Just a few days ago I said I would never complain about U.S. Customs and Border Patrol again. That was before I came back to America earlier this week and had to deal with another humiliating interrogation session and...
Double Check Your United Award Itineraries Now…for Missing Segments!
I received an e-mail this evening from a client whom I had assisted with an award reservation to South Africa on Swiss (San Francisco- Zurich-Johannesburg) using United miles. Tickets had been issued last October and were in economy class....
Bribing My Way Out of Kazakhstan
Another trip to a former Soviet Republic, another adventure at the border. I was originally scheduled to fly out of Almaty to Frankfurt early on 25 March. Plans changed and I pushed back my departure to 01:50 on 26...
I’ll Never Complain About U.S. Customs and Border Control Again…
Well, maybe that is a bit too draconian, but after experiencing an overland border crossing yesterday from Kyrgyzstan to Kazakhstan at Korday, it puts the rudeness and inefficiency of U.S. border agents in perspective. Think free for all. Pushing,...
Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan on Air Canada, bmi, Lufthansa
I love adventures. From Iraq to Belarus, from Turkish-occupied Northern Cyprus to the West Bank, from remote Bolivia to Iran, my sense of adventure has taken me to fascinating places around the world—and now I depart for a previously...
Was it the Way I Looked? Part III
Part I Part II Back in the United Club, I sat down to plot out how I would get back to Philadelphia. Flights were full–very full. Premium cabins were zeroed out ex-SFO through all legacy Untied hubs as well...
Was it the Way I Looked? Part II
Read Part I here As I mentioned in Part I, when I reached SFO Saturday morning to check in for my trip to Philadelphia via Chicago, the agent could not find my ticket. I had been re-booked by a...
Phantom Lufthansa First Class Award Space on StarNet
I became excited today while working on a client award request when some first class availability popped up on Lufthansa–it has been very rare lately, especially more than a few days before travel. One client was using Air Canada...
Was it the Way I Looked? Part I
The rain and fog was bad in SFO yesterday, delaying my US Airways flight from Charlotte for over three hours and causing a misconnect on my way back to PHL. I knew I would miss my connecting flight while...
I Did Not Clear the Standby List…
…for the shower. And boy oh boy, did I miss it. It’s been an interesting few days. Easter Island was great–pictures will be coming in due time–but I made a big mistake. For some reason, the sun and my...
Next Stop: Easter Island on LAN
Last fall, when British Airways massively devalued its Executive Club program, I went on a booking frenzy in the final hours of old award chart and booked a number of trips, including an 80K business class trip on LAN...
An Amazing Delta TV Ad
Airline television ads are one of my favorite topics on Live and Let’s Fly. I’ve raved about United Airlines ads, been awestruck by British Airways not once, but twice, and been wowed by Virgin Atlantic. But I may have...
Picture: A Unique Moment in United Airlines History
As United Airlines works to repaint all of its aircraft with the Continental globe livery, there are still a number of variations out there. United never got around to updating its gray livery on many aircraft when it introduced...
TSA Concedes Failure of Full Body Scanners
TSA’s Iraqi Information Minister, Blogger Bob, addressed the new video “making its way around the interwebs” about why full body scanners actually make us less safe. His words were telling. Let’s go through them, one sentence at a time....
One Upside to the United Merger: Elite-Only Saver Awards in Business and First Class
With the exception of the expanded route network and ability to search for Star Alliance partner awards online (which actually hurts my award consulting business), I cannot point to many changes I like in the new world of Continental...
How to Get Anything Past a TSA Full-Body Scanner
For years I have been preaching about the lack of critical thinking and common sense that characterized the Transportation Security Administration’s choice to roll out full-body scanners at airports nationwide. I have pointed out that the machines were never...
Travel Vexations on United Airlines: Give Yourself Plenty of Time This Week
I had my first post-SHARES travel experience today on United, and it was not pretty—though it ended well. In what has become a routine for me of late, I was scheduled to fly from Columbia, SC to Philadelphia via...
How Did the United Airlines IT Transition Go For You?
I’ve been dealing with a number of family issues over the last week, so I apologize for the brevity of recent posts and the noticeable gaps between them. Just to warn my six readers, the next couple weeks don’t...
United is Dead, Long Live UNITED
United.com has just been switched off. Continental.com is now off as well. All phones lines this hour connect to a pre-recorded message welcoming customers to the “the new United” but stating that systems are down and agents are unable...
Armageddon for United/Continental Passengers on 03 March?
At 0100 Central Time on Saturday, 03 March, United Airlines will flip the switch, transitioning from its Apollo Reservation System it has used for the last four decades to Continental’s in-house SHARES system. Will the transition be smooth? History...
