The airline is changing the method they use to calculate distances between two airports. That’ll mean some customers earn more miles and some earn fewer. And that matters also because ‘Million Miler’ status is still based on distances flown.
At the start of the pandemic airlines closed their club lounges as passenger numbers plummeted. With traveling returning lounges have been re-opening, and Delta has re-opened clubs more quickly than its major competitors.
They’ve also done more to bring back food. In fact Delta replaced pre-packaged last month in some clubs with buffet service. Last month I noted Detroit where an employee was plating food off the buffet for passengers. Well, the employee is now gone and Delta has returned to self-service petri dish buffets.
Hilton has signed a deal for a new property in the Maldives which is expected to open in 2021, which means that hopefully it will open next year.
The Hilton Maldives Amingiri will be just a 15 minute speedboat ride rom the Male airport, located on ‘Amingiri Island’ within the Male Atoll, and feature 109 villas each with a private pool.
On Friday just after 1 p.m. a flight instructor and their student in a Cessna 172 aircraft experienced a failure of their single engine over I-75 in Broward County, Florida. They couldn’t reach air traffic control on the radio, but a commercial pilot who heard their calls talked them down onto the freeway 12 miles west of U.S 27.
American’s ever-excellent Chief Information Officer (and former AAdvantage head) Maya Leibman announced to employees today that the airline will be replacing current mobile devices for all frontline employees as well as line maintenance workers with new Apple mobile devices.
The test of these devices started today with agents at Washington National airport (the airport seems to be where a lot of new processes get tested). Maintenance is already getting new iPads, a priority because they previously carried multiple devices to deal with different aircraft. Pilots and flight attendants will take longer to see the upgrades.
The Emirates credit card in the U.S. has a limited time bonus to earn up to 60,000 miles, and the Emirates cards let you spend towards elite status through end of year.
A fintech in Australia is offering up to 50,000 Qantas points for a personal loan with no prepayment penalty. They promise lower rates than competitors and some consumers won’t even face any fees.
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.
Atlanta’s airport has selected American Express to build a new Centurion lounge over rival bids from Airport Dimensions (Collinson, which owns Priority Pass and The Club lounges) and Plaza Premium group. The Atlanta city council’s finance committee is expected to approve the 10 year lease with two 5 year renewal options today.
A JetBlue flight attendant confronted a passenger in coach and confiscated their eye mask because they weren’t flying business class – and JetBlue eye masks are for business class customers only.
The passenger asked about an eye mask when they boarded, and they were told no – there’s only one amenity kit boarded for each passenger in business class. A woman seated up front offered hers to the man. JetBlue gave it to her – and she gave it to him. But a member of the cabin crew would have none of it. And there’s video of Eye Mask Karen policing the transaction.
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 »
