News and notes from around the interweb:
- I heard in June that American Express had a strategy to deal with crowding at the Centurion Studio in Seattle. Zach Honig writes that they’re going to add 1400 square feet onto the current 3000 square foot lounge. It doesn’t give them the 10,000 feet they want (existing Centurion lounges run 8500 to 9500 square feet) but it will give them “a full bar, a shower, an additional restroom and an outdoor view (currently blocked by construction for a new Delta SkyClub)”
- Sometimes the hotel holding your wedding also has a fetish ball booked (HT: Tocqueville)
- Indonesian airlines are now permitted to fly to the US after a 2007 safety-related ban was lifted.
- British Airways is eliminating second meal service on shorter transatlantics and replacing it with candy. Chalk up coach passenger experience as another Brexit casualty (which had already taken its toll on British Airways business).
- Capital One now allows credit card payments via debit card online
- “With the exception of those roaming off the coast of Somalia, I thought we Marines had effectively eradicated pirates during the Barbary wars of the 1800s. I was wrong, [they] operate in the open at Gatwick Airport.” A Ryanair love story…
The cuts at British Airways have nothing to do with Brexit. The airline has been in cost-cutting mode for well over a year (considerably before anyone really thought Brexit could happen). The cuts are down to a management team that’s now led by the former CEO of Vuelling (IAGs LCC) and that sees a need to compete with Ryanair/easyJet on short haul and sees a threat from the likes of Norwegian and WOW on long haul.
BA’s ongoing cost cutting exercise is related to Brexit how? Please elaborate.
relating BA’s cost cutting to Brexit is simply intellectually lazy. there are other reasons, and their cost cutting has been underway for far longer than Brexit has been a reality.
Regardless of Brexit being the culprit, BA is slowly but surely cost-cutting its way out of contention. Old planes, surly staff, sub-par business seats, uninspired food. BA: no way.
I can’t remember the last time I actually ate the second meal on any airline, Y or J, on an east coast – UK flight (or the other way around).
More time to sleep eastbound.
Less interruptions westbound.
Get a real meal after landing.
This is actually an improvement in my book.