2PAXfly
EXPLAINER: What’s the difference between narrow-body versus widebody aircraft?
It used to be largely true that wide-body aircraft were for long-haul flights and narrow-body aircraft were for short-haul flights. Bue recently, and especially since the advent of the Airbus A321XLR, that distinction no longer holds. What largely holds is the level of comfort and service provided on the different-sized...
2PAXfly
VIRGIN AUSTRALIA: Corporate affairs head demonstrates double standards on social media
This story was reported by Hannah Wootton, in the AFR. As you will see, there are now deleted posts involved, making this difficult to verify independently. However, the AFR is a journal of record and demonstrates traditional journalistic ethics, so I am inclined to trust their reporting. Since he’s Virgin...
2PAXfly
QANTAS: Project Sunrise, test flights start, certification and other delays
On the day Qantas celebrates the successful maiden test flight of the first Project Sunrise Airbus A350-1000ULR, I thought it might be timely to look more closely at the project. Below, I examine publicly available information and other possible reasons for the delay in the aircraft and project launches. The...
2PAXfly
VIRGIN AUSTRALIA: Last chance to claim Travel Credits from COVID-19 period
If you still have a Virgin Australia COVID-era travel credit sitting unloved in your digital bottom drawer, it’s your final boarding call. Credits issued for cancelled flights between 21 April 2020 and 31 July 2022 expire on 30 June 2026. And here is the kicker, Virgin says you don’t just...
Also on BoardingArea
Paddle Your Own Kanoo
Man Caught Red Handed Stealing Disabled Passenger’s Gucci Wallet From TSA Bin at Fort Lauderdale Airport
The security checkpoint might be one of the most secure parts of an airport, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a crime-free zone, as one unlucky passenger at the Fort Lauderdale Airport discovered when he got through the body scanner to discover that his Gucci wallet was nowhere to...
One Mile at a Time
Brand New Lufthansa Boeing 787 Suffers Gear Collapse At Frankfurt Airport Gate
A couple of days ago, I covered a bizarre incident at Frankfurt Airport (FRA), where a Lufthansa Dreamliner had a gear collapse at its gate. While it’ll take some time for a full investigation to be performed, we now have some clues as to what may have caused this…
Miles To Memories
Last Chance For Fee Free Visa Gift Cards & Bonus Earning At Staples This Week
A reminder that the Staples Visa gift card deal is ending tonight. Grab those fee free bonus points while you can.
Live and Let’s Fly
Man Sneaks Onto United Airlines Flight With Fake Boarding Pass After Multiple Security Failures
A Houston man used a fake boarding pass to sneak onto a United Airlines flight at IAH, forcing the aircraft to return to the gate and triggering a major law enforcement response. It’s always curious me to how these stowaway events happen in the first place… Man Sneaks Onto United...
One Mile at a Time
New Orient Express Sailing Yachts Sets Sail: Ship, Pricing, Itineraries, Inclusions
In recent years, we’ve seen luxury hospitality companies increasingly getting into the cruising industry (though profitability has been a challenge). For example, Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection was among the first, then we recently saw the launch of Four Seasons Yachts, and then in 2027 we’re supposed to see the launch of...
View from the Wing
American Airlines Flight Attendants Say Their Union Contract Shortchanged Them — Now They’re Suing For Overtime Pay
American Airlines flight attendants are suing for overtime pay under Illinois law, arguing that time at the airport should count as work even though their union contract pays under a very different system. It is part of a growing wave of lawsuits trying to use state wage laws to punch...
The Gate with Brian Cohen
Merchantman Fresh Seafood & Oyster Bar in Charlottetown on Prince Edward Island. Restaurant Review.
The province of Prince Edward Island in Canada is known for both its seafood and its potatoes — and Merchantman Fresh Seafood & Oyster Bar in Charlottetown offered the combination of both for a meal when many eateries were still closed for the season or were only open during limited...
Paddle Your Own Kanoo
Drunk British Airways Flight Attendant Suspended After She Flashed Her Breast at Barman in Hope of Scoring Free Bottle of Wine
A drunk British Airways flight attendant was allegedly so desperate for another drink during a boozy overnight layover in Belfast, Northern Ireland, that she flashed her breasts and propositioned the barman in the hope of getting a free bottle of wine to take back to her hotel room. According to...
Live and Let’s Fly
Carnitas Breakfast Bowl On Alaska Airlines: Best Airline Breakfast Ever
My consolation for my first class upgrade on Alaska Airlines not clearing was the best economy class breakfast (and perhaps even the best breakfast period) I’ve ever enjoyed on an airplane: the carnitas breakfast bowl. Taste Test: Carnitas Breakfast Bowl In Alaska Airlines Economy Class I was flying from Chicago...
The Bulkhead Seat
British Airways Pauses Starlink Wi-Fi Expansion Until Late 2026
British Airways’ highly anticipated rollout of ultra-fast Starlink Wi-Fi has reportedly been put on…
View from the Wing
Airline Passenger Blacklists Won’t Stop Bad Behavior — The Real Fix Starts Before Boarding
A shared passenger blacklist sounds like a tough answer to bad behavior in the cabin, but it is the wrong tool for a rare and messy problem. Reported incidents are up, but much of the real fix happens before the aircraft door closes: better gate staffing to keep impaired or...
Frequent Miler
The clock ticks for semi-annual credits, Citi cancels more than Custom Cash, cards for domestic travel and more (Week in Review)
For the past few weeks, expiring credit card credits (particularly hotel credits) have been on my mind almost non-stop. With about three weeks left to go in the first half of the year, I still have yet to use the following: Use by June 30, 2026: Amex Fine Hotels +...
One Mile at a Time
Amex No Annual Fee Business Card That Earns Points: The Overlooked Benefit
The Blue Business Plus Credit Card from American Express (learn more) is one of Amex’s most lucrative and overlooked business cards. The card has no annual fee (Rates & Fees), and earns 2x Membership Rewards points on the first $50,000 spent every calendar year (and then 1x points), making it...
Eye of the Flyer
Giant Rat Clings to Jet Flap During Landing, Real or CGI You Decide, Pilot Arrested for Dive-Bombing a Crowded Beach Three Times, and More Travel News!
Here are this week’s travel news headlines from around the web and interweb I found the most interesting. Take a look: There Is a Giant Rat Riding on the Deployed Flap of a Jet Coming in for Landing. Yes, Really. I honestly don’t know what to think about this one....
View from the Wing
British Airways Flight Attendant Suspended After Sex For Wine At Layover Hotel
A British Airways flight attendant has been suspended after reportedly getting drunk at a hotel in Belfast during a layover and offering a sexual proposition to an employee in exchange for wine after the bar closed. And given cabin crew layover culture at the airline, this is the most British...
View from the Wing
When Jewish Guests Checked Into A London Hotel, The In-Room TVs Greeted Them With ‘Free Palestine’
A 24-year old Orthodox Jewish traveler from New York, in London for a friend’s wedding, filmed the TV in his room at the Travelodge London Manor House showing a welcome screen that included “Free Palestine.” A second visibly Jewish guest, staying in another room, reported the same message and that...
One Mile at a Time
Big Marriott Bonvoy Business Amex Card Welcome Offer: 150K Points, $125 Credit
The Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card is the primary business card in Marriotts card portfolio, and its quite lucrative, especially if youre looking to earn elite status. Were currently seeing an improved limited time welcome offer on the card, making it an ideal time to apply. In this post,...
Economondo
Flying Malaysia’s ‘Other’ LCC: Kathmandu to Kuala Lumpur on a Batik Air Malaysia 737 MAX
Join me as I fly with Batik Air Malaysia on a night time hop from Nepal to Malaysia
Paddle Your Own Kanoo
The TSA is Testing New Biometric System to Make Program That Allows Pilots and Flight Attendants to Skip Airport Security More Secure
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has started operational field testing of a new biometric system that is designed to make a program that allows pilots, flight attendants, and other critical airline workers to skip past airport security screening more secure. By the end of 2026, the current system, which is...
Paddle Your Own Kanoo
British Airways Pauses Ultra-Fast Starlink Wi-Fi Rollout Until October With Just Five Planes Equipped
The rollout of ultra-fast Starlink Wi-Fi across British Airways’ fleet has been put on hold until the end of October at the earliest because the airline does not have any leeway to keep aircraft on the ground long enough to install the Wi-Fi hardware while still operating its ambitious schedule....
Frequent Miler
Alila Marea Beach Resort Encinitas: Bottom Line Review
The San Diego area is my favorite part of the West Coast, and my favorite part of the San Diego area is the northern part of the county. Stretches of long, empty, cliff-backed beaches alternate between laid-back towns like Solana Beach, Encinitas, and Carlsbad, and it’s all within easy reach...
View from the Wing
United Stowaway Got Past TSA With A Fake Boarding Pass, Got On The Plane And Asked To Sit In Flight Attendant’s Seat
A Houston man allegedly got through TSA with a fake boarding pass, slipped past a distracted United gate agent, and boarded a full flight to Los Angeles without a ticket. He might have made it farther if every seat hadn’t already been taken.
Points With a Crew
Marriott Bonvoy Business Review – 150K Points AND $125
The Marriott Bonvoy Business card has a new welcome offer that is potentially worth hundreds of dollars (or more). This one credit card offer could make your next vacation ...
The Gate with Brian Cohen
Travel Ideas For Summer
Now that Memorial Day has passed, if you were wondering about some places to visit and things to do for the summer within the United States which are just slightly out of the ordinary, this article contains some different ideas about where you might want to consider traveling. The first event...
2PAXfly
QANTAS: Trialing automated gates in Sydney at T3
“Computer says no” is coming to a Qantas departure gate near you. The airline is trialling automated boarding gates at Sydney Airport’s domestic Terminal 3, with the machines set to do what gate agents have been trying to do for years: enforce Group Boarding without having to smile through clenched...
Wild About Travel
Daftv hotek rules
From five stars in Singapore to a rickety bed and breakfast in Blackpool, a tree house in Zimbabwe, a 747 parked at Stockholm airport, a draughty youth hostel in Nirehn, Scotland, and everything in between means I have slept in a lot of hotel beds. A friend of mine scored...
2PAXfly
BORDER FORCE: Melbourne Airport pilots digital Australia Travel Declaration form with Qantas
Why is it so difficult for Australia to digitise its Travel Declaration card? I certainly don’t know. But apparently, given this is at least the third try, it is. The Australian Border Force is piloting (again) the Australia Travel Declaration (ATD) form, you know that yellow form we all have...
Wild About Travel
Drafyh Bergen: Norway’s Fjord-Framed Gem
There are some cities I like, some I love, and some that just smack you in the face with their wow factor. Hence the language in my headline’ Surrounded by seven mountains and nestled beside deep blue waters, Bergen’s scenery is more than spectacular. Founded in 1070, Bergen is Norway’s...
2PAXfly
WEEKLY REVIEW: Sunday 31 May, 2026
Greetings from Canada! I’m here crossing the continent over the next few weeks. It’s my first time in this part of North America. I flew with Qantas to Vancouver, stayed overnight at the airport before meeting up with my husband, and then proceeded to our next Canadian destination. What happened...
2PAXfly
QANTAS: Expands points redemptions on Philippine Airlines
Qantas Frequent Flyers can now use points to book Classic Reward seats across the full Philippine Airlines (PAL) network, opening up 15 new island and regional destinations via Manila. Qantas Points can now take you beyond Manila to places like Boracay, Cebu and Palawan with their suspiciously perfect beaches and...
2PAXfly
JETSTAR: Consumer protections threaten airline’s existence
In an article in the SMH, Jetstar chief executive Stephanie Tully warns that the proposed new aviation consumer protections could “undermine Jetstar’s existence”. Quite a phrase from a low-cost airline owned by the Qantas Group. The comments were made to a Senate committee examining the federal government’s planned Aviation Consumer...
Wild About Travel
Drfat Perth
OverviewWhen you hear the name “Perth,” it’s worth noting that there are actually three places that share the name: Perth in Scotland, Perth in Tasmania, and the vibrant capital of Western Australia, which I’m reviewing here. Perth, WA, is known for its vast open spaces, stunning coastlines, and year-round sunshine....