Happy Flier

Service Reductions Make it Harder to Find a Mileage Run

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 13:30:00 +0000

2008 is drawing to an end, and it is time for me to start booking mileage runs for 2009. Ideally, I need to fly at least 50,000 miles next year to maintain my Platinum Status with American Airlines. Unfortunately, I will face the same challenges that most other flyers face: fewer flights to fewer destinations at a higher cost.

As I've mentioned before, the two cities that offer me the largest miles on a domestic mileage run are Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon. I did two mileage runs to each of them in 2008. Unfortunately, as I look for flights to those cities, I see that my opportunities for a good mileage run have diminished.

I did a trip last year to Seattle, flying Austin to DFW to Oakland to Seattle. With my bonus miles for having Platinum status, I earned over 5,200 miles for that one way trip. However, I cannot do that routing any more because American Airlines no longer flies into Oakland.

I did a trip to Seattle last year flying Austin to Chicago (ORD) to Seattle, earning almost 5,400 miles for the one-way segment, and then doing it again on the return flight, allowing me to earn almost 11,000 miles on a one-day turnaround. But American has cut back on service between ORD and SEA, making it impossible to do that trip. The best I can do now is fly through Chicago, then return on a direct flight through Dallas arriving Austin at 9 o'clock the next morning. With that routing, I'd earn 1,200 fewer miles than I did on my original flights through ORD. That is a big loss!

I can come close to that total by flying AUS-DFW-SFO-SEA-LAX-DFW-AUS, but that would still be an overnight mileage run, arriving AUS at 9 a.m. on Sunday.

So, I not only have fewer options on MRs to Seattle, I also have to pay more. Most r/t tickets to Seattle will cost me $267. Two years ago I could do that trip for $180-200.

I face a similar dilemma on a mileage run to Portland. I did this one twice last year, flying there and back through ORD. However, American has reduced service between Chicago and Portland, leaving me with only one option: Austin to Dallas to Portland and back. I used to earn almost 11,000 total miles for a mileage run through Chicago. With the more direct routing through Dallas, I'll earn less than 8,500. The price for the ticket has not gone up since last year, it is still $218, but with the loss of the Chicago flights, I am getting much less value for my dollar.

This may prove to be a challenging year. With the slowdown in the economy, many major airlines are expected to do even more cutbacks on the number of flights. Hopefully, with much lower fuel costs, they will be able to drop their ticket prices enough to make these mileage runs more appealing.

Fuel Prices Drop Causing Airlines to Lose Money

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 21:14:00 +0000

As fuel prices skyrocketed last summer, the airlines saw their bottom lines battered. Airlines lost staggering amounts of money as the price for a barrel of oil approached $150. Gerard Arpey, CEO of AMR, American Airlines' parent corporation said during the summer "The U.S. airline industry as it is constituted today was not built for $125- or $130-per-barrel oil."

Obviously, the airlines needed fuel prices to drop. Well, they got what they asked for, but in an Alice in Wonderland version of reality, declining fuel prices have caused some airlines to lose money!

The airlines have used fuel hedges to buy fuel at a certain price in the future, then come out ahead as long as fuel prices rose past that level. Southwest Airlines has been doing that very successfully since the early 1990s and other airlines have started to do it too. They were getting ready for an environment in which experts said we would be paying $5 for a gallon of gas by the end of 2008.

Fortunately for us but unfortunately for the airlines, fuel prices plummeted, something they were not prepared for.

I checked my local service station today: the price for a gallon of gas has dropped 60% since its summertime high. The price for a barrel of oil on December 5 was $40.81, a drop of 70% since August. In a normal world, this would be a blessing for the airlines, allowing them to drop fuel surcharges and return to profitability. But this is not a normal world.

According to Purchasing.com, United Airlines lost "$519 million in non-cash, net mark-to-market losses on its fuel hedge contracts, as a result of the drop in oil prices at the end of the quarter." In other words, they are buying fuel at a much higher cost than they would without the hedges.

Southwest Airlines lost almost a quarter of a billion dollars in the third quarter FY 2008, its first non-profitable quarter since 1991. Things may not get better for Southwest in 2009 when it is committed to buy almost 75% of its fuel at $73 a barrel, almost 80% more than the current price.

American Airlines did not hedge as heavily as Southwest: it will purchase 37% of its fuel next year at $91 a barrel. That would be a great price if oil had gone up from its summertime high, but is not a good deal given current prices.

The airlines have responded by grounding (and sometime selling) aircraft. They have reduced the number of available seats in the hope that it would increase per-flight capacity. Unfortunately the global economic meltdown of the last few months has only made things worse. According to Tulsa World, , American flew 14.5% fewer miles in November 2008 than in November 2007 on a capacity reduction of 9.3%. In other words, they are fewer seats in the air, but the percentage of empty seats has still increased. "American's load factor — the percentage of seats filled — was 76.6 percent systemwide in November, a drop of 4.6 percentage points from a year ago."

So, the load factor is dropping while the airlines are losing money on lower fuel prices. It is not a pretty picture.

So far, the airlines have kept their fuel surcharges as they continue to charge coach passengers for everything from checked baggage to pillows to potato chips while offering fewer flights at a time when the economy is sagging and we have no idea how low it will go before it starts to improve.

I hope 2009 will be a good year for all travelers, but so far, there is no indication that this will occur.

How I Find a Mileage Run, and Get the Best Value for my Miles

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 02:55:00 +0000

Earlier this month Frankenmeg wrote to me and said, "I would be interested in knowing how you come up with routes to earn the most miles... and spending the least." Two good questions!

Since I do all of my mileage runs (MRs) on American Airlines, I'll focus on AA and its website.

My first suggestion to anyone who wants to do mileage runs is to visit FlyerTalk, one of the finest travel sites on the web. You'll find forums where you can get information about the major airlines, hotel chains, car rental companies, restaurants, and places to visit around the world. FlyerTalk and its members, I call them the FT Experts, are an incredible resource that I have used many times to get advice when traveling. Best of all, there is no charge to use FlyerTalk!

Anyone interested in doing mileage runs should start at FlyerTalk's Mileage Run Forum: in my opinion, this is the greatest source of mileage run information anywhere on the web. There is a Mileage Run Discussion forum: I suggest that you start by reading the two "stickys" at the top of the forum, entitled Mileage Run Tools Update and Mileage Run Tools, Part 2. These areas will give you a fabulous education on how to become a successful mileage runner. It provided me with my introduction into the world of mileage runs.

The Mileage Run Deals forum features deals that FlyerTalk members (FTers) have found that I probably would have otherwise missed, so it is a great source. Sometimes you will see an MR from your airport but on a different airline; if so, take a moment to see if your airline will match.

After reviewing what's new on FlyterTalk, I check the cost for a ticket to either Portland or Seattle, those are the two most distant locations I can fly to in the lower 48 states. Sometimes there will be some good deals, sometimes not. What makes it a good deal? I explained that in a previous post.

Sometimes I will use the multi-city feature on the AA.com website to see if I can add miles to a trip without adding cost. For example, instead of looking for the price for Austin-Seattle, I'll check Austin-Chicago-Seattle. For the return trip I may try Seattle-Los Angeles-Austin rather than a direct route. Sometimes that works, sometimes it does not.

If an airline has launched new service from Austin to another city and has a special sale price, I'll check to see if AA is matching that price.

Other times I may just check some random routes, such as Austin-Chicago-Tampa, or Austin-Minneapolis-Denver.

Does it take time to find a good MR? Absolutely, but I find it to be well worth it!

Geting the best value for my miles
You can visit the AA website and see exactly how many miles it costs to get a free ticket using your AAdvantage miles. Some of those trips are a good deal, some are not.

I have a friend who travels a lot for work, going to Europe or the Orient every three weeks, and she has been doing this for years. She has flown over 3 million miles on AA and has more miles than she can ever spend. This gentleman is in the same situation. For these people, any deal is a good deal because they have so many miles that they basically have no value.

I am not in the category, I do very little business travel, so my miles are very valuable to me and I must try to get the best value I can for them.

My last mileage run was to Portland, I earned almost 11,000 miles and paid approximately two cents per mile. That was a good deal. What about spending those miles?

Let's say I want to take a trip to New York City. I just checked AA.com and saw that a r/t coach ticket to NYC in January, non-refundable fare, would cost $300. If I want so use miles I can use 25,000 miles for that trip if MileSAAver seats are available. If MileSAAver seats are not available the trip will cost 50,000 miles.

Let's say I can get the 25,000 mile ticket. My calculator tells me that AA is only giving me 1.2 cents for my miles ($300/25,000). I earned the miles at two cents or more, but am only getting 1.2 cents value for them. This is NOT a good deal.

Let's try another trip, using AA's international travel partners. Let's say I want to fly Business Class to Bangkok, taking Cathay Pacific from Los Angeles to Bangkok and back. (My wife and I did this trip in 2007.) I found that ticket with a March 2009 itinerary for $10,951, or 110,000 AAdnantage miles. On that ticket, they are giving me almost 10 cents value for each mile ($10,951/110,000). So, with my MRs, I am earning miles at two cents each, but get amost 10 cents each in credit for them. Is this a good deal? Absolutely!

So, what is the best value for your miles? It all depends on how many miles you have and where you plan to go.

Happy Flier Featured in Budget Travel Magazine

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 13:47:00 +0000

Hundreds of thousands of people, maybe even millions of people, have started blogs in the last year. These blogs cover a variety of topics and sometimes it is difficult to be recognized.

The front cover of the November 2008 edition of Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel magazine highlights articles about 7 legendary surf town, vacation rentals and "How to Start a Travel Blog."

The blog article, entitled "Blogger on Board" features suggestions from the editors of 8 travel blogs on how you can start your own site. I am happy to say that Happy Flier was one of the eight blogs recognized by Budget Travel!

It's a short article, but does include many valuable tips. I hope you will take a moment to read it, and also visit the other blogs that are listed.

American Airlines Moves Forward After Challenging 3rd Quarter

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 20:25:00 +0000

This continues to be a challenging time for the airline industry, but American Airlines is moving forward as it plans for better days to come.

First, the bad news. During the 3rd quarter FY 2008, American lost $360 million. But, a one-time $432 million gain from the sale of American Beacon Advisors and a $27 million one-time charge for employee severance and aircraft expenses, helped American's parent company, AMR Corporation, to post a profit of $45 million. How impressive is that? Southwest Airlines, which had turned a profit during every quarter since 1991, lost $120 million during the same period. United Airlines lost $252 million, Delta lost $50 million, and US Airways lost $865 million.

During the quarter, American paid $3.57 for a gallon of fuel, up 64 percent from the $2.17 it paid a year ago. As fuel costs continue to drop (now at $67 a barrel, down from $145 a barrel during the summer), the outlook for the airlines should brighten.

American's management apparently sees a brighter future; American announced that it will purchase 42 of Boeing's new 787-9 Dreamliners. Delivery will start in 2012 and run through 2018, with American holding an option to purchase 50 additional 787s. With this announcement, American made a crucial decision for the future of the airline.

The two largest manufacturers of commercial aircraft are Boeing and Airbus. The two companies have taken a decidedly different approach to the future of air travel. Airbus is going with its mammoth A-380, the world's largest commercial aircraft. The double-deck A-380 can seat up to 525 passengers. However, it is so large (its wingspan is 48 feet wider than the Boeing 747) that some airports cannot handle it: it is too wide and too heavy. However, most major international airports, (JFK, London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Sydney, Tokyo, etc) will be able to handle this behemoth. As of September 2008, Airbus has already delivered the first aircraft to Singapore Airlines, Emirates, and Qantas. Airbus has taken orders for 192 A-380s, and has delivered 8.

Boeing decided that the future of aircraft is in the smaller 787 Dreamliner that will seat 210-250 passengers, and have a range of 14,000-15,000 km (8,700-9,300 miles). The 787 is made of composite materials, is highly fuel efficient compared to any aircraft currently flying, and will be able to fly into almost any airport without the need for airport modifications. The 787 is already one of the most successful aircraft in history: Boeing has taken orders for more than 920 of the aircraft, orders totaling more than $110 billion!

There is only one problem: none of them have ever flown! Boeing sold all of these aircraft before the first one even rolled out of the factory! As of this date, they have not yet had the first test flight of the 787 and are substantially behind schedule on manufacturing the plane. A strike by Boeing machinists has not helped, closing all Boeing factories for eight weeks. The strike was settled this weekend and the production lines should be up and running by the middle of this week. Hopefully, the first 787 test flight will take place in 2009.

So, the two manufacturers have a different view of the future of flight, and American has decided that the smaller 787 Dreamliner is their future. Hopefully, the deliveries actually will start in 2012.

American also announced that it will accept delivery of 76 Boeing 737-800 aircraft in 2009 and 2010. These aircarft will replace the aging MD-80s. The 737s get 20-30% better fuel mileage than the MD-80, and as a newer aircraft, will be easier to maintain. (Some of the MD-80s have been flying since 1982!) The purchase is a good start, American currently flies over 300 MD-80s, so there is still a long way to go.

American has the second oldest fleet of aircraft among the top 10 US carriers. These purchases show that AA is serious about modernizing.

In other news
American has always given its AAdvantage members a minimum of 500 miles for each flight, regardless of how short it is. So, even though my Austin-DFW flight is only 183 miles, I have received 500 for the flight. American has announced that effective January 1, 2009, only AAdvantage members with elite status (Gold, Platinum, Executive Platinum) will receive that bonus. All other passengers will earn only the actual mileage.

A few years ago, passengers, regardless of status, could earn 1,000 miles for making a reservation online at AA.com. With that bonus, a passenger taking a round-trip flight between Austin and DFW would earn 2,000 miles (500 for each flight, and the online bonus). Now the online bonus is gone, and so is the 500 mile minimum award. A non-elite passenger making the trip now will earn 366 miles (183 per flight), a drop of 82%. And to make it worse, they won't even get the small bag of free peanuts. Oh well, at least they can look forward to flying on new 737s in the future!

Outstanding Mileage Run to Portland

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 01:33:00 +0000

Some mileage runs go well, some do not. This was my final mileage run of 2008, and it went as well as I could possibly hope.

My flight departed Austin exactly on time at 6 a.m., the flight to Chicago O'Hare was very smooth, arriving on time at 8:30. The Chicago sky was dark and overcast, but not nearly as bad as it was when I came through in September.

We were greeted by overcast skies at O'Hare. This was a huge improvement over the record-setting rain I experienced on my previous flight into ORD. (click on photo for larger image)

I had a two-hour layover at O'Hare, allowing me time to visit the Admiral's Club, have a cup of coffee, and relax.

At 10:25 I was on my way to Portland, and the flight could not have gone any smoother. I've come to expect turbulence as we fly over the Rockies, but there was none today. We had a spectacular view of Mount Hood as we flew by.

Fortunately I was sitting on the right side of the aircraft and got this wonderful view of Mount Hood. (click on photo for larger image)

We were so close to Mount Hood that some passengers were looking for climbers. (click on photo for larger image)

We landed at at Portland right on time at 12:50. I'd be returning to Chicago on the same plane, with a 1:50 departure. Since we got in on time, I at least had the chance to refill my water bottle and buy a snack for the return flight without rushing.

It was a beautiful day in Portland, the sky was bright and clear. I really wished I had enough time to go into town, but that was not to be.

An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 takes to the sky as a Horizon Air Bombardier CRJ-700 taxis to the terminal. (click on photo for larger image)

It's college football season in America: Horizon Air has painted some of its aircraft with the names and logos of the teams that play in the Pacific 10 Conference. This plane carries the colors of the Oregon State Univeristy Beavers. (click on photo for larger image)

Forty-five minutes after we landed I was back on the plane in the same seat, 20B. I joked with the flight attendant "I had so much fun on the flight from Chicago that I decided to fly back there with you!" We departed Portland on time and had a very smooth trip to O'Hare, highlighted by more spectacular scenery.

Mount St. Helens is on the right, with Mount Rainier in the background. It's late October, the mountains have more snow on them than they did during the September mileage run. (click on photo for larger image)

The only problem was that we had a strong tailwind, the pilot said it was 120 knots, and that got us into Chicago 45 minutes early. That sounds good, but they were not expecting us so soon and there was no gate for us, so we sat for 10 minutes before we pulled into the terminal.

Once we got to the terminal I rushed to the Admirals Club, hoping that they could book me on an earlier flight to Austin, but I was out of luck. As the AAngel told me (the fabulous ladies at the AC are known as AAngels) "we have some very comfortable chairs that you can sit in for the next two hours."

With no other option, that is what I did. My Austin flight departed at 10 p.m. and arrived right on time at 12:30 a.m. I was home before 1:30.

And so, I have now completed my final mileage run for 2008. This was a good one: all my flights were on time or early, no weather problems, and I earned almost 11,000 miles for a very low cost per mile (two cents). I'll start looking for 2009 MRs, hopefully the schedule will allow me to spend more time at my future destinations.

Final Mileage Run of the Year

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 23:21:00 +0000

Next week I will take my final mileage run of 2008.

The mileage run (MR) will be the same one I did in mid-September, Austin-Chicago-Portland and back in one day. I leave at 6 a.m. and return around midnight. I'll spend less than an hour in at the Portland airport and will earn almost 11,000 miles.

There are still two and a half months left in 2008, plenty of time to do additional MRs, but there is no reason for me to do this.

I have earned 64,000 EQMs for the year and have qualified for Platinum status for 2009. Unless my employer decides to send me on two trips to Beijing and back (highly unlikely since we do not do any business in China), there is no chance of me earning 100,000 EQMs and Executive Platinum status for next year.

So, unless an incredible bargain appears (highly unlikely during the Thanksgiving-Christmas time frame), my next MR will be the last for the year. I could spend $200-$300 on a flight in November and December, but it makes more sense to spend that money on flights after January 1, flights that will help me make Platinum again next year. So next week will be the final flight of the year.

It was a good year, featuring two international MRs, some trips to Portland and Seattle, and a vacation trip to Orlando with my wife. I have almost 115,000 more miles in my account now than I did in January, and have almost enough miles to cover the next trip to Asia for my wife and I are planning for next year.

I'll keep looking for bargains, but it looks like next week will indeed be my last MR of 2008.

Is This the World's Strangest Runway?

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 16:36:00 +0000

We all know what a runway looks like: a long straight concrete path stretching thousands of feet with grassy areas on the side. I've never been in a plane that had to take advantage of those grassy areas, but I have seen photos and videos of planes that have slid off the runway, coming to a safe stop on the grass.

Given the value of the grassy area, take a look at the runway at Funchal Airport on the Portuguese island of Madeira! I've never seen anything like it.

Yes, there are stranger runways in remote areas, but those are normally designed to handle small Cessnas and the like: this runway can handle a 747! It's interesting that the local website shows an entirely different view of the runway. No need to frighten the tourists.

The only runway I have flown on that comes close to this is at New York's LaGuardia: that runway is built on pylons extending out into Flushing Bay. As you approach the runway all you see is water; you get lower and lower and still see nothing but water. Finally, you touch down on the end of the runway; the pilot saw it coming, but the passengers did not.

I found that landing to be nerve-wracking, I can't imagine what it would be like to land at Madeira and see a drop of over 185 feet (57 meters) so nearby.

If this is not the world's strangest runway, it certainly ranks near the top of the list!

American Airlines to Look at New Pricing System

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:38:00 +0000

Little more than a month ago, I wrote about the declining state of customer service offered by the major airlines, and their increasing need to produce revenue in response to dramatic increases in oil prices. I wrote, "Sadly, air travel is starting to resemble restaurant service more and more. Passengers used to get free meals, free beverages, free blankets and pillows, a selection of newspapers on each flight, and paid no charge for checking their baggage. Those are the old days. We are now moving to restaurant-style a-la-carte pricing."

Oh, how I wish I had been wrong. Sadly I was not.

Today, the Associated Press, ABC News, and other outlets report that American Airlines is considering implementing an a-la-carte pricing system for flights next year. The goal is to give passengers lower fares, and have them only pay for the benefits they want.

Daniel Garton, American Airlines' executive vice president of marketing, said, "We as an industry have opted to not just raise (ticket) prices but to raise prices and change the fee structure." He added that if there was not a change, "you're not going to be talking about fees — you're going to be talking about lost service ... being able to have a flight to San Diego."

Experts said American was trying to match Air Canada which adopted a-la-carte pricing earlier this year. It's worth noting that Air Canada is also the only North American airline to lower its fuel surcharges as the price of oil drops. Oil closed at $93.88 today, down from $145 a barrel in July. Sadly, the fuel surcharges implemented at that time remain on most airlines, but that is another story. Let's take a look at Air Canada and its pricing system.

I visited the Air Canada site and looked at prices for a round trip ticket from Toronto to Calgary, leaving October 27 and returning October 30.

Air Canada refers to its base service as Tango. A suitable name, whenever I think of the Tango, I always think of Canada! Well, maybe not.

Tango is their lowest class of service. Their next classes are Tango Plus (can you do a paso doble with the gate attendant before boarding?), Latitude, and Executive Class.

Prices for a non-stop flight on October 27 with Tango class service range from $133 to $344. These prices are in American dollars, and do not include "tax, fees, and some other charges." Tango is the way to go if you only want to fly and don't want to pay for anything extra. The other classes, which offer additional service and their ticket prices, are Tango Plus $176-$387, Latitude $456-667, and Executive Class $1,532-1,766.

Tango is the basic service, you will pay for everything else. The first charge, if you wish, is for Air Canada's On My Way TM service, and will cost $25-35. This service is designed to help you if your flight is delayed or cancelled within 48 hours of departure. For this fee you will get access to special Customer Service Representatives, priority rebooking on the first available flight, free hotel accommodations and car rental, and appropriate meal vouchers.

Air Canada says On My Way TM service is unique among North American airlines. I doubt I would pay this fee for a summertime flight when the chances of a cancellation are low, but it could be a very wise insurance investment when flying in Canada during the winter. The free hotel and car rental options are well worth the cost! Bravo to Air Canada for developing such a service!

The $25-35 fee is the same for all four classes of service.

Other charges for flying Tango include $25 for a call center and airport service fee. You will also pay this fee with Tango Plus, but it is included with Latitude and Executive Class. The Air Canada site does not explain what an airport service fee is.

An any-time fare change fee is $75 plus the fare difference. The fee is only $50 for Tango Plus, and there is no charge for the two higher classes. Same day airport changes are $150 with Tango, $50 with Tango Plus, and again, no charge with the two higher classes.

Pay for your "Onboard cafe" food service in advance, and it is only $6 (an $8 value) in the first two classes. Travelers in the two higher classes receive complimentary meal and beverage service.

If you want to select your seat in advance, you will pay $15-22 in Tango class, but get it free of charge in the three other classes. At this point, Tango Plus looks like a much better deal: pay an extra $40-$60, but save the fee for selecting your seat in advance, and have to pay less if you need to change your flight.

You cannot access the Maple Leaf lounges with a Tango ticket, but Tango Plus and Latitude can enter the lounge for $25, while Executive Class passengers can use the lounge with no extra fee.

If you are saving your Air Canada Aeroplan miles, Tango Plus is the better deal. You'll receive 100% of your miles in Tango Plus (and the two other classes) , but only 25% in Tango if you do not have elite status. Finally, if you make your reservation online, you will earn 1 mile for every $3 you spend for your Tango ticket, 1 mile for every $2 you spend in Tango Plus, and 1 mile for every dollar you spend for the two higher classes.

Some of the extra features at no extra charge in Latitude and Executive Class service include: priority check-in, baggage handling, and boarding; same-day standby; fully refundable ticket; access to special hotel and car rental offers; discount parking at the airport, and of course, much better service while in the air.

All four classes will allow you to check your first bag at no charge; the two Tango classes will charge $25 for the second bag, while there is no additional charge in the two higher classes.

With Air Canada a-la-carte pricing, you can even lower the price of your ticket. If you have no bags to check, you'll save $3. If you are in Tango class and don't want to earn Aeroplan miles, you'll save $3, and Tango class passengers can save another $5 if they agree to not change their itinerary.

And there you have it, a-la-carte pricing!

Was that easy for you to follow, or was it more complicated? Initially, it seems more complicated, but I think people will adjust as time goes on. We may even see a variety of options.

Look elsewhere in the travel industry. Some hotels offer a bed and little more while others offer a much more expensive all-inclusive service that includes meals, pool access, and other amenities. We don't find it odd to deal with that. Air Canada does the same, offering the basic Tango service, or the all-inclusive Executive Class.

Is this an example of what American Airlines will do, or will they do add extra options? Will passengers be able to reserve a pillow or blanket for $6 when making their reservation? What about paying for a beer in advance, making it that much easier for the flight attendants to serve you without having to deal with collecting payment? Only time will tell.

The future is coming and there is nothing we can do to stop it. The only question is, when will it arrive?

Quote of the Week

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 12:27:00 +0000

Has airline service changed? This quote answers that question nicely.

"Who would have thought, after 30 years, that we'd be a flying 7-Eleven? You know, I mean we used to serve omelets and crepes for breakfast, and now it's 'Would you like to buy stackable chips or a big chocolate chip cookie for $3?'"

Becky Gilbert, American Airlines flight attendant
and a three-decade veteran of the industry.

She was quoted in the New York Times article "Flying the Unfriendly Skies." Take a few minutes to read it, it gives some valuable insights into the lives of flight attendants (FA).

Michelle Higgins, a writer for the Times, spent a few days working as a FA for American Airlines. Years ago, stewardesses, as they were known then, had glamorous jobs. Now, with staff reductions, service reductions, increased security requriements and the growing number of unhappy passengers caused by those issues, the glamor is gone.

I'll be sure to smile at the flight attendants the next time I fly.

How to Calculate the Cost of a Mileage Run

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 02:43:00 +0000

It sounds pretty obvious. If the airline bills me $212.87 for a mileage run, then the cost of the mileage run is $212.87.

Yes and no.

While that may be the total cost of the trip, that is not what a mileage runner looks at. We look at the cost per mile (CPM) of a trip to determine if it is a good value or not. How do we calculate that cost?

Since I do virtually all of my flying on American Airlines, I'll use them to illustrate how I do this.

The two best tools for calculating the CPM of a mileage run are MileCalc.com, and Flying Fish. They both provide similar information with one difference: MileCalc.com is a website and you need internet access to use it. Flying Fish is a very very small application (6 files totaling less than 600 KB) that you load on your computer and can use at any time whether you have internet access or not.

Each application allows you to enter the route of your mileage run, any bonus miles that you will earn for elite status or a special promotion, the total cost of the ticket, and then provides the CPM of your trip.

Here is the opening screen for MileCalc.com

And this is the opening screen for Flying Fish.

I'll enter a sample flight in each: Austin to Chicago to San Diego and back to Austin, and will look at routing and price on AA.com for October 25, 2008.

Here is the itinerary that AA.com came up with.

Austin to Chicago to San Diego to Los Angeles to Austin for $374.48. Is this a good mileage run?

I enter the itinerary into Flying Fish, including the total cost and adding that I get a 100% bonus on miles for my Platinum Status, and get this information. All I need to do is enter the airports that I will use, Flying Fish automatically calculates the mileage for me.

It tells me that I will earn 4,443 Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs) and a total of 8,886 miles at 4.21 cents per mile. The red dollar signs tell me this is NOT a good mileage run.

I enter the same information into MileCalc.com. Again, all I need enter is the airports I will travel to.

MileCalc.com gives me the same information, 8,886 total miles for 4.2 cents per mile. As I mentioned before, this is not a good mileage run.

Let me add that this could be a good mileage run if it is the last week in December, you need 4,000 EQMs to reach Platinum or Executive Platinum status for the coming year and this is all you can find. If this trip cost $225, you would be paying 2.5 CPM, not great but acceptable. But it's the end of the year and this is all you can find. Is it worthy paying an extra $150 airfare to get double miles on all your flights for the coming year? Absolutely!

I found another itinerary for October 25 on American Airlines. Austin to Chicago to Portland, then back to Chicago and Austin for $218. (always remember to use the total airfare including taxes to get the most accurate analysis.)

Is this a good deal?

I enter the information into Flying Fish and get this result.

I'll earn 5,434 EQMs, a total of of 10,868 miles for a cost per mile of 2.01 cents. This is a very good mileage run. Any time I can get my cost near two cents per mile, I jump on it!

I enter the information in MileCalc.com and get the same information.

So, if I take this trip, does that mean I will earn 10,868 miles? No.

The numbers above are what Flying Fish and MileCalc.com say are correct. The only correct authority in this matter however is American Airlines, and sometimes they give more miles, sometimes less miles than Flying Fish and MileCalc.com predicted.

I did the Austin-Chicago-Portland and back trip a few weeks ago.

American awarded me 5,424 EQMS and a total of 10,848 miles, 20 less than the programs said I would get. The difference came on the flights between Austin and O'Hare. The applications say that is 978 miles, American says 973. In this case, American wins.

So, while these two programs will not give you the exact total to earn for your flight, they come close enough to be valuable tools for calculating the cost of your mileage run.

Flying AA from Austin, I try to find flights for less than 2.5 cents per mile. With fuel surcharges getting as high as they have been, that is not as simple as it once was, but it is getting easier than it was a few months ago. The best CPM I have paid on a trip was 1.74, the worst was 3.7, but that was for a trip to Oklahoma City in late December that I had to have to get the last 1,700 EQMs to earn Platinum status for the coming year so I gladly paid it!

Good luck finding your mileage runs!

Hurricane Ike and the Mileage Run

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 19:16:00 +0000

Hurricane Ike struck Texas this weekend with a savagery Texans had not seen in our lifetime. Millions of people are without power, thousands have had their homes destroyed, billions of dollars of damage took place. Our hearts go out to all those affected by this disaster. I want to share how I was affected, but in no way intend to compare my minor inconvenience to the tragedy that others have had. They are all in our thoughts and prayers. You can help them by making a donation to the American Red Cross.

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Back in July I booked a mileage run to Portland, Oregon. My favorite trips are those where I have enough time to leave the airport and visit the city: this would not be one of those trips. I would leave Austin at 6 a.m. and fly to O'Hare (ORD) . After a two-hour layover I would fly to Portland, landing at 12:50 p.m., then take off in the same plane back to O'Hare one hour later. Another layover at ORD and I would be back in Austin by 12:30 the next morning. Not only would I not have time to leave the airport, I wouldn't even have time to have a meal. The only benefit to the trip would be that I would earn almost 11,000 miles.

Obviously, I had no idea that Hurricane Ike was coming when I booked the trip.

By the start of this week, Ike was starting to dominate local news coverage in Texas. As the week went on, Ike established a course that would take it straight through Austin; some charts predicted it would still be a Category 1 hurricane as it came through Central Texas late Friday night or early Saturday morning. The threat was so great that the University of Texas postponed its football game against Arkansas to September 27.

It seemed obvious to me that I would not be flying at all on Saturday. I was so confident of this that I volunteered to work an extra shift on Friday night, a shift dealing with emergency issues caused by Ike. I'd work from 6 p.m. Friday to 3 a.m. Saturday. I did not foresee a problem since there was no way I would be flying on Saturday.

And then Ike started to change direction, its predicted path moving to the east and away from Austin. On Thursday American Airlines announced that it would allow passengers flying out on Saturday to reschedule without a penalty, but they had to fly within the next 7 days. Unfortunately, there was no way I could do that. Their next offer was to reschedule my trip to a date beyond that one-week time frame, but I would have to pay a $150 penalty. The last option was to take the trip. My best chance was for them to cancel the flight, if that happened I would get a full refund.

I got to work on Friday evening and kept checking the AA website, hoping to see the flight had been canceled. It hadn't. By 1 a.m. I realized I would be traveling on Saturday.

I worked til 3 a.m., showered and changed, then went to the airport, arriving at 4:30. At 5:40 everyone was ready to board our MD-80 for the flight to Chicago when they announced the flight would be delayed. American thought Ike, or at least its high winds, would come through Austin Friday evening so they had locked the plane up. Now it was too hot on the plane for us to board. They told us to wait 10 minutes as the ran the air conditioning to cool off the aircraft.

Ten minutes later we boarded, but it was still very hot on the plane. The flight attendants asked us to help by opening the a/c vents above our seats as wide as possible, and above all the empty seats too! They promised the plane would cool off once we took off. Happily, they were right, and shortly after we went "wheels up" the aircraft became comfortable. With that, I fell asleep and slept all the way to Chicago.

We landed at O'Hare in the middle of a torrential downpour. I saw trucks pumping water out of the grass area next to the runways; some of the runway signs were completely underwater. The flight attendant mentioned that we were lucky we left Austin when we did, air traffic control had instituted a weather hold on all flights into ORD five minutes after we left.

Heavy rain at O'Hare made day into night: they had to turn on the lights at the airport even though it was only 10 a.m. The rain delayed all air traffic into and out of Chicago. (click on photo for larger image)

I went to the Admiral's Club: the rain was coming down so hard that water was sheeting on the windows. After a nice rest in the club, I went to the gate.

I boarded the MD-80 for the flight to Portland. As we taxied to the runway, the pilot, in an obvious reference to Hurricane Ike and all the rain it dropped said, "Take a look out our left side, we're trying to make Chicago look like Texas." The rain was so heavy that the taxi-way was completely covered with water.

We took off safely and I quickly fell asleep, not waking up again until we were ready to land at Portland. We were 15 minutes late when we landed, and would be taking off again in the same plane back to Chicago in 45 minutes. I had enough time to leave the plane, go to the rest room, buy a breakfast burrito, and then get back on the plane.

I recognized one of the passengers boarding the flight had also flown in with me. He was another mileage runner from FlyerTalk, taking advantage of the good deal on the flights to Portland. In fact, he had done the same flights the day before!

We took off from Portland and I saw some great views of Mount St. Helens, the mountain that erupted in a spectacular explosion in 1980 .

We had a spectacular view of Mount St. Helens in the foreground, with Mount Ranier in the background. (click on photo for larger image)

As we approached Chicago the pilot said they were having bad weather at ORD and we would need to have our seat belts on for the last 30 minutes of the flight. We landed in another torrential downpour that was part of a memorable day in Chicago's history: the heaviest one-day rainfall in the 137 years that records have been kept. O'Hare recorded 6.64 inches of rain, breaking the all-time record of 6.49 inches set in 1987, according to the National Weather Service. Records have been kept since 1871.

I grabbed a meal at the food court then went to the Admiral's Club to rest again. After an hour I was back at the gate for my Austin flight.

My flight was scheduled to depart at 10 p.m., arriving in Austin at 12:30 a.m. We left on time, but as the plane got close to Austin we could see thunderstorms in the distance. The storms were hitting the Austin airport and we could not land until they had passed.

We finally landed at 1:05 a.m., 35 minutes late. I was home by 2:15.

It had been an exceptionally long day, made all the worse by the all-night shift at work on Friday evening. But I got home safely and the hardship I endured paled in comparison to those that the people in Galveston and Houston are facing.

I earned almost 11,000 miles and got home safe and sound. Mission accomplished!

Airport Food: It's Not What It Once Was

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 01:11:00 +0000

Admit it, a few years ago you didn't pay much attention to the food at the airport. Why should you? You knew you were going to get a hot meal on your flight and that meal was FREE! Why pay for a meal at Tim's Runway-Vue Cafe when you had a free meal coming to you on the plane?

And if you decided you did want to eat at the airport, what were your options? Limited and horribly over-priced. The people who ran the eateries had to pay high fees to the airport to operate, and the airport saw no need to ask them to lower their prices because they received a percentage of the sales. Lower costs meant lower revenue to the airport.

That started to change in the 1990s when Pittsburgh expanded its terminal and implemented a policy requiring vendors to charge the same price in the airport as they do at their non-airport locations. Many other airports have followed the trend, making airport food more affordable for all. The selection has, in many cases, also improved.

Today it is almost impossible to get a meal on a domestic flight, making airport dining a valuable option to many travelers. Why pay $5 for a snack box on a flight when you can get a hot meal at the airport for not much more money?

It's not uncommon to see fast food chains (McDonald's, Burger King, etc) giving passengers a quick place to eat. If you want a sit-down meal, Chilis and TGI Fridays have opened in many terminals. Starbucks and Cinnabon will satisfy your coffee and pastry desires. Manchu Wok will serve up egg rolls and sweet and sour pork.

Happy Flier readers know that I am a great fan of the dining options at the Pacific Marketplace at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Other airports also offer expanded dining options, in 2005 Frommer's Travel Guide cited Philadephia, Memphis, and El Paso as some of their favorite places for airport food.

My home airport is Austin-Bergstom International (ABIA) in Austin, Texas. You'll find plenty of places to eat at ABIA, but none are on the list of restaurants listed above. No McDonald's, no Starbucks, no Chilis. Airport management set a policy that it would only allow Austin-owned restaurants in the airport, no national chains. So, instead of Starbucks we have Austin Java. Instead of Chili's you can go to Harlon's Country Breakfast and Barbecue. And if you want to watch sports on TV while waiting for your flight, what could be better than Earl Campbell's Sports Bar? (Earl won the Hesiman Trophy as a running back at the University of Texas, then had a Hall of Fame career with the Houston Oilers.)

Lower prices, greater selection, higher quality. The thought of eating a meal at a restaurant is no longer as repulsive as it once was. In fact, it can actually be quite appealing.

I must admit though, that I was amazed when I read about Jet Blue's new terminal 5 at New York's Kennedy International. Jet Blue has gone above and beyond in setting up its new food court. And that name may be a misnomer: when I think of a food court, I think of four or more fast food restaurants sharing a common seating area. This is NOT what Jet Blue has done. They have provided a varied selection of stylish restaurants whose style is so dramatic that New York Magazine ran two articles about it. The first featured amazing photos of the restaurants, while the second article featured menus (without prices, unfortunately) from those restaurants. From Antipasti to Stone Cut Oatmeal with caramelized bananas and raisins to a Fried Salami and Cheese sandwich on an everything bagel to a good old Bacon Cheeseburger, it is an extraordinary selection.

I have not had to do a layover at JFK in many years, but if I do, I will certainly find my way to the new Jet Blue terminal and its restaurants!

Airport dining is improving. The days of paying $10 for a badly-cooked hamburger have passed. Airports have realized that well-run properly priced restaurants can be a money-maker for the vendor and airport, while also serving to make the trip more pleasant for the traveler.

Is there a place with food you dream about, a place that you absolutely must stop to eat at when traveling? Share it with us.

Ongoing Changes in Customer Services

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:15:00 +0000

As the price of oil rose above $150 a barrel, the airline industry responded by raising fares, cutting unprofitable routes, adding fuel surcharges, and implementing fees for services that passengers previously received at no cost.

With oil now below $120 a barrel, things may look better for the industry, but still have a long way to go before they actually look good.

I wrote before about Southwest Airlines and its unique ability to make a profit in this tumultuous time. In June Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly told the Austin-American Statesman “We are expecting to take more market share. We are planning for that." How quickly things change.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Southwest will reduce its schedule by almost 200 flights in January 2009. This is a reduction of almost 6% of its daily schedule of over 3,400 flights. In addition, Southwest will proceed with previous plans to add 14 aircraft to its fleet, but will accelerate the rate at which it retires others, leaving the size of its fleet relatively stable.

Southwest has made a profit in every quarter since 1991. It speaks badly for the industry if the nation’s most profitable airline sees the need to reduce service.

I do the majority of my flights on American Airlines. Many years ago American stopped serving meals in coach on domestic flights but thankfully continues to serve them on international flights. However, one airline may be setting the precedent of ending that service.

As part of a service cutback, United Airlines announced that it would stop serving complimentary meals in coach on flights to Europe, instead offering snack packs. And to make matters worse, they raised the cost of the snack packs from $7 to $9 each.

Happily, this turned out to be a victory for all travelers. So many people protested United's actions that it canceled the change and will continue to serve hot meals in coach on flights to Europe.

The importance of this cannot be overstated. In an era when the airlines are continually adding fees and surcharges to their increasingly expensive tickets while at the same time reducing service, United's passengers loudly said "Enough!" and the airline listened. This is an important lesson for all travelers: let the airlines know when you are unhappy, let them know you plan to take your business elsewhere. They cannot make any money if you stop flying with them! It's good to see that the consumer still has some influence.

However, United said that it would stop serving meals in business class on domestic flights, instead offering complimentary beverages and snack items, and this policy has not changed. The importance of this move cannot be ignored: while airlines have cut back on services to coach passengers, this marks the first time that an airline has reduced service to passengers buying the much more expensive (and profitable to the airline) business class tickets. Will any other airline follow suit? We’ll see. It will be interesting to see how many of United’s business class passengers take their business elsewhere.

Finally, US Airways announce that it would no longer award bonus miles to its Preferred status Dividend Miles members. The airline said "By reducing the number of bonus miles issued, US Airways is in a better position to withstand the impact of record fuel prices."

So far, US Airways' unhappy passengers have not been able to reverse this decision.

If I had elite status on US Airways Dividend Miles program, I would be looking for a new airline right now. One of the benefits I receive for my Platinum status on American Airlines is double AAdvantage miles on all flights. If the flight is 2,650 miles, I earn 5,300 miles. If that benefit were eliminated, my return on mileage runs would be so poor as to no longer make it worthwhile for me to do them. I hope AA will not follow US Airways in this decision.

The future of air travel
Sadly, air travel is starting to resemble restaurant service more and more. Passengers used to get free meals, free beverages, free blankets and pillows, a selection of newspapers on each flight, and paid no charge for checking their baggage. Those are the old days. We are now moving to restaurant-style a-la-carte pricing.

You go into a restaurant, and they give you a table to sit at, a chair to sit on, and silverware. You go onto an aircraft and you get a seat and a seatbelt.

Do you want an iced-tea at that restaurant? It will cost you $3. Do you want to check your bags at the airport? It will cost you $15 for the first bag, $25 for the second.

Would you like a salad at the restaurant? No problem, that will cost you up to $8. Do you want a snack pack on your flight? Again, no problem, that will cost as much as $9.

In each case, you will have to pay an additional fee every time you ask for something. We may see the day when travelers will have a Travel Options area they can use when making an online reservation. Once they reserve their seat, they will be able to use that area to reserve a pillow, a snack pack, and a blanket, and have the cost included in their purchase price.

The idea seems absurd today, but no more absurd than it seemed two years ago to think about charging passengers $15 to check their first piece of luggage.

When it comes to air travel, the good old days are gone.

Airline Offers New No Frills Service

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 12:18:00 +0000

Enjoy Carol Burnett, Tim Conway, and Harvey Korman, as they demonstrate all the benefits of the money-saving "no frills" service now being offered by a major airline. It may be no frills, but look at all that legroom!

Admit it, sometimes you have felt like you were flying on this airline!

An Interesting Week for American Airlines

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 18:30:00 +0000

In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens said "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." That is almost an appropriate description of this past week for American Airlines. It was week of good news, and bad news.

The good news first.

American announced that "American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia signed a Joint Business Agreement (JBA) to cooperate on flights between North America and Europe, and announced that we plan to expand our global cooperation."

"Though our three airlines will continue to operate as separate legal entities – with our own fleets, employees and brands – we will cooperate more closely to improve travel choices, offer more convenient schedules and give customers more opportunities to earn and redeem frequent flyer miles."

What impact will this have? A huge impact for travelers making transatlantic flights. It will open up many new options for flights from America to Europe, and will also provide greater flexibility on flights within Europe. It will have no affect on flights within the United States.

When can travelers expect to see these benefits? "As a key first step, our three airlines – along with Finnair and Royal Jordanian, our transatlantic partners in the oneworld global alliance – plan to apply today with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to receive global antitrust immunity."

The agreement will require approval from the United States and, I would think, also from the European Union. American can only say that these changes "will take some time to be implemented."

There is one point that AA does not address in their announcement. American AAdvantage members currently earn AAdvantage miles on all flights on British Airways except those between the US and Europe. Those flights compete directly with AA's service, so no are miles awarded on them. (Miles are awarded however on service between Canada and Europe.) Will this change when the new agreement is implemented? I have no idea.

The three airlines have set up a website with more information about the JBA. Moretravelchoices.com provides information about the proposal. Among the expected benefits to customers are:

The combined route network would offer seamless service to approximately 443 destinations, in 106 countries, with 6,277 daily departures worldwide:
Greater expected availability of lower fares and more routing choices.
Discounts for corporate customers to more destinations and on more frequencies in a single contract.
Expanded opportunities to earn and redeem frequent flyer miles and elite tier benefits on flights worldwide and continued reciprocal airport lounge access. Reinvigorated competition as the oneworld alliance would finally be allowed to compete on equal footing with other global air alliances that have longstanding immunities.

I have no doubt that this will bring about more routing choices and more frequencies in a single contract, but I have not seen anything in an industry that now charges for the first checked bag to make me believe that there will be a greater availability of lower fares or discounts for corporate customers. However, even if the fares remain the same, the other benefits to make it worthwhile.

In addition, American announced plans to purchase six Boeing 737-800 aircraft by 2010 as replacements for its aging fleet of MD-80s, which average 18 years of service. They will also ground their fleet of Airbus A-300 aircraft which also average 18 years of service.

The bad news for American came when the Federal Aviation Administration(FAA) announced a $7.1 million fine against American for maintenance problems and poor implementation of drug testing.

The FAA said that American knew that two MD-80 aircraft had defective auto-pilots, but flew the two aircraft 58 times before making the repairs.

The FAA is also seeking fines for against American for violating drug testing procedures involving several dozen flight attendants and other employees, only one of whom was a pilot.

This is the second largest fine ever assessed by the FAA; the largest being the $10.2 fine against Southwest Airlines in March, 2008 for improper maintenance procedures.

American says it will contest the fine.

"We do not agree with the FAA's findings and characterizations of American's action in these cases," the airline said. "In accordance with FAA procedures for handling these matters, we have requested to meet with the FAA after we have had time to thoroughly review their findings, so that we may discuss the issues. Since these matters are ongoing with the FAA, we will not have any further comment at this time."

Terrible Hotel Service

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 00:50:00 +0000

Two weeks since my last post: for that I apologize. Aside from being swamped at work, I have also done some traveling around Texas that has kept me very busy. I've visited San Antonio, having a very good and very bad experience, and also visited South Texas shortly after Hurricane Dolly came though.

First, the good and bad of our San Antonio visit. My wife and I planned to spend a weekend in the Alamo City. We enjoy all our trips to San Antonio, it's an easy 90 minute drive from home and we have had a great time whenever we have gone there. Our plan called for us to attend an event at the Alamodome on Saturday, spend the night at a motel, then do some shopping and act like tourists on Sunday. At least that was the plan.

We bought tickets for the Southwest Championships of Drum Corps International at the Alamodome, and had reservations to spend the night at a Rodeway Inn. Everything looked good.

We arrived at the Alamodome at 11 a.m. and made our way to our seats. They were amazing, the best seats we have ever had in the years we've attended this event. The first band marched out onto the field at noon to start an incredible day of music and incredible marching skill. After 12 bands performed there was a three-hour break for dinner, and then we went back to see the top four bands from the morning compete against the remaining eight bands.

It was an incredible evening, featuring some of the best performances we had ever seen. When the show finally ended well after 11 p.m., we left the Alamodome and drove to the Rodeway Inn, anxious to get a good night's sleep after our very long day.

I got to the motel and went to check-in. There were three people in front of me, including a young mother who said she had been looking for a room for the previous two hours but had been unable to find one in San Antonio. The reservations clerk apologized, but said there were no vacancies, she would have to look elsewhere.

He checked in the next gentleman, who had a reservation, and then me, telling me I was lucky I had a reservation, I was getting the last room in the motel.

My wife and I went to the room; it being Texas in July I immediately turned on the air conditioner, but was not prepared for what I got! The a/c let out a loud screech, it sounded as if a bearing was going out in the fan motor. We turned off the a/c and turned on the fan by itself, but the noise was still there, far too loud for us to be able to sleep.

I immediately called the front desk to complain: the clerk said he would send a maintenance man. A few minutes later there was a knock on our door: since it was almost 1 a.m. I tried to look through the peephole in the door to see who it was but couldn't do it: when they painted the room they painted over the peephole!

I opened the door and it was indeed the maintenance man. He listened to the noise and told me there was nothing he could do. "We are refurbishing the hotel. The new rooms are very quiet, but the old ones sometimes sound loud like this, there is nothing I can do."

There was no way we could sleep in that room so we left and went to the front desk; we had been in the room for 12 minutes. I told the clerk the room was not satisfactory and we were leaving. He printed up a receipt and charged me the full price for the room!

I told him there was no way I was paying for 12 minutes in a substandard room: he replied that I had made a reservation and guaranteed it with my credit card and he would have to charge me even if I had not checked in.

I said I was glad to stay at the hotel, but needed a room where the air conditioner made less noise than my car makes at 75 miles per hour on the highway, did he have such a room? He refused to answer. I said I was glad to stay but needed a room where I could look out into the hallway to see who was knocking on the door, did he have such a room? Again, he refused to answer.

"If you can't give me a quiet or safe room, you can't charge me!" I said. He replied with the company line about needing to cancel reservations 24 hours in advance. I realized I would not get anywhere arguing with a college kid working the night shift at 1 a.m., so I left, saying I would call a manager the next day.

My wife and I drove home, not getting in until after 3 a.m.

The next afternoon I called and spoke with a manager and explained the situation. She again gave me the company line about needing to cancel 24 hours in advance, but said she would look into the matter. An hour later she called, apologized for the situation, and said I would receive a full credit. I thanked her for her courtesy and thought that was the end of it. Sadly, it was not.

A week later, the credit had not appeared on my credit card account. I had to drive through San Antonio while on the way to South Texas and I stopped by the motel to settle the matter.

I spoke with a manager: she tried to call the lady I had talked with earlier, but she no longer worked at the motel and was not answering any calls from the motel's phone number. Since that did not work, she started to give me the standard line about canceling 24 hours in advance and that I could not get a refund because I had not done that. Too bad I did not know 24 hours in advance that the room was garbage!

But then she looked in the computer and found my record. "Oh, you have been issued a credit." Sure enough, she printed the credit invoice for me. I was satisfied with that and left. When I got home I called American Express: they still could find no record of the refund, so they are putting the charge on hold while they investigate; that should take 6-8 weeks. I'll let you know how that works out.

In the meantime, Rodeway Inn sent me an online customer satisfaction survey about our stay. Suffice to say I gave the motel the worst ratings possible and said I would never stay there, or at another Rodeway Inn again.

Finally, a Good Deal on a Mileage Run!

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 20:33:00 +0000

In my last post, I talked about the prices for mileage runs, and how high they had become. Today I learned an important lesson: just because the price was high yesterday does not mean that it is high today!

I looked again at a mileage run to Portland, Oregon (PDX). Previously I found trips that cost as much as $800. I looked again today and found a MR to PDX in August for only $310. That's 2.85 cents per mile: not great, but a lot better than I had recently found.

I changed the parameters to see what that trip would cost in September: the price dropped even more! I was able to buy AUS-ORD-PDX-ORD-AUS for only $240! I'll earn over 10,000 miles and at 2.21 cents per mile, a good rate!

I don't know why the price for a trip would drop from $800 to $310 to $240 in a matter of days. Perhaps AA saw that not enough people were willing to pay that higher price. Whatever the reason, I am glad I found this better deal!

Trying to Build My Miles for the Year

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 20:49:00 +0000

Right now I have one mileage run (MR) scheduled for the rest of the year, an August flight to Orange County, California and back. No odd routing on this one, straight out there and back with a transfer at DFW, but I did find a pretty good fare. The other advantage is that I will be able to spend the day with my relatives, some of whom I have not seen for several years.

But I need to get more miles, so today I looked for some more flights. I have made several trips to Seattle and wanted to see what other locations wer available, so I looked at a MR to Portland on an August Saturday.

The first trip was a good MR routing, earning me extra miles: Austin to Los Angeles to San Francisco to Portland. This was also the lowest-priced flight of the day. Not bad, but it did not arrive in PDX until 4:15 p.m. That left only one option for the return: the return flight left at 10 p.m., Portland to Orlando, Florida, to Dallas to Austin, arriving Austin around noon on Sunday. Total cost, $811 to earn 12,622 miles at 6.43 cents per mile. No way I am spending $811 to fly to Portland!

I looked for another option. Maybe I could pay a little bit more for my outbound flight but get a better deal on the return.

The second trip was better, but still not good: Austin to Dallas to Portland to Chicago to Austin, arriving AUS shortly after midnight, for $638 to earn 9,666 miles, 6.6 cents per mile.

I've never flown to Portland before, but have made several trips to Seattle, the most I ever paid for that was $258. I am not going to pay $600-800 to fly to Portland. The worst MR I have ever done earned me 2.9 cents per mile: it is not worth it to pay over 6 cents per mile.

So I will keep on looking. With American Airlines' parent company, AMR, just announcing that it lost over $1.2 billion in the last quarter, I may have a problem finding a bargain out there.

Memories of Airlines Past

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:09:00 +0000

This has been a very bad year for the airline industry with several carriers going out of business. ExpressJet became the latest, announcing that it would cease operation on September 2. It joins Aloha, ATA, Eos, Maxjet, Silverjet, and Skybus, all of which shut down earlier this year.

Business plans that seemed intelligent and fiscally sound three years ago have crumbled before the challenge of $140 a barrel oil. With the exception of Southwest, every airline has added a variety of fees and surcharges, including extra charges for a second piece of checked luggage, a first piece of checked luggage, using frequent flyer miles to get a ticket, using the phone to buy a ticket, and curbside check-in, among others.

US Airways announced that it will discontinue in-flight movies: removing the video system will lower the weight of the aircraft by 500 pounds, saving thousands of gallons of fuel a year per plane. It is reasonable to expect this trend to continue.

When I read of ExpressJet's closing, I started to think about airlines I had flown on in the past that are no longer in business. Some of these companies went out of business, some merged with other carriers. Whatever the cause, we no longer have aircraft with these names pained on the side. These descriptions are not meant to be complete, you can research these airlines on your own to learn more about them. Hopefully this list will remind you of airlines past.

Northeast Airlines: Northeast offered service from NewYork/Boston/Philadelphia/Washington to Florida and Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1931, it merged with Delta Airlines in 1972. I flew Northeast from New York to Miami in the late 1960s.

Pan American World Airways: Pan Am will be long remembered as one of the great aviation pioneers. Pan Am was founded in 1927. Its flying boats, known as "clippers" eventually offered service from the United States to Europe, South America, and China. In 1970 it became one of the first airlines to fly the Boeing 747 jumbo jet: a December 1988 terrorist bombing caused Pan Am flight 103 to crash in Lockerbie, Scotland, killing a total of 270 people. Pan Am declared bankruptcy in January 1991 and ceased operations in December of that year. I flew Pan Am once, from Nassau, Bahamas, to New York.

Trans World Airlines: TWA was formed in 1930. In 1938 Howard Hughes and his Hughes Tool Company began buying stock in TWA: he continued investing in the airline, eventually gaining control in 1946. He sold his shares in 1966 for a profit of more than $500 million. In 1967, TWA became one of the first airlines in the world to boast an all-jet fleet. TWA fared badly after airline deregulation and file for bankruptcy protection in 1995. TWA merged with American Airlines in 2001. I flew TWA between Austin and St. Louis.

Braniff Airlines: Braniff was formed in 1928, eventually offering service between the American Midwest and South American, Europe, and Asia. It became most famous in the 1960s and 70s when it adopted new design standards that would make its aircraft stand out from other airlines. It was not unusual to see brown, purple. baby blue, orange or turquoise Braniff aircraft. They redesigned their gates and terminals to match the new designs, and gave the flight attendants new, more fashionable uniforms. In 1973 the airline hired Alexander Calder to paint its aircraft. As with other airlines, Branif fared badly after deregulation and filed bankruptcy in 1982. I flew Branniff from Austin to Kansas City.

America West Airlines: America West began offering service from Phoenix, Arizon, in 1983. It rapidly expanded offering service through the American West with Phoenix as its main hub. It grew rapidly, but perhaps too quickly and was not profitable. By the late 1980s it was trying to establish international routes, offering service to Japan and Mexico, but it never had a strong balance sheet. The rise in fuel costs prior to the 1991 Gulf War forced it into bankfuptcy, but it continued to fly under bankruptcy protection until 1994. A reorganized America West was created in 1994, but, alng with other carriers, lost a lot of business after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In 2005 it merged with US Airways and took that name. I flew America West from Austin to Las Vegas.

And there you have it, a list of airlines that are now fond memories. Let us hope that no other airlines will join this list.

What airlines have you flown on that are no longer in business?

Finally -- Another Mileage Run

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 17:04:00 +0000

I have not taken a mileage run since my since my May 10 trip to Seattle. For the first time in a very long time, I have no future reservations on American Airlines.

It's never easy to do a mileage run in the summer. Traffic is high, planes are full, and fares are generally at their highest point of the year.

I looked at doing another trip to Seattle in August, and saw I could fly AUS-SEA for only $110. That is a great fare! The problem was the return fare: $239 for SEA-ORD-AUS, giving a total price of $380.50: 8,938 miles at 4.26 cents per mile. That is a terrible deal and I don't book it.

I looked further and found what is, by today's standards, a bargain. Round trip to Orange County, CA, (AUS-DFW-SNA-DFW-AUS) for a total price of $200: 6,820 total miles for 2.93 cents per mile.

In the past, I would never book a flight at almost 3 cents per mile. But times have changed, and this seems to be a bargain. I'll have a 7 hour layover at SNA which gives me time to visit with my family, some of whom I have not seen in over 6 years. So, I book the flight.

In the meantime, I'll keep looking and hoping for some better deals.

American Airlines vs. United Airlines - A Comparison

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 13:04:00 +0000

Readers of this site know that I have selected American Airlines as my airline of choice. I live near Austin, Texas: only Southwest offers more service from Austin than American, but Southwest does not offer international service or service to Hawaii, so that eliminated them from my consideration. I try to do all of my traveling on American Airlines or one of its Oneworld partners.

I recently had to attend a conference in San Francisco: the corporate travel agent made the reservations for me and I had no choice in the matter, I had to fly on United Airlines. I hadn't flown United in several years, and thought a comparison of UA and AA would be of interest to you.

I have flown around the continental United States, to Hawaii, and to Europe on American Airlines, and have elite status. I have taken three flights on UA, and do not have elite status.

Flight Status Notification:
Each airline lets you register for free flight status notification. Once you sign up for this service, the airline's computer will call you in advance of your flight to let you know if it is on time and what the departure gate is. I always sign up for this at American and have found it to be a very valuable feature. I also found that there is a difference between the way the two airlines operate their notification systems.

American continually updates their notifications. If you are supposed to depart from Gate 14, but there has been a change to Gate 6 instead, you will get a call to let you know. United apparently does not offer this feature. My flight home from San Francisco had a layover in Denver. I received a call with one gate listed for my departure, but the video screens in the airport listed another gate that was at the other end of the terminal. I have never experienced a disagreement between the video screens and the notification system on American, but now I had this problem with United. I decided to go to the gate listed on the video screen, and that was the correct decision. If I had gone to the gate provided by the flight notification system, I would have missed my flight.

United also called me to let me know the arrival time of my flight. Since I did not get this message until after I had landed and turned on my cell phone, this did not help me at all. However, if you set it up to have the call go to someone who is meeting you at the airport, it would be a great help.

Check In Process:
American allows passengers to check in with a reservations agent, or use a self-serve kiosk. If you check in with the agent, he/she issues your boarding pass and receives your checked baggage. If you use the kiosk, the kiosk issues your boarding pass, but you then have to stand on another line to hand in your baggage.

United has combined this. Everyone stands on one line (unless they are flying First Class, which has a separate process) until they reach the check in counter. They use a computer terminal to check in, then give their checked baggage to the agent behind the counter.

Extra Legroom:
I have elite status with American Airlines, this allows me to reserve exit row seating which gives me extra legroom.

I checked in for my Austin - San Francisco flight and the agent asked if I would like a seat with extra legroom. Would I? It's a four-hour flight! Of course I would! How nice of them to offer!

"Yes, I would love extra legroom!."

"That will be $49, would you like to pay with cash or charge?"

"Neither, thanks for offering."

Since I don't have elite status with United I could only get extra legroom by paying the extra fee. I declined that offer.

On my return from San Francisco I took two flights, San Francisco-Denver and Denver-Austin. The cost for extra legroom was $78. Again, I refused this benefit.

Aircraft:
Most of my flights on American are on MD-80s, some of the oldest aircraft in their fleet. My United flights were on an Airbus A-319, Boeing 737 and 757. In each case, the United aircraft felt newer than the MD-80s I normally get on American.

In-flight Entertainment:
American does not offer in-flight entertainment (IFE) on the MD-80, so I rarely experience it. All three of the United flights offered it. None of the flights were long enough to show a movie, but there were several TV shows. In addition, there was the standard choice of music channels to listen to.

My favorite feature on United is Channel 9. This channel lets you listen to the air traffic controllers as they talk to the aircraft, and the replies from the cockpit crews. I've always been fascinated by this and really enjoy listening to it. You never know what you will hear.

You'll hear the expected "United 43 heavy clear for departure on runway 27 left" mesages, but also hear pilots asking if they can change their altitude or course to avoid turbulence. When we backed away from the terminal in Denver for the flight to Austin, I heard the controller tell our pilot "I have 15 aircraft getting ready to depart in the next few minutes. If you can leave now, I can put you in front of them all." Needless to say, our pilot accepted that offer!

When we landed in Austin I heard our pilot tell the controller that the spotlights in a maintenance area were shining directly in her eyes as she taxied to the terminal.

I love Channel 9 and wish other airlines offered it.

Food:
It's 2008 and neither airline offers food in coach unless you buy a snack box. You can get a complimentary non-alcoholic beverage.

Power Outlets
American has 12-volt power outlets on its aircraft, providing a place to plug in your laptop or DVD player. United does not. This is a definite advantage to American, particularly on a long flight where your battery will not last long enough to get you to your destination.

Arrival Information:
Without exception, every American Airlines flight I've taken has featured arrival information announcements. One of the flight attendants announces our arrival gate, where to pick up our luggage, and departurne information for connecting flights.

United offered no information other than the recommendation that we review the video screens in the terminal for information. This was a problem when we arrived in Austin as passengers from my flight wandered around the luggage area trying to figure out which carousel had our bags. An on-flight announcement would have helped prevent this.

Summary:
There you have it, a short and totally un-scientific comparison of American and United Airlines. Did I find one airline to be dramatcially better than the other? No.

American offers more service from Austin than United does, so I will continue to give them my business.

A Day at the Kennedy Space Center

noreply@blogger.com (Happy Flier) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 16:06:00 +0000

My wife and I visited Orlando in May. We took advantage of that trip to visit the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), America's gateway to space!

I've wanted to visit the Cape since I was a little kid. I remember when the "Space Race" was a big deal, when it was important that we beat the Russians to the Moon. In those days every flight was front page news and received a huge amount of coverage in the press. Today, while space flight is no less dangerous, it is so common, that the media hardly mentions it.

The full Space Center tour costs $42 per person, and you can purchase your tickets online.

It's an easy drive from Orlando to Cape Kennedy: just remember to bring pocket change because the highway in the Orlando area is a toll road that seems to have a toll booth every three miles or so. Also, be sure to bring comfortable walking shoes, you will do a LOT of walking at the Cape.

The parking lots at the Cape are all numbered and named after the 7 Mercury astronauts. We parked in lot number 5, which was named for Wally Schirra, the 5th American in space.

As you enter the KSC, you see a display of the rockets used in the early years of the space race. The Redstone rocket on the left launched Alan Shepard into space in 1961. The next rocket is the Atlas, which was used for all of the Mercury program's orbital flights. (click on photo for larger image)

The NASA logo greets you as you enter the tourist area of the KSC. This is a special year to visit the Cape, it is NASA's 50th anniversary. (click on photo for larger image)

After you enter the tourist center, you board a bus for your tour of the KSC. There are three stops along the way; since the buses run every 15 minutes you can spend as much time as you want at each location.

One of the first sites you see on your tour is the massive Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). It is one of the largest buildings in the world and was originally built for assembly of Apollo/Saturn vehicles; it was later modified to support Space Shuttle operations. The VAB is 525 feet tall (160 meters), 716 feet long (218 meters) and 518 feet wide (158 meters). The Space Shuttle is mated to its solid rocket boosters, fuel tank, and cralwer-transporter in the VAB. (click on photo for larger image)

The crawler-transporter carries the Space Shuttle to the launch pad, and serves as the rocket's support during launch. It's top speed is one mile-per-hour and uses 150 gallons of diesel per mile. The transporter weighs 2,721 metric tons (6 million pounds), is 40 meters (131 ft) wide, 35 meters (114 ft). long (click on photo for larger image)

Your first stop is the Launch Complex (LC) 39 Observation Gantry, a four-story gantry from which you get excellent views of the KSC. The Vehicle Assembly Building is in the background, the crawler-transporter is in the foreground. (click on photo for larger image)

KSC has only two launch pads, 39-A and 39-B. Both are used to launch the Space Shuttle. This is 39-A. The military has several launch pads at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, located just south of the KSC. (click on photo for larger image)

The Space Shuttle Discovery sits on launch pad 39-B, ten days before the start of its mission to the International Space Station. This is the closest one can get to the launch pads. (click on photo for larger image)

The next stop on the tour is the Apollo/Saturn V Center that focuses on the Apollo missions to the moon. You begin in the control room that was used for the Apollo launches and go through a simulation of the launch of Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the moon. (click on photo for larger image)

When you leave the control room you enter an exhibit hall that features a full-scal model of the Saturn V rocket, the rocket that launched the Apollo missions to the moon, and is still the most powerful rocket ever made. With the Apollo spacecraft onboard, the Saturn V stood 363 feet (111 meters) high. (click on photo for larger image)

The five giant F-1 rocket engines at the base of the Saturn's first stage used kerosene and liquid oxygen (Lox) as propellants and produced 7.5 million pounds of thrust. They burned for almost 3 minutes. (click on photo for larger image)

A model of the lunar landing module hangs above the exhibit hall, next to a model of the third stage of the Saturn V. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin rode the Eagle to the surface of the moon on July 20, 1969. It's hard to believe that we are coming up on the 40th anniversary of the landing! (click on photo for larger image)

The Apollo command module sat at the top of the Saturn V. The three astronauts traveled to the moon in the command module. Once they entered lunar orbit, two astronauts entered the lunar module for the trip to the surface of the moon. (click on photo for larger image)

The final stop on the tour is the International Space Station (ISS) Center. Visitors can walk through a mock-up of the ISS Habitation Module where astronauts live when aboard the ISS. (click on photo for larger image)

The interior of one of the ISS science modules. (click on photo for larger image)

Visitors are able to look down upon the ISS assembly area and watch as modules are assembled before being loaded aboard the Space Shuttle for the flight to space. (click on photo for larger image)

After touring the International Space Station (ISS) Center, visitors board the bus for the return to the main tourist center at KSC. Visitors can enter a full scale mock-up of the Space Shuttle Explorer. Next door it the Shuttle Launch Experience where you get to experience the first 5 minutes of a Shuttle launch. (click on photo for larger image)

The tourist center offers many options for visitors including an IMAX movie theater (we saw a movie about the construction of the ISS), gift shops, places to eat, and a movie about the American mission to Mars.

Nothing can equal the Kennedy Space Center tour, I highly recommend it. Be sure to get there early, and expect to stay all day. It is an experience you will never forget.