../../../..//2008/04/17/delta-will-start-charging-passengers/
Delta will start charging passengers $25 for checking a second piece of luggage starting in May, joining United and US Airways in instituting the new fee. [The Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
../../../..//2008/04/16/good-news-for-travelers-if/
Good news for travelers: If you’re bumped from a flight, you soon may be eligible to get up to $800 in compensation. This is up from the previous max of $400, an amount that had not been raised since 1978. [CNNMoney via Consumer World Blog]
Thinking of taking a trip but can’t remember which airlines are bankrupt and which ones are part of Delta? We know it can be difficult—that’s why we’ve put together a little cheat sheet to help you get through this time of uncertainty.
We hope all you Northwest Airlines frequent fliers secretly had a thing for Delta, because you’ve been merged.
../../../..//2008/04/15/delta-and-northwest-have-finally/
Delta and Northwest have finally agreed to merge together and form the world’s crappiest airline. The new airlines will be known as “Delta.” Are airline mergers like bank mergers, where the losing party in the deal usually gets to become the new namesake? [NYT]
As long as your clothing isn’t scanty or sporting lewd or suggestive imagery, Southwest Airlines is usually pretty good to fly. Not so for the author of the Strobist blog on a recent trip whose fun had only just begun when Southwest sent him an email reminder about his trip that said it was leaving 7 hours earlier than expected. He rushed off to the airport, nearly all of his clothes still in the wash, only to find out that his flight was leaving at the later time as scheduled. Always double-check those flight times and if you see something wacky, verify it first before leaving the house without a clean pair of underwear.
If you buy airline tickets on Craigslist, you could find yourself paying for the tickets twice, thanks to this latest scam. Elliot blogs the story of a William Marleua, who who bought Southwest airline tickets from someone on Craigslist. Four months after taking the flight, a Southwest collections specialist called him and told him to pay up. Turns out the original tickets were bought using a stolen credit card, and then the real owner of the credit card disputed the charge. Here’s what Southwest said about the situation, “Southwest has never been paid for the flight Mr. Marleau took. It is our business policy to collect payment from the person who flew….It’s a difficult situation, but we cannot protect a customer who chooses to make a questionable purchase on Craigslist for a Southwest Airlines flight.”
../../../..//2008/04/11/continental-is-going-to-charge/
Continental is going to charge $25 each way for the privilege of checking a second bag. [Bizjournals]
Frontier Airlines has joined the conga line of bankrupt airlines today, according to a statement from the company.
Kiplinger tries to help you save money on your next airline “flight”—we have to put quotation marks around that word now, since the prospect of actually getting up in the air seems purely hypothetical at this point—with their latest travel article. A lot of the advice boils down to, “Find out what each airline charges extra for, then choose a different airline,” but it’s helpful to have everything in one article for a quick reference.
../../../..//2008/04/09/delta-has-canceled-a-few/
Delta has canceled a few flights on MD-80 aircraft. [Fox Business News]
Defunct budget airline Skybus plans to issue full refunds to all ticket holders. The airline announced last night that they were done flying less than two weeks after former CEO Bill Diffenderffer quit to pursue a book-writing career. While everyone who hasn’t yet traveled will soon be reunited with their cash, what about passengers who are in the middle of a trip? Let’s ask Air Force Sergeant Gary Patterson.
Skybus has just announced that it will stop flying starting tomorrow, Saturday April 5th. “Skybus struggled to overcome the combination of rising jet fuel costs and a slowing economic environment. These two issues proved to be insurmountable for a new carrier…Our financial condition is such that our Board of Directors felt it had no choice but to cease operations,” said the company in the tombstone posted on its website. The dream of ultra-low-budget air travel was too beautiful to let live…
Gold Medal Travel, a UK-based travel agency, is holding a woman’s ticket hostage. Even though Northwest airlines says the ticket will be fine and they have no policy like what Gold Medal claims, Gold Medal says the ticket will be forfeited if the woman doesn’t give them an extra $200 to correct a…
Here’s yet another way to get your money back if you find the airline you’ve booked tickets with should suddenly cease to operate: trip insurance may be one of the default benefits on your credit card. If you booked with a credit card, call up the company and ask. For instance, Citi PremierPass Elite MasterCard comes with Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance for free. Reader Jhayme says they are refunding ATA Airlines passengers who purchased their ticket in full on the card up to $1500. The number to call to submit a claim is 1-800-950-5118, and there is a claim form that should be submitted American Express has a similar program called Travel Delay Protection, that will reimburse passengers if they cannot be rebooked on a new flight within a certain time period. I believe this costs $9.95 per trip. With two airlines going bankrupt, it may be a good idea for people to look into these programs.” Those credit cards may be evil, but for big ticket items, their buyer protections can come in handy sometimes.
Reader Jake writes in to share the story of how he came to be the proud owner of a now-worthless ATA voucher:
ATA airlines abruptly ceased to exist this morning, leaving travelers to scramble for refunds and alternate booking arrangements. An ATA insider took time out from looking for a new job to give The Consumerist the inside scoop:
../../../..//2008/04/03/the-reason-ata-died-and/
The reason ATA died, and died so abruptly, were rising fuel costs and that they lost a key contract with Federal Express for flying military personnel on ATA aircraft. [Bloomberg]
Part of 
