Posted by Marshall Jackson on June 29, 2008 under American Airlines, Delta Air Lines | 
Well, since everyone else under the sun is blogging about this, I figure I may as well. As you probably already know, Delta Air Lines recently introduced a fuel surcharge for award tickets. In other words, your free ticket will now cost you $25 dollars if its a domestic one, and $50 dollars for international. I think the actual “fuel surcharge” attached to an international ticket nowadays is somewhere well north of $50 dollars. I apologize for not doing my homework to determine the exact amount.
What this really does is almost match US Airways’ recent move to attach a $25, $35 or $50 dollar processing fee to award travel based on your destination. American added a $5 dollar fee for award travel booked on AA.com stating that it was looking to recoup a portion of its investment in upgrading technology. I expect other airlines to implement similar charges in short order.
Call me an apologist if you want, but I think this could have been much worse. I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but I believe the actual fuel surcharge on an international ticket nowadays is somewhere well north of $50 dollars. And I don’t think I’m being too far out there in speculating that these charges, small as they are, may discourage some people from using miles. That might benefit those of us that still see some benefit in these programs. And despite what some of the alarmists implore us to believe, they do still have value.
Like I always say, things are going to be “interesting” in the airline business. But I plan to continue earning, and more importantly, burning miles for the time being.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on June 28, 2008 under Hilton HHonors |
Hey…my last 4 nights in beautiful Tulsa, Oklahoma did improve my life in at least one way…. I achieved the necessary number of nights to re-obtain Hilton Gold. It’s not the hugest deal on earth, but hey…it beats being Silver….or at worst… dirt status!
Starwood is my preferred hotel chain, but let’s face it, there are far fewer Starwood Hotels than there are Hilton affiliated properties. And having Gold status has already caused me to ensure that I direct my next three hotel stays to a Hilton property.
Next up: Tulsa (again) and I’ll be staying at the Doubletree Warren Place. I hear it’s a pretty good hotel. I’ll be sure and post a report.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on June 21, 2008 under Commentary / General Info |
Maybe that’s a little melodramatic, but it sure seems that the industry is coming apart at the seems at times, doesn’t it? Fees to check a single bag, elimination of elite bonus miles, and my personal favorite, US Airways is going to start charging $2 dollars for a stinking soda. What’s this business coming to?
Well, I think it’s coming to a head, that’s what I think. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again, the business crisis facing most of the domestic U.S. airlines exceeds that of 9/11 by a country mile. Now, that’s not to excuse some of the lame-brained decision making going on in the upper echelon of your average airline these days. But it is the truth. And crises tend to bring out either the best or the worst in people and in companies.
It remains to be seen whether the all-out “unbundling” of services provided by airlines beyond a seat on the plane will be long-lasting or not. My hunch is that some of this is going to stick, and frankly, may not be the worst thing in the world. I didn’t have a big issue with the $25 dollar fee for a second checked bag, and I still don’t. I’m a little less enthusiastic about $15 dollars to check one bag, but I’ll play for now and see what happens. I’m exempt from fees for the first 2 bags as an elite frequent flier at American, and I have taken advantage of that exemption already.
But I will tell you this, just this week, I booked a trip on Southwest Airlines for only the second time ever. Why? The fare, the schedule, and the fact that I want to try them out again to see if they really are a viable option for me. It’s a short nonstop flight to Columbus (CMH) for a weekend wedding. The fare was not dirt cheap, but certainly reasonable. And best of all, if something comes up and I can’t make the trip, I can credit every penny of the fare to a future trip on Southwest, and not have my money confiscated.
One thing is for sure, it’s going to be exciting as ever in the airline industry. My prediction: most of the recently announced changes stick. And if the price of oil continues its climb, coupled with a possible hurricane induced supply disruption over the summer, we could lose a major player in the industry permanently. I won’t say which one.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on June 15, 2008 under Commentary / General Info |
A good travel blogger would’ve been posting throughout his travels. I guess that’s a sign of something. To say I’ve been busy would be a slightly more than mild understatement. Folks, yours truly has been earning his keep these last few weeks.
I know, exciting destinations like Dallas and Tulsa ought to leave plenty of time for blogging, but alas, they did not. Better yet, I’ll be heading back to both places in a couple of weeks. I’ll post separately about items of interest including:
Airline: American Airlines was my winged chariot of choice for the past two weeks, and they did fine, believe it or not.
Rental Cars: Thrifty (don’t get me started) but at least the counter people were nice.
Hotels: Embassy Suites and Doubletree, specifically, the Embassy Suites DFW South in Irving, Texas, and the Doubletree Downtown in Tulsa.
Restaurants/Bars: I’ll have a few things to say about Tulsa. Suffice it to say, the city has changed a lot since I was last there. Good places to eat and drink, especially in downtown Tulsa.
Posted by Marshall Jackson on June 8, 2008 under American Airlines |
Yes, the rumors are true. MJ on Travel is traveling once again. I am pecking this post out on my BlackBerry from the B Admirals Club at DFW no less.
I am 3 for 3 on AAdvantage Gold upgrades in the past week. I’ll post on the hidden meaning of my good luck as well as trip reports about flights, hotels and places to eat as soon as I can.
Thanks for your patience. My real job kinda got in the way of posting last week.
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T
Posted by Marshall Jackson on June 1, 2008 under Commentary / General Info |
According to this article, Peter Greenberg is urging business travelers to fight back against this latest attempt at airline revenue enhancement.
I get the intent of minimum stay requirements. What I don’t get is why airlines refuse to price their product in a rational and understandable manner, and at an amount that covers their costs. I have long supported the idea of selling only one-way fares, and I still do. Airlines spend enormous amounts of money and energy to keep their convoluted yield management systems going. Folks, it costs money to offer 30 different fares in the same market. It costs money to employ an analyst dedicated to that market. Argh! I give up!
Frankly, I think it is doubtful that the return of the “Saturday Night Stay” will have anything more than a short-term positive effect on airline revenues. There are alternatives to the “legacy” carriers the impose these rules, and those alternatives are now mostly large enough to fly us wherever we want to go in this country. And the airlines are fooling themselves if they believe that business travelers will just succumb to the latest attempt to soak them for revenue.
But in defense of the airlines, they are facing a dire financial emergency with $130 dollar a barrel oil. I don’t blame them for trying anything to ease the pain. I just don’t think this will work in the long run.
