06 JAN 15 UPDATE: No Tourist Visas After All for Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia is not quite the hermit kingdom of North Korea, but it remains an elusive destination, difficult to enter and currently impossible to be an official tourist...
United Humiliates Family with Disabled Child or Family Shamefully Tries to Game System?
A story called United with Ivy has been gone viral over the last 48 hours. It goes something like this– Large family (of 16) traveling from Dominican Republic to Newark together Husband and wife have four children Youngest child,...
Breaking: AirAsia Flight from Surabaya to Singapore Missing
In a year in which two Malaysian Airlines aircraft have tragically been lost, another airliner has sadly lost contact with air traffic control this evening. The AirAsia Indonesia A320 was (hopefully is) carrying 155 passengers and seven crew members. An...
Woman Spends Weekend in Jail for Changing Seats on United
When I was thrown off a United Airlines flight for taking a picture of my seat, many were quick to attack — blaming me for being over-entitled and concluding that I was wrong to even question the FA’s confusion...
Air New Zealand to Start Auckland to Buenos Aires Route
For Star Alliance flyers trying to connect between Australia or New Zealand and South America, options are not just limited — there are no flights at all. Connecting via North America or Africa is required, adding hours to an...
United Airlines Now Processing Lufthansa GPU Upgrades Electronically
United Airlines and Lufthansa were both founding members of the Star Alliance and have maintained a close relationship as both codeshare and joint venture partners over years. United’s top-status 1K flyers receive six GPUs (Global Premier Upgrades) each year...
United Airlines Announces Service to Venice, Additional Service to Dublin and Paris
United Airlines announced three new Summer 2015 routes today, including new service from Newark to Venice and Chicago to Dublin as well as a second daily flight from Washington to Paris. Newark to Venice The 767-400 scheduled on this...
United Airlines Mimics Delta, Raises 2016 Elite Requirements
The consultants United Airlines hires to provide strategic advice on loyalty innovation and how to increase profit must have a pretty easy job…watch Delta, then copy. Once again, United has mimicked Delta in increasing elite status thresholds for 2016...
Chinese Tourist Visas Now Valid for 10 Years
President Obama is in Asia this week at APEC and the headline has been the climate change deal he announced with China…but wait, there’s more! Of particular interest to travelers is another deal cut with China to extend visas...
United Airlines, Hertz Partnership Adds Elite Benefits to MileagePlus
United Airlines and Hertz have announced a new partnership in which MileagePlus elite members will receive elite status in Hertz’s Gold Plus Rewards program and more miles for Hertz rentals. Discounts and Bonus Miles with Hertz Hertz is already...
5 Things to Know About the Latest Lufthansa Strike
Lufthansa pilots are striking again over proposed cuts to a lucrative early retirement program and will continue until 23:59 CET tonight. While the 35-hour strike was originally planned only to affect regional traffic within Europe, longhaul pilots have joined...
Ontario, CA Fights for Control of ONT Airport
Southern California’s Inland Empire is a vast sprawl of affordable housing and big box stores east of Los Angeles that also is home to Ontario International Airport (ONT). The once-bustling airport now looks like a ghost town at most...
Airplane Food Delivered to Your Door!
I have a confession to make about airline meals. While most curse United Airlines for the “unchanging” “nasty” “disgusting” “tried” breakfast entrée pictured below, it is one of my favorite meals and if I had the chance to order...
9-Seat Airliner Coming to California
I have family that lives in Visalia, California and while my uncle was still alive, I made frequent trips up there – often once per month. A 3hr drive on I-5 is not a horrible thing, but the drive...
United Cuts JFK-IAD Service, Effective October 25, 2014
Even I am not too old to remember when New York Kennedy was once a United focus city, with service to Tokyo, London, Hong Kong, Boston, Chicago, Washington, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. JFK was also once the home...
German Court Lifts Ban on Uber
A Frankfurt court that had banned Uber ride service from operating within Germany late last month has lifted the ban: Uber is back in business in Germany. Uber is mobile app based ride sharing service that offers an easy...
Kidnapping Forces United Flight from Washington to Beijing to Divert
I love the movie Argo, which tells the story of how Canada and CIA operative Tony Mendez smuggled out a cadre of six U.S. diplomats from Tehran during the Iran Hostage Crisis. In the gripping conclusion (full of artistic...
United Airlines’ CFO Disses His Company’s Global First Class Product
John Rainey, United Airlines’ infamous CFO who claimed that elites are over-entitled, has put his foot in his mouth again…this time by trashing his company’s three-cabin international first class product, dubbed “Global First”. But it was not just a...
Additions and Subtractions to Virgin Atlantic Route Network
Virgin Atlantic, strengthening its joint venture partnership with Delta Air Lines, has announced new routes that will bring the two carriers closer than ever before. With the lastest shuffle, the USA wins while Canada, India, Japan, and South Africa...
Orbitz and American Airlines Fighting Again: Who is to Blame?
American Airlines has pulled fares from Orbitz (again) and will also pull US Airways’ fares starting on September 01, 2015. Though AA is a partial owner of Orbitz, the carrier and the online travel agency have been unable to...
