There is no question that United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby erred in taking a private jet to his home in Colorado while his airline melted down and thousands of passengers and crew members were stranded. But calls for his...
Brittney Griner Heckled At DFW Airport
WNBA star and freed Russian prisoner Brittney Griner was heckled while catching a flight at Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW). While it is fair to question the terms of her release, heckling someone with gratuitous insults is not okay. Brittney Griner...
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby Says Russian Airspace Should Be Off-Limits To All Carriers Serving USA
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby has asserted that Russian airspace should be off-limits to any carrier that wishes to serve the United States. United Airlines CEO Kirby: Foreign Carriers Flying To USA Via Russian Airspace Is a “Crisis In...
Massive United Airlines Devaluation: What To Do Now
United Airlines rolled out a massive devaluation of economy class awards last week and now has devalued premium cabin awards as well on both United metal and on partner carriers. This represents a gut punch to MileagePlus members and...
United Airlines Denounces Delta Air Lines’ Haneda Slot Proposal As A “Self-Serving Scheme”
United Airlines is mounting an aggressive challenge to Delta Air Lines’ efforts to obtain more flexibility in the use of Tokyo Haneda slots assigned in 2019. Delta Air Lines Wants More Flexibility To Use Tokyo Haneda Slots – American...
Exciting: How United Airlines Is Genuinely Improving Onboard Service
Imagine a flight where flight attendants impeccably describe the wine list onboard, knowing how to pronounce each choice, the origin, ingredients, and what to pair it with. Gulf carrier, right? Or maybe an East Asian carrier? How about United...
United Airlines Feels The Regional Jet Pinch
The ability of United Airlines to set up profitable flight banks and offer connectivity from smaller cities remains compromised due to a regional jet pilot shortage. However, United sees this problem stabilizing and has also indicated that it will,...
Biden Considers Banning Airlines Who Use Russian Airspace
US carriers want the Biden Administration to restrict foreign carriers from using Russian airspace, arguing it places them at a competitive disadvantage. The Biden administration is considering the request. Yes, the demand is self-serving. But is the right move,...
Is United’s Quarterly Loss A Negotiating Strategy To Temper Pilots’ Contract?
At the outset, I want to make clear that I am making no declarative statements, but rather am simply thinking out loud. Could it be that the unexpected quarterly loss United Airlines now forecasts for Q1 is primarily aimed...
Singapore Airlines’ Defiant New Ad Campaign
I think the new Singapore Airlines “world class” ad campaign is a masterpiece, but also adds a subtle touch of defiance that pushes back against not only Gulf carriers, but carriers that have gone woke. Singapore Airlines World Class...
A Veteran Commercial Airline Pilot Analyzes American – Delta Runway Incident At JFK
121pilot, our resident pilot on Live And Let’s Fly and captain for a major US airline, has graciously offered his thoughts on the near collision between an American Airlines 777 and a Delta Air Lines 737 at New York...
New United Airlines Flight Attendant Training Facility In Houston Represents Perfect Opportunity To Transform Service Culture
United Airlines has opened a new 56,000-square-foot flight attendant training facility at Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston that it says will accommodate training up to 600 flight attendants per month. This marks the perfect opportunity for “United Next” to...
Airmanship: What Pilots Need Most
Editor’s Note: In light of the recent American – Delta ATC incident at New York JFK, we are featuring this story again by 121pilot. It is chillingly prescient. In part two of this series, we looked at some of...
How Will United Airlines Add CRJ-900 To Fleet Without Violating Pilot Scope Clause?
A flurry of moves resembling a game of musical chairs in the US regional airline market means, in simplest terms, that United Airlines is swapping smaller jets for larger jets. But with United’s strict contractual scope clause with mainline...
The Problems Pilots Face Today
This is the second in a three-part series that talks about flying airliners and some of the challenges this pilot sees for the profession. If you read part one of this series, you will hopefully recall how I discussed the...
The Ups And Downs Of Being A Commercial Pilot
This is the first in a three-part series that talks about flying airliners and some of the challenges this pilot sees for the profession. In Part 1 we’ll discuss ups and downs of being a commercial pilot. In part...
Context Matters: Did Biden Actually Say Airlines Charging Extra For Legroom Is Racist?
President Biden made headlines for his latest gaffe, suggesting that airlines that charge extra for additional legroom are racist. But text outside of context is simply a pretext for misunderstanding. I’m going to give the President the benefit of...
New Airline Consumer Protections Proposed By DOT – Helpful Or Harmful?
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has proposed new consumer protections for airline customers that seek to encourage transparency in terms of pricing. Are such protections necessary or a step too far? DOT Proposes Additional Airline Consumer Protections Under...
Analysis: United Airlines’ Smart Yet Unreasonable Chess Move At JFK Airport
Earlier today, I wrote about United’s ultimatum at New York JFK: give us more slots or we will pull out. It’s a gutsy demand and not entirely reasonable, but represents a shrewd chess move with little downside. Analysis –...
Gulf Carriers Solve Practical Problem For U.S. Airlines
If you wonder why U.S. airlines are cozying up to Gulf carriers, it is helpful to look to Russia, the War in Ukraine, and the economics of operating a worldwide route network under a new set of constraints that...
