United Airlines is jettisoning regional and premier upgrades for a new points currency called PlusPoints. Believe it or not, the news is actually quite positive. On December 04, all your regional or global premier upgrades will vanish from your...
Review: Hyatt Place Yerevan
Centrally located with comfortable rooms and a very hospitable General Manager, I appreciated my two-night stay at the Hyatt Place Yerevan and recommend it. We wanted to make this a three-night stay, but the hotel was sold out our...
End Of An Era: The Amtrak Dining Car
Amtrak is “reinventing” dining on its longhaul train service. Dining cars are out on many routes. “Flexibility” is in. Driven by cost-cutting and a desire to appeal to millennials, Amtrak will close onboard kitchens and shift to pre-packaged meals...
Is The Future Of Condor In Lufthansa’s Hands?
The collapse of parent company Thomas Cook has not affected Condor…at least not yet. What will happen to another storied company that now faces uncharted waters? While all Thomas Cook flights have been suspended, Condor flights continue to operate as...
With Thomas Cook Collapse, UK Prepares For Largest Evacuation Since World War II
The United Kingdom is assembling a fleet of jumbo of jets to rescue more than 150,000 stranded travelers around the world in wake of the Thomas Cook collapse. The evacuation will mark the largest peacetime rescue mission in British...
An Irish Lunch On Aer Lingus
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. Aer Lingus...
Muslim Executive Platinum Passenger Say American Airlines Cancelled Flight For Flushing Toilet Twice…
Abderraoof Alkhawaldeh is a motivational speaker and an American Airlines Executive Platinum member. He claims that AA cancelled his flight because crew members were suspicious of him and another Muslim passenger onboard. The incident occurred onboard AA5886, a Mesa-operated American...
Uber Charges More When Your Battery Is Low?!
Does Uber charge you more if the battery on your mobile phone is low? NPR interviewed Keith Chen on its Hidden Brain program, who is head of “economic research” at Uber. He said: When your phone is down to five...
SkyTeam Responds To Rebuff From Delta CEO Ed Bastian
Delta CEO Ed Bastian expressed indifference bordering on hostility to the SkyTeam alliance this week even though his airline is a founding member. Now SkyTeam has hit back, gently, with a reminder of the value that it brings travelers....
Delta Pushes Boeing To Develop 797
Delta wants Boeing to develop the 797…and is dangling 200 aircraft orders as a prize. Speaking to Bloomberg in New York, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said: I do anticipate they will do it. I hope they will do it....
Cathay Pacific Awards On AA.com = Very Bad News
Cathay Pacific flight awards are now easily bookable on aa.com using miles. What could be the downside? A big one, as it turns out. Cathay Pacific awards have always been bookable using your American Airlines miles. In the past,...
Does New SAS Livery Reveal New SAS Identity?
For the first time in more than two decades, SAS has unveiled a new aircraft livery. What should we make of the new livery and the timing surrounding it? The new livery maintains the iconic SAS logo and blue...
Terrifying: Delta 767-300 Rapidly Descends 29,000 Feet
A Delta 767-300 diverted to Tampa after rapidly descending 29,000 feet in just seven minutes. Delta Flight 2353 was headed from Atlanta to Ft. Lauderdale on Wednesday when a cabin pressure irregularity occurred midway through the flight. While flight...
United Airlines’ New Focus On Quality
United Airlines President Scott Kirby has pledged a greater emphasis on the quality of the passenger experience after many years of shunning such a viewpoint. But what makes for a quality experience? Speaking at the Morgan Stanley 7th Annual...
South African Airways Says Latest Cash Injection Is Not Enough
South African Airways is expected to shortly receive a 5.5 billion rand ($376 million) infusion for the new fiscal year. But the beleaguered carrier says that is not enough to keep the lights on. SAA has debt of 12.7...
American Airlines Saboteur Mechanic May Have Terrorist Ties
Abdul-Majeed Marouf Ahmed Alani, the American Airlines mechanic who admitted to sabotaging an AA 737-800 in Miami, may have terrorist ties says prosecutors. The startling allegation prompted a judge to deny bail to the 60-year-old defendant. When he was...
SFO Runway 28L Will Open One Week Early!
The last 10 days have been irksome for many San Francisco travelers thanks to a closure of SFO Runway 28L. But the pain will end tomorrow night, a whole week ahead of schedule. Runway construction on 28L begin on September 7th at...
The Diamond-Studded Emirates A380 Lounge
Emirates has unveiled a diamond-studded lounge onboard its A380…but don’t worry, it is only a rendering. You might recall that Emirates shared a crystal-encrusted 777 last year on its social media channels: The aircraft was aptly named “Bling 777”...
KLM Replaces Brussels Flight With Full-Service High-Speed Train
KLM will trial a high-speed train service between Amsterdam and Brussels next March in place of one of its flights. But the Dutch carrier promises more than just a seat. KLM currently flies five times per day between Brussels...
Watch An Air China 777-300ER Catch Fire Over Washington Dulles
An Air China 777-300 was forced to return to Washington Dulles after a flames erupted from the left engine after takeoff. An eyewitness captured the entire scene on video using a mobile phone. Air China Flight 818, bound from...
