Dots, Lines & Destinations

Two airlines disappearing in a month is bad news, but that seems to be what's happening right now. Ouch.

Among this week's topics:

* Thomas Cook on the brink of collapse (now confirmed)* XL Airways also halting operations* Virgin Atlantic has some very, very unrealistic expectations of its future at Heathrow* Virgin Australia wants to buy back the 35% of its loyalty program it sold off a few years back* Aeroplan has a new plan for its award charts that could be interesting (in a good way) for points fiends* Stephan went flying in a balloon, which is very cool but especially so considering his fear of heights

Enjoy the show!

Nothing like walking into a tradeshow booth and having the vendor openly lament dropping $75,000 to exhibit at the show. But that's one of the more interesting interviews we pulled this week at the combination APEX/AIX/IFSA event in Los Angeles.

Once we did find people to talk to there were a few interesting stories that came through. Among them:

* Spirit has new seats on the way, and they no longer want to talk about pitch as a personal space metric* The Optimares Quadra seat coming to Qatar Airways in mid-2020 is better than we thought it would be* Bluetooth audio really is coming to planes in the next couple months or years, depending on the vendor and implementation scope. We tried out a few of the demo systems with mixed to poor results.* Can Virtual Reality become a mainstay of the inflight entertainment world? Incremental improvements every time we get to a show suggest that there's still legs in this industry.* Inflight connectivity antennae are getting flatter, but the next generation remains too far away to get very excited yet.* Some interesting developments from catering supply companies as they seek to reduce waste in the cabin

And, as always, the usual ramblings that are a hallmark of our show. Enjoy!

Strikes happen. In aviation the impact can be dramatic, but usually it gets figured out well enough. British Airways managed to throw that playbook out the window this week, however.

Also in this week's show:

* Air Belgium is back with some questionable route choices* United's Summer 2020 plans depend heavily on the new High J 763* Is there demand for flights from the CONUS to New Zealand's South Island?* Planning for a two month trip through South Asia is complicated and exciting, and can always use more help

And, as always, plenty more. Enjoy!

Yes, it is an annoying word. But it just might be a better way to travel. With a couple different trips to Prague recently the team is ready to debate its value.

Also in this episode:

* Delta's pilots are not happy with the new JV arrangements and are insisting that they be given more flights.* United might be bringing back screens to the domestic fleet.* Hawaii is getting some more action from Southwest and Hawaiian and we're really not sure how the market can support all that traffic.* Midwest Express is set to fly again for some reason.* What's really going on with Cathay and Hong Kong? We don't know either, but we have some thoughts.

And, as always, plenty more.

Enjoy the show!

Why visit Nova Scotia? Lots and lots of reasons, it turns out. We've got Ed from Pizza in Motion on the show this week to chat with Seth about the many things to see and do in (and near) a small portion of the province.

From UNESCO World Heritage Site Lunenburg to the heart of Halifax, the southern portion of Nova Scotia offers a lot of Fun experiences. Some specifics mentioned in the episode are:

* Peggy's Cove* The Swiss Flight 111 memorial (near Peggy's Cove)* Beach Pea Kitchen (Lunenburg)* Fisherman's Cove (near Halifax)* Evans' Fresh Seafood (near Halifax)

Beyond the Canadia bits, we also touch on:

* Denver's construction project being delayed and finding a new contractor* Norwegian cutting its smaller TATL routes thanks to the MAX being grounded

Airport runway repairs are always an exercise in logistics. But it is a whole lot easier if you can just shut down operations for a couple months without losing the flights. That's what is happening in Milan this summer.

Also in this show:

* The protests in Hong Kong continue, spreading to the airport as well. Fozz was just there and has some thoughts about the experience.* American Airlines is adding some elite-ish benefits to its corporate contracts* Dulles will get new service from Swiss and Cabo Verde Airlines next year* Hubs and Joint Ventures and all sorts of interesting conversations in that context. Like the new SkyTeam(ish) JV getting approval and Delta finally confirming that it will, in fact, close its Narita operations completely and drop Singapore as a destination on its route map.* The 737 MAX is still grounded. We're placing bets on new certification dates.

Enjoy the show!

United Airlines took an equity stake in biometric identity company CLEAR, with plans to expand the number of airports where the service is available and increase enrollment by giving top elites free access.

Also in this episode:

* A new Chinese airline is now flying the ARJ21, a frankenplane from COMAC (and McDonnell-Douglas)* The TWA Hotel in NYC is now charging for access to its pool deck, upsetting some plane spotters* Air Antwerp is bringing the Fokker 50 back to operate from its eponymous airport. Formerly of VLM, perhaps the KLM/CityJet ownership can make it work better this time around.* Southwest Airlines is leaving Newark, blaming the MAX grounding among other things. Could it also be that United is pushing them out.* Do you tip at hotels? Should you? How much? Does it depend on services used/rendered?* Allegiant has "Extra" legroom on some planes, now adding a free drink, too. Worth the upcharge?* WOW Air's assets maybe have a new owner and the stories about her are insane.

And plenty more. Enjoy the show!

What does it take to get antitrust immunity approved? For Qantas and American Airlines the answer is a new administration in charge of the government and three extra years of time. But it should be worth it for the pair as their US-Australasia deal takes flight later this year.

We've got a shout-out in this episode to the crew running Extreme Hotel Deals and their new premium subscription option. Some impressive stuff being delivered regularly from them. Discount code: mailinglist gets a year of access for $39.50.

Also in this episode:

* United Airlines has a new layout coming to its 787s and it is a mix of good and bad news for passengers* Will the Bangkok metro area see a third airport in the next decade?* British Airways did an awesome fly-by performance with a 747 in retro colors plus the Red Arrows at RIAT over the weekend* Some Cairo services suspended based on security uncertainty* JAL's first A350s are running on domestic routes and they look pretty darn for a domestic/short-haul config* A tangential rant about lounges and particularly the Incheon T2 options

And lots, lots more.

A new type enters the fleet as Delta Air Lines is firing on all cylinders in its operations. Things look pretty good for the company, though Stephan still has some concerns about the facilities in the NYC area.

Also in this episode:

* Pakistani air space reopened to commercial traffic after months of closure and the "why" part of this crazy story remains unclear.* ANA's new first class and business class cabins are swanky and worth trying to fly in. But the roll-out process is less than ideal in several ways.* A trip report of sorts from flights to Seoul and on to Jeju in Korea.* WOW or WAB?!? What's happening with the remnants of Iceland's bankrupt pink airline?

And, as always, lots of fun digressions and other bits.

Enjoy the show!

What happens when a company screws up? Often very little. Regulators in Europe might be changing that, however, with a significant penalty announced against British Airways parent IAG as a result of the personal data stolen from the company last year. About time or taking it too far??

Also in this episode:

* Amtrak is close to breaking even on operations thanks to major changes implemented by CEO Richard Anderson. And that has a lot of people upset.* Delta Air Lines is overhauling its economy class meal service for long haul flights with lots of good news and one very pointed potential problem* British Airways (details) and Virgin Atlantic both have schedules for their new A350 operations, though some are more certain than others.* Norwegian is cutting some long-haul routes to the USA* American (and someone else) might be launching service to Zagreb soonish* Flynas cancelled a 737 MAX order in favor of the A320neo but the reasoning is far more nuanced than what most pundits are pushing* Denver has a beer crawl option for your next layover* What's good in Bhutan?

Plus lots, lots more!