and soiled mattresses, but an upper upscale property should not.
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 »
