• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 522: Helo Hold

• February 20, 2025
• Tagged as: 777X, Airbus, Alaska Airlines, Avis, Contour Air, crash, DCA, Delta Air Lines, EAS, elite status, Emirates, Essential Air Service, FAA, Federal Aviation Administration, frequent flier, frequent flyer, Hawaiian Airlines, hydrogen, Iberia, Qatar Airways, regulators, Riyadh Air, Southwest Airlines, Toronto, Trip Report, United Airlines, Washington DC, YYZ

Another rough week for aviation in many ways. And plenty of concerns about what lays ahead.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 519: Rankings and Rantings

• January 30, 2025
• Tagged as: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, earnings call, Qatar Airways, routes, Saudia, Trip Report, TSA, United Airlines

We’re back in the USA and ready for some news and rants this week. Some of them are even reasonable.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 518: Barra or Bust!

• January 23, 2025
• Tagged as: Barra, BlueOrigin, Condor, Frontier, Glasgow, ITA Airlines, Italia Trasporto Aereo, JejuAir, Lufthansa, Lufthansa Group, Scotland, SpaceX, Trip Report

A quick hop to the beach runway at Barra was part of this week’s adventure, plus Frontier, rockets, and more.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 513: We Try Harder(ish)

• December 12, 2024
• Tagged as: 737 MAX, 757-200, A321LR, A321XLR, Air Canada, Allegris, American Airlines, ancillary, ancillary fees, Avis, Basic Economy, Boeing, business class, Citi, co-brand, cobrand, credit card, credit cards, Department of Justice, Department of Transportation, DOJ, DOT, first class, Frontier, Icelandair, Lufthansa, premium cabin, privacy, rental cars, routes, Swiss, TAP Air Portugal, Tulum

Is it finally time for some passenger rights in the USA? And why does air travel feel more unbundled than ever, in every class of travel?

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 511: Gobbledy good times

• November 28, 2024
• Tagged as: Allegient Air, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Department of Transportation, dining, DOT, Federal Aviation Administration, Finnair, Frontier, Karachi, LCC, LCCs, Low Cost Carriers, routes, Russia, S7, Southwest Airlines, Trip Report, ULCC, United Airlines, WestJet

Sure, the U/LCCs are struggling right now, but they’re still planning for growth in 2025.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 506: P(l)aying premium

• October 24, 2024
• Tagged as: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Avianca, bankruptcy, Boston, business class, Cathay Pacific, China, DCA, first class, Hainan Airlines, hyatt, Korean Airlines, MileagePlan, Norse Atlantic, Play, premium cabin, routes, Russia, SkyTeam, slots, Spirit Airlines, train

Lots of chatter this week about premium products, and which airlines are having success with them or not.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 503: Where’s the Widget?

• October 3, 2024
• Tagged as: Air France, American Airlines, AUS, Austin, Canada, Capital One, Cathay Pacific, Delta Air Lines, DFW, Frontier, lounges, Oneworld, Southwest Airlines, Starlink, Trip Report, Turkish Airlines, United Airlines

Dartboard or strategic planning? Either way, lots of new routes to discuss in this week’s news.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 497: A hail of a problem

• August 22, 2024
• Tagged as: ADD, Addis Ababa, Air Greenland, Alaska Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Czech AIrlines, Delta Air Lines, Edelweiss, Ethiopian Airlines, Greenland, Hawaii, Hawaiian Airlines, HNL, Honolulu, JFK Airport, Korean Air, lounges, merger, SEA, Seattle, Southwest Airlines, WestJet

Airplanes and hail don’t mix, and a storm rendering 10% of an airline’s fleet unflyable is all sorts of bad.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 493: Is your crowd on strike?

• July 25, 2024
• Tagged as: A321XLR, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, certification, China, CRJ550, Dallas, DCA, Delta Air Lines, Department of Transportation, DFW, DOT, EU261, Farnborough, FIA2024, Fiji Airlines, Greenland, London, regulators, SkyWest, Southwest Airlines, union, Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Australia

What a mess for airlines and more as millions of Windows-based computers were knocked offline last Thursday night.

• Podcast
• Trip Reports

DLD 491: More bad news for Boeing, but maybe it is good?

• July 11, 2024
• Tagged as: 737 MAX, 737 NG, Air Greenland, Atlantic Airways, Boeing, business class, Canada, Canadian North, DCA, Department of Justice, Department of Transportation, Greenland, inaugural, jetblue, KLM, lie-flat beds, Mint, Norse Atlantic, PDX, Portland, regulators, routes, slots, suite, TATL, Transatlantic, Washington DC, ZipAir

A trio of Boeing stories top the show this week. And somehow pleading guilty to a crime might end up being good for the company?