Dots, Lines & Destinations

We took the show on the road this week. First up was Los Angeles for DorkFest/SpotLAX2021. Thanks to the listeners who stopped by to say hi while we were there.

From there a quick flight on Avelo up to Sonoma and some wine tasting and beer and a pretty fun conversation about it all.

Alas, the outdoor recording environment did leave us with a bit of wind in the background. Cleaned it up as best we could, but it is not perfect by any stretch. Sorry about that.

American Airlines made some changes to IROPs and accommodations policies in recent days. Or a long time ago an just never bothered to update the way those were communicated to passengers.

And, yes, the new CoC is much more in line with the reality of how the airline acts towards travelers.

But what if, instead of changing the contract to match the active policies, we fixed the policies to not suck?? Seems worth at least considering.

* German business travel spending hits all-time low* Philippines Airlines is the latest to file for bankruptcy protection* Billy Bishop is Back in Business* Someone tried to buy EasyJet* An executive order and proposed legislation around vaccinations in the US, plus possibly bigger fines for non-compliance with mask rules

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* CRAF ends, commercial ops resume at Kabul

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

How does just one out of service plane cause so much trouble for a major airline?? But it worked mostly in our favor, so no complaints this time around.

Also in this episode:

* The 20th anniversary of 9/11 with a charitable twist* Slot squatting in NYC* JetBlue London cuts in October, similar to September's cuts* Eastern’s cargo insanity (Note: After we recorded Eastern finally answered a query for additional details and will still run passengers 777s; that part of the recording was a mistake)* Jet2's pivot to Airbus* Virgin Atlantic' High density A350 coming this Winter, with an interesting business class nook* KLM cuts LAS, MCO, MIA for the winter as Netherlands closes off US travel. But Portugal didn’t close borders and TAP is advertising that.* Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards double tier points

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Bumps in the night* New UNESCO world heritage sites

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Kicking off the show with a bad conspiracy theory joke about hurricanes probably isn't our strongest play, but here we are. It gets better pretty quickly.

Also in this episode:

* United Airlines teased a cash & points redemption option internally to staff; details yet to come* Delta Air Lines won't require employees to be vaccinated, but will add an insurance premium hike if they don't* South African Airways is back from the dead* Alitalia stopped selling future tickets and its replacement ITA is ramping up to start ops 15 Oct* Qantas is ready to restart international services, with the A380 returning to flight sooner than previously expected* Air New Zealand will be retiring its 777s mid-decade as the 787-10s show up* Delta added 30 more A321neo to its order book, now 155 due

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* An update from O'Hare* Singapore's Changi Airport is reopening two terminals, with questionable demand* Singapore Airlines is running a cruise because it still can't fly people many places.

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

We lost last week's episode, but came back strong this time around with planes big and small crossing oceans and some fun new routes and money for US startups.

Also in this episode:

* Seth went to London and back on the new JetBlue service, trying out both the core/economy product and the Mint Studio business class seat* Korean announced the retirement plans for its quad-engine planes, including a nearly 60 year run as a passenger 747 operator* Turkish Airlines tried to depart from a taxiway at Newark* Singapore Airlines will launch flights from LA to Taipei, continuing to Singapore, but with a catch* Some additional details on Allegiant's new Allways Rewards program* Breeze snagged $200 million more in funding to help with the launch of A220s, among other things* Avelo announced routes from New Haven and Florida is, unsurprisingly, the target

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* A waiver of rules around foreign charter aircraft coming to the USA* American Airlines further delays liquor in economy class to at least January* Quarantine-free travel to Singapore from Germany and Brunei

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Two airline meltdowns – one much worse than the other – take the lead on this week's episode. Fortunately we narrowly avoided also having a laptop meltdown during the recording.

Also in this episode:

* Assuming it recovers its operations and gets back on track, Spirit Airlines also plans to launch service to Palmerola International Airport (XPL), the new airport in Honduras. And approaches into TGU, the airport it replaces, are crazy.* The British Airways A380 fleet has a new maintenance contract but reports also suggest not all are returning to service anytime soon* There's a KFC Hotel in London and Seth will just miss getting to stay there* Qatar Airways grounds 13 A350s for paint/metal corrosion issues* Plane spotting is not a crime and some airports are idiots about it* Virgin Atlantic might go public* If the US requires vaccination for inbound international travelers it could change much more than just allowing European inbounds* Airlines are making decisions on employee vaccination requirements* eVTOL hopeful Joby closed its SPAC deal and will bring its model to Wall Street to ring the opening bell on August 11th.

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* United Airlines has a much more confusing option to extend status than Delta's free year of Medallion for everyone* This Emirates video is apparently real, and it is insane.* Frontier and Emirates have promotions out that are marginally misleading at best, and willfully idiotic at worst* Military jets on the highways in Michigan* JFK Terminal 6 moving forward

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Should airlines require vaccination, even for domestic travel? The answer certainly varies depending on how you're evaluating the question, and we don't have a perfect answer. But it is definitely something worth thinking about.

Also in this episode:

* WestJet-KLM launch a codeshare* JetBlue trimming London before it starts, but only a little* Delta extends Medallion status, rollover another year* American & JetSMART tie up in South America* Uzbekistan launches new high speed rail with Spanish hand-me-downs * Nordica operating its own flights and ExpressJet soon to do the same* Allegiant has a new loyalty program in the offing, while Aeroplan adds Chase as a credit card partner* Lots of domestic wide body flights on the US Big 3 this summer

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* Domestic US first class meals are coming back* Firearms valet @ Asheville* The new Lufthansa "Sleeper's Row" takes flight

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

How long does it take to fly through each of the lower 48? Our guest this week did the trip as part of training for a pilots license and it was an incredible adventure.

Caroline Lupini took some time during the pandemic to work on getting a pilots license, but didn't want to just do circuits at the local airport. So instead she set out with a friend (and flight instructor) to establish a new record for the fastest path through the Lower 48, including a landing in each state. And the stories she has to share from the trip are pretty awesome.

Oh, and they went to Alaska, too, so the trip really covered 49 states.

Also in this episode:

* Malaysia Airlines might finally be getting rid of its A380s* Seaplane service launching between NYC and Boston* Cruises are restarting from Florida, and you'll need a mask, but not a vaccination to get on board 

Note: There were some issues in the recording and we talk over each other more than normal. Sorry about that. Hopefully everything still makes as much sense as it ever does.

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* The new Eurowings Discover took flight last weekend* Aer Lingus is slightly limited in where its new UK ops can fly* Planning international travel is harder than we want it to be* A planespotter saved the live of a Royal Air Force pilot

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

They might all be terrible ideas, but we're still going to talk about them and figure out if any of it makes sense.

Among the topics in this episode:

* United's 19-seat electric planes plans* Hydrogen planes for Icelandair and others* MRJ might bring back the CRJ700/550* Delta A350s (7) and 739ER (29) order* BA 787 nose gear collapse report* Canada opening to vaccinated Americans* Boeing 787 front pressure bulkhead rework required* VS lounges reopen at JFK, LHR

For our Patreon subscribers we have bonus content, including:

* ITA (aka Alitalia 2.0) to fly from mid-October, and we're going to help make sure it isn't really Alitalia in the end* A220s over North America* A couple JetBlue surprises

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

Points for paying rent? That's the underlying premise of the new Bilt Rewards program and, well, it is very different from others that came before. But also similar in many ways. We've got the company's Head of Loyalty Dave Canty on this week's show to talk about the new program and how it could open up reward options for lots more people.

Also in this episode:

* A trip report from New Mexico* Billionaires in space* New premium economy seats coming to Swiss* Porter Air orders jets, again

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!