American Airlines Pulling Out Of Australia, At Least Until End Of October

by Gary Leff

sydney opera house at sunset
Jul 19 2021

With Australia reducing the number of international passengers allowed to enter the country each day in half, American is running many of its Los Angeles – Sydney flights as cargo-only until August 31, while the return Sydney – Los Angeles flight carriers both cargo and passengers. On days where American has an allocation of allowed passenger arrivals, they’re carrying passengers to Australia.

After this period American Airlines will exit the Australian passenger market for two months, although of course this suspension of service could be extended based on facts on the ground in Australia.

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The American Airlines-JetBlue Partnership Is A Mess For Passengers

by Gary Leff

Jul 18 2021

American Airlines customers, especially, should like flying JetBlue which offers more legroom, seat back entertainment, free wifi and a business class product (on routes where it’s offered) with relatively great seats, food, and friendly service.

However the actual partnership – as experienced by passengers – is quite broken. Several customers, based in both Boston and New York, have shared the problems they’ve faced.

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It’s Absurdly Past Time To Lift U.S. Covid-19 Travel Bans

by Gary Leff

Jul 17 2021

Travelers are banned from entering the U.S. if in the prior 14 days they’ve been in China, Iran, the European Schengen area, U.K. and Ireland, Brazil, South Africa or India. That’s true even though the U.S. requires testing of everyone entering by air; if the traveler has had a full course of an mRNA vaccine; and is coming from a place with far less Covid-19 than the U.S.

This makes no sense. Americans can go to Europe and they can return – in some cases even if they’re unvaccinated. But vaccinated Europeans can’t fly to the U.S. And this is somehow for our protection?

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American Airlines Needs To Do More For Elites Earning Status This Year ‘The Real Way’

by Gary Leff

Jul 17 2021

Everyone knew that 2021 would be an odd year. It might not be a total loss, like 2020, where American like most everyone else just extended status. However business travel hadn’t returned in the first half of the year in a meaningful way, and much of long haul international travel remained out of reach. Customers who normally made their status on international business class tickets just weren’t doing so, yet no one wanted to lose these customers when their business returned.

With how easy they’ve made it to keep status, the airline now needs to encourage people to actually fly the airline.

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R&B Singer Reports Being Threatened Over Boarding With First Class Passengers On American

by Gary Leff

Jul 17 2021

R&B singer Lyfe Jennings flew American Airlines and recorded his last interaction with the airline as he boarded his flight, being asked whether there would be any issues on the flight – whether he was going to be a troublemaker – after, he says, he was continually questioned over boarding as a first class passenger. He believes the airline’s employees were skeptical that he belonged in first class because he’s black.

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