Qantas released a dizzying amount of teasers yesterday with regard to restructuring their ailing international operation, as well as planned improvements to their Boeing 747 fleet, frequent flyer program and lounge offerings. The carrier held an official “A New Spirit†briefing where the below items were announced, many of which were more fully analyzed and…
Commentary
Category Archives for Commentary.
Analysis of American Airlines’ AAdvantage Elite Rewards program
Last week American Airlines launched elite rewards as part of the 30th anniversary of the AAdvantage frequent flyer program. It’s based on your elite status at the close of the year along with how many Elite Qualifying Points (EQPs) you’ve racked up to that point. Each tier has its own selection of rewards available once…
Vintage Airline Seat Map: United Airlines Boeing 747-SP (Special Performance)
The Boeing 747SPs flying around for the major U.S. carriers was truly something special in the 1980s. I previously posted the American Airlines 747SP seat map whose routes focused on the high yield traffic to Tokyo, and likewise United’s Special Performance version of the bird flew primarily to London with additional flights to Buenos Aires,…
Videos: Airline Global Distribution Systems explained, with a bit of humor
Eventually I’ll get around to posting a detailed description and history of Global Distribution Systems (GDSs), but in the meantime check out these videos from Everbread. The UK-based travel technology company put these together in part to explain the method by which airline reservations have been booked since the 1950s, but also to expose the…
My gift of two United Airlines Systemwide Upgrades goes to…
I’m thrilled that two of my available United Airlines Systemwide Upgrades have found a new home. Congratulations to commenter number 58, and I’ll be emailing you directly with further details shortly. Thanks for everyone’s interest and happy flying to us all!
My thoughts on the rumored United Airlines Mileage Plus changes
Ben over at One Mile at a Time gave many of us quite a shock last night when he posted details of the Mileage Plus program rumored to begin in 2012. Here’s a summary of what he learned: As for upgrade priority, the all mighty fare value on each segment will be the primary metric…
Delta hits and misses; American rewards; death by airfare; LAX grows; Tiger flies; cheap hotels and terrible IFE
In other airline, hotel & travel industry news this week… I’ve flown Delta Air Lines and have had pleasant experiences, but as most know the SkyMiles program for redemption opportunities remains the most ridiculous of the majors in the U.S. The good right now: Delta is giving a 100% bonus on purchased and transferred miles…
I’m gifting two United Airlines Systemwide Upgrade certificates (SWUs)
[Edited to add: Thanks for everyone’s interest. Commenter #58 ended up being chosen and the upgrades are reserved in his name] My international travel has been plotted through at least January next year and I have two United Airlines Systemwide Upgrade certificates available that I’d like to gift to someone, so who better than one…
Review of Google’s new Hotel Finder metasearch tool
Last month Google launched Hotel Finder, a new travel tool that searches for hotels based on city and other inputs from the user and returns Online Travel Agency (OTA) pricing. Limited to the United States for now, you can type in a city name or zip code and a small map will appear along with…
Airline ticket tax holiday short-lived, but long-term FAA funding far more critical
The partial shutdown of the FAA ended yesterday, but it’s only a temporary reprieve and I still hold firm in my disgust of politicians and their ability to hold citizens hostage from their employment. Sixteen days went by where airlines didn’t have to collect federal taxes that fund not only the salaries of Federal Aviation…