Are passengers’ insatiable urge for cheap fares to blame for poor airline service? Bill McGee, a former Consumer Reports Travel Editor and FAA-licensed aircraft dispatcher, thinks the answer is NO. In a column for USA Today, he argues that consumers...
Dense, Dimwitted Logic From A Deliberately Deceptive Delta CEO
Air Italy’s USA expansion has caused a stir amongst U.S. legacy carriers. But Delta CEO Ed Bastian’s op-ed response is riddled with deception and outright mistruth. Feel free to start by reading Ed Bastian’s op-ed without my commentary. I’m...
Buying Sports Tickets Is Just Like Buying Airline Award Tickets
Buying sports ticket is just like buying an airline award ticket. It pays to be patient. I planned on attending Game Three of the World Series last night at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, an emergency in the office...
As Another Airline Collapses, Which One Will Fail Next?
Cobalt, a low-cost carrier based in Cyprus, is the latest airline in Europe to fail. But it will not be the last. Who is next? Visit Cobalt’s website and you’ll be met with this lovely page: Cobalt regrets to...
New Air France-KLM CEO Already Has A Target On His Head
Poor Ben Smith has his work cut out for him. The Air Canada President and Chief Operating Officer was named CEO of Air France-KLM today. Already, unions representing Air France are up in arms, threatening strikes and condemning Smith’s...
Has United Surpassed American As #2 U.S. Airline?
An article in Forbes asks if United Airlines has surpassed American Airlines as the #2 airline in the USA. One veteran analyst says YES while one CEO says NO WAY! We can guess the CEO. That would be Doug...
United Airlines Gambles on Increased Capacity
United Airlines will increase capacity 4 to 6% each year, thru 2020. Is this a wise strategy or a fool’s errand that will inevitably trigger a price war? We know what the market thinks. In response to the capacity increase...
We Need More Airport Smoking Lounges, Not Fewer
The Centers for Disease Control argues that indoor smoking rooms must be eradicated from airports worldwide in order to reduce risk to second-hand smoke. I take the opposite approach: I believe non-smokers are better protected though MORE indoor smoking...
Trump Administration: Baggage Fee Disclosures are Too Burdensome
When left to their own devices, I don’t trust airlines to look out for anyone but themselves. While that is not always mutually exclusive to consumer interests, in the case of fee disclosures, it usually is… Fee disclosure should...
Cathay Pacific-Air China Merger?
The South China Morning Post, Hong Kong’s most respected English daily, leads with a headline entitled, “For Air China and Cathay Pacific, it’s one country, two airlines (but how long?)”. The headline follows up with a question: What looks like...
What is Qatar Thinking in Latest Cathay Pacific Investment?
Qatar Airways will spend $600MN to secure a 9.6% stake in Cathay Pacific. What is Qatar Airways’ strategy in this latest acquisition? Qatar expects the deal to close today, meaning it has been in the works for quite some...
American Airlines CEO Suggests Hubs Matter More Than Management
During an earnings call last week, American Airlines’ CEO Doug Parker intimated that bad hubs rather than poor management are to blame for widening profit gaps between industry-leader Delta and American or United. When asked about the widening profit...
JetBlue-United Merger?
An “influential” Wall Street analyst is asserting that a merger between JetBlue and United is more likely than you might think. I am not convinced… In paywall-protected analysis, Hunter Keay of the Wolfe Research has opined– A few investors recently...
US Travelers Deserve Better Airfare Protection
Europe has been a model citizen for protecting consumer rights when it comes to air travel. The US led the world in protecting customers just a couple of years ago but has since gone away from recent reforms. With...
Beware of the Basic Economy “Gate Service Fee”
Delta Basic Economy fares permit a larger carry-on bag, so the focus of this story is on American Airlines and United. If you think you can slip by undetected with you rollerboard, be prepared to pay up and lose...
The Transatlantic Low-Cost Carrier Invasion
Sir Freddie Laker tried, but failed. Now a new crop of low-cost startups is trying to make a permanent mark on transatlantic air travel. Look for the invasion to continue. A day does not go by without at least a handful of headlines...
Why Are We Seeing So Many Cheap Business Class Tickets?
We’ve seen a steady stream of cheap business class fares of late, and it is not unreasonable to question why this fundamental change is occurring. The bean counters have figured something out – leisure and business travelers at the...
U.S. House Shamefully Passes Transparent Airfares Act of 2014
In a bipartisan vote yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Transparent Airfares Act of 2014 which would roll back 2012 legislation requiring that the full fare be displayed at all steps of the airline ticket booking processing. We’ve...
New Numbers Show the Route Network is Not Saving United Airlines
United Airlines has released its 2014 Quarter One investor guidance and the figures are ugly. United blames the weather, the late Easter holiday, and the reduction of its regional jet fleet, but the signs point to a more ominous...
