American Airlines Announces Its Switch To Beijing Daxing Airport
Before the current travel crisis, all American Airlines services between the US and Beijing used Bejing Capital Airport (PEK). All of American's passenger services to China are currently suspended but the airline has just announced that when it resumes operations between Dallas Fort Worth and Beijing, it's aircraft will be landing and taking off from the Chinese Capital's newest airport - Daxing International Airport (PKX).
Qatar Airways Confirms That It Will Bring Its Qsuite To San Francisco
Qatar Airways currently operates eight routes between Doha and the United States and from the end of the year, the airline will add a ninth - San Francisco. The West coast gateway has been part of Qatar Airways' plans in the past (back in 2018) but the planned service never materialized. This time around, however, there's a lot more reason to expect the new route to go ahead.
Amazing. Marriott Just Lost 122 Properties In North America (Including a Major Hawaii Resort)
Service Properties Trust, a company that owns over a hundred properties that are currently operating under various Marriott brands, has announced that it is terminating all of its agreements with Marriott effective 31 January 2021. There doesn't look to be any going back so from 1 February next year, Marriott's North America portfolio will have noticeably fewer properties in it than it did the day before.
United Airlines Brings Back Non-Stop Service To Shanghai
For most of this year, only a limited number of flights have been permitted between the United States and China with United Airlines and Delta being the only US carriers offering services to Shanghai. Up recently, both airlines have been serving Shanghai via Seoul but with Delta planning non-stop service to Shanghai during the upcoming winter season, United Airlines has now announced that it too will be resuming non-stop service to Shanghai from later this month.
Hilton’s Has Updated Its Flexible Cancellation Policy – It’s Not Good News
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Alaska Airlines Will Add Another Five New SoCal Routes This Winter
Alaska Airlines is continuing to build on its new friendship with American Airlines by adding a number of routes out of Los Angeles and Palm Springs as well as increasing the frequencies on a further three routes that it already operates out of LAX. Coming on top of the airline's previously announced expansion at LAX, this is another big bit of positive news for travelers based in Southern California.
Emirates Will Offer Its A380 On Just Seven Routes This Winter
Emirates operates the largest fleet of Airbus A380 aircraft in the world and it's safe to say that without the investment Emirates put into the A380 program, the aircraft would have gone out of production a lot earlier than this year. Still, even a behemoth like Emirates isn't immune to the current travel crisis and few things highlight that fact better than the airline's plans for the Winter 2020/21 season which will see it operating its A380 on just seven international routes.
United Airlines New Hawaii Routes Now Open For Reservations
A little under three weeks ago, United announced a number of new international routes to Africa and India as well as two new domestic routes that the airline said would “make it easier than ever to travel nonstop to Maui and Kona for the 2021 summer season”. Following a weekend schedule update, the new Hawaii routes are now in the systems and United.com is taking reservations.
Delta Eliminates Change Fees On Most Domestic Award Bookings
Delta Platinum and Medallion members have long been able to change award bookings without incurring a penalty but now, with immediate effect, everyone else can feel a little bit more like an elite flyer with Delta after the airline announced that change fees on domestic award bookings are now (mostly) a thing of the past.
Emirates Cuts Capacity And Delays Restarts On Routes To The United States
As I seem to keep saying, if you think that we're anywhere the end of this current crisis you just have to look at the various plans the airlines are making to see that we're not even close. We're seeing a lot of airlines eliminating routes and cutting capacity on routes seemingly every time a new set of schedule changes is released, and the latest airline to post less than optimistic schedules is Emirates.
KLM Cuts Service To 3 US Cities & Reduces Capacity To Others
In the last 24 hours, KLM has updated its schedules for winter 2020/21 and when you compare the services the airline plans to offer to the services offered pre-Covid, it doesn't make for pretty reading. Three US cities are set to lose service altogether, while even major partner hubs like Atlanta will be seeing reduced capacity.
The “New” British Airways First Class Seat Is Nothing To Get Excited About
It all started yesterday when an over-eager British Airways employee put out a tweet (now deleted) that let the world know that British Airways would be offering a new First Class option in the not too distant future. Earlier today, British Airways emailed staff to let them know that a "modified First seat experience" is on the way (this has been widely leaked already) but the reality behind the news is far less exciting than most had probably hoped.
EL AL Set To Resume New York Service In October
As with all of the world's airlines, EL AL has effectively been on hiatus for most of the year so far but unlike a lot of its competitors, EL AL is yet to resume passenger services on its international routes. From October, however, that's set to change with the airline scheduling a return to New York JFK as well as to three other international destinations.
British Airways Responds To Virgin Atlantic: Adds New Route To Pakistan & Accelerates Another
At the beginning of September, Virgin Atlantic announced that it would be launching three new routes to Pakistan from later this year as the airline looks to move away (at least temporarily) from its heavy reliance on transatlantic traffic. Now, less than two weeks after Virgin Atlantic's announcement, British Airways has responded and it's not good news for the smaller carrier.
Alaska Airlines’ Admission To Oneworld Delayed (Good News For Some?)
When the news that Alaska Airlines was planning to join the oneworld alliance broke last February, it was news that very few people had expected to hear. The airline followed up that surprise with another one when, earlier this summer, it suggested that its membership of the oneworld alliance may be complete before the end of this year. Sadly, that's a target that the airline no longer expects to meet.
JetBlue Announces 24 New Routes (Includes Latin America & The Caribbean)
JetBlue has announced that it plans to add 24 new routes to its network from later this year with a view to concentrating on leisure destinations served from the airline's focus cities around the United States. With multiple new flights to cities across the US, Latin America, and the Caribbean, this is the airline's attempt at shoring up its finances while, business travel continues to show little sign of recovery.
United Airlines Already Forced To Improve Its “No Change Fees” Policy
United Airlines was the first of the major US airlines to announce that it would be eliminating change fees for most fares booked for travel within the United States, to/from Puerto Rico and to/from the US Virgin Islands but Delta and American Airlines quickly followed with their own announcements and, in American's case, its announcement went further than United's and now United has been forced to play catch-up.
United Airlines Announces Seven New Non-Stop Routes (International & Domestic)
Yesterday, United Airlines used social media to run a teaser trying to get customers (and potential customers) to guess what new routes the airline was set to announce today. If you didn't see that teaser or if you failed to guess the new routes, this latest announcement will tell you all you need to know - United Airlines will be flying five new international routes to Africa and India, as well as offering two new routes to Hawaii.
What Are Your Rights If An Airline Cancels Your Flight (Covid-19 Edition)
This post aims to inform readers with bookings to/from/within the United States and/or the European Union (and select associated nations) what their rights are when an airline cancels their flight(s) in the era of Covid-19.
Marriott’s Secret Website Will Tell You What Services Its Hotels Are Offering During The...
Marriott has built a website that is designed to show travelers what services and amenities its properties are offering during the current crisis. The site isn't yet official and its contents are not yet complete, but with in-house offerings varying wildly from property to property (even for properties in the same town or city), this can still be an invaluable resource for anyone trying to decide what Marriott to book for their next trip.
Owed A Qantas Refund? The Airline Is Now Offering Incentives To Passengers Accepting Credits
One of the bigger consumer stories that has emerged during this pandemic is the story of tens of thousands of travelers struggling to get their canceled trips refunded by airlines all over the world. Qantas is one of the airlines that has been less than stellar when it comes to returning customer funds and now the airline is offering customers incentives if they choose to accept a credit for future travel over the cash they're owed.
Virgin Atlantic Will Offer Its New Business Class To Barbados
For the Northern Hemisphere Winter Season, Virgin Atlantic has scheduled one of its new Airbus A350-1000 aircraft to operate its route between London and Barbados. This means that customers flying in the airlines Upper Class cabin will be treated to Virgin Atlantic's best Business Class seats.
American Airlines Plans To Restart Flights To Australia This Year
Qantas says it doesn't plan on restarting services to the United States before July 2021 and Australia is still a country that's off-limits to most of the world, but that's not enough to discourage American Airlines. Starting later this year American Airlines plans to resume service between Los Angeles and Sydney and it plans to offer four flights per week.
[Updated] Virgin Atlantic Plans Three Routes To Pakistan From December 2020
Virgin Atlantic has today announced that it plans to offer three new services between the United Kingdom and Pakistan from December 2020. To some, this may seem like an odd path for Virgin Atlantic to choose, but the fact is that what we're witnessing is an airline coming to terms with a very key weakness and looking for ways to mitigate the risks that weakness brings.
United Airlines Will Operate 40% Of Its October Schedule Next Month
United Airlines has just announced its planned schedules for September and October and the airline has confirmed that when its routes are taken as a whole (i.e. international + domestic routes together), it is expecting to operate 34% of its full schedule in September and 40% of its full schedule in October. These figures are in comparison to the routes operated in the same months last year.
Hawaiian Airlines Is The Latest US Carrier To Eliminate Change Fees
One of life's rules has always been that when an airline pushes through a change that's negative for customers all of its competitors rush to follow suit. Rarely have airlines rushed to copy a change that's positive for customers, and yet here we have the fifth US airline in a week announcing that it is eliminating most change fees for is customers. This has been a good week for flyers.
Now Alaska Airlines Eliminates Change Fees Permanently (Is There A Hidden Bonus?)
Well, this has certainly been a good start to the week for US flyers. First, we have United Airlines announcing that it would eliminate most domestic change fees, then Delta followed suit, and American Airlines rounded off the news from the "Big 3" by improving upon United's change fee announcement and improving its Basic Economy fares too. Now Alaska Airlines has joined in by confirming that has eliminated all change fees on most domestic and international bookings.
American Airlines Improves Basic Economy & Eliminates Select Change Fees
United Airlines may have started the ball rolling by being the first of the major US airlines to eliminate change fees on domestic itineraries, but American Airlines has now taken the ball further by eliminating change fees on more routes than United or Delta and by making some significant improvements to its Basic Economy fares.
Warning: IHG & Marriott Flexible Cancellation Policies Are Ending
IHG and Marriott are the first major hotel chains to confirm that they're ending their flexible cancellation policies which have been available on all bookings since the beginning of the current crisis. At the time of writing, Hilton, Hyatt, and Radisson have not yet followed suit, but with their current policies expiring at the same time as the Marriott and IHG policies expire, there's scope for these three chains to go down the same path.
Delta Follows United’s Lead & Eliminates Domestic Change Fees
United Airlines caught a lot of people off guard when it announced that it would be eliminating most change fees for domestic itineraries with immediate effect and, not all that surprisingly, Delta has followed suit and confirmed that it has also eliminated most domestic change fees with immediate effect.
United Airlines Is Eliminating Select Change Fees Permanently
With the travel industry in a state of crisis, airlines are being forced to try and find new ways to persuade travelers to choose them over their competitors. So far we've mainly seen airlines playing the "who's aircraft are cleanest" game with airlines sometimes appearing to claim that they've found a new and better way to sterilize an aircraft every week. Now, however, we've seen United Airlines fire the first new salvo for a while - the airline claims it's elimination change fees permanently.
American Airlines Schedules New Shanghai Service From Seattle
Back in July, American Airlines announced plans to move the service it operated between Los Angeles and Shanghai to Seattle and, subject to government approval, that's what American Airways has done. The route is now in the schedules and is open for reservations.
Incredible: IHG Is Set To Lose Over 100 Properties In North America
The next time you're searching IHG.com for accommodation in North America you may find that a number of properties you've been used to seeing in the past are no longer there. This isn't a glitch or a temporary system error, it's because IHG has just lost over 100 of it's North American properties to a considerably smaller operator.
Virgin Atlantic Will Only Be Flying To Five US Destinations By October
Virgin Atlantic has been fighting for survival for most of the summer and it's only recently that the airline has been back in the skies and flying back and forth across the Atlantic. A recent schedule update published by the airline confirmed that, for September/October 2020, it will offer customers flights to just five US destinations.
Delta & United Airlines Add More Flights To Shanghai
Delta and United currently operate two weekly flights each between the United States and Shanghai with both airlines routing their operations through Seoul Incheon Airport. An agreement announced yesterday between the United States and China to increase the number of flights between the two counties from four to eight will now see both carriers doubling the number of flights they offer to Shanghai.
Japan Airlines (JAL) Increases Services To The United States
Right now, Airlines are making alterations to their schedules on a daily basis as they attempt to adapt to the ever-changing entry rules that various counties have been introducing. Recent restrictions introduced by the likes of the UK, Vietnam, and Thailand have seen numerous flights to those countries cut from the schedules so it's nice to be able to report that JAL will be increasing services to the US from September.
Qatar Airways Boosts Services To JFK & LAX And Returns To Two More US...
Back in June, Qatar Airways announced its return to four major US cities and, as of today, the gulf carrier now operates on six transatlantic routes to the United States. Starting tomorrow, 12 August, Qatar Airways will begin boosting frequencies on its existing US routes and, from September, the carrier will restart services to two more US cities.
British Airways Schedules Club Suite Service To Los Angeles (Finally!)
After months of waiting, Los Angeles-based oneworld flyers will soon no longer have to choose between a great Business Class seat combined with poor service (American Airlines) or a poor Business Class seat with pretty good service (BA) as British Airways has finally scheduled a Club Suite equipped aircraft to serve LAX from later this year.
Cathay Pacific Will Only Serve Three US Cities In September
Before the travel world came to grinding halt, Cathay Pacific offered flights between Hong Kong and eight US airports across 7 US cities but, in a further sign of how slowly travel is currently recovering, the carrier is only set to operate to three of those cities in September 2020.
Air France Is Now Replacing The A380s In Its Schedules
It has been over two months since Air France announced that its A380s wouldn't be taking to the skies again (at least not as a part of Air France's commercial operations) but it's only now that Air France has updated its schedules to show what aircraft it will be using on the routes that the A380 once operated.
RIP BA1 – British Airways Retires Its All-Business-Class A318
IAG, the parent company of British Airways, has published its latest quarterly results and alongside the news that the airline group made a loss of €1.3bn ($1.55bn) between April and June of this year, IAG announced that it was "exiting" the A318 fleet as part of its response to the current crisis and, with that, signaled the end of the all-business-class service that British Airways operated between London and New York.
British Airways Won’t Fly From London Gatwick Before November
If anyone you know needs a reminder that the current crisis is far from over, point them in the direction of an airline schedule. While some airlines are clearly doing their best to ramp up operations and restart routes (e.g. Qatar Airways), a lot of major airlines are still running vastly reduced services and are pushing back the dates for planned service resumptions.
American Airlines Schedules Dreamliners On 4 Domestic Miami Routes
I've been known to get a bit over-excited when I've managed to book a Business Class seat on a widebody aircraft on a domestic route (after having expected to be booking a standard domestic First Class cabin), so I'm expecting the news that American Airlines is going to offer its premium cabin flyers yet more opportunities to fly to/from Miami in comfort, to go down very well.
Air France Is Reintroducing More “Normal” Meal Services Onboard
Now that airlines are trying to get their schedules back on track and tempt people back into the skies, we're seeing more and more carriers announcing the return of a little more "normality" onboard and Air France is the latest airline to confirm that passengers can expect to see improved service levels and offerings from this month onwards.
KLM Will Operate More Flights To Select US Cities in August/September
KLM has recently updated its worldwide schedules and in the months of August and September, the European carrier will be increasing the number of fights it offers to select cities in the United States with some destinations getting twice as many flights as they're currently seeing.
British Airways To Retire ALL Boeing 747s With Immediate Effect
In an email sent out to employees a few hours ago, British Airways effectively announced the end of the road for its Boeing 747s. With the travel world still in turmoil and with recovery not expected for a number of years, the viability of BA's least efficient aircraft was always going to be called into question, so it's not altogether surprising to read that the 747 has flown its last commercial flight for British Airways.
Big News: American Airlines In Surprise Tie-up With JetBlue
American Airlines and JetBlue have today announced that they are entering into a strategic partnership that will see American Airlines launch new international services out of New York JFK, JetBlue expanding at all three New York airports, and members of both airlines' loyalty programs enjoying reciprocal elite benefits.
London Hotels Not Passing On Tax Savings To Guests
As of today, 15 July 2020, the level of VAT being charged on UK hotel accommodation is 5% (down from 20%) and as VAT is a tax on the consumer and not the hotelier (VAT is a sales tax so the hotelier is only acting as a government tax collector), it would be reasonable to expect the cost of a hotel night to drop in proportion to the drop in VAT...but this isn't necessarily the case.
Air France USA Routes & Frequencies For Sept/Oct 2020
Most airlines have been operating skeleton schedules for most of the past few months but, over the past few weeks, we've slowly started to see a few airlines announcing plans to increase the number of flights they offer. The latest airline to announce increased routes and services to/from the US is Air France.
American’s Seattle – London Service Is Open For Bookings
American Airlines will be starting service between Seattle and London from the end of March 2021 and the plan was to have the service bookable from early May of this year. The crisis that unfolded since the original route announcement saw American Airlines delay the opening of reservations for its newest route but, following a recent schedule update, tickets are now on sale.
Delta Has Restarted Select Beverage Services On Domestic Flights
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Qatar Airways Now Requires Masks AND Face Shields For Economy Class Passengers
In a move that's almost certain to polarize opinion, Qatar Airways has modified the health and safety rules enforced onboard its aircraft to include a requirement for Economy Class passengers to wear both a mask and a visor for the duration of the flight. Business Class passengers will continue to be asked to wear a mask and/or shield at their own discretion.
Emirates Starts To Reopen Lounges & Restarts Services To 11 Destinations
Emirates has announced the reopening of one of its lounges in Dubai and has confirmed that its Chauffeur Drive service is once again being offered to customers with select premium bookings. In addition, the airline has continued to restart routes to countries around the world and will offer services to over 50 cities in July.
Qantas’ Recovery Plan Could Mean That It Never Operates Its A380s Again
Qantas has unveiled the 3-year recovery plan it will be following as it navigates its way out of the current crisis, and the details shared by the airline show Qantas cutting a significant number of jobs, keeping a large proportion of its fleet grounded, retiring its 747s earlier than planned and admitting that the days may be numbered for in A380 aircraft.
Qatar Airways Suggests It Will Introduce A New First Class Cabin
Qatar Airways offers arguably the best all-around Business Class product in the world and it's a product that's better than a number of First Class cabins that I can mention. It also currently only offers its own First Class product on its Airbus A380 aircraft which the airline has already said it will be retiring...so will Qatar Airways really introduce a brand new First Class cabin?
Emirates Brings Back Its A380 To London & Paris
The Airbus A380 may be the world's largest commercial aircraft but in an era of economical aircraft like the A350s, the A330neo, and the Boeing Dreamliners, the A380 is an uneconomical dinosaur. None of the airlines that operate the A380 have been flying them during the current crisis and some airlines have gone as far as to say that they'll never fly their A380s again...but for Emirates that's not an option.
Qatar Airways Expands Services To Offer 270+ Flights To 45+ Destinations
Qatar Airways has grown to be the largest airline in the world during the current crisis, primarily due to the fact that it has continued to serve a variety of routes while most other large airlines have dramatically shrunk their capacities. Now, as airlines around the world begin to ramp up their services once more, Qatar Airways has confirmed that it now offers over 270 weekly flights to over 45 destinations...and the numbers keep growing.
Virgin Atlantic Plans To Be Flying To 23 Destinations By October
Virgin Airlines has been living on the edge ever since the current crisis first hit the headlines as, unlike a lot of its competitors, it found itself unable to access the aid on offer from its home government. In its fight for survival, we have seen the airline cut over 35% of its workforce and abandon one of its hub airports and we have seen multiple pleas for help from the UK government go unanswered...but the airline keeps soldiering on.
Malaysia Airlines Introduces Hand Baggage Only Economy Class Fares
Malaysia Airlines has announced that it has introduced "enhanced Economy fare options, putting customers’ needs as priority" which, in normal everyday language, means that it has introduced "hand baggage only" Economy fares which offer customers very little in return for no price decrease at all. Regardless of how Malaysia Airlines tries to spin this news, this isn't good for passengers.
Etihad Plans Increased Services To Chicago & New York
Etihad has joined the growing list of airlines that are scheduling increased services between their home hubs and various cites in the United States and, in some cases, restarting routes that have been mothballed since the start of the current crisis. Etihad's latest schedule changes seen the airline planning to significantly increase services to Chicago and New York in just a few weeks' time.
American Airlines Is Trying To Raise $3.5bn From Equity, Bonds & Loans
American Airlines chose to use Sunday afternoon to announce that it is looking to raise at least $3.5 billion through a combination of a public stock offering, the issuing of loan stock, and a new secured credit facility.
Qatar Airways Announces Its Return To Four Major US Cities
Qatar Airways has been the only big Middle Eastern carrier that has kept a number of services operating to the United States throughout the current crisis and now, as the airline enters an eight week period during which it hopes to get as many as 70% of its routes back online, it has announced plans to resume flights to four major US cities.
JetBlue Launches Mint At Newark & Announces 30 New Routes
JetBlue has offered a nice distraction from the current travel crisis to announce a series of new routes out of nine East Coast/Florida airports and the introduction of its acclaimed Mint Business Class cabin to two new transcontinental routes out of New York Newark airport. Additionally, the airline also announced that nine temporarily closed cities and several summer seasonal destinations will reopen in early July.
Emirates Returns To Washington DC And Nine Other Destinations
Emirates has announced plans to boost flights to 14 of the cities it currently serves and it has confirmed the dates on which it plants to recommence services to 10 destinations it dropped when the current crisis took hold. It won't be all plain sailing, however, as some of the planned destinations are currently closed to overseas visitors, but Emirates has a plan for this.
Qatar Airways Is Canceling Aircraft Orders & Pushing Back Deliveries By Up To 10...
The CEO of Qatar Airways gave a live interview to a British news channel yesterday afternoon and, as is always the case with Akbar Al Baker, he didn't mince his words and he wasn't short of a few opinions. The interview covered a broad spectrum of aviation issues and Al Baker revisited some old ground, but one of the more interesting revelations to come out of the interview is the fact that Qatar Airways wants to push back deliveries of new aircraft by up to a decade. That's incredible.
Good News: California Will Get More A350 Service From Virgin Atlantic
In a recent schedule update, Virgin Atlantic has reversed a decision taken back in February which saw California lose the prospect of getting a new A350 route and it has added a further A350 flight to a city already served by the airline's flagship aircraft. If the schedules don't change again (admittedly that's a very big "if"), California will be getting a lot more A350 service from Virgin Atlantic starting from this fall.
IHG Is Opening An InterContinental Property In Rome
IHG has announced that it will be reintroducing the InterContinental brand to Rome 6 years after the last property to carry the InterContinental name in the Italian capital (the InterContinental De La Ville) was reflagged as a Rocco Forte property.
The Japan Airlines July International Schedule Shows How Bad Things Still Are
It can be hard for a lot of travelers (like me) to get a feel for how things are really looking in the aviation world right now, but if you want to see how bad things still are (in the very near term) you only have to take a look at the latest international schedule Japan Airlines (JAL) has published for July
Delta Restarts Two Routes To Europe & Adds Cape Town To Its Network
As of today, Delta is operating two more routes between the United States and Europe than it operated last week (it plans to offer nine transatlantic routes in June) and the airline's president told yesterday's employee virtual town hall that Delta would be modifying its operations to/from South Africa to include Cape Town when those services resume.
Qatar Airways Is Now Codesharing on American Airlines Flights
Back in February, American Airlines backtracked on two key positions it had taken in recent years. First, the airline did a u-turn on its relationship with Alaska Airlines and the two are now best friends and, just a few days later, American Airlines forgot that it had been calling for Qatar Airways to be banned from operating services to/from the US and announced a strategic partnership with the Middle Eastern carrier. The first stage of that partnership has now kicked into action.
Emirates is Restarting Flights To Nine Destinations
Most of the world may be living under significant travel restrictions but Emirates has announced plans to restart flights to nine destinations from later this month as it looks to find a way out of the current crisis. The first flights the airline will offer since it grounded its fleet at the end of March are mostly to cities within Europe, but the United States and Australia will be seeing select services resume too.
Richard Branson Is Raising $400m To Help Rescue Virgin Atlantic
"Vieco 10" probably won't mean much to most people but it's the name of the investment company owned by Virgin Group (and therefore Richard Branson) which holds a controlling interest in Virgin Galactic. Last night, in a statement to the New York Stock Exchange, Vieco 10 confirmed that it is disposing of up to 25m shares in Virgin Galactic as Richard Branson seeks to raise funds to save a number of ailing travel enterprises.
These Airlines Now Require Passengers To Wear Face/Mouth Coverings
For reasons that haven't always been very clear, there has been a lot of debate, discussion, and controversy over the use of face masks during the current pandemic but, regardless of how you feel about wearing something that covers your mouth and nose, a number of major airlines now insist that passengers take precautions on board.
United Airlines Is Raising $2.25 Billion To Pay Off A Loan
Towards the end of last month, United Airlines announced that it was planning to raise $1.1 billion from a public stock offering to go alongside the $5.0 billion the airline has received from the US government and now the airline is heading back to the markets to raise yet more cash. This time it's cash that it needs to pay down an existing loan.
Virgin Atlantic Is Abandoning Gatwick & Cutting Over 35% Of Its Workforce
Virgin Atlantic has just announced that it plans to "reshape and resize" its operations in a bid to survive the current crisis. With the airline struggling to raise desperately needed funds and with the British government still apparently not inclined to offer a lifeline, Virgin Atlantic says that it will be closing down its operations at Gatwick and shedding 3,150 jobs.
Delta Is Raising $3 Billion To Ease Its Liquidity Issues
Yesterday, I wrote about United Airlines heading to the stock market to raise up to $1.1 billion to add to the $5 billion the US government just handed the airline, and now it's Delta's turn to tap up big investors for more cash as it announces a bond issue and a new Term Loan B facility which will total an impressive $3 billion.
Emirates’ New Cancellation Options Are Fantastic (Especially If You’ve Already Accepted A Voucher)
Emirates is one of the many airlines that have been showing a very serious reluctance to offer passengers refunds on their canceled flights even though refunds are exactly what these passengers are entitled to but, somewhat unexpectedly, Emirates has had a big change of heart and is offering customers a variety of options that now put a lot of other airlines to shame.
Delta Pauses Automatic Advance Upgrades & Blocks Middle Seats
Delta has just announced a series of new measures which it hopes will help passengers to continue practice social distancing in the air as well as on the ground. These measures include pausing advance complimentary upgrades and blocking seats in most cabins across the airline's remaining route network.
Incredible! Now Some Airlines Are Seeking Permission To Rip You Off
I've long thought that most airlines (not all) are run by people with little or no soul and by people who have little to no regard for their customers. Sadly, it's taken a worldwide pandemic to prove me right.
This Is Why I’ll Never Be A United Airlines Frequent Flyer
Right now there are a few corporations in the travel world that aren't doing a very good job of looking after their customers but there's only one that's actually taken measures that will very obviously make their customers' lives worse...and all at a time where the very opposite is what's needed - meet United Airlines.
Los Angeles Amex Centurion Lounge to open on Monday (9 March 2020)
The long wait for a Centurion Lounge is finally over for those of us who pass through LAX on a frequent basis as Amex has now revealed that its Los Angeles Centurion lounge will open on Monday 9 March 2020.
On What Routes Does Virgin Atlantic Fly The A350 (New Business Class)
When an airline takes delivery of a new type of aircraft it's not always a key moment in its timeline but, in Virgin Atlantic's case, the day its first Airbus A350-1000 took to the skies with a planeload of passengers was the day that Virgin Atlantic finally brought its A-game to the transatlantic premium cabin table.
Fly In More Comfort With These Four American Airlines Domestic Wide-Body Services
Widebody aircraft mean large premium cabins (good for upgrades from cargo class), large numbers of seats with extra-legroom (for when the upgrade doesn't clear) and lie-flat seats in the frontmost cabin (for when the upgrade does clear or for when you're paying to fly upfront) so it's always good news when we see Dreamliners and 777s scheduled to fly between various US cities.
Huge News: Alaska Airlines To Join Oneworld + American Expands In Seattle
Alaska Airlines and American Airlines have issued a joint statement in which they have announced a new "West Coast International Alliance" under which Alaska's West Coast network will connect up to (and feed) American's long-haul network, which will see Alaska Airlines becoming a member of the oneworld alliance in 2021 and which will see American Airlines launching a new route to Asia and a new route out of Alaska's hub in Seattle.
American Schedules Increased Service To Rio De Janeiro In 2021
American has recently been trying to make up for the collapse of its partnership with LATAM (and the exit of that partner from the oneworld alliance) by partnering with GOL, a Brazilian airline based in Sao Paulo.
British Airways Reschedules A350 Service To Tokyo (And Consolidates Service)
The British Airways A350-1000 may have been the launch aircraft for the airline's new Club Suite Business Class product but it's also the aircraft that has been at the center of the recent controversy surrounding how the airline has chosen to equip the latest addition to its fleet.
Star Alliance limits 3rd party lounge access for Gold elites
When a hotel or airline loyalty program puts introduces an apparently unnecessary devaluation I can't help but wonder if they truly understand how they're helping to make the competition look better...and that's how I feel about Star Alliance right now.
Odd: United Adds True Polaris Business Class To A Seasonal Route
United's Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners all offer true Polaris Business Class seats and are mostly (possibly entirely) based at the airline's Newark hub and, in a recent schedule change, one such aircraft has been scheduled on a route that I didn't expect to see it operate.
Qatar Airways Adds Qsuite Service To Another UK Airport
Thanks to the introduction of new aircraft and the increased speed with which Qatar Airways is refitting its older aircraft, the Qsuite Business Class cabin is not nearly as hard to find and book as it once was...but it's still exciting to see it being rolled out to more and more new cities.
Qatar Airways Announces 8 New Routes (And One Is Great News For Me)
Qatar Airways is undoubtedly one of the best airlines in the world (especially if you're flying in Business Class) and thanks to some of the amazing premium cabin fares that it offers between Europe and Asia it's also one of the more popular airlines too.
That's why the news that the airline is launching 8 new routes between March and November 2020 will bring a smile to quite a few people's faces...and to mine in particular thanks to one specific route coming later this year.
Two More US Cities Will Get Qatar Airways Qsuites Service This Year
Qatar Airways has gradually been increasing the number of aircraft and number of routes on which it offers its highly acclaimed Qsuites Business Class cabin and 2020 will be the year in which all of the airline's US routes will finally offer passengers Qatar's premium Business Class cabin.
Asiana Cuts Planned Business Suites & Significantly Reduces Business Class To NYC
Asiana is one of a number of airlines that haven't enjoyed the best of health in recent years and it has been taking various measures to improve its financial performance. In 2019 we saw the airline scale back its First Class offering by rebranding its most premium cabin as "Business Suites" and removing true First Class dining and services and we saw it axing a number of its less profitable routes as well.
Now it looks as if Asiana is scaling back its premium cabin offering between Seoul and New York City.
Delta Schedules More A330-900neo Service Out Of Seattle
Delta started taking delivery of the new Airbus A330-900neo back at the end of May and it has been operating the latest-generation aircraft on routes out of Seattle since July. So far we've seen the aircraft operating to Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo Narita but a recent schedule update shows Delta adding more A330-900neo service out of Seattle in 2020.
The New Virgin Atlantic A350 Is Coming To LAX From 19 April 2020
I have a strange love/hate relationship with Virgin Atlantic. I love Virgin's crews, its ground staff, the atmosphere onboard its aircraft and the airline's excellent Premium Economy Class product, but I hate the airline's Upper Class seat with a passion....and that's why I've been waiting for this news for months!
LATAM Will Leave Oneworld In October 2020
At the end of September it was announced that the planned joint venture between American Airlines and LATAM would not be going ahead following the failure of both airlines to find a solution to an unfavorable ruling by the Chilean Supreme Court earlier in the year.
Hong Kong Airlines Has Scaled Back Planned Service To Vancouver
Last week's move to cut its route to Los Angeles left Hong Kong Airlines airline with only a route between Hong Kong and Vancouver as evidence of its once big plans for transpacific travel and, as some suspected, a recent schedule update now shows this route is also facing an uncertain future.
Virgin Atlantic Is Adding More Flights To Las Vegas & Orlando
I'm always happy to see airlines adding new routes or more capacity to existing routes as the more seats that airlines have to fill the harder it is for them to increase prices...and I hate paying any more than I absolutely have to for the flights I book.
Delta Opens A New Sky Club In New Orleans Today
If you're a Delta flyer based in New Orleans the airline has some good news for you - as of today, 6 November 2019, the latest Sky Club is opening at Louis Armstrong New Orleans international airport.
39 New Properties Join The World Of Hyatt…But There’s A Catch!
Hyatt's loyalty program has been expanding at an impressive rate over the past 18 months and after integrating 8 Destination Hotels properties into the World of Hyatt in August/September, and after adding a further 49 SLH properties to the program in October, Hyatt has now announced that a further 39 Destination Hotels properties will join the World of Hyatt in the next week....but this time there's a catch.
Hong Kong Airlines Cancels Los Angeles Route And Exits The US Market
After flying its last flights between Hong Kong and San Francisco at the beginning of October, Hong Kong Airlines has now announced that it will be closing down its route to Los Angeles from February 2020.
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