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Airport workers can get creative using their positions to extract cash. If they can’t pocket the security tax, they can blackmail passengers.
Airport security in Manila apparently will drop bullets into passengers’ bags as they go through the screening checkpoint. Passengers then have to pay a ‘fine’ or face charges of illegal possession of ammunition.
DOT filings include the amount each airline spends per passenger on meals.
We can see United, Delta, and American spending more on food than Virgin America and JetBlue. That just tells us that Virgin America operates shorter flights that the nation’s 3 biggest airlines. JetBlue is only extensive serving meals to premium cabin customers on their limited set of “Mint” routes. Blue potato chips aren’t very expensive.
More interesting is the comparison over time…
The federal government taxes miles purchased from US airline as though they are used to reduce the cost of domestic airfare, and thus the price of those miles is subject to the same 7.5% excise tax that applies to domestic airline tickets.
Did you know that if you buy miles and use them for something other than domestic travel that you can get the tax refunded?
It turns out the case for whether mergers have been good or bad for consumers isn’t so clear either way. There are some benefits to stronger airlines, though low fuel costs and the state of the economy are bigger drivers of that than consolidation. We should be careful to remember, though, that correlation isn’t causation.
To me business class is always and everywhere about the seat. Sure, I love Singapore Airlines service and pre-order meals. It’s great that I get pajamas in Virgin Australia’s long haul business. But I will always make decisions based on seat first.
It turns out that research shows I’m an anomaly, that little touches influence what customers think even about the seat — and helps explain why customers will choose an airline with an inferior hard product when it gets the little touches right.
Starwood CEO Adam Aron relayed during the company’s earnings call that he expects a sale by the end of the year. This morning I noted that Hyatt was rumored to be near an agreement to acquire Starwood. It would be interesting to see Adam Aron — who created the Gold Passport program as Hyatt’s Chief Marketing Officer — ultimately sell Starwood to his former employer.
For customers this would be the best possible outcome of any of the deal combinations Starwood is rumored to have looked at. I like this better than Wyndham, IHG, or Accor. For Hyatt and Starwood it’s not as clear how well an acquisition fills strategic gaps, however.
Back in May I wrote that American was planning a limited Flagship lounge in Dallas. American wasn’t talking — but I got the airport to confirm it in June.
American’s Flagship Dining Room inside the D concourse Admirals Club has a soft opening starting tomorrow. Here’s what you need to know about access, meal times, and food and drink.
British Airways upended their program in the fall of 2011. They started charging separately for each award flight segment, and charged based on distance. Short flights became a good value, and longer flights got expensive.
Unfortunately the 4500 point award is ending for flights originating in terminating in the U.S. effective February 2.
Six months ago I speculated on what a Starwood-IHG (or Wyndham) merger would look like.
Three months ago market excitement ratcheted up over an IHG-Starwood combination, although that culminated in word from IHG that talks ended without a deal — although Starwood remained a potential acquisition target for Wyndham and Accor.
Now 3 Chinese firms are vying to make an offer to take over Starwood Hotels, at an expected price of more than $12 billion.
There’s a fantastic rumor today that in addition to announcing new service to Auckland, New Zealand, American will announce service from Dallas to Abu Dhabi as well (possibly even in a joint venture with Etihad).
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 »
