Archives: July 2009

Southwest and Denver, a Few More Thoughts

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 31

Analysts are beginning to contemplate the ramifications of Southwest’s (LUV) surprise bid for Frontier and a few areas of consensus are emerging. First, United Airlines (UAUA) is likely to...

You Want Assigned Seats?! Good Luck With That

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 30

I’ve been reluctant to mention some recent travails with seat assignments, owing to a belief that my experience may have been isolated. But now it seems someone else, a contributing...

OpenSkies Drops Amsterdam Route, Renewing Last Days Questions

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 24

The British Airways (BAY) offshoot, Open Skies, said Friday it will end service to Amsterdam on Aug. 16. The decision could mark the beginning of the end for BA’s premium...

Airline Profits and Industry Pessimism

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 23

Given the Sturm und Drang in the airline industry these days, I thought it might be useful to consider a few points that were given only the tiniest amount of...

Continental Gets a New CEO, Highlighting Smooth Transitions

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 17

When is an airline CEO’s departure hailed as a sign of corporate health and management strength? When that airline is Continental (CAL). The company said late on July 16 that...

United Launches a Mileage Sale

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 16

United Airlines (UAUA) launched an attractive discount this week on mileage awards. The lower redemption levels are 20,000 miles for a domestic ticket, down from 25,000 (and 30,000 to Hawaii,...

British Airways Wants a Business Meeting

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 14

When the recession hit with full fury in 2008, many a company slashed its travel spending. Marginally important trips were discarded, while vital ones were curtailed – and business...

Continental, United Win Antitrust Bid on trans-Atlantic Flights

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 10

Continental (CAL) and United (UAUA) scored a big win today when the Dept. of Transportation agreed to their request to coordinate flight schedules, prices and marketing efforts on trans-Atlantic flights....

Will U.S. Airlines Need a Bailout, Too?

Posted by: Justin Bachman on July 09

Is there a federal bailout coming for U.S. airlines? For a long time, I’ve thought this idea was beyond far-fetched, with about as much basis in reality as Uncle Sam...

The best sites and iPhone apps for finding restaurants

Posted by: Dean Foust on July 07

One of the saving graces of business travel—which otherwise has all the romance these days of taking the Greyhouse bus cross country—is the chance to try out the local cuisines...