Passengers Now Showing Up At The Airport Before 5 A.M. To Get In Line For The Delta Sky Club

by Gary Leff

Sep 30 2022

Getting into a Delta Sky Club these days requires waiting in line like its the U2 Joshua Tree tour in 1987 or a Best Buy Black Friday doorbuster. At New York JFK terminal 4 things are even worse: the China National Highway 110 traffic jam of 2010, which is to say being a Sky Club member in 2022 is akin to Beatlemania – or living your life queueing as though you’re French.

Delta customers have clearly gotten the word that if they want a seat in the club, they need to show up at the airport early, even before the Sky Clubs open.

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Why Airlines Are So Good Disclosing Fees, While Hotels Get Away With Deceiving Guests

by Gary Leff

Sep 29 2022

While the federal government’s proposed rules for airlines say it’s not acceptable to disclose even optional fees like those for seat assignments and checked baggage during the purchase process – they must be available at the first instance a price is shown in a search – the government (through the Federal Trade Commission) says resort fees are fine as long as they are disclosed prior to confirming the reservation.

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American Airlines Introduces New Pre-Order Wellness Meal Option For Domestic First

by Gary Leff

Sep 29 2022

American shares that they have a new pre-order option coming and it’s actually part of the existing James Beard Foundation partnership that launched shortly before the pandemic.

The pre-order program re-launches October 12 “as part of wellbeing menu launch.” Some flights will see these meals as part of the regular choices in the cabin, but it will also be pre-order “on select flights.”

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Airline Demands Flight Attendants Start Wearing Underwear

by Gary Leff

Sep 29 2022

Pakistan International Airlines has laid out a new rule for flight attendants that they must wear underwear not just while on duty but during layovers as well.. What’s more, airline “grooming officers” will be checking, “monitor[ing] cabin crew ‘at all times’” and will have to “report back if there is any ‘deviation’ from the rules.”

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Recap Of Today’s Executive Testimony In The American Airlines-JetBlue Anti-Trust Trial

by Gary Leff

Sep 28 2022

Today’s testimony in the government’s anti-trust trial against the American Airlines-JetBlue Northeast Alliance has featured the CEO of JetBlue and the incoming Chief Operating Officer of Southwest Airlines, which prefers not to see stronger competitors (naturally).

It doesn’t seem like the government made any tangible progress demonstrating anti-competitive effects of the partnership, but the answers given on the stand by senior airline executives are interesting to parse.

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