Tagged With "Frequent Flier"
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Re: Please Don't Squeeze the Passengers: Airbus
If this standard were adopted, it might be the single greatest improvement in quality of travel in economy class. 17 inches is alright if no one is beside you, a rarity today. On an Transocean flight, it make sleeping very difficult indeed. I'm glad to see Airbus take this proconsumer stand.
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Re: Please Don't Squeeze the Passengers: Airbus
Airbus has taken a major step in passenger comfort with the introduction of the new Airbus 380, their new double-deck airliner. Just as a large cruise ship will sail choppy seas in much greater comfort due to its size and sophistication, the new 380 is so much more smooth, quiet and comfortable up in the skies. Sure seat sizes and configuration will vary between operators but certainly the overall 'environment experience' is so much nicer
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Re: Please Don't Squeeze the Passengers: Airbus
Interesting point, Mac. Large planes with bright decor somehow seem to me roomier, even if the seat is the same size. I think there's a balance between physical comfort and "feel" that airlines may not always recognize. On the other hand, I've been on 777s that had so little division of space that my mental image was sitting in a huge concert hall...and felt a bit uncomfortable from that!
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Re: Please Don't Squeeze the Passengers: Airbus
I've never flown an A380, Mac. They still haven't caught on in North America, where Boeing clearly dominates the market. One thing that I've wonder about is with all those people to board (somewhere over 500), is the process of getting on and off the plane very slow or have they figured out how to make this move along with reasonable efficiency?
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Re: Please Don't Squeeze the Passengers: Airbus
It seems as if the terminals that they use have many more access ramps (fingers) to spread the loading and unloading, plus, of course, the terminal also needs to have sufficient immigration desks and baggage facilities. So far our experiences have been good but I can imagine just how it could foul up!
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Re: United's Award Chart: Premium Award Cost Goes UP
I think for premium travel,it makes sense. It has always surprised me that premium travel is so much cheaper from a frequent flier perspective (2:1) vs economy than when you actually buy the ticket. Just as a side note, aeroplan has recently reduced miles required on some of their reward charts as well.
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Re: Up, Up and Away: Airline miles cards with big bonuses
I LOVE my airline credit card, but it's great to have all this information in one place to see if I could do better. Probably not without some whopping fees, but whopping bonuses, too. Thank you sir, for showing us all these choices!
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Re: Up, Up and Away: Airline miles cards with big bonuses
I have a Delta American Express Platinum card that has served us well. The fee is higher than the gold card, but we can check two bags free, priority boarding, and a free companion pass yearly. We fly two or three times a year and the value of the waived baggage fee and the companion pass far exceed the $150 annual fee. The card also accrues one mile for each dollar spent and lately has offered cash back incentives. For example: spend $15 at Panera's using the card and receive $5 credit on...
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Re: Emirates Adds a 3rd US Frequent Flier Partner
There are a lot of possibilities with these airlines to both have budget flights and earn lots of miles. The combined route maps must be interesting.
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More Frequent Flier changes in the air
The world of award travel and elite perks continues to shake and shift. Delta, which like United, has switched for next year to awarding flight miles based not on distance but on price paid for ticket—a move that hurts many frequent...
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One year into merger, AA is optimistic
American Airlines and USAir merged a year ago this week, forming the world's largest airline, even though it's not quite operating like one. Passengers still book on two different systems, and sometimes use different customer service reps...but the...
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Update: Loyalty Programs and Credit Cards
For some of us, credit cards are more than a convenient way to pay—they are the lifeline to free travel through loyalty programs. Between points for purchases and bonuses for opening or upgrading credit card accounts, it's possible to get quite...
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Please Don't Squeeze the Passengers: Airbus
Airbus, the big European planebuilder has urged airlines to go with 18"-wide seats, up from the standard 17" in use now. Their studies indicate that the extra width makes a BIG difference in passengers' ability to sleep on long flights (which are...
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Emirates Adds a 3rd US Frequent Flier Partner
Emirates Airways, which serves over 130 cities on 6 continents from its hub in Dubai, has added another U.S. frequent-flyer partner: Virgin America, which flies from 7 of Emirates' 8 U.S. cities. Emirates already has links with JetBlue and Alaska. The...
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New Target for Thieves: Frequent-flier miles
If you believed all the whining about how this airline's or that airline's loyalty programs were no longer worth anything...a ring of thieves didn't, and have turned frequent flier accounts into new targets for thefts. Both American and United...
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Thinking Cuba? Tickets not so easy yet!
Many Americans (myself included) are thinking much more seriously now about visiting Cuba with the relaxed process. But don't expect it to be smooth yet—veteran traveler Brian Kelly, who runs ThePointsGuy (an extremely useful site...
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American completes "re-banking" its hubs
American Airlines has completed a series of schedule changes at its Miami, Chicago and Dallas hubs to create shorter layovers, and so far it appears to be working. That's the report from a respected airline blog, Cranky Flier . A few...
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AA-USAir loyalty merger...and a maybe last chance
American Airlines will merge its two loyalty programs "within 30 days" according to e-mails sent yesterday to all members of the USAir Dividend Miles program, which will be folded into the AAdvantage program. All existing miles will transfer; for some...
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Is there a "best day" to buy tickets? Maybe not!
There's always a lot of talk about when it's best to buy airline tickets—how far in advance, what day, even what time. A recent study that got a lot of publicity, even a Wall Street Journal article, suggested that Sunday is the best day because...
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American, USAir loyalty programs will merge Q2 2015
American and USAir have just notified their frequent flier program members (AAdvantage and Dividend Miles) of more detailed plans for merging the two plans, including a date: 2nd quarter of 2015, as well as details of the merger plan. All USAir...
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Star Alliance contest with million-mile prize
Your favorite cultural experiences could earn you a bonanza in frequent flier points.
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JetBlue, Icelandair partner up frequent-flier plans
JetBlue and Icelandair passengers can now earn loyalty points on each other's flights, with a double-points bonus through July 7.
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Brit report: Ban airline loyalty programs
Frequent fliers are among the targets of a British academic's proposals to help clear the air.
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Traveling With Style: 10 Tips to Look Good While Having a Vacation
Some interesting tips on looking good while seeing the world (sponsored content)
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Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Sept. 19, 2015: Flying Lessons
Back for a day from our flying time, on the way home from Europe, we spotted this young bird on our Brooklyn stoop, preparing to become a frequent flier. While the mother perched above, the baby showed all the trepidation and ungainliness...
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Alaska and Icelandair shake (cold) hands
Two specialists in cold homelands, Alaska Airways and Icelandair, have signed a deal for code-shares and for reciprocal mileage earning in their loyalty programs. The upshot should be increased availability for Americans visiting Iceland, and more...
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AAdvantage members, bite your nails: change is coming
After a couple of years in which both United and Delta have switched to frequent flier systems based on dollars spent on fares rather than miles flown, American could be joining the parade...but we'll have to wait and see. American is planning changes...
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Do Airlines offer the Best Loyalty Rewards Programs?
Many people like to collect airline frequent flier miles because of the opportunity for free travel and upgrades. So much so that they'll use a credit card affiliated with their favorite airline or be sure to fly a partner of their airline...
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Big change ahead for American's AAdvantage?
AAdvantage as we know it: Taking off, or flying away? Over the past two years, most U.S. airlines, including Delta and United, have shifted their frequent-flyer loyalty programs from points-per-mile-flown to points-per-dollar-spent. American,...
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Lufthansa moves to fare-based loyalty plan
Lufthansa Group's loyalty programs follow their American cousins into 'revenue-based' scheme.
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Comfort and Style on the Go: Clothes for Women on the Road
Helen Bradford shares some of her ideas on what clothes to pack when you're an active traveler.
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Bumped up to Business on Turkish Airlines
Frequent flier Marilyn Jones is surprised to find she's been given the Holy Grail of travelers—an upgrade to the front of the plane.
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Air Canada joins PreCheck, more foreign carriers to follow
Air Canada has become the first "overseas" carrier to join TSA's PreCheck program that allows program members to move through airport security faster, and with less unpacking and undressing. TSA says more carriers will soon follow. For reasons that...
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* Fireworks will Fill the Skies of Dubai *
Dubai says it has over 400,000 fireworks this New Years Eve.Read more about the increbible plans.This will be something to see. http://travel.france24.com/con...rs-eve-firework-show UPDATE: The show in Dubai is getting rave reviews:...
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Qatar Airways Joins OneWorld and AAdvantage
http://www.frequentflier.com/blog/american-and-qatar-are-now-frequent-flyer-partners/
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United Follows Delta in Loyalty Program Changes
United Airlines is making the same sort of shift Delta previously announced; starting early next year MileagePlus points for flights will be awarded based on the price of tickets rather than the distance flown. Passengers will get anywhere from 5 to...
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Born to fly, baby gets 1,000,000 miles
A baby born on a Dubai to Manila flight starts life with a million-mile gift from an airline.
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Gov't study: Airline loyalty programs fair but confusing
A Department of Transportation study has found that airline loyalty programs are working fairly well, but could use some further study and help.
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Lucky flier gets a private flight on Delta
Delta passenger returning home to Atlanta had the plane to himself, because Delta wasn't able to reach him and reschedule.
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United dumps award chart, AA may follow
United follows Delta into the world of variable points prices for award travel.
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YOU CAN'T FUEL ME! BA fliers sue over high surcharges
British Airways is known for the steepest "fuel surchages," especially on award tickets--but a group of frequent fliers has sued, pointing out that the fees seem to bear no relation to fuel costs at all. A senior judge in the U. S. District...
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USAir Frequent Flyer Mile-Share Bonus: Up to 100%
Buying frequent flyer miles is usually not a great deal, since the airlines sell them at a premium and charge a fee for the transaction (usually only makes sense if you need that last couple of thousand to claim an award). But, through Dec. 6, USAir...
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Up, Up and Away: Airline miles cards with big bonuses
Up, up and away—quickly! That’s the goal for many frequent fliers, and a current round of cards for various airlines is offering some big bonuses to meet that goal…some of them enough for a round-trip to Europe in one shot. Right...
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Delta Skymiles: Big Changes Ahead...Very Big
If that sounds a bit complicated, here's the deal. When you earn "miles" using a credit card, it's 1 or 2 miles per dollar, but most frequent flier programs give you a "mile" for each mile flown. Delta, starting in 2015, will become the first major...
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AA/USAir: Start the Miles and Lounge Sharing
Now the frequent flier part of the AA/USAir merger begins. AA announced yesterday that members in both its AAdvantage and Dividend Miles programs can earn miles in either program on all AA or USAir flights. In addition, elite members of either program...
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It had to happen: BA flight struck by Heathrow drone
What airlines, officials and passengers have feared has happened, though fortunately this time without serious consequences: An inbound British Airways flight was struck by a drone during its approach to Heathrow Airport Sunday night (Apr 17). The flight from Geneva, ironically an A320 on Flight 727, landed safely and was permitted to continue flying after an inspection. The growing popularity of drones as toys and camera platforms has made such incidents inevitable, despite rules that...
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Take your seat...while you still have one!
Aircraft designers are always busy trying to figure out the best way to get the most passengers in without actually provoking revolt or suffocation...and the past few days bring fearsome news on that front. Included in the roundup are dead-serious proposals to stack seats in the main cabin, to sell passenger space in the hold below the cabin, and even to squeeze business-class seats into a 12-across configuration. Not even the rich, it seems, are immune to the trend. The stacked-seat idea...
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Flier survey: Bytes beat bites
Turns out that today's travelers want consistent, fast connections, and that more than half would pick that over inflight meals.
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Flier alert: New rules bump multi-city fares
An airline rule change has created sticker shock for fliers used to buying multi-city itineraries as the majors chase low-end business.
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Google Flights' new trick for frequent flier miles
Google Flights has added filters that allow you to choose which partner in a codeshare sells the tickets so you can choose the one with more loyalty points.