With summer flights coming up to and from Europe, we look into the world of Schengen and non-Schengen flights. What is Schengen and what does it mean to you as a traveller? How will you have to handle security, customs and immigration? How does the physical layout of your airport affect your connection? Vinny shares a very tight timing experience flying from IBZ-MUC-YVR on Lufthansa (LH). Geoff shares experiences having to re-jig his schedules twice through MUC on LH. What do you want to do on your arrival - do you even need to clear Schengen? Do you have the proper visas to transit to get to your destination? Vinny shares stories of checking passports with British Airways (BA) at YYC. Does the country you're flying to offer short term visas? If you're travelling inter-Europe, you still might have a Schengen to non-Schengen connection.

Boarding Area/Sam Chui news item about a British Airways flight ending up in the wrong city

NBC news item about a Michigan mom suing Spirit Airlines, says daughter was removed from flight without her knowledge

Boarding Area/Sam Chui news item about Air Belgium A340 operating for British Airways to Dubai

Shoutout to listener Brenda Reeves.

If you have a story, question or experience that you would like to share - including inter-European flights - please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

Condolences from Seat 1A to family and friends of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 along with those in the industry. We were all ready to go with a new experience and then WOW, it went bankrupt. What was WOW's business model...ask Valentine about a free ticket? Vinny shares his story of showing up at work in YEG and finding out Jetsgo (SG) was bankrupt...and then having to tell the pilots they were out of a job and deal with the craziness of spring break travellers. Once wasn't enough though for Vinny...he was at work at YYC and had to tell the Zoom Airlines (Z4) pilot that the ground handling would not service the plane due to bankruptcy. Wait to hear what YYC did after the grounded plane was parked. If you're stuck with a bankrupt airline, what do you do? What were underlying causes of WOW's demise? What is the basic underlying support of your airline? Is your airline selling cheap tickets to meet their short-term cash flow needs? Sometimes there is a predicted process for the wind-down of an airline.

SKYTRAX news item about 2018 World’s Best Airline Cabin Cleanliness award Flyertalk/Independent news item about KLM refusing to book a hotel for their stranded passengers Flyertalk news item about American Airlines passengers now being able to redeem miles on China Southern Shoutout to listener Danny Nabelek.

If you have an airline bankruptcy story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

When Vinny was a kid, somehow he always ended up with an upgraded seat when flying YEG-LHR. How does an airline manage fares related to yield...and what happens when the math doesn't work out for the airline? What is a GTE? How does the airline re-jig the seating of a flight? Geoff's experience with snow delays at YYZ that got him an upgrade. Involuntary and voluntary upgrades – what's the difference? How do airlines determine who to upgrade – what's the prospective checklist? What does the upgrade and standby screen mean at some airports? When the check-in for flight closes, what's happening? Sometimes an involuntary upgrade doesn't for the passenger...why? How ordering certain special meals can affect your ability to get an upgrade. Vinny shares how Iceland Air (FI) food catering affects upgrading chances...even if you want to pay to upgrade. Why standby employees may end up getting the upgrades. "Are there any upgrades available?"...how Vinny held a key economy seat from GRU-JFK that helped get an upgrade. If you're asking for an upgrade, make sure you have a reason why you should be considered. Once the doors close you learn the incredible power of the crew for upgrading. Vinny and his amazing upgrade story from LHR-NBO...wait until you learn why was he met by the flight director. Vinny had a different upgrade attempt experience on Emirates (EK). Smart upgrading – it's not always about length of flight. Flight crews never know the reason why someone got a seat in a certain class. Geoff had a standby seat flying FRA-YVR but needed to use a jump seat for landing and takeoff. How to ask gate staff about how many seats are sold on the flight. CBC News item about Air Canada accused of duping passengers about overselling Skift news item about United Airlines threat to cut Expedia access to its seats.

If you have an upgrade story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

In this episode big thank yous for your likes & support of our social media launch! We share a story from one of our followers about her cancelled JFK flight. We look at delays versus cancellations and diversions, and discuss the airline's obligations.

Listener Isabel lets us know about her story about her cancelled late-night flight at JFK with American Airlines (AA) along with her husband and toddler. The journey to the closest available hotel and time for her next flight was extremely difficult for her – particularly with a toddler. She made sure to follow-up in writing with American Airlines after her experience – with a supporting photo! American to their credit responded quite well.

We clarify the difference between delay and cancellation and what happens on the back end the moment an airline is notified – the race is on to find blocks of rooms. Sometimes it's a race against other airlines. You need to determine if it's worth it to take the airline's offer. Are your meal vouchers going to be accepted or do you have the time to use them to eat? Are you able to coordinate children or other travelers flying with you as well?

The moral of the story – make sure you follow up with the airline after a cancellation – but make sure you ride the fine line of reasonability. Will you be reimbursed for a room if the airline has already offered one? Be ready to take what you get, but if you have a special situation (e.g. young children) you need to bring it to the airline's attention.

Vinny shares a great delay story with a delayed package tour passenger at YEG.

We look at some other delays – including delayed WestJet (WS) passengers that were delivered to a hotel in CUN but were told that the hotel wasn't expecting them and requested payment up front. This highlights the relationship between the airline and the ground handler – these are two different things. Many airlines use a third-party ground handler. Does the ground handler have relationships with local hotels?

We review a diversion that happened at Goose Bay, Labrador (YYR) with United Airlines (UA), which then had a mechanical problem and was delayed for 17 hours. There are many things that happen after a plane is diverted – including ground handling, baggage, fuel issues and possibly customs. Will there be other mechanical issues or will the crew time out – preventing the plane from continuing on? Is the ground handler able to handle the logistics of putting people up and feeding them? There are numerous logistics to get a recovery aircraft to remote locations including replacement crew, plane types & flight planning. Vinny shares a diversion story with Sunwing Airlines (WG) when a CUN-YVR flight had to divert to DEN.

The European Union has a long-standing set of passenger rights & compensation. Canada has recently started a similar set of rights. There was case in January 2019 of a UK family who were asked to sit on the floor of their charter flight.

Don't expect magic with cancellations, delays and diversions, be as realistic as you can, but ensure that the airline is doing as much as they can with the situation.

Vinny shares a story about an American Airlines (AA) flight diverted from YYC to YEG where the crew was not able to continue, and the plane had to park due to a crew issue. What happens to the inside of the plane when that happens?

Diversions might also have passenger issues with customs which means that the flight can't be handled or won't be handled.

If you have a irregular operations story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

Vinny shares how he was already in an aircraft traveling globally at a very young age and his boyhood wonder of jet travel staring at an Air Canada (AC) L-1011 at the terminal window. Geoff shares his experiences crossing Canada with Canadian Pacific (CP) and AC as a child and watching final approaches of numerous planes in his backyard. Geoff and Vinny met up in university in Edmonton, Canada. A big shout out to the global student association AIESEC – which provided both our hosts a chance to expand their global experience. Geoff gained valuable insight into the world standards for shipping infectious substances by air. Vinny had a unique project with passenger movement at YEG security before and after 9/11. Geoff shares his experience on the ramp as a ground handler – and even a presidential interruption of his work at YYC. Vinny shares his incredible story of doing manual check-ins at YEG – make sure you don't lose that seat sticker! There was a time that a charter flight engine literally froze up at -50C! Vinny then moved to YYC – with British Airways (BA). Vinny gained further experience on the other side of the door as a flight attendant. How a flight delay in DEN led to the development of Seat 1A. News Items – the passing of Herb Kelleher from Southwest (WN).

We'd love to learn about who you are as a listener. If you have a story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

Geoff shares his delay experience with delays and a cancellation on a Swoop (WO) redeye flight from YXX to YHM. What went wrong on the flight, and what could Geoff have done better to prepare? What can one possibly expect with a ULCC carrier versus a flag carrier – particularly with landing in smaller centres? We share a shout out to listener Trevor Hamilton. Vinny shares a story about Trevor's experience with Air New Zealand (NZ) return flight from LAX-AKL-MEL booked with Expedia. Did the points get credited as expected? What to watch for to make sure the points qualify for accrual – particularly on a third-party travel booking website. Vinny shares a points experience story with Korean (KE) from YVR-ICN and how his fare class was linked to KE's frequent flyer program SKYPASS. Wait, there's more to Trevor's flight story...how a dry leased EVA (BR) plane affected his extra purchased legroom from AKL-LAX. WestJet (WS) plane 'made contact' with catering vehicle on tarmac. Brussels Airlines (SN) A330 Suffers Inflight Dual Engine Failures.

If you have a flight experience story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

In this episode we look at the world of crew duty time, flight duty period, and crew rest periods. What is the generally accepted length of allowed duty time, how is this defined, and when does the clock start? How long is the minimum rest time? How is the time allocated when at home or a remote downline station? We hear that crew time has expired...what does that mean? What are the different options for replacement crews? How does crew scheduling work? Minimum crew requirements...what is it and how is it determined? Controlled rest on smaller planes and augmentation on long-haul flights...where do pilots and crew sleep? Guess where the crew bunk areas are on wide-body planes? What to be aware of for delay situations and crew staffing? Mechanical delays happen – news item of 7-hour delays at BLR with AI. Drunk JL pilot 9x over the limit at LHR LO pilot had to pay cash for parts at PEK before flying to WAW...and asked the passengers to help out.

If you have a crew duty story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

It's that time of the year again in northern climates. Why do we de-ice? A couple of key tragic crashes changed de-icing focus. A quick review of surface contamination. How to get clear the wings of ice – everything from a bucket of hot water on a small plane to glycol on larger planes. What's the difference between de-icing and anti-icing? Three main different types of de-icing options used by airports. and how it's cleaned up after use. How is it determined if the plane is going for de-icing? Is there a way we can tell what method an airport uses? The delays that are possible from de-icing. We look back at Episode 003 where Vinny had a de-icing delay at YYZ. Does your airport normally get frost, snow or freezing rain? Do they have the equipment to handle a de-icing queue effectively? De-icing also can happen when it's perfectly sunny...snow squalls can always show up. Delays are also possible due to clearing runways of snow. Vinny shares a story of an unfortunate incident with a de-icing bucket truck (wasn't with him fortunately!) Alaska Airlines – hinting that they're finally going to join oneworld? BA has their final 767 passenger flight. What a fantastic workhorse of a plane. TAP Portugal accepting first 330neo. The world of aviation is evolving quickly these days.

If you have a de-icing story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

Vinny misplaces his passport the first time - and it ended up where? How did it get reconnected to him? Have you ever misplaced your passport at the airport? Vinny did at FRA - and what happened after that is absolutely bananas. What should you copy and keep with you and checklists if you lose your passport. Your passport expired but what happens with active visas? Say cheese - passport photos. It's not just lost passports that need to get replaced. How many American passports are lost/stolen per year? How strong is your country's passport? Flying fish with ANA and meal selections from the EU. Bibimbap as an food option to ICN while in economy. Multi-billion renovations open at LGA. New terminal in MCT. The wild ride with WOW, Iceland Air, and Indigo - possible intercontinental ULCC possiblities? Listener shoutout.

If you have a passport story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/

Exploring the world of airport lounges. What's in them, what lounges are available for whom, and are there ways around the restrictions? Getting a Thai massage at BKK before your flight. Comfortable beds for sleeping at FRA Lufthansa HON lounge. Accessing the lounge – there are many different ways. First and business ticket holders, flight status holders, certain credit card holders. The multitude of lounges available with both airline/alliance lounges and third-party lounges. Consider opening your wallet in some cases and paying a for single entry or for an annual membership (Virgin Australia also has a lifetime membership!) Vinny somehow got into a lounge with an expired status card - and not just once or twice. The incredible Etihad Residence Lounge at AUH with a shout-out to Sam Chui for his review! And at the other end of the scale – wait until you hear about the "lounge" experience at LXR. When is it worth paying for lounge access? How a simple shower will rejuvenate you between long intercontinental flights. Don't forget about sleeping cabins and pods at some airports...are they worth it? The crazy busy SilverKris T3 lounge at SIN in the later evening...and Qantas upping their first-class lounge game at SIN by late 2019. SAS Golden Lounge at CPH – a new daylight boosting zone for those long Nordic winter nights. Cathay Pacific paid lounge access promotion at three airports flying to HKG.

If you have a lounge story, question or experience that you would like to share, please email us at stories(at)seat1a.org or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Patreon. Show notes are available online at http://podcast.seat1a.org/