American Airlines rolled out a new automated phone system this morning. When you dial, there’s a new voice on the other end. And you have to listen to the entire recorded message – no skipping it by asking for an agent.
Bilt’s monthly Rent Day deals have been revealed, and this month they have an offer on Virgin cruises; a Blade helicopter party; fine dining access at a discount; along with the usual double points on their credit card, SoulCycle offers and a game show to win cash for rent.
I really like the dining deals. I prefer when they have 100%+ transfer bonuses to airlines and status deals. But you don’t get those every month!
United’s seasonal second flight between San Francisco and Sydney will only operate for two months, and only three days a week instead of daily. They’ll use a smaller plane for San Francisco to Melbourne, and there will be fewer LA – Melbourne flights leading into peak season. Houston to Sydney will also see fewer frequencies as well.
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.
One man suffering at the hands of Delta’s thousands of cancelled flights this past week decided to take revenge in the only way he knew how. Stuck in the airport, the Sky Club lounge member found himself out expenses for a trip he was no longer getting to fully take and without compensation for those expenses. So he decided to take compensation, or at least impose costs on the airline, equal to what he was incurring.
Southwest Airlines announced plans for redeye flights, premium seats, and assigned seating but left a lot of questions unanswered.
They don’t know all the answers yet! But during the carrier’s second quarter investor call on Thursday they provided more information and filled in several gaps, as well as shared other useful tidbits, that flyers need to know about these changes and the airline’s business.
Hyatt has added Under Canvas glamping through its Mr and Mrs Smith partnership. There are 13 outdoor resorts in places like Yellowstone National Park and the Great Smoky Mountains.
They need to take care not to lose the value proposition that does still distinguish them, and for which the market continues to value their business at a higher multiple than competitors, even as they work to provide a product that more people want to buy and to pay more for. But they also need to address their inability to sell small town and long haul flights through partners in order to continue to grow.
American Airlines profit was down in the second quarter. They’re crowing about record revenue, a lot of that is inflation, and they’re clearly not doing well – profit forecasts were revised downward significantly, and they are now saying they won’t earn anything in the third quarter which is traditionally good. It isn’t winter!
In fact, American Airlines will make money on its co-brand credit cards during the third quarter. That means it will lose money flying airplanes over the summer months. That’s insane.
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.
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 »
