He got off easy. After ex-JetBlue FA Steven Slater pleaded guilty to two charges of attempted criminal mischief, one a felony and one a misdemeanor, he was released in New York earlier today and will avoid jail if he complies with...
Airlines Want Air Marshals Out of First Class
A couple weeks ago, Scott McCartney of the Wall Street Journal wrote a great column on the recent push by airlines to move Federal Air Marshals out of first class and back to economy. Today, USA Today followed up with an article of their own, further...
US Airways Tells Man He is too Disabled to Fly Alone
To sum up the story: a 47 year old man with cerebral palsy who uses a wheelchair to get around was told by US Airways that he was "too disabled to fly alone" on a PBI-MCI flight last month. In a statement issued...
Southwest Slips to Cellar in On-Time Arrival Performance
United has again captured the on-time arrival award for the month of September (88.9% of flights arrived on time), with US Airways (86.6%) and Continental (85.6%) close behind. Surprisingly, at least on first glance, Southwest Airlines finished last (75.8%) among major...
United to Offer Pre-Ordered Brunch on Premium Service (p.s.) Flights
I saw this story a couple days ago, but Gray beat me to it and sums up my thoughts nicely–and with a good dose of humor. On Wednesday, United announced a new dining option for economy class passengers on...
MIT Proposes Next Generation 737 – Increasing Fuel Efficiency by 70%
Although the prototype design appears unconventional based on the way we currently envision commercial aircraft, MIT is serious: the technology exists to substantially decrease fuel consumption while not compensating performance. Take a look at their proposal, at left, for...
No VDB on Tartarstan Airlines: Passengers Forced to Stand Due to Lack of Seats
Take this story with a grain of salt: after all, it does come from the UK Daily Mail, but apparently the Russians have beat Ryanair to the punch. Tartarstan Airlines, a Russian flag carrier, had a last-minute equipment change...
Woman Faces Three Months in Jail for Stealing Hotel Iron and Towels
If you ever find yourself in Nigeria, don’t even think about stealing any towels from your hotel room. Just like Singapore Airlines taking inventory of the silverware at the end of each flight, apparently the Hilton in Nigeria keeps...
Free Alcohol and Wi-Fi in United’s Red Carpet Clubs
As most of us expected, United announced early this morning that like Continental, alcoholic beverages and Wi-Fi will now be free for all guests in the Red Carpet Club, United’s airport lounge network. Red Carpet Club and Presidents Club...
TSA Misses 200,000 Volt Stun Gun in Woman’s Carry-On Bag
Another story to add to the "TSA competence" file. Earlier this month a woman named Jen (who fearing reprisals from the TSA, has refused to provide her last name [yet still proactively contacted a local television station…]) forgot to...
Ethiopian Airlines to Join Star Alliance
A third carrier from the African continent is slated to join Star Alliance by the end of 2011. Ethiopian Airlines, which flies to 59 destinations (including 39 in Africa), will give Star Alliance passengers a major boost in African...
My Thoughts on The Southwest – AirTran Merger
In a move that took many by surprise today, Southwest (WN) announced that it would be acquiring AirTran for $1.4B, subject to DOT approval. You can read about the details here: I’ll just briefly sum up my thoughts on...
United’s Philadelphia Red Carpet Club Closed by Health Department
As I was checking in for my flight to Chicago Thursday morning at Philadelphia International, I heard an agent call my name from behind me. I turned around and was surprised to find my favorite Red Carpet Club attendant...
United Airlines Fined for Following DOT Tarmac Delay Rules
I know this story has been widely reported already, but I just have to chime in and express my outrage over the recent $12,000 fine levied against United for erroneously reporting that it had violated tarmac delay rules in...
Wi-Fi Coming to JetBlue
Joining the club of "low cost carriers" (I hate to even use that misleading term) that offer or plan to offer wireless internet aboard their aircraft, JetBlue signed a deal today that will put satellite broadband internet and TV...
New Company Name and Stock Symbol for Post-Merger United
When United Airlines entered bankruptcy protection in 2002, it was de-listed from the New York Stock Exchange and lost it’s UAL ticker symbol. After emerging from Chapter 11, United’s new stock issuance was traded on the Nasadq under the...
Free Admission to Museums Nationwide on September 25
Are you a museum aficionado? On September 25, more than 1,000 museums nationwide will offer free admission to celebrate Smithsonian magazine’s sixth annual Museum Day. You can search for participating museums and download tickets here. Each pass grants complimentary entry to...
BA Chief Confident LAN Will Stay in OneWorld
British Airway’s Chief Executive, Willie Walsh, said this week that the LAN/TAM merger is not a threat to OneWorld. He argued that "LAN are very much core members of Oneworld," and that the new Latam Airlines company already sees the...
This Airline Seat Brings a Whole New Meaning to Cattle Class
A couple months ago I blogged about Ryanair’s vertical seat concept that Michael O’Leary, CEO of the budget carrier, hoped would boost revenue for the airline. EU regulators vetoed the standing seat design, but a new “saddle seat” recently unleashed...
ANA to Launch Low-Cost Airline
Taking advantage of JAL’s financial woes and a continuing growth in the China market, All Nippon Airways announced plans to launch a low-cost carrier by the second half of next year. What’s driving this demand for more low-cost travel?...
