American Airlines debuts new amenities kits in advance of Memorial Day weekend, part of its premium cabin soft product refresh meant to accompany new business class suites that are delayed by Boeing 787 production problems.
I had the opportunity to get my hands on a first class, business class, and premium economy amenity kit.
I’ve cleaned out my wallet and I’m not carrying nearly as many credit cards on a daily basis any longer. Still, my wallet is a great window in the spending choices I make every day. What gets a wallet slot, and what cards I have but keep in a drawer, go a long way towards illustrating how I put my mileage and spending strategies into practice. Sharing this also adds a bit to my transparency as I cover credit card rewards.
Here’s a peek into what’s really going on behind the scenes of my daily spending life.
A first class passenger was passed out in his seat, with his legs propped up againts the cabin wall beside him. He wasn’t wearing shoes, and his feet were right above the head of the woman seated in the window seat directly in front of him. She and her seatmate spring into action – with toe nail polish. The man doesn’t wake up.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
Reportedly flight safety incidents more than doubled between 2022 and 2023 as parts inventories ran low.
Now it seems that one way Russian airlines have kept flying – acquiring the spare parts they’ve needed – is having passengers check the parts in their luggage.
American Airlines flight attendants haven’t had a raise since 2019. At the end of that year their contract became amendable, and the value of their wages has been substantially eroded since then by more than 20% inflation. A new contract was delayed first by the pandemic The process of negotiating all the myriad details is a long one. The current agreement (that flight attendants didn’t even approve) runs over 325 pages. And that doesn’t count a separate 15 page attendance policy and 18 page uniform policy among others. Plus, union politics (effectively needing to wait for incumbent officers to be re-elected) meant further delay. Boston-based first and second year American Airlines flight attendants are eligible for food stamps. American Airlines even gives newly-hired flight attendants a letter attesting to their poverty. The letter states that…
The best American Airlines domestic aircraft is the one that it flies on premium cross-country routes like New York to Los Angeles and San Francisco. The Airbus A321T (T for transcon) features first class, business class and economy.
However that plane is on the way out, with the premium cabins being dismantled and even coach being made worse. The first of these – the aircraft registered as N115NN – has already been converted into a standard domestic plane with regular first class, TVs removed, and less legroom. It will soon re-enter service as a stripped-down experience.
It’s unclear whether the FAA’s latest fuel tank concerns will merely delay the introduction of the A321XLR, at least for U.S. airlines and transatlantic service, or whether it will mean less fuel capacity and range for the aircraft – meaning that it winds up less useful for the airlines that have ordered it.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
