Tag Archives for etihad.
When American Airlines announced their renewed partnership with Qatar Airways – re-introducing codesharing, which they terminated in 2017, and potentially flying to Doha – I speculated that this might mean an end to American’s partnership with Etihad.
American only just introduced online redemption of Etihad awards in May and it was a surprise to see at the time, since American has been in a political war with those two airlines, despite their partnerships, for the past four and a half years – and even terminated codeshares with both. I’m glad to see American continuing to invest in getting online redemption for Etihad and Qatar right.
For the past few months there been a glitch with certain awards booked on the American Airlines website, where baggage allowance information wasn’t being added to tickets. The airline doesn’t have a solution yet, but they’re taking action to avoid spreading the problem.
One of my most frequent and best uses of American AAdvantage miles over the past 7 years has been booking first class awards on Etihad. I’ve used them to fly to the Maldives four times, to India, to the Gulf region and from the Mideast to Australia to name just a few.
And they offer an excellent hard product in first class – on their Airbus A380 the ‘First Apartment’ with an on board shower.
Thirty years ago airlines offered a mostly flat comfortable seat at the front of the plane with upgraded dining. They called it first class. They also offered a middle cabin featuring recliners and 38 to 40 inches between seats, along with upgraded privileges like priority boarding. They called it business class.
Today airlines offer mostly flat seating up front with upgraded dining. They call it business class. They offer a middle cabin featuring recliners and 38 to 40 inches between seats, along with upgraded privileges like priority boarding. They call it premium economy.
The Dowell family found three seats together in the last row of their Boeing 737-800, and were struggling to juggle their bags and accoutrements for their baby. That’s when Wesley, one of the flight attendants on board, offered to hold 9-month old Alayna while they got themselves situated.
She was “screaming her head off for quite a while” while inflight so Wesley came back and offered to take her — walking her up and down the aisle, shushing her, and calming her. He did this for 15 minutes, “rubbing her back, walking up and down the aisle like it was just a day in the park” before returning her to her parents where she fell asleep.
Throwaway ticketing – buying a ticket to a different city than the one you’re actually traveling to in order to save money – is against the rules at most airlines. It’s against the rules, that is, unless you get your ticket issued in Italy with certain airlines, which turns out to be surprisingly easy to do.
The CEO of Emirates teased merger speculation with Etihad in 2017. Etihad’s CEO teased it last year. The two airlines have been cooperating more closely. Etihad is lending pilots to Emirates.
Now Emirates Chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum is speaking out about the possibility of a merger – and suggesting it could happen in the future, but not right away.
One of my most frequent and best uses of American AAdvantage miles over the past 7 years has been booking first class awards on Etihad. I’ve used them to fly to the Maldives four times, to India, to the Gulf region and from the Mideast to Australia to name just a few.
Etihad awards have just become bookable on the American Airlines website. There’s no need to search the space on Etihad’s site if you’re using American Airlines miles, or call to book. That’s brand new.
Over the summer I reported a rumor that Etihad was in talks to join Star Alliance. That rumor heated up substantially in February.
Etihad is now joining Air Canada’s Aeroplan as an earning member
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 »
