• 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

DLD 514: Hub Plays: Alaska’s Long, Southwest’s Short

• December 19, 2024
• Tagged as: AAdvantage, Air Canada, AirTags, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, credit card, credit cards, drones, elite status, FAA, Federal Aviation Administration, first class, frequent flier, frequent flyer, Hawaii, Hawaiian Airlines, hubs, IFC, IFEC, in-flight connectivity, in-flight internet, inflight connectivity, inflight wifi, jetblue, PDX, premium cabin, Premium Economy, Qatar Airways, routes, SEA, Seattle, Southwest Airlines, Spain, United Airlines

Two very interesting and very different sets of route announcements caught our attention this week. Plus premium seats and lots more.

• 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

DLD 507: Lounge Life

• October 31, 2024
• Tagged as: Air Canada, AirBaltic, American Airlines, Boeing, business class, Dulles, first class, flyDubai, Greenland, IAD, Nepal, premium cabin, Premium Economy, Qatar Airways, SAS, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines, strike, union

Doing our best to prove that there’s no such thing as a quiet airport lounge anymore, and part of the problem, too.

• 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

DLD 501: Star signs and labor challenges

• September 19, 2024
• Tagged as: 737 MAX 10, 737 MAX 8, 737 MAX 8200, Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Allegient Air, American Airlines, Boeing, IFC, IFEC, in-flight connectivity, in-flight internet, inflight connectivity, inflight wifi, Real ID, Rex, Riyadh Air, San Antonio, SAT, Southwest Airlines, SpaceX, Spirit Airlines, Starlink, strike, Sun Country, TSA, union, United Airlines, Virgin Australia, Volotea

One strike averted, another underway. And plenty of challenges remain for the aviation industry overall.

• Podcast

DLD 499: Ramble on

• September 5, 2024
• Tagged as: A321neo, A321XLR, A350, Air China, Air India, Alaska Airlines, Bilt Rewards, Boom Supersonic, C919, China Eastern, China Southern, Delta Air Lines, Department of Transportation, DOT, elite status, Frontier, Hawaii, Hawaiian Airlines, Ireland, ITA Airlines, Japan, jetblue, JFK Airport, KLM, Lufthansa Group, Malaysia Airlines, merger, Mint, New York City, Norse Atlantic, pilot shortage, Rapid Rewards, regulators, Russia, SAS, SkyTeam, Southwest Airlines, Star Alliance, TAP Air Portugal, TATL, Transatlantic, United Airlines, Vistara, XB-1

Another week, with plenty of random thoughts from the guys…

• 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

DLD 494: The Farnborough files

• August 1, 2024
• Tagged as: 737 MAX, A320neo, A330-900, A330neo, Airbus, American Airlines, ANA, Avelo, awards, Bilt Rewards, Boeing, Boom Supersonic, British Airways, credit cards, crystal suite, earnings call, engines, Farnborough, FIA2024, flyDubai, flying boat, Flynas, General Electric, GEnx, hydrogen, jetblue, KLM, Qatar Airways, QSuite, rewards, Southwest Airlines, Turkish Airlines, ZeroAvia

Perhaps major airshows are losing their impact on the industry a bit. But Farnborough still brought plenty of key news to the fore.

• 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.