An aviation podcast talking about driving? Sometimes that's the only viable option, and it is strange. Plus, so are we.

Also in this episode:

* New Dutch airport delayed again

* 777X delayed to late 2023 at the earliest

* Alitalia might really finally die

* Canada closing its borders

* HNA bankruptcy affects about a dozen airlines, 600+ planes and more. Plus $9B+ in embezzlement.

* New Mint suite (including front row Studio)

* Boeing’s next attempt at a new plane

* AA plans MIA-TLV starting this summer

* Dodge Neon as baggage tug

* Allegiant New Routes

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Nunavut bathroom idiocy (and Seth's poor geography)

* Rolls Royce summer shutdown

* $AAL riding the squeeze

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

First the policies change. Then they change again. Keeping up with that back and forth is incredibly challenging. But we're trying.

Topics in this episode:

* The US announced plans to relax restrictions, and then just hours later that was countered. Now the rules are even more strict, including quarantine requirements.* KLM Indicated it would halt long-haul flights following proposal of strict testing requirements that would affect crew. Again, a change of policy saw that averted.* Canada's airlines face continued challenges, including more service cuts as test and quarantine rules are strengthened.* Norwegian's long-haul operation is dead, and with that some changes to the TATL marketplace are already being seen.* Alaska Airlines will offer a new status tier at 100k miles starting next year, but no one really knows what it will include* A man lived in O'Hare for 3 months.* British Airways has a new grocery partner for Avios earn and burn.* Chengdu has a new mega airport slated to open soon.* The Ghanaian government really doesn't want to fly to Gatwick

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Allegiant has some fun in Portland* United Airlines has less fun in long-haul ops

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Huge thanks to our newest patrons:

* Matthew H.* Arthur L.* Megan J.* Jeff A.* Ben B.* Mike R.

We start 2021 with an unplanned trip down memory lane to Malta, because happy travel memories are a good thing

Also in this episode:

* Boeing settled with the US Department of Justice, and it seems the price was cheap* With the new CARES Act extension in play the rules for where airlines have to fly have been revised a bit* Spirit Airlines was defrauded to the tune of $150k by a group issuing fake pass travel tix* Marriott is among the companies changing its policies on political contributions in the wake of last week's insurrection at the US Capitol* A Sriwijaya 737-500 crashed just after takeoff over the weekend

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* New York City's new Amtrak terminal

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

We definitely don't recommend eating it, but the 2,000 year old street meat discoveries in the ruins of Pompeii are all sorts of awesome.

Also in this episode:

* Montenegro Airlines is dead, but it will likely return soon* A lawyer involved in representing 737 MAX victims stole payments intended for them* After years of battles a Delta pilot won their case regarding whistle-blower retaliation, and the now-head of the FAA is implicated* The EPA finally adopted aircraft emissions standards so Boeing can sell planes internationally but it won't really help reduce emissions* Alaska Airlines will continue to block middle seats in its Premium Class cabin, at least most of the time* Azores Air will fly an intra-Atlantic route from Puerto Delgado to Bermuda and that's a seriously sexy line* The book Seth mentioned, Empires of the Sky

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Some thoughts on the increased Alaska Airlines 737 MAX order book

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

As has happened several times since the pandemic began airlines are shaking up their route maps with idea so crazy they just might work. So which new destinations will work this time around??

Also in this episode:

* JetBlue has some interesting ideas about new markets that can benefit from its presence, particularly Miami and Raleigh-Durham, which just happen to be an American Airlines hub and a Delta focus city.* American reacted with some new routes of its own from Fort Lauderdale, though it is also cutting TATL markets and otherwise trying to find a path to stability.* US Congress finally passed another COVID recovery plan that probably isn't the best use of money, especially with respect to how airlines are being treated.* A new strain of COVID detected in London saw brisk reaction from much of the world, though the US is keeping its border open.* Brexit is just around the corner and Ryanair is among the airlines feeling the pain after its plan to skip local ownership rules got busted by the UK CAA.* The US Senate says Boeing coached its test pilots inappropriately around the recertification flights, which is definitely not good.* Starlux is planning to fly to the USA in 2022.* JetBlue makes some changes to Mosaic elite status in 2021.* A passenger on a United flight died from COVID and the industry is struggling to handle it well.* Stephan took a trip last week and was not impressed.

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Do you get bonus points for finally deciding to stop traveling now that it is dangerous despite taking many leisure trips throughout the rest of the year??* All sorts of interesting happenings in India with potential changes of airline ownership.

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Where have all the cool planes gone? If you frequently find yourself wondering about that JetTip.net might help with some answers, at least in the US and Canada. And we've got founder Nick Benson on this week's show to talk about that and lots of other fun stuff.

Also in this episode:

* COVID vaccines are flying (and driving) across the USA

* Aeromexico is ready to bring the MAX back into service next week

* There's a couple A340-200s available at auction starting for just 80,000 euro each

* Millions of frequent flyer miles stolen

* Aeroplan is launching a US credit card with Chase

* A contest to win a free JetTip.net subscription

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Tracking the presidential campaign fleets

* A ridiculous cargo payload

* More change fees disappearing on Delta and United

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Is it a race to be first, or just normal business to get the planes back into the sky? Just one of many questions surrounding the 737 MAX return to service now that the grounding has been lifted in the USA.

And to help dig deeper into the issue we've brought in Chris Sloan of Airchive to talk about the MAX. He was on the American Airlines media tour last week to see the aircraft in action and talk to the maintenance crews in Tulsa helping to bring it back to service levels.

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Drone photography: awesome or awful?* Sim time

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Header image: An American Airlines 737MAX at the Tulsa maintenance center (via Chris Sloan/TheAirchive.net)

It was a travel bubble that burst before the first flight ever departed. After much buildup the Hong Hong-Singapore bubble never took off, though it still could eventually.

Also in this episode:

* AA drops more change fees (and United seems inclined to follow)* JetBlue plans to split is London operations to start* Aer Lingus picks up antitrust immunity for transatlantic flights and adds a hub in Manchester for the 2021 summer season* Delta and WestJet are walking away from their planned trans-border JV because the DOT was going to require divestiture of 8 LaGuardia slot pairs* Reciprocal upgrades coming between American Airlines and Alaska Airlines for the west coast alliance* An Emirates flight to Auckland in September likely resulted in a handful of in-flight COVID transmissions

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Which bubbles might work with testing, and how involved must that testing be??

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

How do you build a new airline loyalty program? We've got a couple guests this week from Aeroplan to talk about how their team pulled it all together.

Mark Nasr and Scott O'Leary are travel junkies, too. So letting them design the new Aeroplan loyalty program for Air Canada was bound to yield slightly different results than anything else on the market. But that's probably a good thing in the end.

Not a lot in the way of show notes, other than Scott's incredible FlightMemory page.

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Some extra inside information, like their favorite sweet spots on the new award charts

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

How do you host a massive casino opening party in Las Vegas in the midst of a pandemic? It definitely isn't easy, but it can be done.

The timing is certainly challenging for Circa, opening as the first new build casino/hotel in Las Vegas in years. But the company is pushing forward with the plans and the festivities were pretty incredible. We've got Michael Traeger back on the show to talk about his experiences there as well as some other Vegas news like:

* How people are skipping the mask rules* Slowing down the bourbon pace* Flying in British Airways First Class these days

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Heading out to the Grand Canyon for a very pandemic-appropriate experience.

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!