Many lines of prose have been written about the bungling of Marriott Bonvoy, their loyalty program transition. Now that the program has been re-launched, many loyalists are using the peculiar name of the botched program, “Bonvoy”, as a derogatory verb. If...
United Will Introduce New Livery Next Month
When United Airlines and Continental merged, the United name may have survived, but the Continental livery did. Now comes the chance for true reconciliation. I say that facetiously, of course, since the paint on aircraft is like the old...
AAdvantage Elite Members Win Big, But World Of Hyatt Members?
American Airlines and Hyatt announced a new partnership today which will launch later this year. The new partnership will allow double dipping; American Airlines AAdvantage elite members will earn Hyatt points plus AA bonus miles for every Hyatt stay....
British Airways Debuts Its Next Retro Jet (And It’s A Stunner)
British Airways has revealed the second in its series of heritage liveries, this time a reminder of the British European Airways (BEA) era. The Airbus A319 arrived in Heathrow yesterday from Shannon, Ireland with fresh paint. It soon made its first...
Delta Pilot Leaves Handgun Sitting In Cockpit
I’m certainly prone to leaving mobile phones and passports behind on airplanes, but handguns? One Delta pilot went home but forgot the handgun, leaving it sitting in the cockpit for cleaning crews to find later. We don’t have the...
Southwest Wages War Against Its Mechanics
Southwest Airlines has sued its mechanics’ union, alleging that the union is engaging in an illegal work slowdown. For the last few weeks, mechanics have taken far more aircraft out of service than usual, citing maintenance concerns. Southwest has...
Thai Airways Fails To Innovate, Loses Big Again
It is no surprise that after promising profits for 2018, Thai Airways ended up losing far more than expected. This is Thai Airways after all, where there remains eternal optimism in king and insanity. While Thailand is still mourning...
Will JetBlue Announce Service To Europe On April 10th?
JetBlue has hinted about service to Europe for years. Will the big announcement finally come this spring? Yesterday, JetBlue employees received the following “Save the Date” e-mail: Save the Date JETBLUE ALL HANDS Join us for a chat about...
Flight Attendant Drops Baby, Breaking Her Nose
A flight attendant offered to help a mother carry her baby off a flight but instead dropped her, causing a broken nose and concussion. It’s truly a sad story with enough blame to go around. Aeroflot operates a low-cost...
LOT Polish Using Air Belgium A340 On Warsaw – New York JFK Route
As its 787 Dreamliners undergo maintenance, LOT Polish is using Air Belgium to operate one of its flagship routes. Starting today and running through at least March 11, 2019, Air Belgium will be operating LOT’s flights between Warsaw and...
Flight Diversions Galore As India And Pakistan Brace For War
Yesterday was not a good day to travel to India or Pakistan and today isn’t looking much better. Gearing up for possible war, Pakistan has closed its airspace to commercial air traffic. That caught many airlines off guard. Last...
Amtrak’s Coast Starlight Train Stuck In Snow For 37 Hours
An Amtrak train traveling from Seattle to Los Angeles made an unexpected stop in a small town in Oregon…for 37 hours. Amtrak’s Coast Starlight service runs daily between Los Angeles and Seattle. The 36-hour journey mostly follows the Pacific...
Airline Sues Passenger For Throwing Coins In Engine
A man who threw coins into an A320 for good luck is instead being sued by the airline for over $21,000. Talk about a turn of fortunes… The man, named Lu, was traveling on Lucky Air from Ningbo to Anqing....
Aegean Adds Eight New International Destinations
Fledgling Aegean Airlines will add eight new international destinations and increase frequency between many top destinations and and the Greek capital. Aegean will add 700,000 seats, primarily increasing traffic during the slower winter months. From Athens: Casablanca Ibiza Marrakech...
Flight Attendants Battle American Airlines, Claiming Sexism and Pilot Favoritism
The flight attendant union at American Airlines claims that AA treats its predominantly female cabin crews as “second-class citizens” over pilots via new “sexist” attendance rules. Welcome to contract negotiation season… Pilot and flight attendant contracts are up for...
Will Etihad Partner With United And Join Star Alliance?
Rumors are swirling that Etihad Airways will ditch American Airlines and partner with United Airlines. What will this mean for all three carriers? It was two years ago that rumors were swirling that Etihad was close to joining Star...
U.S. Carriers Fight For Coveted Tokyo Haneda Slots
Four U.S. carriers are fighting for 19 slots at Tokyo Haneda Airport. Who will be left without a seat when the music stops? A new bilateral aviation agreement with Japan gives U.S. carriers access to 12 new daytime slots...
Airfare Is Cheaper* Than Ever Before
With inflation factored in, average airfare in the United States is lower than it has ever been since the government started keeping track. But do note the asterisk in my title. Government record keeping began in 1995 and this...
Amtrak Faces A Daunting Dilemma
Amtrak, America’s state-run passenger railroad company, faces a daunting dilemma. Its path to profit is to cut what its Congressional overlords seem unwilling to even consider eliminating. I’m taking about long-distance rail service. Storied routes like the Empire Builder...
South African Airways Denies Three-Way Split
South African Airways is denying a report that it will split into three units. News surfaced yesterday that beleaguered South African Airways would split into three separate entities, one for domestic, one for regional, and one for international flight routes....
