Check out this CNN article : (CNN) — Nine passengers aboard a plane at Dulles International Airport were removed before takeoff due to a comment made to a crew member Sunday night, a United Airlines spokeswoman said. Megan McCarthy told CNN she had no information early Monday morning about the nature of the comment. She said United employees came to the gate, spoke with the crew and then spoke with the passengers taken …  Read More →

There was a very interesting article yesterday by Scott McCartney of the Wall Street Journal, discussing just how much money airlines are making from selling miles. And we’re not even talking about airlines selling miles to credit card companies, which is a multi-billion dollar industry, but rather just the direct sale of miles to consumers. Some of the statistics are exactly what I expected, while others are shocking. US Airways says about... 

Check out this NBC Los Angeles article. A 51 year old lady was kicked off a Delta flight after having a brief conversation with the captain, and smelling alcohol in his breath (which a couple of others noticed as well, apparently). She reported this to the purser (not sure what the point of that is, since the purser is powerless in this circumstance), and the purser reported it to the pilots. After a “manager” came aboard and they... 

USA Today has a really cool article today about Hyatt and what they’re doing to innovate the hotel industry. No doubt Hyatt deserves a ton of credit for their creativity as of late. I still love InterContinental and Priority Club, though I’ve made nearly 50 stays at Hyatt properties since March. They’re just incredibly customer friendly and have some really neat brands …  Read More →

Via Yahoo News : SAO PAULO – A United Airlines pilot was briefly detained at the international airport in Rio de Janeiro after lowering his pants during a security screening, police said Saturday. Pilot Michael D. Slynn, 49, was asked to remove his belt and shoes as part of a routine security screening Friday afternoon. In response, Slynn laughed at security guards and lowered his pants to his ankles, said a police spokesman who was prohibited... 

Remember that lady that fell asleep on a Untied Express flight from Washington Dulles to Philadelphia last week? Well, I think it’s fair to say she’s a complete nut job. Check out this interview Fox News has with her. If this isn’t the biggest fail of an interview, I don’t know what is… You’ve gotta love that the lady thinks “it’s pretty obvious” why she&#  Read More →

Chris Elliott is a frequent flier program skeptic. Who would’ve guessed? His latest article once again is nothing but paragraph after paragraph of utter garbage, and that’s putting it nicely. In the article, Chris more or less argues that the only types of travelers that should take part in loyalty programs are managed business travelers — those with preferred vendors. As far as Chris is concerned, loyalty programs are a scam... 

Check out this transcript from an interview Richard Quest had with Glenn Tilton and Jeff Smisek. I especially “enjoyed”  this part  of the interview: QUEST: Right, now you`ve skated to my territory. Let`s talk about the business flyer and exactly-if I look at some of the online blogs, in the last 24 hours, Glenn, you are either doing a deal that is about to destroy the best airline in the world, or Jeff, you are getting into bed... 

Is it bad that I almost feel sorry for United? Check out this blog post by some person in San Francisco that was also picked up by The Consumerist . Long story short (and yes, this is a very, very, very long, drawn out story), a disabled lady was on a United flight from Seattle to San Francisco last week and was less than pleased with the treatment she received. The main gripe is that the flight attendant refused to store her carry-on for her... 

I don’t know why I give this douchebag the time of day, but I do. Check out his latest article , which, while filled with crap, includes this little nugget about people that take advantage of mistake fares: I’ve been thinking about what separates a frugal traveler from a thief, and although the experts I spoke to seem to agree on the big issues…  Read More →

I’m sure many of you have already seen this, but there’s quite a bit of controversy surrounding a JFK air traffic controller that seems to have brought his son to work, and the son even did a few ATC transmissions. If you haven’t heard the audio, you can listen to it here . Now I realize I’m probably taking a very unpopular stance here, but I don’t see the big deal. Don’t get me wrong, this was a dumb move on... 

You really can’t make this stuff up! Via Fox : A self-styled Hindu holy man and a British Airways flight attendant have been arrested in Delhi on suspicion of involvement in a multimillion-dollar prostitution racket. Police said that Shiv Myra Dwivedi, a Hindu swami, used his temple in south Delhi as a front to provide as many as 200 prostitutes, including flight attendants and students, often to clients in five-star hotels. In his spiritual... 

I was interviewed for a recent episode of BBC fast:track regarding hotel loyalty programs, along with a few industry people. If you’re interested, you can find the interview here .  Read More →

In stark contrast to the article I posted a couple of days ago about how much air traffic controllers in Spain make, check out this Irish Times article about some labor issues with the air traffic controllers there. The highlight has to be the quotes by Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s CEO: Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said that his airline was four-square behind the Irish Aviation Authority in the dispute and said that Mr... 

I’m a huge fan of CNN Business Traveller (and in particular Richard Quest’s always eccentric attitude), and especially enjoyed this month’s episode as they talk to some ”mileage millionaires.” They couldn’t have chosen better people — well done to Gary and Gene, you represented us well! Take a look if you get a chance ( part one , part two , part three ). Just as interesting, as Gary points out on his...