In an attempt to turn their planes into flying concession stands, American Airlines will be testing several new “for sale food options” this holiday travel season (on select flights only.)
travel
Delta Downgrades Early-Bird Holiday Travelers To Make Room For More Profitable Latecomers
By 10.29.07
Beware if you managed to snag a cheap Delta nonstop flight for the holidays, you might find yourself downgraded. Airfarewatchdog Blog reports that a reader got an insane $138 roundtrip from JFK to Denver for peak Christmas travel. Then a few weeks ago Delta told him they were adding a connecting flight both ways, and now it’s on a regional jet instead of a nice big jet. Why? Probably to make room for the $600 tickets Delta wanted to sell to last-minute customers.
Chinatown Busses Now Offering WiFi, Guaranteed Seating
By 10.28.07
Chinatown busses, often the cheapest way to travel between Washington, New York, and Boston, are starting to outclass their established rivals by offering free WiFi service. One new entrant, Vamoose Bus, is even offering guaranteed seating – which can’t be found on Greyhound or any other Chinatown bus.
TSA Breaks Your Laptop, Threatens You With Arrest
By 10.26.07
Reader Jake says a TSA agent dropped his laptop, smashing it in several places, then threatened him with arrest when he asked about filing a damage claim.
By 10.24.07
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Honoring a fare misprint would have cost Travelocity $2 million. Not honoring it would have damaged their brand. They decided to go with the former. [BusinessWeek]
When Shopping In A Port Of Call, Document Your Purchases
By 10.24.07
If you find you’re on a cruise to, say, the Caribbean, and you decide to buy something expensive—like, say, an emerald ring—then be sure to pay with a credit card, take photos of the item and the person who sold it to you, and get a receipt. It may sound like overkill, but if the “emeralds” in the ring fall out and it turns your finger black once you’re back on the boat and have left Antigua, chances are it’s not a cursed pirate ring but a fake, and you’ll be glad you have some documentation when you start trying to make things right.
That Airfare Site May Not Be As Impartial As You Think
By 10.23.07
The impression of airfare aggregator sites is that they’re mechanical purveyors of ticket information, but this is not always the case, writes Airfarewatchdog. Some sites won’t list some airlines, either permanently or temporarily, and for no reason transparent to the consumer. Case in point:
Delta Airlines Cargo Door Falls Open, Raining Luggage Down On Chicagoland
By 10.22.07
Delta Flight No. 4718 took off about 9:40 a.m. and was forced to circle back to Midway shortly after takeoff when a pressure problem in the cabin was detected and instruments showed a cargo door had opened during flight, FAA spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory said.
United CEO Weighs Fees For Speedy Luggage Delivery
By 10.22.07
United Airlines CEO Glenn Tilton is determined to wring added lucre from his now-profitable airline. Tilton is considering 250 unpopular ideas, such as charging economy-class passengers a fee to avoid receiving their luggage last, and spinning off United’s already wounded frequent flier program, Mileage Plus.
United appears to be following a strategy set by Air Canada, which gained billions of dollars after it emerged from bankruptcy in 2004 by spinning off its maintenance division and frequent-flier program into separate businesses, analysts say.
TSA Asks Passengers In San Diego To Smuggle Fake Bombs On Planes
By 10.22.07
Turns out there’s a hidden gem in that 2006 TSA report that was recently leaked to USA Today (and previously written about here)—among the various stats and figures is the following statement: “At San Diego International Airport, tests are run by passengers whom local TSA managers ask to carry a fake bomb, said screener Cris Soulia, an official in a screeners union.”
By 10.22.07
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British Airways says leave the surfboards at home. New rules effective from November 6 will prevent customers checking in surfboards, windsurfing boards and sails, hang gliders, kayaks or canoes, pole vaults and javelins. People wishing to take these items will need to contact a separate freight company and arrange for the delivery of these items to their destination. You can still bring scuba tanks and bikes. [Cheapflights]
Renew Your Passports Now, Because 2008 Could Be Worse
By 10.22.07
Despite all the much-publicized delays with passport applications this year, the government has announced that they’ll still be unprepared for the onslaught of applications come 2008, so if you know you’ll need a new/renewed passport you should apply now during the slow season. In January, the land and sea portion of the new passport law goes into effect, requiring everyone who travels to Canada, Mexico, or the Caribbean to show proof of citizenship.
Tomato Juice Spill Causes Massive Delays At LaGuardia
By 10.22.07
Lines the length of city blocks filled New York’s LaGuardia airport Saturday morning after a careless worker spilled tomato juice onto one of the five x-ray machines in the American Airlines terminal. A TSA spokesman cast the tomato juice’s victory over the machines as a failure of science, saying: “That’s the risk you take when you deal with technology.” Passengers were understandably pissed.
When CBS 2 HD told one woman the reason for the delays, she asked if we were “kidding,” but it was no joke. The Transportation Safety Administration confirmed the spill knocked out one of the five units that screen thousands of passengers here each day.
TSA Fails To Find Bombs 60% Of The Time
By 10.19.07
According to a new report from the Transportation Security Administration, TSA agents failed to find fake bombs during security tests 60% of the time.
By 10.19.07
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United Airlines raised fares by $5-$10 each way, prompting the other major carriers to increase fares as well. This is the 8th price increase this year. [BusinessWeek]
Find The Real Reason For Delays With Airline Cargo Sites
By 10.19.07
It can be hard to get a straight answer out of airlines sometime about the real reason a flight is delayed. For some reason, though, they’re more straight up about their packages than their passengers. See, the airlines have special cargo websites which are supposed to be for people tracking packages they’re shipping through the airline. Here’s the cargo sites for some of the major carriers…
Parents Predictably Outraged At Southwest's New Boarding Policy
By 10.18.07
There’s a bit of backlash going on against Southwest Airlines’ for changing their “family first” boarding policy. Previously, families traveling with children under 4 were allowed to board before the “a” group. Now they’ve been bumped back behind “a” but before “b” and “c.”
