This will be the first in a set of articles that will simply list the various airline partnership networks and their member airlines to help you find other airlines that may accept the frequent flyer miles you’ve accrued on your major airline program. This article will list the airlines in the Delta Skyteam Alliance as well as Delta specific partners (that aren’t part of the alliance) and briefly how your miles accrue in the program.
Singapore Airlines is ahead of the curve on this one: It was reported by CNN that the airline would be offering language learning programs on their in-flight entertainment delivery system: KrisWorld. SIA and an American language school, Berlitz International, to produce crash-course learning programs in English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Russian, Portuguese, Mandarin, Cantonese and Japanese. If you’ve ever flown from Asia to practically anywhere, you’ll know that the double digit flight hours seem to pass like an eternity. This is a very intelligent idea and it’s a wonder it hadn’t been thought of earlier. How many movies can you possible watch before you feel like you’re wasting your time?
I ran across a great article at SmarterTravel.com about different ways to obtain elite status with various airlines. It details how you should go about finding about the frequent flyer programs, learning the point minimums for each status, and, if you don’t feel that you can fly enough to accrue the necessary points; you can always try to complete a “challenge.” The article is a must read for those who are trying to reach elite status but are banging their heads against the walls at the high flight mileage minimums.
In a USAToday article (printed at Yahoo! Finance), it was reported that four major airlines (American, United, Delta and Northwest) will be raising rates because of high fuel costs. United jacked up rates by 3% across the board, Northwest increased domestic prices by 3%, and American and Delta added a $5 increase on each way of a flight. Only Continental stood pat. These big airlines are being attacked from both sides as they try to extricate themselves from their financial problems - rising costs versus low prices of their low-budget competitors… a rock and a hard place.
The only positive for these airlines is that the flights across the Atlantic have risen along with demand, especially during the June - August timeframe when discounts are impossible. Also of note, domestic fares have increased seven times since February, mostly in areas where the discount airlines don’t service. The article is worth reading as it discusses how the prices have fluctuated the past few quarters.
In a press release from JetBlue, it was announced that JetBlue and American Express will begin offering a new card, the JetBlue Card from American Express, that allows holders to earn points in JetBlue’s TrueBlue flight gratitude program.
In a USAToday.com article (reprinted by Yahoo! Finance), Cingular was reported to be opposed to the use of cell phones on flights because they “believe there is a time and a place for wireless phone conversations, and seldom does that include the confines of an airplane flight.” As the FAA considers allowing the usage of cell phones on flights, because they now pose no safety risk, we’re left to wonder if we really want the nuisance of cell phones ringing, people talking, and constant clicking in the small space on an airplane. This writer agrees with Cingular in that verbal conversations should be kept at a minimum simply because there isn’t much space on a plane and you’re voice will carry and, inevitably, piss someone off.
Live in America and plan on traveling abroad? Live elsewhere and plan on traveling here? Chances are you know that you’ll need to get some sort of electric outlet converter (voltage converter) so that your hair dryer or alarm clock (or whatever) doesn’t get burned up in the voltage differences. Most non-US countries are on the 220-240V system whereas in America, we want to be different, we use the 110-120V. Without a converter, American appliances would probably work ridiculously well for a ridiculously short amount of time and then burn up. That’s why you need a converter like the Proctor-Silex 10082 Foreign Travel Voltage Converter and Adaptor Set (it’s only $12.99 anyway).
It was reported today in the Washington Post that on a recent Alaskan Airlines flight, during a 30 minute delay on the tarmac, flight attendants encouraged passengers to sign up for a Bank of America credit card and handed out applications to passengers! While the concept of advertising in the air is common, the attendants making the pitch themselves is a bit too much. For those of you who abhor the advertisements before movies at the theatre, you’ll flip out if this happens to you!
What the heck is a mileage run? It’s when frequent flyer members of an airline find cheap fares and fly them simply to rack up the miles for their programs. Sometimes these mileage runs net double miles, sometimes the additional mileage bumps you up to another tier of service, sometimes it’s just a cheap way to accrue some miles in return for your time. It’s a tactic of the more hardcore frequent flyers but it’s actually interesting to read about. If you’re curious, I was first introduced to this concept at FlyerTalk, a great bulletin board on travel, and read the journal of Randy Peterson, detailing his mileage run (70 flights, 14 days, 38 stats and 44 cities!!!).
If you are familiar with Southwest’s frequent flyer program, you’ll immediately recognize the beauty of this offer. If you aren’t familiar, a quick juant over here and you’ll quickly and easily learn that Southwest has one of the easiest and hassle-less programs out there. If you sign up for Ding! and keep it installed and active for thirty days, you will receive 2 free credits (equal to about $60 according to my calculations of a value per credit).