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airlines
airlines
(malgaze)
Navigating Your Way Through The Fees To Cheaper "Free" Miles
By Mary Beth Quirk on May 24, 2012 11:00 AM
7 Comments
Hurray, you've got some free airline miles to use! The bummer part? Carriers are adding more and bigger surcharges on those frequent flyer miles. There are ways to get the most from your miles, however, without offering up too much of your cash in fees. More »
Extra Fees For Aisle & Window Seats Means Families Who Fly Together Won't Always Sit Together
By Mary Beth Quirk on May 21, 2012 4:00 PM
89 Comments
Flying with kids or in a large group can be tough, which is why it'd be ideal for families to be able to sit together. But now that some airlines are reserving window and aisle seats for customers willing to pay extra for them, or frequent fliers, it could mean some families having to split up on the plane. More »
Airlines Aren't Pulling In As Much Dough Off Checked Bags Fees As They Used To
By Mary Beth Quirk on May 18, 2012 1:00 PM
53 Comments
You might already have suspected that the reason why you engage in a fierce, almost Hunger Gamesesque competition to stow your carry-on is because no one wants to pay to check bags. That free-for-all has resulted in U.S. airlines making less money off baggage fees for the first time since they started assessing them. More »
Reader Thinks Her iPod Is Lost Forever, But Virgin America Has A Surprise
By Laura Northrup on April 23, 2012 11:30 AM
21 Comments
There are many things I've learned in three years of reading the Consumerist tipline, and this is one of the most important. Never put any of your electronic devices in the seat-back pouch on an airplane, because you'll most likely never see it again. iPads are especially vulnerable to this problem. But reader Gladys had the opposite experience from most people who write in. She never expected to see her iPod again, so she was delighted when someone at Virgin America did some detective work to find the device's owner, and called her up. More »
United/Continental Systems Merger Makes Flight Reservations Magically Disappear
By Laura Northrup on April 11, 2012 9:30 AM
45 Comments
To be honest, I have to start this post by blaming Ryan and his wife. I don't know what they were thinking. They assumed that just because they booked their round-trip tickets to and from Cancun two months ahead of their vacation and had an itinerary and confirmation numbers, they had an actual reservation. Maybe they did at one point. But between February and April, Continental and United combined their computer systems as part of their Air Voltron merger. Reservations mysteriously disappeared from the system, including theirs. And that's how Ryan and the pregnant Mrs. Ryan ended flying coach from Cancun and stuck in Houston instead of flying first-class all the way home to Detroit. More »
(benh57)
American Airlines Voucher Disappears In The Mail, Airline Shrugs
By Laura Northrup on April 6, 2012 1:30 PM
24 Comments
The original copy of an air travel voucher has mystical powers, and flights can only be scheduled using the original copy. At least, that's the impression we get from Ashley's experience. When she went to redeem her voucher, she mailed it in, as required. Only the tracking number hasn't been scanned in the USPS system, and there's no sign of the voucher. More »
(Tracy O)
Airlines Only Like Fare Hikes When They're The Ones Instigating Them
By Mary Beth Quirk on March 26, 2012 3:00 PM
27 Comments
It's all well and good when airlines institute their own price hikes, but when someone else does it, suddenly they're all concerned about consumers? Not buying it. New proposed legislation wants to charge airlines a higher security tax, a fee which would then be passed on to the customer. More »
(jendubin)
FAA: There Are Less Flights To Be Had & They're Getting More Expensive
By Mary Beth Quirk on March 9, 2012 10:00 AM
62 Comments
The rising cost of fuel isn't just a concern for airlines who need to get their planes from here to there, but it's having a direct, somewhat uncomfortable consequence for consumers. The Federal Aviation Administration says airlines are cutting less-profitable routes in order to fill every seat on plane. More »
Airlines Hike Up Fares Yet Again, Blaming Higher Fuel Costs
By Mary Beth Quirk on February 27, 2012 11:00 AM
21 Comments
Airlines aren't just good at lifting planes into the air, but with yet another hike on round-trip fares, they're showing how great they are at sending prices skyward as well. Zing! This latest increase is the third already this year. More »
35 Pets Died On Airplanes Last Year, Over Half On Delta
By Laura Northrup on February 17, 2012 8:00 AM
39 Comments
Animal lovers were justifiably critical of Delta Airlines after sixteen pets died in 2010 during or after flights in the cargo hold. But even after banning frequently-overheating short-muzzled breeds like bulldogs from the skies, nineteen pets passed away during or shortly after Delta flights in 2011. That's out of a total of 35 pets that died on U.S. carriers last year. In addition, nine pets sustained major or minor injuries, and two were lost. More »
Study: The Best Time To Score Cheap Airfare Is Six Weeks Before The Flight
By Mary Beth Quirk on January 23, 2012 10:00 AM
12 Comments
Everyone uses their own timing strategies when it comes to buying airfare — too close to the flight and you're bound to pay out the nose, too many months in advance and you'll see that same fare drop in price. A new study puts some science on the issue, coming up with the magic number of six weeks before a flight as the best time to buy. More »
(malgaze)
Business Travelers Much More Likely To Fly Economy Internationally
By Mary Beth Quirk on December 15, 2011 10:00 AM
36 Comments
Business travelers are starting to give up their free mini bottles of booze and plush, wide seats in favor of lower prices, says a new report. The shift is especially evident in those flying in Europe, as the recent economic crisis has more choosing economy tickets over business class. More »
Couples Sues Airtran For $100,000, Alleging Cockroaches Infested Their Flight
By Ben Popken on November 14, 2011 1:00 PM
74 Comments
A couple is suing Airtran for $100,000 after they saw cockroaches on their flight, and they say they have to pictures to prove it. More »
Virgin America Is Pleased With Their New Reservation System
By Ben Popken on November 2, 2011 3:00 PM
10 Comments
Despite experiencing some of the inevitable hiccups from transferring a legacy system to a new one, Virgin America tells me that they're overall "pleased" with how the reservation system transition they started on Saturday is going. More »
Virgin America's Brand New Sabre Reservation System Hits Turbulence
By Ben Popken on November 2, 2011 11:00 AM
24 Comments
Virgin America has hit some extreme turbulence ever since they switched to a new Sabre Airline Solutions reservation system on Saturday. Travelers are lighting up the inter-boards with complaints that they can't make or change their reservations, and call centers are swamped, with customers having to wait over four hours on hold. More »
JetBlue Giving Refunds To Customers Trapped For 7 Hours On Tarmac
By Ben Popken on October 31, 2011 12:00 PM
55 Comments
JetBlue is giving refunds to the passengers who were stranded on the tarmac in Hartford Connecticut for seven hours. More »
Travelers Would Actually Pay Attention To Pre-Flight Safety Instructions If They Were More Like This
By Ben Popken on October 28, 2011 5:00 PM
34 Comments
Airlines should take a cue from this sketch video and incorporate more dance moves into their pre-flight safety instructions if they really want passengers to start paying attention. More »
(srd515)
Hotel Books Guest Too Young To Check In: Now What?
By Laura Northrup on October 20, 2011 9:00 AM
76 Comments
Alex booked a flight/hotel package on the Allegiant Air that included a stay at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel. The problem? He's only 19, and you have to be 21 or older to check in there. So just call and cancel the reservation, right? It's not that simple, because he's afraid that the flight reservation will be canceled too if he nixes the hotel part of the package. More »
DOT Investigates Airlines For Not Disclosing Fees On Their Websites
By Ben Popken on October 19, 2011 5:00 PM
15 Comments
Starting August 23rd, airlines were supposed to start being more upfront on their websites about the fees they charge you. Guess what? They didn't. More »
How Cancer, A Tornado, And American Airlines Took Away Our Honeymoon
By Laura Northrup on October 14, 2011 8:00 AM
37 Comments
Roxanne and her husband got married last year, and had to delay their honeymoon until April due to her illness. They spent the night before their rescheduled trip huddled in a hotel bathtub near the airport. It was clear that the universe did not want them to vacation in Cabo San Lucas. An American Airlines rep put their rescheduled tickets on hold, and they had until February 2012 to use them for another trip. Or so they thought. More »
