Times are grim for Kam Air, the main private airline in Afghanistan. Fearing for their safety, foreign workers are fleeing the country, forcing the carrier to cancel the majority of its flights. Last week a deadly terrorist attack rocked...
Live and Let’s Fly Weekend Digest: January 28, 2018
I’m back in California after a whirlwind trip around the world that included stops in Asia, the Middle East, and seven countries in Europe. I’ll be on the ground for awhile…at least that is the plan. This coming week...
Review: W Hotel New Orleans – French Quarter
The W Hotel New Orleans French Quarter was a mixed bag. The property is well located if you want to be close to Bourbon Street but still able to sleep at night, less than ideal if you’d prefer to...
Getting to Ha Long Bay, Vietnam
We ended our summer of slow travel through Asia in Vietnam. One of my long time “Bucket List” destinations, my family was excited to visit the lush and beautiful Ha Long Bay. We weren’t let down. Getting There We flew in...
Confirmation That Elites Are Leaving Hyatt
Hyatt changed their very popular loyalty program in 2017 and may have upset their best customers. Hyatt has made a series of changes to the program that walked back some of the restrictions keeping elites from qualifying for the...
University Professor Arrested for Calling German “Nazi” at Frankfurt Airport
A Georgetown University professor was arrested for calling a German Federal Police Officer “Nazi” (among other choice words) at Frankfurt International Airport. Word of warning: that’s a bad idea anywhere, but especially in Germany. I lived in Germany for...
Review: Turkish Airlines A330-200 Business Class Istanbul to Frankfurt
Turkish Airlines offers a consistent, above-average product in its European business class. This flight demonstrated, once again, why I enjoy Turkish Airlines so much. It wasn’t the A330 I thought it would be…I already addressed that in my initial...
Will United Fight Emirates at Newark or Retreat?
Emirates wants United’s bread and butter routes…and it likely will prevail unless United chooses to fiercely compete against the popular Gulf Carrier. American tried and failed. Delta tried and failed. But United maintains service to both New Delhi and...
My Worst Business Class Meal Yet…
A late-night flight on Thai Airways out of Tokyo made for a lethal combination when it came to the in-flight meal in business class. That’s the subject of this week’s Meal of the Week. Here’s my question: how long...
Review: Turkish Airlines 777-300ER Business Class Los Angeles to Istanbul
What surprised me most about my Turkish Airlines 777-330ER Business Class flight from Los Angeles to Istanbul was not the great service or food onboard, but the seat. Turkish 10 Los Angeles (LAX) – Istanbul (IST) Monday, December 17 Depart: 6:30 PM...
Singapore Airlines FA Arrested for Gold Smuggling
In a world of tariffs and walls, one professional has an easier time than most in clearing borders with minimal scrutiny: a flight attendant. But even FAs are not immune from random inspections. A Singapore Airlines FA was arrested...
My Secret Tour of the TWA Flight Center at JFK
The TWA Flight Center at JFK is perhaps the most iconic airline terminal in the world. I was determined to see it one last time. Well, actually see it for the first time…in person. The terminal isn’t going anywhere....
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...
Flight Attendants Ordered to Pay Model $100K for Spilling Soup on Her
Nearly four years later, a fashion model has prevailed in her battle for restitution from Asiana Airlines and the FAs who scalded her with soup. It was March 17, 2014 and the model, who is only known as Chang, was...
Review: Delta 767-300 Business Class Honolulu to Los Angeles
Delta offers a daily 767 widebody service between Los Angeles and Honolulu, featuring fully lie-flat beds in business class. This was the primary reason I chose this particular flight to travel home from Honolulu to LA. I outline the...
How Much is Too Much for a Hotel Room?
An open-ended question: do you have an absolute dollar limit on what you’ll spend on a hotel room or does it always vary by location and date? I realize this limits me from most higher end hotels like the...
United Airlines Adds Special Super Bowl Flights to MSP
United Airlines is adding several flights to and from Minneapolis for Super Bowl LII early next month. United already flies into Minneapolis 26 times each day from its hubs around the country. Just for the “Big Game” weekend, United...
Airline Ramp Handlers Caught Stealing Hundreds of Computers
Greed causes people to do horrible things…like steal laptops and mobile phones from rural school children. But justice is now being served. Six ramp handlers for Ravn Air, an Alaska Airlines partner and regional airlines in Alaska, used their trusted...
Virgin Atlantic Shows How to Be Honest
I give airlines a lot of flak on Live and Let’s Fly for the duplicitous double standards many engage in. Most center around consumer-unfriendly polices like waiting to days or weeks to cancel so-called “mistake fares” while strictly penalizing...
