Ironically, Avianca really impressed me yesterday when they refused to seat me in the exit row on my flight from Lima to Bogota. During check-in with Latin airlines, I can usually use my *very* limited Spanish to state my name, where I...
Rethinking Passport Control in America
Earlier this week I flew from Mexico City to Lima with a two-hour connection in Bogota. When I landed at BOG, I noticed two signs: one for passport control and one for international connections. I followed the international connections...
Drinking and Flying on Both Sides of the Flight Deck
With another arrest of a "drunk" pilot, this time a United Captain on a flight from LHR bound for ORD, should passengers be worried about their safety in the skies? The LA Times featured an interesting discussion of pilot...
Breathless Machu Picchu – A Mandatory Addition to your Destination List
Need I say more? Full trip report upon my return. This article uses a picture from icelight on wikimedia and is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 license (I`ll post my own picture upon my return at the...
Join me in Lima for $245 a/i on LAN Peru from JFK
Well, not really join me since this deal is only good for May and June next year, but LAN is offering round-trip fares from JFK to LIM for $245 including taxes. Book it on AA.com and be sure to...
Off to South America for the Week!
In a few hours, I will be returning to LAX for another long day of travel. Today I will be flying from LAX to Bogota, Colombia via Mexico City on Mexicana, than from BOG to Lima on Avianca. After...
Riding in the "Non-Rev" (First Class) Cabin on UA 947
After getting some work done at TPA, I boarded my flight back to IAD, this time a 757. First Class was only about 80% full and although the purser said this was a “completely full” (don’t you love the...
Bumps and Upgrades: A Great Day of Flying
I will be leaving for South America from Los Angeles Monday morning and needed to get from Philadelphia to Los Angeles this weekend. Naturally, I wasn’t going to fly PHL-LAX! Last night I was scheduled to fly from PHL-IAD-TPA...
UPDATE: United Kicks Man Out of First Class for Wearing a Jogging Suit
It appears that the gate agent who denied Mr. Alvarez a First Class upgrade believed Alvarez was a non-rev, was dealing with another customer during the interaction, and is a non-native English speaker. From Robin Urbanksi, United’s spokesperson: We...
Surprise Birth Leads to Free Flights for Life for Mother and Son
Sometimes, it pays to be in the right place at the right time. KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) – A baby boy who made a surprise arrival on board an AirAsia flight this week will be given free flights for life...
United Kicks Man Out of First Class for Wearing a Jogging Suit
Stories pop up all the time about gate agents making up their own rules or selectively enforcing others. This story takes the cake though: apparently a man’s upgrade cleared at the gate for his IAD-BDL flight on United (Express), but...
$40 Surcharge if You’re Flying Home for Thanksgiving or Christmas
Delta, American, United, and US Airways have recently added $20 o/w surcharges for flights during peak holiday travel this year. I have not bought my tickets to LAX yet for Christmas, so this is disappointing news. At the same...
United Returns Hot Meals to Domestic Business Class
About a year ago United eliminated hot meals from domestic Business Class (except on premium service routes between JFK and LAX/SFO), even on 5+ hour transcon flights. The rationale was to reduce costs and attempt to distinguish First Class...
Picture of the Week #3: Our Tax Dollars at Work and the TSA
I try to fly out of Burbank when I can because you can literally show up 25 minutes before departure and make it the the gate with time to spare–even if you are checking bags. United shares T2 with...
Don’t Let Your Frequent Flyer Miles Expire!
Earlier this year I nearly lost all my American Airlines miles due to account inactivity. With AA, your miles expire after 18 months of dormancy and to reinstate them, AA charges $50 for every 5,000 miles plus a 7.5%...
What do the Gas Company and United Airlines have in Common?
I had to address a problem on my gas bill this week that required a trip to one of Philadelphia Gas Works’ offices. Thinking that it would be a quick visit, I hopped on the Market-Frankford subway line and...
Continental/United IAD-SFO r/t $105 a/i
If you’re up at this late hour, you might want to take advantage of Continental’s IAD-SFO r/t fare for $105-115 including taxes–this deal will probably be gone by morning. Codeshares on United available if you route through Chicago or...
Troubled Times for US Airways: More Cutbacks Ahead
US Airways announced series of cutbacks today as it faces stiff competition and dwindling demand during this troubled time in the airline industry: -Cutback of 1,000 employees (~600 airport, ~200 pilot, and ~150 FA) -Abandoning Las Vegas as a...
UPDATE: Circumventing United Airline’s StarNet Blocking – A Successful Failure
I made about 12 calls to United yesterday evening and finally found an ORD agent willing to do a manual booking. As expected, NZ confirmed the seat immediately and it looked like I was good to go. The flight even showed...
Circumventing United Airline’s StarNet Blocking
Award inventory is shared among Star Alliance carriers in what is known as the StarNet system. United Airlines, in an attempt to save money and funnel travelers to flights on UA metal has instituted a system of StarNet blocking...
