We talk about Alex’s “almost” India experience and why she had to go to Indigo’s Plan B! David’s trip to Kazakhstan just seemed to “Wizz” by ! Oh, and we touched on Alex’s current airline crush!

This airline for this episode was “F” – one of the world’s oldest airlines – and they do have a unique seat (hint). We also had a quick shout out to the world’s most profitable airline – you guessed it right.

David was excited about Disney coming to Abu Dhabi – and planes in Disney livery! But he will need to wait! We ended with Lounges – that’s what the Sky Lounge podcast is all about! Nice relaxing discussions in a relaxed comfy lounge! What would Ian Kay say about that?

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Travel demand remains strong, but could tariffs be the turbulence ahead for aviation growth? Let’s not dwell too long on that—because we’re also celebrating a terrific birthday for the airline that starts with “E”! Can you guess which one? Tune in to the episode to find out!

In this week’s episode, Alexandra and David dive into a mix of quirky and serious aviation updates:

• ·From Finnair’s non-reclining business class AirLounge seat (yes, really!),
• To reimagining Eurowings catering carts with built-in coffee machines as… champagne & wine fountains?
• And of course, April 1st wouldn’t be complete without a few clever fake headlines and light-hearted fun.

On the topic of tariff turbulence, we also explore Roger Hall’s insights on turbulence of the airline kind.

Check out the article here:https://www.xflashsystems.com/alerting-monitoring/turbulence-det-route-plus/

Plus, a sweet cargo story! Mangoes & Apples! Andrew Tan reported on Air India Cargo’s fruity endeavor with over 3,000 varieties of mangoes, along with the airline’s recent integration of Apple AirTags for baggage tracking (and maybe mango tracking too?)

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Alexandra got the opportunity to try out some first-class luxury without even leaving the ground! While David got to relive old memories with a trip to Amsterdam – and the weather was just perfect!

They then jumped into various topics from loyalty to Aviation & AI – ending with the airline of the episode – “D”.

Guess the airline name – It’s a big one!  Nope, we know what you are thinking – it’s not Delta!  You have 3 guesses!

(Hint: They have more than 300 dedicated aircraft & serve over 500 airports globally.)

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It’s already the middle of February! And in this episode of THE SKY LOUNGE podcast, Alex & David talked about a relatively small and unknown airline starting with the letter B! The airline “B” has a very unique product that not many other airlines can lay claim to! But do you need to say a prayer before you take that flight with them?

We discussed the evolution of loyalty programs, airline & product transformation and buzzwords! Oh! We also touched on “flying the stripes”

If you are looking for a podcast with a fun & relaxing but informative take on the aviation industry, THE SKY LOUNGE podcast is the one for you!

LINKS

We also spoke about the LADIES BEYOND FLYING group on LinkedIn! A very passionate group committed to making a change in aviation! Do follow them! Here's the link https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12451302/

Ann Cederhall - White Papers & Buzz words

https://tinyurl.com/2sppu992

Mikko Turtiainen - Trust The Stripes! And Fly Them As Well! 

https://tinyurl.com/yty34zxm

We are also proud to have made it to the Top 100 Aviation Podcasts by Feedspot! Thank you listeners & fellow avgeeks!

Here is the link of the list https://podcast.feedspot.com/aviation_podcasts/

Enjoy! And have a great rest of February!

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Happy New Year! Yes, we know that it is almost the end of January 2025 but is a good reminder how quickly the new year tends to come and go!

In our very first episode of 2025, Alex & self-have tried a slightly different format, where we take some of our LINKEDIN posts and talk a little bit more about them. Alex’s posts tend to be more practical & product focused; Mine tend to be more wishy-washy furtury 😉!

We talked about Ryanair & their liquid wishlist limits of 2 on the ground; What If IKEA had an airline? How airlines number their flights; when all you need is your face to travel; Front of the plane or do you prefer the back? 

And we have a very interesting discussion on an airline very close to Alex’s heart, starting with A (Suspense)!

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Alex & David take a look back at 2024! It's been a year full of stars, good memories & lot of travel!, but it has been a year with it's share of sadness as well!

Champagne in economy, free agents versus loyalty - How will 2025 be for the industry?

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Welcome to season 2 of The Sky Lounge podcast with Alex & David. The new season starts with a slightly different format with the both of us talking about avgeeky things! This episode has a lot on airline food, a subject that always tends to bring up a lot of emotion!

Blame it on the sugar rush thanks to all the Diwali & Halloween sweets! We hope you enjoy the discussion!

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Change seems to be the mantra for aviation over the last few months! From low cost airlines adding business class & wide-body aircraft, to legacy carriers looking at ways to make more money, there is a lot happening in the industry.

What's in an airline business model anyway - the new model is "The What Works Model". And to add a little drama to all these changes, add in technology meltdowns!

But one thing remains constant - Aviation Geeks! No guest on this episode! Just Alex & David have a chat about all things aviation! Enjoy!

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Don’t you feel like royalty with that airline loyalty card! Lounge access, priority boarding, extra baggage allowance, free seat assignments, and a whole bunch of other nice to have “status” benefits!

This episode of Sky Lounge features Mark Ross-Smith, Loyalty guru  & CEO of Loyalty Status Co., the creator of StatusMatch! Like Mark said in a post “We all intuitively know that loyalty status is the most sought-after, most highly prized thing any aspiring traveller can earn.” – we covered a lot of ground talking about the psychology of loyalty, status, status matches & how airlines are adapting to a changed world!

You could be a free agent like Alex, who prefers trying out different airline products or you could be like David stuck to one airline but worried about a status downgrade – but no matter what sort of traveller you are, this is a must listen-to episode! Hope you enjoy it! 

And don’t forget to have a look at Mark’s LinkedIn profile & Loyalty Status Co

https://www.linkedin.com/in/markrosssmith/

https://www.loyaltystatus.com/

https://statusmatch.com/

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Travel and fitness might seem like an unlikely pair. Think about all the trips filled with flights, time zones, different hotels, and busy days where fitness was the last thing on your mind.

And consider the hard-working aviation professionals, both on the ground and in the air, working long and odd hours—fitness often takes a back seat after such hectic schedules.

Today, it's just me, David, here without Alex. I'm joined by a very special guest, my son, Dr. Nihal Studden, a Doctor of Physical Therapy. Nihal will share some simple, easy-to-implement fitness tips for travelers, aviation professionals, and everyone in between! We hope you enjoy and benefit from the discussion!

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