American Airlines and US Airways have officially merged, but for practical purposes, the airlines remain separate entities and will maintain separate operations for several months. Business will continue as usual, with separate check-in, gates, loyalty programs, and policies: like...
Man Wakes Up Onboard Dark, Empty, United Express Plane in Houston
A man buys a United Airlines ticket from Louisiana to California via Houston on United. He boards the first leg and being an extraordinary sleeper, falls into a deep slumber on an Embrarer regional jet, one of the most...
United’s IDB Nightmare: 90-Year-Old Pearl Harbor Veteran Among 41 Bumped Off Flight to Honolulu
United Airlines is facing another firestorm over news that a 90-year-old Pearl Harbor veteran bound for Honolulu was among 41 passengers bumped when bad weather necessitated severally weight restricting a 737-800 aircraft at Los Angeles International Airport. Ewalt Shatz travels...
Delta Cancels Flight to Charter Basketball Team Instead
Whatever the going rate is for a chartered jet on Delta Air Lines, it must be better than the revenue from a scheduled flight, because when a Delta charter went mechanical on Saturday in Tampa, Delta promptly cancelled a...
TSA-Approved "Detention Pods" at Syracuse Airport
As part of its $60mn renovation, Syracuse International Airport has installed new exit portals that it says will replace the need for security guards or TSA agents to be stationed at exits to the secure part of the airport....
The Real Reason Behind United’s New Service to Atlantic City
United Airlines announced new service from Houston Bush Intercontinental and Chicago O’Hare to beleaguered Atlantic City, New Jersey this week in a deal that brought NJ Governor Chris Christie and United CEO Jeff Smisek together for a special ceremony...
Merger! US DOJ Settles Lawsuit Against US Airways and American Airlines
US Airways and American Airlines have reached a preliminary deal with the U.S. Department of Justice concerning their planned merger. Details are still emerging. Under the proposal, American and US Airways would sell 104 takeoff and landing slots at...
Delta Skymiles Logic: A Devaluation Before the Devaluation
You have to wonder what is going through the minds of the decision makers at Delta Air Lines when they announce a devaluation of their Skymiles award chart effecting all travel on or after 01 June 2014 then decide...
Clarification from United Airlines on Award Chart Changes
United has addressed some initial confusion stemming from its announcement yesterday that on 01 February 2014 the award chart chart will be massacred. 1. United claims the cost of premium seats on partner carriers is “out of sync” with...
New United Airlines Transpac Route from SFO: Chengdu
United Airlines will announce a new transpacific longhaul route from San Francisco tomorrow and an insider tells me the new destination will be to Chengdu (CTU). Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China and home to more than 14,000,000 people....
False Alarm: Still No Fuel Surcharges on Most AA Awards
I awoke to news this morning that American Airlines would begin imposing fuel surcharges on all award travel, including flights on its own metal, and my heart sank. Currently fuel surcharges are imposed on British Airways flights and a...
American Airlines Adds New Flights at LAX
American Airlines is growing at Los Angeles International and today the carrier will begin service to five new cities: Indianapolis, Indiana Columbus, Ohio Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Hartford, Connecticut Bentonville, Arkansas Earlier this year AA began serving Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina and...
Disgruntled Former United Airlines Purser Extracts Revenge by Phoning in Bomb Threats
A former United Airlines purser has pleaded guilty to to making a false bomb threat against a United flight from Los Angeles to London Heathrow. He could face up to five years in prison and has agreed to pay...
Rumor Confirmed: United 777s to Sydney, 787 to Osaka, 747 Returns to Chicago
United Airlines will replace its 747-400s with three-cabin 777-200ERs on its flagships Los Angeles/San Francisco-Sydney routes starting next spring. Other changes include a 787 on the San Francisco-Osaka route (currently a mix between the 747 and 777) and the...
Sneak Peek at JetBlue’s A321 Business Class + Mini-Suites
JetBlue has released the first images of its new Airbus A321 interiors, including a look at its 16-seat business class cabin that will contain four mini-suites with sliding doors providing complete privacy. The new aircraft and addition of business...
Breaking: Nose Gear Collapse on Southwest Airlines Plane at New York LaGuardia
Some breaking news out of New York– At least three people suffered minor injuries when a Southwest Airlines plane landed at LaGuardia Airport with a nose gear collapse, according to officials. The airport is closed until further notice, the...
Local News Station Reports Racist Joke as Names of Asiana Flight 214 Pilots
I have yet to offer my analysis on the recent Asiana crash, but it will be forthcoming and will focus not on the crash itself, but on the way the media reported on it: irresponsibly in many cases. With...
Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner Catches Fire at London Heathrow
More problems for Boeing’s 787 program, this time in London: An internal fire broke out on Friday on a Boeing 787 that Ethiopian Airlines had parked between flights at London’s Heathrow Airport, the airport said. The plane was in...
Snowden Onboard Aeroflot Flight to Havana?
The whole Edward Snowden issue is a mess and I am not going to weigh in on my own feelings about him here. But his saga to seek asylum is inextricably linked to travel and after spending two weeks...
Breaking: Asiana 777 Crashes at SFO
The news is just breaking now, but an Asiana 777 from Seoul has crashed while landing at San Francisco International Airport. No injuries reported at this point, but one passenger tweeted: plane came in at a bad angle, flipped,...