BREAKING NEWS

“Continental Airlines will begin charging coach customers extra if they want a seat with more leg room…

Prices will vary depending on the length of a flight and popularity of the route. A spokeswoman said extra room on a Houston-New York flight might cost $59. International fliers would pay more than that…

Starting March 17, coach customers will be able to pay the charge at check-in to get an exit-row seat with at least 7 inches more legroom than the other rows..

Top-level members of Continental’s frequent-flier program — those who rack up at least 25,000 miles a year — and their traveling companions will still be able to claim the exit row without extra charge…

.Some other airlines already charge extra for exit-row seats. United, for example, sells “economy plus” seats in coach, with up to five extra inches of legroom…

On its Web site, United says the upgrade costs $49 on Denver-to-Seattle flights and $109 going from Los Angeles to Tokyo.

JetBlue also charges more for legroom. Some carriers charge extra for aisle or bulkhead seats. On US Airways, window or aisle seats can cost $5 to $30 extra. ” (via seattletimes.nwsource.com  ) by DAVID KOENIG

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read more – Continental to charge more for seats with extra leg room

Thanks to Jason B. for the tip

Here are some of the deals available…

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Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here for  Deal! JetBlue Vacations

all prices per person +tax and fees

From a post on Timeshareforums.com …

How worthless is the new Delta SkyMiles?…  Some on FlyerTalk call it SkyPiles, and for good reason…

I was once a DL SkyMiles Gold Medallion before Rob Borden gutted the program, when I bailed out to NW…

Now that DL has taken over NW, some of my NW Worldperks miles that I had not been able to burn have been involuntarily converted to SkyPiles, and the Jeff Robertson version of SkyPiles is much worse than the Borden version…

I recently checked several TATL (trans-Atlantic) itineraries on the DL and NW websites for award availbility. At NW and in the Borden and pre-Borden days at DL there was reasonable TATL availibility at normal miles, even if you were flexible a few weeks out in high season. Ten months out, almost everything was availible. That has all changed.

After checking US to Dublin for a relative and finding nothing at anything but high miles (and with their unique and disadvantageous 3-tier award system, high means sky high) over multiple months, I checked US to Bucharest over the entire upcoming ten months and found nothing but high miles seats the whole time, including low season. This really stinks.

And DL raised the minimum number of miles for TATL award tickets to 60K, although those seem to be extreme rarities these days. Usually, one has to part with far more miles than that on DL. On AA, in comparision, a low or shoulder season TATL award ticket is 40K miles and they are actually availible at that level. On BMI they are 45K miles all year and they are actually availible.

BMI has even got me one way award tickets KIV to VIE on their partner Austrian airlines’ Friday afternoon flights that are usually sold out and often oversold for a mere 6K miles on several occaisions a month or two before the flight.

FF programs are all about incentives. DL has certainly given me an incentive to avoid buying tickets on it or its partners like the plague. They have stolen my NW miles and they will not get any of my cash or my employers cash for my work related travel in the future.

DELTA = Driving Every Loyal Traveller Away

Carolinian – member

——-

We have found Delta charges more than other airlines. We used ours to fly to Hawaii last summer. It cost 52,000 miles per person, while my parents, daughter, son-in-law, son and daughter-in-law only used 40,000 flying United. We booked ours as soon as we could as did they. This year we used United. 40,000. At the same time Delta was 78,000. I just checked and Delta is now down to 62,000. We cancelled our American Express Sky Miles Card and are using our United card only. When we talked to American Express, they asked why we were cancelling. We told them two reasons, your fee went up $15 and it was not easy getting flights to where we wanted to go.

The three tier can be a joke. We tried high, medium and low, different days, they were the same amount. Maybe it was just when we tried, but it did not leave a good feeling. A high out and a medium back. No difference. Same with a high out and a low back. It was so crazy, we thought what the heck, try first class. It was marked LOW when economy was marked HIGH. The first class ticket was only 2000 miles more.

We talked to an agent, “We just can’t give our product away”. Had to remind her, that American Express pays for those miles, so the flights are not exactly free using the credit card miles.

d1950m -Member

——————-

Delta indeed seems to have far fewer point saver award tickets for FF’s. If they weren’t cheaper than everyone else we probably wouldn’t fly them. Unfortunately, since all airlines are about at bad as the other, price wins the day, even if we have a tough time spending those miles

dougp26364 – Member

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to follow this thread on Timeshareforums.com

“There are plenty of cheap shortcuts to a better travel experience…

Wearing an elegant outfit can open doors in business — and in business travel. Richard Rheindorf learned this firsthand, when he sported a well-tailored suit while waiting to board a flight from San Francisco to Vancouver…

Even though the coach cabin wasn’t oversold, the ticket agent bumped Rheindorf to first class…. “You looked the part,” the agent told him…

“It’s rare, but it does happen,” says George Hobica, president and founder of AirfareWatchdog.com. “If you’re standing there in a three-piece suit, they’re certainly going to pick you over the guy in gym shorts.”

Dressing up for a flight — and charming gate agents — works on occasion, but there are more sure-fire ways to score the best airplane seats. Whether it’s knowing a plane’s layout, requesting an exit-row seat or obtaining high status in a frequent-flier program, there are myriad routes to avoiding that non-reclining seat next to the back lavatory.

To uncover the most effective methods, we polled a roster of travel experts including Matt Daimler, founder of SeatGuru.com; Joe Brancatelli, founder of JoeSentMe.com; Patrick Evans, spokesman for STA Travel; and Hobica. They agreed: All seats are not created equal. There are tremendous differences even among coach seats on the same plane, not to mention other airlines and classes.

“Obviously there are seats that are more comfy than others,” says Hobica. “Pinpoint a seat and buy intelligently.”

Game of inches
Flying coach always seems to entail sitting with knees at one’s chest, squeezed by the encroaching bodies of corpulent neighbors. Though it may not seem like it, there are many ways to avoid this scenario. For one, know your airlines. Different carriers configure their planes differently; though most offer 32 inches of legroom, some, like JetBlue, offer 34 inches for the same price.

To get even more space, reserve a spot in an exit row. These seats typically offer six inches more legroom than the typical coach seat, and they’re often the same price. Airlines usually release these seats via online check-in 24 hours before departure; some, like JetBlue, sell them for a modest premium.

“For about $10 more, you can get an exit row seat with 38 inches of legroom — that’s more than some airlines’ first class,” says Hobica. “Personally, I always buy the exit-row seat.”

Another tip: Know your airplanes. There are tremendous differences even among the coach seats on a single plane; the disparity between different jets operated by different carriers can be even greater. Web sites like SeatExpert.com and Daimler’s SeatGuru.com offer color-coded seat maps that reveal which seats have the best amenities.

“Some airlines on certain seats have power outlets and seatback televisions,” says Evans. “That’s not always indicated on an airline’s Web site.”

JetBlue and start-up carrier Virgin America offer seatback televisions for every passenger on every flight. On other airlines like Allegiant and Southwest, video entertainment is notoriously hard to find.

Cheap upgrades

Another method of escaping coach’s doldrums is to obtain an upgrade to business or first class. Doing so needn’t be terribly costly — upgrades on domestic flights can be had for as little as $50 per trip segment.” (via msnbc.msn.com ) by Zack O’Malley Greenburg

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of Tips and tricks for finding cheap airline seats

“For about 15 days a month, Alaska Airlines pilot Jim Lancaster lives in a motor home in Parking Lot B near the southernmost runway at Los Angeles International Airport.

Every four minutes, a jetliner or turboprop roars in — 500 feet above his front door — for a landing. The noise is so loud it forces Lancaster to pause during conversations. But he doesn’t mind. Lancaster puts up with the smell of jet fuel and screaming engines to save time and money.
The 60-year-old aviator’s primary residence is a cottage he shares with his wife overlooking a quiet bay off Puget Sound in Washington state. Living in Lot B while he’s on duty means he doesn’t have to rent a Los Angeles apartment with other pilots or spend 12 hours a day commuting to and from the Seattle area.

“As kids we used to ask our parents to take us to the airport to see the planes,” Lancaster quipped. “Now I get to live at the airport.”

He isn’t the only one. Lancaster’s 2001 Tradewinds sits among 100 trailers and motor homes that form a colony of pilots, mechanics and other airline workers at LAX, the third-busiest airport in the nation. They are citizens of one of the most unusual communities in the United States.

Their turf, just east of the Proud Bird restaurant off Aviation Boulevard, is less than 3,500 feet from the south runway. It is a drab expanse of crumbling gray asphalt, approach lights, chain-link fencing and rows of beige and white RVs — some battered, others grand. A splash of color comes from the red and white blooms of about a dozen rose bushes along the colony’s northern edge.

Many of the residents are separated from spouses, children and significant others for days — even weeks — at a time in order to keep their jobs or move up the pyramid of the airline industry.

“This is the cost of being a pilot today,” said Todd Swenson, 40, a first officer with Alaska Airlines. His wife, Amanda, and 2-year-old son, Noah, live in Fresno, a six-hour commute by car. “I’ve wanted to be a pilot all my life. It can be awful here. But I have to provide for my family, and I love flying airplanes.”

Swenson, who earns about $70,000 a year, lives across from Lancaster in a 1973 Coachman trailer that belonged to his father. If Lancaster’s 38-foot rig with leather furniture is Park Place, Swenson’s is Mediterranean Avenue. The 23-foot metal box is as cramped as economy class, with just enough space for a double bed, a television and a La-Z-Boy recliner. There is a galley kitchen and a bathroom about the size of an airliner lavatory.

The trailer’s windows are blacked out with foil and brown paper bags so Swenson can sleep during the day. To muffle the constant din of aircraft, he bought a white-noise machine — a small tape player with a recording that sounds like a washing machine. Swenson works out at a nearby 24-Hour Fitness, where he showers to conserve his trailer’s limited water supply.

Inside the Coachman, the wood paneling and storage cabinets are covered with photos of Amanda and Noah, whom Swenson returns to about 11 days a month. He keeps in touch via a computer webcam.

“When my tires leave the driveway of my house in Fresno,” Swenson said, “the only thing I can think about is getting back to my family.”" ( via latimes.com ) by Dan Weikel

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of L.A. parking lot is home away from home for airline workers

“A quarter-century ago, Ralph Nader’s Aviation Consumer Action Project fought for passenger rights and won major victories, such as the requirement that airlines compensate passengers who are bumped from an oversold flight.

Today, the organization exists in name only, and as carriers focus on controlling costs to stay afloat, consumer protections are getting short shrift: Congress recently let lapse a rule that protected passengers from losing the value of their tickets if they book on an airline that goes out of business.

Apart from an increase in the compensation offered to bumped passengers, there’s been little progress on other fronts. Flight delays have been at record levels for the past two years, with one of every four planes arriving late, and more fliers are enduring long waits on the tarmac. The government’s response has been to form a passel of task forces and commissions, a time-honored Washington tactic.

On each of these panels there is at least one representative from the many organizations that claim to represent the interests of fliers. A look at these self-styled advocates suggests why they haven’t been more effective.

Flyersrights.org has the highest profile, though it was founded less than two years ago by former Napa Valley real estate agent Kate Hanni, after she and her family were stuck on an airport tarmac for nine hours. Hanni runs her organization on a shoestring budget, and its roughly 25,000 members need only sign a petition in favor of a passenger bill of rights to join. Her main goal: a law that would guarantee basic amenities to travelers trapped on a plane for more than three hours. The cause has had some setbacks: A “bill of rights” enacted in New York State was overturned on appeal by the airlines, and in October, Congress left town without acting on a federal version of the bill. Hanni also runs a hotline for fliers to call while stuck on a delayed plane.

The Air Travelers Association appears to be a one-man operation run by Maryland-based attorney and former airline executive David Stempler ” ( via www.msnbc.msn.com) by By Barbara Peterson Condé Nast Traveler

Pointswizard.com Spin: Click here to read the rest of  this article – Flier rights: Who’s really on your side?

“With companies feeling the pinch of the disastrous economy as much as the rest of us, a lot more of us are likely flying “budget” airlines for business more than ever.

After flying AirTran and Southwest, I was about to declare the latter as the best of the low-cost airlines – until i flew JetBlue. It was my first experience with tarmac to tarmac satellite TV and, while i didn’t get much work done, I thoroughly enjoyed the entertainment (if that’s what we can call watching the markets tank).

The TV wasn’t quite enough of a distraction from the small middle seat I was crammed into, but I have read that JetBlue has expanded its roomier seat section (up to 38″ of leg room for a mere $10 charge), which may make it a more attractive option for the business traveler. ” ( via businesstravel.about.com) by Greig Waddell

Pointswizard.com Spin: Read more Battle of the Budget Airlines

“(Budget Travel’s anonymous confessor has worked as both a ticket agent and a departure-gate agent for a major airline. He has since left the industry.)

When it comes to flight changes and delays, Budget Travel’s confessor says, “sometimes the agent is the last one to know.”

Airline agents may go out of their way to get kind passengers onto new flights when theirs are delayed.

No training
New airline ticket and departure-gate agents are hard to find these days. Not only are the wages awful, but flying for free — the one perk of the job — is becoming virtually impossible because planes are always packed with paying customers.

To save money, many airlines also aren’t giving new employees the same job training they once received, leaving inexperienced agents on the front line to deal with passenger complaints. Once, on a trip I took after I had stopped working as a ticket agent, I had to show a new hire where to look in the system to find my reservation — she had no idea what she was doing.

Cut off
The airline I worked for had a very antiquated computer system. We had about a dozen operating systems in the company. There were separate systems for mapping flight routes, filing lost-luggage claims, and keeping track of reservations — but not all of them could relay data to each other. To top it all off, the computers at the departure gates didn’t have Internet access.
The popular belief among disgruntled travelers that gate agents purposely keep passengers in the dark about flight delays isn’t really true — sometimes the agent is the last one to know what’s going on.

Good behavior
It used to be that if you tried a little smooth talking or even brought a cookie to the gate agent, you might be able to score an upgrade. Not anymore.

Because the airlines are increasingly focused on the bottom line, free upgrades are incredibly hard to come by. Still, it pays to be nice to the agents: After a few kind words, they may go out of their way to reroute you on a partner airline if your flight is delayed.

I turned on the charm myself one time when I was facing a long delay on the way to the Caribbean. Smiling politely, I went to a partner airline’s ticket counter and asked the agent to please reroute me. Several hours later, I was lying on the beach, sipping a tropical drink.

Personal info
Ticket agents are always updating Passenger Name Records, or PNRs. These computer files, which contain basic details on passengers’ trips, are accessible to most agents at check-in counters and departure gates.

Agents generally use PNRs to record special requests by passengers, but sometimes they also comment on a person’s behavior.” (via cnn.com and BudgetTravel.com)

Pointswizard.com Spin: here the link to read the rest

“This info comes from Peter Greenberg, The Travel Detective:

American Airline 767 – Two secret seats on domestic flights, 17H and 17J. On international flights, these two seats, located across from the galley and actually curtained off as a special section, are designated “crew rest” seats. They can be sold for domestic flights.

American 757 – Ask for 10A or 10F. They are window seats, but because there is no 9A or 9F you’ll have more legroom.
Delta 757 – Same as American 757 but seat 20A.
United 757 – Same as American 757 but seat 8A.

Northwest 757 – Same as American 757 but seat 16F or 15E.
USAir 737-200 – Same as American 757 but seat 11A or 11F.
United 767 – In business-class ask for either 10A or 10F. These are single business-class seats, with petite desk areas on their sides.” [tesh.com]

Here’s your secret weapon for fighting airline delays, cancellations, and missed connections:

Rule 240.

Before airline deregulation in 1978, Rule 240 was literally a federal requirement. Nowadays, it’s a term describing what individual airlines will do for late or stranded passengers. In fact, the major airlines have filed “conditions of carriage” with the U.S. Department of Transporatation (DOT) guaranteeing their respective Rule 240s.

If your flight is delayed or cancelled, or if you’ve missed your flight connection, these policies may give you free meal vouchers, hotel accommodations, phone calls, and other amenities. You may be booked on a substitute flight — even on another airline — and you may be compensated or given a full refund if the flight problems persist.

How can you use Rule 240 to protect your rights?

Always carry a printed copy of your airline’s Rule 240. Though the DOT requires airlines to keep a Rule 240 copy available for passengers at every ticket counter, don’t count on that.

(Click on your airline’s name below for a copy of its official Rule 240.)

Read Rule 240 carefully before you use it. Many airline ticket agents do not know these policies, so you should be the expert

For example, Rule 240s generally apply only to delays that are absolutely the airline’s fault, such as mechanical delays. They do not apply to what the airlines call “force majeure” events: weather, strikes, “acts of God,” or other occurrences that the airlines say they cannot control.

Be polite but very firm about your rights under Rule 240. You’ll win most battles at ticket counters when you say the phrase “Rule 240″ and show the agent your printed copy of the airline’s policies. However, don’t hesitate to keep going up the chain to supervisors if you’re not satisfied. Sometimes, airlines will even go beyond Rule 240 requirements in the name of customer service. (Not always, but it’s worth a shot!)
The Pointswizard.com Spin:
click blue line above , then scroll down and find the airline you need-click and then print it