Australian war veterans are saying no thanks to a plan by Virgin Australia to recognize their service with priority boarding and special announcements onboard. The New York Times reports vets are embarrassed and ashamed of the new recognition: Critics,...
Three Airlines Take on April Fool’s Day

Yesterday was not only Easter, but April Fool’s Day. I’ve never really understood all the jokes surrounding this day, yet several airlines take time each year…a great deal of time based on the vides below…to have fun with this...
Live and Let’s Fly Weekend Digest: November 12, 2017

After a quick trip to Honolulu to commemorate the final United Airlines 747 flight, I’m back in LA…for tonight anyway. Tomorrow my next trip begins: a business trip that I’ll detail tomorrow that will take me on a product...
Virgin Australia’s Unethical Move to Cancel Cheap Tickets

You may be unethical if you book fares you think are “mistake” fares but one airline is certainly unethical for waiting NINE DAYS to cancel a cheaply-priced economy class ticket is blames on “human error”. Let’s all give a...
Top 10 Airline Award Redemptions for January 2014
With the new year here and many changes negatively affecting airline loyalty programs now in effect or shortly taking effect, there are still a number of superb deals available. Here are my top ten award travel bright spots for...
Adding an Infant Ticket to a Virgin Australia Delta SkyMiles Award
Now that I have lost most of you with such a boring title, let me tell you a little about my day. Days actually. It has taken two weeks to get an infant ticket issued for a client and...
New Gourmet Menu in Economy Class on Virgin Blue
As Virgin Blue continues to move away from the low-cost-carrier model, the airline has introduced a new menu in economy class that looks downright tasty. Designed by Chef Luke Mangan, the menu will include bundles like a panini served...
Air New Zealand Acquires Partial Ownership of Virgin Blue
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is not about to let Virgin Blue and Air New Zealand merge, but NZ turned some heads today after declaring plans to purchase a 14.99% stake in Virgin Blue. NZ says it is...
Star Alliance CEO Jaan Albrecht Addresses Consolidation, Latam, Gulf Partners, and Russia
Star Alliance CEO Jaan Albrecht sat down with Business Traveler this week after a Star Alliance board meeting (in beautiful Queenstown, New Zealand) to discuss a wide-variety of topics. Here are some of the highlights: On consolidation: Consolidation is...
UA’s Smisek Discusses Channel 9, 747 IFE, and the Future of Three-Cabin First Class
Speaking in Sydney yesterday, United CEO Jeff Smisek touched on a number of areas we’ve been eagerly waiting to hear about: -No Ch 9 (ATC communications) coming to CO aircraft–two expensive -No timeframe on determining the future of three-cabin...