The idea of a customer loyalty program is a good one. We want to be rewarded for our patronage of any given company, be it an airline, or be it the local supermarket. But there is a serious problem with these programs for their patrons. People forget one word. FREQUENT.
Image via Wikipedia Lufthansa is bringing back in-flight wi-fi. As reported by Upgrade Travel, Lufthansa will be the first transatlantic carrier to put out a comprehensive plan for wi-fi connectivity after Boeing discontinued its in-flight wi-fi offering. Lufthansa’s system, called Flynet, is Panasonic-based, and uses a satellite based network, like Row 44, which is working…
Image by Drewski2112 via Flickr We wanted to link in this video, but unfortunately, we couldn’t figure out how to, so here is a link. BBC Panorama was doing a documentary on Ryanair. There was nothing new or exciting about the documentary, from what we hear. But they did corner Michael O’Leary, who despite his…
Image via Wikipedia Welcome to another additional of roundup. Today we have some continuing news and route developments. Remember, for more details/information, a link appears to a press release or other story inside each notice. This week, AirTran announced increases to its winter Florida schedule. Daily flights will be added to both Orlando and Ft.…
Image by mag3737 via Flickr ANA(All Nippon Airways) has started asking passengers to go the bathroom before they fly, claiming lighter bowels and bladders mean light passengers and thus a lighter plane, which means less fuel. Now, we always go to the bathroom before boarding for other reasons than green concerns. For one, asking people…
Image by Getty Images via Daylife The Premier Baggage program unveiled by United Air Lines yesterday is something of a mixed bag. For $249 a year, you (plus up to eight people traveling with you on the same reservation) get to check up to two bags per person, per flight for free all year. United…
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 16:10 — 11.2MB)
Subscribe: RSS
Earlier today, the Cranky Flier announced he was starting a new business, The Cranky Concierge, a personal travel assistance company. We saw it as a good opportunity to break out the podcasting equipment and interview Brett Snyder, the Cranky Flier. Our Editor, the Flight Wisdom Guru reports:
Image by Nick Chill via Flickr On August 28th, according to Manchester-Boston Regional Airport manager Mark Brewer, JetBlue hinted that a local demonstration of enthusiasm about the company’s arrival would be important. With airlines reducing seats and fewer passengers flying Manchester, airport officials recently offered incentives to attract new airlines and existing airlines to begin…
Image by Getty Images via Daylife Airline Route Updates has a comprehensive list of the new JetBlue-Lufthansa codeshare, found here. The flight numbers will be between LH8500 and 8700 and cover both Boston and New York-JFK routes. Booking are already open for service on or after November 1st. Also effective today, South African Airlines will…
Image via Wikipedia British Airways Flight 001, service from London City to New York-JFK via Shannon(where passenger’s pre-clear US Immigration and Customs), which was operated using an all-business class A318, arrived 10 minutes ago into Kennedy Airport. The service features 32 sleeper beds, a 15-minute check-in, London City’s proximity to key parts of the city,…
[caption id="" align="alignright" width="231" caption="Alaska Airlines Arrives at Houston"][/caption] This is a busy month for us, and it is often hard to keep up on things. So we want to try to catch up on some route developments over the last few days we may have missed. Matching competitor AirTran, Delta Air Lines will inaugurate…
[caption id="attachment_1711" align="alignleft" width="225" caption="In Flight Service - Virgin America"][/caption] Here is the news: The CW announced today that its new docu-series Fly Girls, which gives a glimpse into the lives of five “beautiful Virgin America flight attendants,” is set to debut midseason. The network describes the series as being “about real, down-to-earth young women…
Image by widybrad via Flickr U.S. Helicopter terminated its service on Friday between Manhattan heliports and JFK Airport. While they hope to resume it after new financing is secured, it may not be the best time for such a luxury product. Prices averaged up to $159 for an 8 minute ride to the airport, but…
Yesterday, we were reading Chris Elliott’s Travel Troubleshooter blog. He posted excerpts from letters sent and received by a regular flier and US Airways. And we started contemplating the issue of how airlines might handle things when the airline and the passenger cannot see eye to eye.
The Middle Seat Terminal blog reports that the rate at which passengers were bumped in the second quarter of this year increased forty percent compared with the same period a year ago. As carriers have slashed capacity to the bone, and with overbooking a common practice, there are too many people crammed onto flights.
Trans World Airlines was one of the great U.S. legacy airlines. In fact, until the 1970s, it and Pan Am(also now defunct), were the only U.S. airlines to serve Europe. For their flight attendants, however, the airline still lives, which prompted our reminiscence.
United Airlines will retire the last Boeing 737 jet from its fleet on October 28th, after forty-one years of service.
American Airlines has given up on St. Louis’s Lambert Airport. Back in the day, TWA had an extensive hub operation at the airport. American has gradually reduced service and now after these cuts, the airport will have only 36 flights a day to nine cities, LAX, Chicago-O’Hare, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Miami, New York-JFK, Boston, New York-LaGuardia,…
Lee Lipton, Southwest’s Director of Network Strategic Planning sees a future in low cost long haul in addition to its existing shorthaul products, but emphasizes there is no timetable for the move. Their chairman, Gary Kelly, said that the carrier is seriously considering operating flights to Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean as soon as 2011.
Ebags, the online luggage retailer, is offering a 20% off sale this weekend. To browse their selection, click the link below. Save 20% through Monday 9/14 at eBags.com
Saying something about 9/11 is almost obligatory, especially for a commercial aviation blogger. The scope of the tragedy was nearly unimaginable at the time…that such a thing could happen. Our hearts continue to go out to those who lost loved ones that day and we will never forget the sacrifice of those who rushed to assist. The two biggest security developments that came in a post-9/11 world were…
We haven’t done a service roundup in a while. Mostly because there hasn’t been as much news in this area as there once was. Airlines don’t announce discontinuance as much as they do inauguration. But this week had some interesting developments.
We reported on this last week. But the “Travel Promotion Act” was approved by the Senate yesterday. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid(NV) praised the job-creation of increased tourism to the U.S., calling it a “win-win-win.”
As we said yesterday, the age of traditional hijacking in North America is gone. Aside from 9/11, which ushered in a new age of hijacking for the purpose of using a plane as a weapon, the traditional hijacking, which involved individuals taking over a plane and holding the passengers hostage for a political agenda, is almost dead
Our spin-off blog, Transit Wisdom, reported today on a vote on a proposed commuter rail extension to T.F. Green Airport. Once approved and completed, passengers would be able to travel from South Station in Boston to the airport in approximately one hour and fifteen minutes.