Differences

This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

--- transportation:airlines [2025/09/08 22:06] – [Aircraft] timb
+++ transportation:airlines [2026/06/04 00:55] (current) – [Passenger / Passengers] timb
@@ Line 263: / Line 263: @@
 https://www.flightconnections.com/
+===== Apps / Applications =====
+== These Are the Best Apps to Track Your Flights ==
+Know exactly where your plane is at any given time.
+Emily Long - May 4, 2026
+You don't necessarily need an app to see where an aircraft is at any given time—if you type the airline and flight number into Google, it'll show you the arrival and departure information and where it is en route based on data pulled from Flightview (which also has a standalone app). However, there are a handful of native and third-party flight trackers, both paid and free, that provide live updates and other alerts so you have the most current information when you travel, often faster than the airlines themselves. Here are five of my favorite recommendations.
+https://lifehacker.com/tech/these-are-the-best-apps-to-track-your-flights
@@ Line 559: / Line 574: @@
+===== Loyalty =====
+== $30,000 In Loyalty, Still Stuck In Coach—Airlines Now Sell First Class To Once-A-Year Flyers For $40 ==
+Gary Leff - September 20, 2025
+Frequent flyer loyalty is a promise that if you stick with one airline, they’re going to treat you better on your future flights. You ‘build up’ status, and benefit most elite flyers cherish is the upgrade. In the U.S., if the airline doesn’t sell first class seats they say they’ll hand those out to passengers in the order of their status… starting several days prior to departure.
+For years this was a consistent benefit that flyers could count on, and it kept them loyal – buying less convenient flight schedules, connections instead of non-stops, and paying more for tickets to stick with their preferred airline. But the upgrade benefit has become a mirage.
+Here’s one American Airlines passenger complaining that their status only gets them upgrades “5-10%” of the time, and they’re frustrated because there are of open first class seats for a flight they’re about to board – more empty first class seats than there are elite flyers hoping to upgrade, even – and the airline hasn’t awarded any yet.
+https://viewfromthewing.com/30000-in-loyalty-still-stuck-in-coach-airlines-now-sell-first-class-to-once-a-year-flyers-for-40/
@@ Line 930: / Line 961: @@
 https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/air-india-russia-diversion/
+== Air India Just Discovered a Missing Boeing 737, Forgot They Owned ==
+At the time, taxpayers were responsible for losses, and the outdated processes allowed this lapse to persist.
+Shweta Shukla - November 22, 2025
+GURUGRAM- Air India (AI) identified a missing Boeing 737 at Kolkata Airport (CCU), uncovering an aircraft that had been abandoned for 13 years and overlooked across successive administrative cycles.
+The jet, a 43-year-old Boeing 737-200, remained unnoticed until Kolkata Airport requested its removal.
+The discovery triggered an internal audit that revealed how the aircraft vanished from official records before privatization.
+The case reflects legacy gaps that once shaped the former state-run airline’s asset management practices.
+https://aviationa2z.com/index.php/2025/11/22/air-india-just-discovered-a-missing-boeing-737/
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 https://it.slashdot.org/story/25/07/21/2025255/alaska-airlines-resumes-operations-after-system-glitch-grounds-all-flights
+== Alaska Airlines’ statement on IT outage ==
+Alaska Airlines - Oct 23, 2025
+Friday, Oct. 24 – 6 a.m. Pacific Time
+Alaska Airlines is working to restore operations to normal as quickly and safely as possible after a significant IT outage led to a systemwide ground stop for Alaska and Horizon Air flights. The ground stop was lifted at 11:30 p.m. Pacific on Thursday, Oct. 23; the issue began earlier that day at approximately 3:30 p.m. when a failure occurred at our primary data center.
+Throughout Thursday and into Friday morning, we have canceled more than 360 flights on Alaska and Horizon. Additional flight disruptions are likely as we reposition aircraft and crews throughout our network. Hawaiian Airlines flights are not impacted. The IT outage is not a cybersecurity incident.
+We sincerely apologize to our guests whose travel plans have been disrupted. We’re working to get them to their destinations as quickly as we can. Before heading to the airport, we encourage flyers to check their flight status.  A flexible travel policy is in place to support guests as operations return to normal following the IT outage.
+https://news.alaskaair.com/on-the-record/alaska-statement-on-it-outage/
+== Alaska Airlines grounded by mystery IT meltdown ==
+Failure at primary datacenter leaves planes parked and passengers angry, second incident since July
+Richard Speed - Fri 24 Oct 2025 11:58 UTC
+**Updated** Timing is everything – except when it isn't. US carrier Alaska Airlines has grounded its fleet once again due to a mystery IT issue.
+The problem began at 3:30 pm Pacific Time on October 23 with a "failure" at the company's primary datacenter. Alaska Airlines insisted it wasn't a cybersecurity event or related to "any other events."
+The result? A system-wide ground stop of Alaska and Horizon Air flights, though Hawaiian Airlines (which joined Alaska in 2024) was apparently unaffected.
+"The IT outage has impacted several of our key systems that enable us to run various operations, necessitating the implementation of the ground stop to keep our aircraft in position," Alaska Airlines said. "The safety of our flights was never compromised."
+The ground stop wasn't lifted until 11:30 pm Pacific Time, by which point more than 229 flights had been canceled. The company didn't confirm delay numbers but warned that "additional flight disruptions are likely as we reposition aircraft and crews throughout our network."
+Customers took to social media to express their dissatisfaction with both the airline and its customer service. Some reported being on hold for hours as they attempted to contact the airline to find the fate of their flight, while others found themselves stranded.
+https://www.theregister.com/2025/10/24/alaska_airlines_calls_a_ground/
@@ Line 2359: / Line 2440: @@
 https://viewfromthewing.com/american-airlines-first-class-passenger-shows-up-on-time-gets-kicked-off-flight-when-agent-vanishes-for-donuts/
+== "No Apology, No Acknowledgement": American Airlines Passenger Denied Boarding Because Ticket "Did Not Exist" ==
+Mandi Rainwater - May 16, 2026, 2:26 PM EDT
+A recent American Airlines traveler reported that an organizational error turned into a bizarre overnight ordeal after the airline’s system forced them to miss a flight while standing at the gate. Despite their early arrival and check-in, the passenger was denied boarding. Making matters worse, they didn’t receive any kind of apology for the incident.
+This isn’t the first time American Airlines has been flagged for rude behavior. Reddit posts have also decried the airline for failing to greet passengers as they board or enforce headphone usage when listening to content on the plane. This most recent incident is one of the strangest yet, as a passenger was forced to watch their plane leave despite holding a ticket for the flight and arriving hours early.
+https://www.thetravel.com/no-apology-no-acknowledgement-american-airlines-passenger-denied-boarding-because-ticket-did-not-exist/
+== New American Airlines Policy Says It Can Sell You First Class, Give You Coach — And Keep Most Of Your Money ==
+Gary Leff - June 1, 2026
+If American Airlines downgrades you from first class, they now say they will keep most of your money.
+Upgrades are rare these days, with CEO Robert Isom confirming that they’re trying to upsell coach passengers rather than allow elite members to receive complimentary first class seats. So if you ‘want first’ you have to ‘buy first’.
+Sometimes, though, you buy first and still don’t get to fly up front. American, more than other airliens, seems to fly around with broken first class seats. They also might swap planes for one that has fewer first class seats. Then they need to move passengers from first class down to coach. (American does say they plan to work on the broken seat problem.)
+Three months ago, American Airlines updated its contract of carriage to say that when they downgrade a first class passenger to coach, they’ll only give back 40% of the money (“refunds are issued at 40% of the ticketed fare on the affected segment”).
+This is inconsistent with DOT’s articulation of an airline’s obligation to “refund the difference between the original fare and the downgraded fare.”
+https://viewfromthewing.com/new-american-airlines-policy-says-it-can-sell-you-first-class-give-you-coach-and-keep-most-of-your-money/
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 [[https://tech.slashdot.org/story/22/10/09/2218231/united-airlines-hopes-to-use-electric-planes-for-flights-under-200-miles-by-2030|https://tech.slashdot.org/story/22/10/09/2218231/united-airlines-hopes-to-use-electric-planes-for-flights-under-200-miles-by-2030]]
+== Economy-Class Couch Seats Are Coming to United Airlines Flights ==
+The United Relax Row will be available on some long-haul flights starting in 2027.
+Bruce Gil - March 25, 2026
+At a time when flying seems like it can’t get any worse, there is finally a bit of good news.
+United Airlines announced Tuesday that it’s rolling out a new kind of economy seating that can transform into a couch, giving passengers more room to stretch out or even sleep more comfortably on long-haul flights. The airline says it will be the first U.S.-based carrier to offer this kind of option for economy flyers.
+The new setup is called the United Relax Row and is essentially a row of three seats with adjustable leg rests that fold up 90 degrees to create a flat, couch-like seat.
+https://gizmodo.com/economy-class-couch-seats-are-coming-to-united-airlines-flights-2000737976