gary leff
@garyleff

Miles & Points, Mistake Fares, and Luxury Travel

 AUS
viewfromthewing.com
Joined November 2008
1,475 Photos and videos
Hilton May Add “Black Diamond” Above Diamond Reserve—Pushing Diamond Status Further Down [Roundup] viewfromthewing.com/hilton-m…

Hilton May Add “Black Diamond” Above Diamond Reserve—Pushing Diamond Status Further Down [Roundup]

Hilton’s “Black Diamond” has surfaced in internal materials, suggesting another status tier above Diamond Reserve could push ordinary Diamonds further down the ranks. Also: a $50 Rakuten signup offer...

viewfromthewing.com
1
2
2,938
Southwest Had No Choice But To Abandon What Made It Great - Here's Why They Became Like Every Other Airline But Worse viewfromthewing.com/southwes…

Southwest Had No Choice But To Abandon What Made It Great - Here's Why They Became Like Every Other...

Southwest’s old model stopped scaling. Broader distribution forced it to unbundle fares, premium seats required assigned seating, and credit card economics demanded lounges. Each change made the next...

viewfromthewing.com
2
1
12
4,573
Airlines Are Making Business Class Worse, Not Cheaper—Why Their “Basic” Strategy May Backfire viewfromthewing.com/airlines…

Airlines Are Making Business Class Worse, Not Cheaper—Why Their “Basic” Strategy May Backfire

Delta, United, JetBlue and a growing list of international airlines say stripped-down premium fares offer more choice. They are not creating a new class of bargain fares. Airlines do need to discount...

viewfromthewing.com
2
18
5,090
“Temporary” Airline Subsidies Still Cost $680 Million A Year After 48 Years—Paying For 78% Empty Flights viewfromthewing.com/temporar…

“Temporary” Airline Subsidies Still Cost $680 Million A Year After 48 Years—Paying For 78% Empty...

Pueblo, Colorado is bringing back a 6 a.m. flight to Denver on a route subsidized at $6.84 million a year. The winning airline bid forecast filling just 22% of seats, and Colorado Springs airport is...

viewfromthewing.com
1
10
5,600
Seattle Residents Sue Delta And Alaska For Jets Polluting Their Homes—Case Gets Thrown Out viewfromthewing.com/seattle-…

Seattle Residents Sue Delta And Alaska For Jets Polluting Their Homes—Case Gets Thrown Out

Residents near Sea-Tac sought cleanup, compensation, and medical monitoring over alleged aircraft pollution. Their claims failed because federal law bars separate state emissions standards—and they...

viewfromthewing.com
2
18
5,763
What a dishonest embarrassment in the @nytimes
BoardingArea
@BoardingArea
Sep 25
Misleading New York Times Essay Blames Your Miles For Killing Spirit Airlines—Author Wanted Miles Banned 34 Years Ago dlvr.it/TVfKM8 via @garyleff
7
2
17
10,568
Misleading New York Times Essay Blames Your Miles For Killing Spirit Airlines—Author Wanted Miles Banned 34 Years Ago viewfromthewing.com/misleadi…

Misleading New York Times Essay Blames Your Miles For Killing Spirit Airlines—Author Wanted Them...

Spirit borrowed heavily against its loyalty program, lost cost discipline, and posted a negative 30% operating margin months before the Iran war. A New York Times essay blames lack of access to...

viewfromthewing.com
3
20
7,729
United Flight Attendants Got “Premium Economy” Travel In Their Contract—But The Union Left Them Booking Coach viewfromthewing.com/united-f…

United Flight Attendants Got “Premium Economy” Travel In Their Contract—But The Union Left Them...

An arbitrator ruled that United’s promise of premium economy meant Economy Plus, not Premium Plus. The union knew the problem, left the language unchanged in its latest contract, and now says fixing...

viewfromthewing.com
1
3
25
10,430
Marriott Starts Checking Work Emails For Corporate Rate Eligibility—Knowing The Discount Code May No Longer Be Enough viewfromthewing.com/marriott…

Marriott Starts Checking Work Emails For Corporate Rate Eligibility—Knowing The Discount Code May...

A new Marriott booking prompt asks travelers to verify employment before accessing a corporate rate. It could curb sharing of code discounts, but contractors and other eligible travelers don't always...

viewfromthewing.com
7
3
69
36,803
Bilt Offers Up To 125% Amtrak Bonus October 1—Plus Instant Hilton Diamond For Platinum Members viewfromthewing.com/bilt-off…

Bilt Offers Up To 125% Amtrak Bonus October 1—Plus Instant Hilton Diamond For Platinum Members

Platinum members can turn Bilt points into Amtrak points at 1:1 without paying for a higher bonus, or make a small Hilton transfer for instant Diamond status. Hilton's bigger 200% transfer bonus...

viewfromthewing.com
6
6,695
FAA Got $12.5 Billion For Air Traffic Control—They Want $30 Billion More But May Light It On Fire viewfromthewing.com/faa-got-…

FAA Got $12.5 Billion For Air Traffic Control—They Want $30 Billion More But May Light It On Fire

Congress gave the FAA $12.5 billion for its air traffic control overhaul. GAO now says the agency still lacks a reliable estimate of the full cost and an integrated master schedule. We need the new...

viewfromthewing.com
2
7
6,803
Passengers Were Downgraded On An $8,166 Business Class Trip—American Airlines Denied Any Refund viewfromthewing.com/passenge…

Passengers Were Downgraded On An $8,166 Business Class Trip—American Airlines Denied Any Refund

American’s Montreal Convention treaty defense has real support, but its own contractual refund promises and federal consumer protection rules don't let the airline decide $0 is what the passengers...

viewfromthewing.com
4
2
24
13,957
Delta Passenger Was Cuffed, Denied The Bathroom, And Exposed Naked—Court Grants Immunity After $7.2 Million Verdict viewfromthewing.com/delta-pa…

Delta Passenger Was Cuffed, Denied The Bathroom, And Exposed Naked—Court Grants Immunity After $7.2...

A jury awarded a Delta passenger $7.225 million after an onboard confrontation left him injured. A divided appeals court has now upheld the airline's immunity, extending protection for reporting...

viewfromthewing.com
3
10
9,194
Use Lyft For Work? How To Get 6%–8% Back, Plus Extra Airline Or Hotel Points viewfromthewing.com/use-lyft…

Use Lyft For Work? How To Get 6%–8% Back, Plus Extra Airline Or Hotel Points

If you use Lyft for work, you may be leaving easy money on the table. A free Lyft Business profile lets you keep your regular airline or hotel points, earn them faster, and get 6%–8% back in Lyft...

viewfromthewing.com
6
6,478
Seattle Delays Approval Chase Sapphire Lounge, Commissioner Complains It Was Leaked To Reddit viewfromthewing.com/seattle-…

Seattle Delays Approval Chase Sapphire Lounge, Commissioner Complains It Was Leaked To Reddit

Port commissioners postponed the 16,000-square-foot Chase Sapphire Lounge lease until October 27 over equity and retail-impact questions. Then they demanded to know how details from their own public...

viewfromthewing.com
1
6
6,229
American Airlines Will Watch For A Better Seat For You—And Let Top Elites Reserve Their Free Coach Snack viewfromthewing.com/american…

American Airlines Will Watch For A Better Seat For You—And Let Top Elites Reserve Their Free Coach...

American Airlines is adding a way to get a better seat without constantly refreshing the seat map. Tell the app what you want, and it'll move you automatically if a matching seat opens up. Executive...

viewfromthewing.com
2
5
27
10,040
Senator Warns Your Airline Pilot Could Be A Furry In Bizarre Floor Speech—‘Lord Help Us’ viewfromthewing.com/senator-…

Senator Warns Your Airline Pilot Could Be A Furry In Bizarre Floor Speech—‘Lord Help Us’

Senator Tommy Tuberville took to the Senate floor to warn that your airline pilot might be a furry. “Lord help us,” he said. “It’s terrifying when you think about this.” The Alabama Republican didn’t...

viewfromthewing.com
2
10
8,440
TSA Celebrates Finding A Pocket Knife Hidden In Toothpaste viewfromthewing.com/tsa-cele…

TSA Celebrates Finding A Pocket Knife Hidden In Toothpaste

A couple blamed their son’s advice, surrendered the pocketknife and continued to their flight. TSA once wanted to allow small knives so screeners could focus on explosives, and its latest covert-te...

viewfromthewing.com
2
1
8
9,047
Lufthansa Passenger Was Promised A Payment, Didn’t Get It—Airline Says Its Answer Won’t “Magically Change” viewfromthewing.com/lufthans…

Lufthansa Passenger Was Promised A Payment, Didn’t Get It—Airline Says Its Answer Won’t “Magically...

Lufthansa told a passenger chasing what he says is an approved payment that its answer wasn’t going to “magically change” just because he asked on Twitter. The airline may be right about the claim....

viewfromthewing.com
2
6
5,909
American Airlines Passenger Says Seatmate Texted About Her “Fat Rolls”—Then Stepped On His Chex Mix viewfromthewing.com/american…

American Airlines Passenger Says Seatmate Texted About Her “Fat Rolls”—Then Stepped On His Chex Mix

An American Airlines passenger says she saw the man next to her texting about her “clammy fat rolls.” She switched seats with her companion, confronted the man, and says flight attendants gave her...

viewfromthewing.com
1
2
9
8,097
Load more