Each week, my Meal of the Week feature examines an airline meal from my travels over the years. This may be a meal from earlier in the week or it may be a meal served over a decade ago. This week’s...
Review: A Bittersweet 787-9 Flight To London In United Polaris
I flew to London on United earlier this week. Here’s a brief review of the flight. There was a number of flights I was considering for this trip. One was to fly via San Francisco and Frankfurt so I...
Is Delta Hurting Us Or Helping Us By Cutting Recline?
Delta is reducing seat recline, even in first class, on all Airbus A320 jets. Is this a good or bad move? First reported by Scott Mayerowitz of The Points Guy, Delta will start dropping seat pitch today on all 62 of...
Fact Or Fiction? The Mystery Bump On American Airlines
A middle school teacher says he was involuntarily bumped off his flight and forced to leave only one chaperone with 16 students. American Airlines says the man voluntarily gave up his seat in exchange for compensation. So who is...
Menu Descriptions On United Are Now More Detailed (And Why It Matters)
Earlier this week I flew to London on United Airlines in Polaris (business) class. I noticed a small but meaningful change in the dining menu. Each course now has a more detailed description. I appreciate knowing, for example, what...
United Airlines Unveils Star Wars Livery
United Airlines will debut a Star Wars themed livery this autumn. In celebration of the next movie of the Star Wars franchise, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, United is repainting one 737-800 with a special Star Wars themed livery....
The Wrong Way To Start A Flight
First impressions matter greatly in any context, including on a flight. My flight to London on United this week had a very disappointing start. I’ve resolved in 2019 to resist being offended. Thus, I’m not (or at least trying not...
And Now I Love Flying Blue Even More Than Before…
On Wednesday I argued that Flying Blue, the loyalty program of Air France/KLM, may provide a model for an acceptable dynamic-priced award program. I’ve got a new data point to bolster my argument. I’m in Italy on business this...
United Employees Awarded Bonus Despite Poor Performance
United Airlines will award its employees a quarterly bonus even through performance goals were not met. I’ve written extensively about the employee bonus drama at United. Bonuses are now tied to performance results versus other carriers rather than simply...
U.S. Secretary Of State Looking “Very Closely” At Qatar-Air Italy Deal
Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, was grilled by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this week. Many topics were raised, but the one that raised my eyebrows was Air Italy. A group of U.S. Senators—a motley bipartisan crew—are...
The Cleanest Airlines In The World
A new list is out claiming to name the world’s cleanest airlines according to passengers. Disclaimer: the rankings come from Skytrax. However, I actually tend to agree with the list. Travelers were asked to rate airlines on the following...
“Belligerent” Alaska Airlines Passenger Caught Smoking, Reacts Oddly
An Alaska flight diverted to Chicago after a passenger responded poorly to a flight attendant request to extinguish his cigarette. Perhaps the passenger did not get the memo that domestic flights in the USA have been non-smoking since 1990....
Meanwhile, One Airport Seeks To Punish JetBlue
With all the excitement surrounding JetBlue’s London announcement yesterday, news of a crackdown at an airport on the other coast slipped off the radar. JetBlue has big expansion plans to Europe. Service will start with London in 2021 from...
JetBlue’s London Challenge
As expected, JetBlue announced new service to London yesterday from Boston and New York, But there are still many unknowns including a London-sized elephant in the room. JetBlue “intends to launch multiple daily flights from both cities to London...
Beautiful: The Union Of Four British Airways Heritage Liveries
To celebrate the 50,000th customer on an aircraft with heritage livery, British Airways brought them together at London Heathrow for a special photo-op. The aircraft were all parked near BA’s maintained base at LHR for scheduled downtime. Positioning the planes...
Chick-fil-A Airport Bans Are Unconstitutional
Whatever your view, whatever your background, whatever your values, I have one goal here: to help you understand why the San Antonio City Council violated the First Amendment rights of Chick-fil-A by specifically excluding them from San Antonio Airport....
Air France Flying Blue: A Dynamic “Devaluation” That Works
For the optimists out there, consider that the Air France Flying Blue program may offer a positive example for U.S. airline loyalty programs moving to a dynamic pricing model. Last year, Flying Blue, the loyalty program of Air France-KLM,...
Two Years Later, Dr. David Dao Discusses Dragging Debacle
It was two years ago that Dr. David Dao was dragged off a United flight for failing to give up his seat. Now he has resurfaced, recounting the incident in a surprisingly conciliatory tone. Let’s not forget that Dao...
Virgin Atlantic Will Retire Boeing 747s In 2021
Out with the old, in with the new… As Virgin Atlantic unveiled its beautiful new A350-1000s earlier this week, it also announced retirement plans for its 747-400 fleet. Speaking to reporters outside a glistening new A350, Virgin Atlantic CEO...
A Golden Opportunity For Air Canada
With United moving away from transparency as it introduces changes to the MileagePlus program this autumn, one carrier has the golden opportunity to differentiate itself from a mediocre field: Air Canada. Air Canada acquired Aeroplan and is in the process...
