• Podcast

DLD 463: Looking to lose weight (restrictions)

• December 21, 2023
• Tagged as: 787, 787-9, A220, A321neo, A350, Air New Zealand, Airbus, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Austin, Brisbane, British Airways, business class, JSX, lie-flat beds, Lufthansa Group, Mexicana, Phoenix, podcast, Porter Air, Qantas, routes, Scottsdale, Seoul, slots, Southwest Airlines, Stansted, Starlink, Tel Aviv, Turkish Airlines, union, United Airlines, WestJet

Long flights come with challenging performance requirements. Delta looks to shed some weight restrictions and United may be adding some next year.

• Podcast

DLD 461: Aloha, Alaska!

• December 7, 2023
• Tagged as: 787, 787-9, A321neo, Air Transat, AirAsia, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, China, Department of Transportation, DOT, E195-E2, Embraer, FAA, Federal Aviation Administration, GEO, Georgetown, Gyuana, Hawaii, Hawaiian Airlines, immigration, India, joint venture, Malaysia, merger, podcast, Porter Air, regional jets, routes, Tulum, United Airlines, wifi

Alaska Airlines is buying Hawaiian Airlines. There are lots of reasons the deal makes sense, but more than a few questions we have about how it will play out.

• Podcast

DLD 460: I dunno

• December 4, 2023
• Tagged as: Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, Allegiant, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Emirates, Etihad, Flying Blue, immigration, lounge, lounges, MCO, Oneworld, Orlando, Pakistan, podcast, routes, SEA, Seattle, United Airlines

No, really, I have no idea what to put here.

• Podcast

DLD 459: Thanks galore

• November 23, 2023
• Tagged as: Alaska Airlines, awards, BNA, Connect Airlines, DAS23, Delta Air Lines, Dubai Air Show, eVTOL, FAA, Federal Aviation Administration, Haneda, Houston, IAH, jetblue, LaGuardia, London, Nashville, Paris, Portugal, rewards, routes, slots, TATL, Transatlantic, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, WestJet

Thanksgiving week but we’re all avoiding the worst of the travel challenges, so that’s a win.

• Podcast

DLD 457: Awkward in Austin

• November 9, 2023
• Tagged as: A220, A321, Aer Lingus, Africa, Alaska Airlines, Allegient Air, American Airlines, AMS, Amsterdam, AraJet, Asiana, AUS, Austin, Delta Air Lines, Department of Transportation, DOT, earnings call, greenwashing, Halifax, Haneda, HND, Icelandair, KLM, MIA, Miami, PIT, Pittsburgh, podcast, routes, SAFs, Schiphol, Siam Reap, slots, Titan Air, YHZ

Is there at least maybe, hopefully a good reason for American Airlines slashing its mini-hub in Austin?

• Podcast

DLD 456: Seasonal Shift

• November 2, 2023
• Tagged as: Air Greenland, Boom Supersonic, Breeze Airways, CDG, DUB, Dublin, EDI, Edinburgh, Frontier, inaugural, jetblue, Lufthansa City, Lufthansa Group, Mexico, NFTs, Palau, Paris, Qantas, routes, Saudi Arabia, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines, Swoop, TAP Air Portugal, Tulum, United Airlines, WestJet

Once again the IATA seasonal change brings about new routes and kills off others.

• Podcast

DLD 455: Well, that was unexpected

• October 26, 2023
• Tagged as: 767-400, A321neo, Aer Lingus, Air France, Air Greenland, Air India Express, Alaska Airlines, Avianca, Boeing, codeshare, Delta Air Lines, Delta Flight Products, Haneda, Hawaiian Airlines, HND, Horizon, live television, livery, MEA, Qatar Airways, routes, slots, United Airlines, ZipAir

A couple major unexpected events this week caught us off guard, but we’re doing our best to get through it all.

• Podcast

DLD 454: Is there such a thing as real loyalty program enhancements?!?

• October 18, 2023
• Tagged as: 737 MAX, American Airlines, AMS, Amsterdam, ancillary fees, Beond, Bermudair, carbon offsets, Delta Air Lines, economy class, elite status, Emirates, engines, frequent flier, frequent flyer, Haneda, HND, ITA Airlines, Italia Trasporto Aereo, Japan, jetblue, JFK Airport, KLM, loyalty, Mosaic, points, Portsmouth, premium cabin, promotions, PSM, Rapid Rewards, Rolls Royce, routes, slots, Southwest Airlines, Tokyo, TrueBlue, United Airlines

Can loyalty programs actually make changes that seem to make things better for customers, without taking benefits away elsewhere? Tune in to find out.

• Podcast

DLD 453: Shuffling the deck

• October 12, 2023
• Tagged as: 737 MAX, 737 MAX 7, 737 MAX 8200, 787, A321neo, Air Canada, Air France, Air Malta, Airbus, Allegiant, awards, Boeing, business class, Delta Air Lines, Dreamliner, EAS, economy class, Essential Air Service, ExpertFlyer, Global Airlines, Hi Fly, Ireland, KLM, LOT, MEX, Mexico, Mexico City, NLU, premium cabin, Premium Economy, Recaro, rewards, routes, SAS, seating, seats, SkyTeam, Southern Airways, Star Alliance, Sun Country, United Airlines, VivaAerobus

Thank goodness change is such a constant in this industry. Otherwise what would we have to talk about every week?

• Podcast

DLD 451: Hotter than fire

• September 28, 2023
• Tagged as: A350 XWB, Air Belgium, Air Peace, Akasa, Brightline, British Airways, CBP, China, Condor, Delta Air Lines, Eastern Airlines, economy class, Edelweiss, Haneda, Heathrow, HND, iAero, India, LHR, London, PDX, pilot shortage, podcast, Portland, Premium Economy, routes, slots, Tokyo, train, Trip Report

But at least there was no meltdown this week…