Comments

1. For a second, I thought the post was about me…. 🙂

2. I am a longtime reader, and I just wanted to say that I really dislike the new format on the blog where you have to click again on everything to read it. I find it really annoying and most of the time I just skip reading. Just my 2 cents.

3. I redeemed HA miles last year to fly Virgin to South Africa in coach. Their coach amenities were already superior to those of the US airlines. The seat comfort was not, however. The problem with improved coach food is that I’m not sure it moves the needle much in actual customer loyalty. I know I wouldn’t pay more to fly an airline that’s willing to spend about 2 bucks more on food for me. I’m not sure if others would.

   It is pretty funny to watch all the European airlines that are partly owned by Middle East airlines opt out of the subsidy fight. I mean, what else could they do? Similar stuff happens in the USA, of course. Kevin Mitchell of the not-accurately-named Business Travel Coalition seems to be their biggest booster. Can you guess who one of the founding members of that group is? (Hint: it’s a foreign gov’t agency).

4. Drives me crazy I have to click through to read anything. Also don’t even know which of your articles is about the entitled passenger?

5. I thought that you meant that the military are the most entitles passengers ever.

   It sure seems that way, since they are privileged above the highest tier elites in many occasions, that one with American included.

   PR Garbage that will make tons of Admirals Club members in places around military bases irate (and with a huge reason.)

6. It’s the small things, and I have to agree with Sue above. While I appreciate that things need to change to look “fresh”, the new layout and themes seem to make it harder to find information.

   That’s just enough that sometimes I just skip it all entirely. Today, obviously, wasn’t one of those days, but my reading of your blog is way down these days..

   My idle fingers bring it up, I see the new layout and say “Ah right. I remember” and move on to another blog.

7. +3 to Sue’s comment.

8. Me no likey the double click format too.

9. I know I am a “recent contributor” and all, but I don’t like your blog format much either.

10. +5

11. +6, I also liked putting a little thought… way better than Thought Leader…
    But this is still one of the best “travel blogs” out there. Thanks

12. While not all U.S. airports has a USO, military members usually rely on the base travel office. The employees will search and find the best rate for a coach ticket. Unless someone request to fly AA and probably pay more, just hope where you arrive has a USO lounge.
    http://www.uso.org/centers/us/

13. Gary, have to agree with the other posters… I’m a longtime reader, a client of your award booking service etc etc but the new format most if not all the boarding area blogs are doing now in their daily emails are terrible. Please consider going back to having the full details in the email. It will get you more readership, I’m sure of it. Thank you.

14. +8…agree with Traveler’s sentiments. Not quite like New Coke, but…

15. I’ll make it a +9 as a long-time reader disliking the new format, particularly on mobile.

16. +9 This time, I just read the comments section.

17. I agree about the current format. I see an interesting sounding article. After clicking on a number of links and not finding it, I move On to another website. I’ll stick around a bit longer to see if the owner listens to us. If not, I’m gone.

18. Gary,

    You still have great content, still enjoy your blog, so thank you for that. As others mentioned, my readership of your blog is much less since the format change, I do not click through as often. Then again, you are not getting CC conversions from me, so you may not care as much.

    Best,

    PedroNY

19. +10

    I actually enjoy the new layout visually and while I get the importance of having a tag line in your title, I don’t really care what it is so it doesn’t bother me in the least.

    However, I can’t overstate the negative effect the new RSS format has had on me and my reading habits.

    I go back to reading when the blog was based within flyertalk…10 or more years, probably. I have no doubt read 99% of your posts during that time, enjoyed most of them and got genuine value from your insights. But since the switch, I’m just not reading them. And it’s disappointing to me because I know you still have lots of value to add but it’s incredibly annoying and aggravating to have to click through without even having a sense of what I’m going to find.

    So I haven’t done it and I’m not going to in the future. Those clicks (or non-clicks now) will also apply to the 12 or so cc apps and affiliate payments I’ve sent your way the last few years.

    I do hope you reconsider as I will then follow suit.

    All the best, and thanks for your knowledge and willingness to share over the years. It’s been great and I hope to see you back in the RSS soon.

20. I also deeply dislike the new format. Makes reading a chore, especially reading more than one post. So I don’t.

21. I used to read every article every day in feed.ly I currently have 79 unread postings. I hope you go back to non truncated RSS.

22. I completely agree with Sue, above who said:

    “I am a longtime reader, and I just wanted to say that I really dislike the new format on the blog where you have to click again on everything to read it. I find it really annoying and most of the time I just skip reading.”

    And I will add to that: It seems that many of the links don’t even lead to the stories they suggest.
    I really hate the format. Please go back to the way you used to present information.

23. +WhateverNumber. I never did find the article about the entitled passenger and I don’t have the time and patience to continue hunting. Moving on.

24. If I counted correctly, I’m +18 on not liking the extra click.

25. Another voice of the customer. I’m also a longtime reader who really values your writings, but am very frustrated by the truncated emails.

26. I’m afraid I couldn’t find the article about the most entitled passenger either – most annoying! Please go back to the previous format

27. Is the new format someone’s bright idea for increasing the click count on your blog? Because that’s the only reason I can see for changing to this nuisance format. Ironically, this long-time reader is now reading less of your daily posts as a result. I don’t like the truncated emails, either. You have useful and interesting content, but it’s now buried under a really user-unfriendly format. Please go back to the old format.

28. Ditto on the click through format…and I, too, did not see the most entitled passenger ever connection. But – that aside – thanks as always for the great info.

29. I was looking for the article on the ‘most entitled passenger’. Guess there is a missing link?

30. I have spent a good deal of time on three separate occasions looking for the “most entitled passenger” article, and I still haven’t been able to find it. The new format is extremely frustrating.

31. I already commented about the frustrating blog format, but just in case you are not getting enough feedback about the truncated e-mails: They are AWFUL. You give a teaser, the reader clicks link after link and usually does not find what the teaser mentions. PLEASE bring back comprehensive e-mails.

32. add me to the growing list of those who resent having to click into your site. Given that the mileage bloggers out there pretty much copy from one another, I will just look at others’ now where I don’t have to link out of my email.

33. +49? And on this post only!

34. Agree with Sue. Too much clicking and tend to get lost with posts out of order!!

    otherwise a great blog!!