Monday, December 08, 2008
Airlines Go Merger Crazy!
Don't look now, but soon there may be just one or two airlines to choose from. Or at least so it seems. The tough economy has left a lot of airlines easy pickings for the stronger in a relatively weak field to consolidate and grow.
Delta and Northwest combined just a couple months ago, Lufthansa recently completed its acquisition of Austrian Airlines, joining Swiss to its stable of fellow airlines. And now, its sight is set on Alitalia... as the italian bankruptcy mess sorts itself out. Alitalia, before any other airline gets its hands on it, is looking to merge with its rival Italian carrier "AirOne." Air France/KLM has its sight set on Alitalia too, so Lufthansa is taking no chances, setting up "Lufthansa Italia," a six plane airline based in Milan.
In the meantime, British Airways is building its own empire, looking to merge with both Spain's Iberia Airways and Australia's Qantas. Not to mention each of these European players has a stake in US Airlines.
AirFrance/KLM are extremely invested in Delta/Northwest. Lufthansa owns 19% of JetBlue, and has a close alliance with United - which is also cozying up to Continental. British Airways and American are extremely close as well.
So what does this mess mean for you? Maybe not a lot in the short term, but down the road look at less competition and higher fares.
Delta and Northwest combined just a couple months ago, Lufthansa recently completed its acquisition of Austrian Airlines, joining Swiss to its stable of fellow airlines. And now, its sight is set on Alitalia... as the italian bankruptcy mess sorts itself out. Alitalia, before any other airline gets its hands on it, is looking to merge with its rival Italian carrier "AirOne." Air France/KLM has its sight set on Alitalia too, so Lufthansa is taking no chances, setting up "Lufthansa Italia," a six plane airline based in Milan.
In the meantime, British Airways is building its own empire, looking to merge with both Spain's Iberia Airways and Australia's Qantas. Not to mention each of these European players has a stake in US Airlines.
AirFrance/KLM are extremely invested in Delta/Northwest. Lufthansa owns 19% of JetBlue, and has a close alliance with United - which is also cozying up to Continental. British Airways and American are extremely close as well.
So what does this mess mean for you? Maybe not a lot in the short term, but down the road look at less competition and higher fares.
Labels: airlines, alitalia, british airways, lufthansa, travel
Friday, November 21, 2008
What Kind of Airline Am I Flying?
When air travel is discussed in the American media, it seems that certain buzzwords are thrown out quite a bit. "Legacy Airlines," "Low Cost Carriers," and "Ultra Low Cost Carriers" get thrown around quite a bit. But explanations over what those terms mean seem to come few and far between. So, in a quest to end some confusion, here's a list of the three main types of airlines flying the skies and examples of each.
1. Legacy Airlines
Legacy Airlines is a buzzword that has been thrown out a lot recently. These tend to reflect airlines with long histories that have a large route and feeder structures. They also have a tendency to have a large international network and will have at least two classes of service on most flights. These are the big, mainstream airlines that most people have heard of for years. They used to differentiate themselves by greater service on board flights than other airlines, although economic challenges have ended that practice by and large. Part of the challenge that legacy airlines face has to do with the baggage that comes with a long history. Long term loyalty to a business does have some higher costs, as well as retirement and healthcare expenses that can handicap the bottom line as well.
In the US, the main legacy airlines consist of American, Delta, Northwest, United and Continental. US Airways could be a legacy airline, but they are changing their business model (although not necessarily their reach) to a hybrid between a low cost carrier and a legacy airline.
2. Low Cost Carriers
Low cost carriers are airlines that offer some limited services, but have limited routes as well. They are able to keep costs lower and as such are able to offer somewhat lower fares than the average airline. Many of these airlines will cap out their highest fares as well. In many cases, Low Cost Carriers actually offer more or better service than their legacy counterparts. Having a limited route network and having fewer stations to service and newer planes make this possible. Many of them offer in seat entertainment across the fleet. Some offer no entertainment but allow you to check baggage for free, something that is now history among the legacy carriers. Low Cost Carriers generally limit themselves to domestic flights or some limited international flights (generally Canada or the Caribbean and Mexico.)
The largest or best known Low Cost Carriers in the US consist of Southwest, JetBlue, Alaska, Virgin America and Frontier. There are a couple international carriers that would qualify for this status as well, Icelandair, which services a variety of Northern and Western Europe airports through its Reykjavik hub and Aer Lingus which does the same through Dublin.
3. Ultra Low Cost Carriers
The Ultra Low Cost model is a difficult one to see work. The flights themselves generally don't make money, the money is made in ancillary revenue. On board sales, extra fees, charging for privileges for example. There are very few airlines that have made this model work, and the history books are littered with ULCC failures, most notably Skybus which crashed and burned a mere 10 months after launch earlier this year. Your ticket gets you a seat and nothing else. Need to check a bag? That's extra. Want a specific seat? That might cost extra too. Food or a drink? Get ready to pay.
The only Ultra Low Cost Carrier that has had any degree of success within the US is Spirit airlines which offers fares for as low as $2 plus tax. Add in the extra fees though that you might need and it might not be any cheaper than anyone else. In Europe, Ryanair is the king of the Ultra Low Cost Carriers.
Ryanair has managed to maintain consistent profitability even in times of exceedingly high fuel costs. Fees play a big part of that - for example, a ticket from Dublin to London cost 1 Euro this October. For the American making that reservation, there was a 5 Euro fee to check in because online check-in was only available to EU citizens. Checking bags cost another 20 Euros, and then there was a separate 5 Euro fee to talk to the baggage handler who checks in your bag. All said and done, the flight ran a total cost of about 40 Euros ($55). Still somewhat cheaper than the average flight that day, but not nearly the steal that the 1 Euro fare originally indicated.
1. Legacy Airlines
Legacy Airlines is a buzzword that has been thrown out a lot recently. These tend to reflect airlines with long histories that have a large route and feeder structures. They also have a tendency to have a large international network and will have at least two classes of service on most flights. These are the big, mainstream airlines that most people have heard of for years. They used to differentiate themselves by greater service on board flights than other airlines, although economic challenges have ended that practice by and large. Part of the challenge that legacy airlines face has to do with the baggage that comes with a long history. Long term loyalty to a business does have some higher costs, as well as retirement and healthcare expenses that can handicap the bottom line as well.
In the US, the main legacy airlines consist of American, Delta, Northwest, United and Continental. US Airways could be a legacy airline, but they are changing their business model (although not necessarily their reach) to a hybrid between a low cost carrier and a legacy airline.
2. Low Cost Carriers
Low cost carriers are airlines that offer some limited services, but have limited routes as well. They are able to keep costs lower and as such are able to offer somewhat lower fares than the average airline. Many of these airlines will cap out their highest fares as well. In many cases, Low Cost Carriers actually offer more or better service than their legacy counterparts. Having a limited route network and having fewer stations to service and newer planes make this possible. Many of them offer in seat entertainment across the fleet. Some offer no entertainment but allow you to check baggage for free, something that is now history among the legacy carriers. Low Cost Carriers generally limit themselves to domestic flights or some limited international flights (generally Canada or the Caribbean and Mexico.)
The largest or best known Low Cost Carriers in the US consist of Southwest, JetBlue, Alaska, Virgin America and Frontier. There are a couple international carriers that would qualify for this status as well, Icelandair, which services a variety of Northern and Western Europe airports through its Reykjavik hub and Aer Lingus which does the same through Dublin.
3. Ultra Low Cost Carriers
The Ultra Low Cost model is a difficult one to see work. The flights themselves generally don't make money, the money is made in ancillary revenue. On board sales, extra fees, charging for privileges for example. There are very few airlines that have made this model work, and the history books are littered with ULCC failures, most notably Skybus which crashed and burned a mere 10 months after launch earlier this year. Your ticket gets you a seat and nothing else. Need to check a bag? That's extra. Want a specific seat? That might cost extra too. Food or a drink? Get ready to pay.
The only Ultra Low Cost Carrier that has had any degree of success within the US is Spirit airlines which offers fares for as low as $2 plus tax. Add in the extra fees though that you might need and it might not be any cheaper than anyone else. In Europe, Ryanair is the king of the Ultra Low Cost Carriers.
Ryanair has managed to maintain consistent profitability even in times of exceedingly high fuel costs. Fees play a big part of that - for example, a ticket from Dublin to London cost 1 Euro this October. For the American making that reservation, there was a 5 Euro fee to check in because online check-in was only available to EU citizens. Checking bags cost another 20 Euros, and then there was a separate 5 Euro fee to talk to the baggage handler who checks in your bag. All said and done, the flight ran a total cost of about 40 Euros ($55). Still somewhat cheaper than the average flight that day, but not nearly the steal that the 1 Euro fare originally indicated.
Labels: airlines, legacy airlines, low cost carriers, ryanair, tips, travel, ultra low cost carriers
Thursday, November 06, 2008
Delta finally caves, charges for first checked bag.
For months, Delta stood alone. The last of the legacy carriers to allow passengers to check a bag has finally caved to peer pressure, however, and effective December 5, this policy is no more. Starting next month, any Delta passenger checking a bag will be charged $15 for that first bag checked on a domestic flight. (First Class and Elite frequent fliers are exempt.) However, the new baggage policy and other fee announcements aren't bad news for everyone.
In fact, if you normally check two bags? It's now cheaper to do so on Delta. Instead of charging a fee for each bag, Delta charged a relatively high $50 fee for the second bag checked, inconveniencing roughly 20-25% of passengers who check bags instead of everyone. By spreading the pain around, the second checked bag fee is now going to be $25 instead of $50. Net savings if you pack heavy? Ten bucks.
This does now leave just JetBlue, Southwest and AirTran as the only major domestic airlines to allow free checked bags aboard. Although AirTran may soon change their policy as well.
This doesn't seem to be chiefly motivated by fuel costs, but instead more about normalizing fees across Delta and its soon to be absorbed partner, Northwest which became a part of Delta last month. And although the headline is bad for the consumer, there are other fees which were actually reduced as well. No more $3 charge for curbside check-in, and reduced fees to use a Delta reservation agent instead of their website, dropping from $25 to $20. Also fuel surcharges on frequent flier award tickets are to get the ax as well.
In the end, its mixed news, and mostly negative news at that for the casual flier. But for the frequent flier, in the end it may actually end up a net positive, believe it or not.
In fact, if you normally check two bags? It's now cheaper to do so on Delta. Instead of charging a fee for each bag, Delta charged a relatively high $50 fee for the second bag checked, inconveniencing roughly 20-25% of passengers who check bags instead of everyone. By spreading the pain around, the second checked bag fee is now going to be $25 instead of $50. Net savings if you pack heavy? Ten bucks.
This does now leave just JetBlue, Southwest and AirTran as the only major domestic airlines to allow free checked bags aboard. Although AirTran may soon change their policy as well.
This doesn't seem to be chiefly motivated by fuel costs, but instead more about normalizing fees across Delta and its soon to be absorbed partner, Northwest which became a part of Delta last month. And although the headline is bad for the consumer, there are other fees which were actually reduced as well. No more $3 charge for curbside check-in, and reduced fees to use a Delta reservation agent instead of their website, dropping from $25 to $20. Also fuel surcharges on frequent flier award tickets are to get the ax as well.
In the end, its mixed news, and mostly negative news at that for the casual flier. But for the frequent flier, in the end it may actually end up a net positive, believe it or not.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Ryanair Threatens Transatlantic Service Again
The economic downturn is hitting everyone hard, and airlines already challenged by a year plus of high fuel costs are no exception. So expansion isn't something we are normally hearing about in the airline industry.
But Ryanair is again talking major expansion... across the Atlantic, despite tough financial times. If it happens? Who knows. The plans are vague, but they're there. Two to three years from now, Ryanair flies to L.A., New York, Boston, Florida and San Francisco. Starting seat rates? About $15 each way. Sounds great! Except for the actual flying experience, and that it's not terribly likely to happen.
Ryanair's profit fell 47% in its most recent report, and it expects a loss over the next six months. In fact, CEO Michael O'Leary forecasts that in Europe, the only airlines left standing when the economy finally recovers will be Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways and Ryanair. In fact, in order to make ends meet, Ryanair is forcing a week's vacation, unpaid, on the whole staff.
I'd consider this the airline equivalent of vaporware in the computer world. It's promised, but never seen.
But Ryanair is again talking major expansion... across the Atlantic, despite tough financial times. If it happens? Who knows. The plans are vague, but they're there. Two to three years from now, Ryanair flies to L.A., New York, Boston, Florida and San Francisco. Starting seat rates? About $15 each way. Sounds great! Except for the actual flying experience, and that it's not terribly likely to happen.
Ryanair's profit fell 47% in its most recent report, and it expects a loss over the next six months. In fact, CEO Michael O'Leary forecasts that in Europe, the only airlines left standing when the economy finally recovers will be Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways and Ryanair. In fact, in order to make ends meet, Ryanair is forcing a week's vacation, unpaid, on the whole staff.
I'd consider this the airline equivalent of vaporware in the computer world. It's promised, but never seen.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
United - Making Travel More Difficult.
Yesterday, United dropped a bomb and brought back fare restrictions that most airlines got rid of decades ago for domestic travel, the minimum stay. It used to be, and for international travel still is, that the cheapest round trip ticket would require a minimum stay of a day or two or sometimes a whole weekend. However, in the fight for domestic business travel, most airlines removed these restrictions a long time ago.
United appears to be among the first to bring them back, in the hope of domestic business travel becoming more profitable for the airline. Will it work? Good question. Given the climate of record high fuel prices, it's an understandable risk as every airline seems to be racing to be the first to bring back fee x or fee y. The problem is that there are other airlines, like JetBlue and Southwest which don't seem too eager to reintroduce all the fees. If this kind of rule isn't matched by more airlines that cater to business travelers, I think we'll either see United drop the rule before it gets implemented or many businesses shift to other airlines in a relatively short time.
It should be noticed that United raised pricing, again on its lowest price tickets - an increase of between 1 and 90 dollars each way as well.
United appears to be among the first to bring them back, in the hope of domestic business travel becoming more profitable for the airline. Will it work? Good question. Given the climate of record high fuel prices, it's an understandable risk as every airline seems to be racing to be the first to bring back fee x or fee y. The problem is that there are other airlines, like JetBlue and Southwest which don't seem too eager to reintroduce all the fees. If this kind of rule isn't matched by more airlines that cater to business travelers, I think we'll either see United drop the rule before it gets implemented or many businesses shift to other airlines in a relatively short time.
It should be noticed that United raised pricing, again on its lowest price tickets - an increase of between 1 and 90 dollars each way as well.
Monday, March 03, 2008
Pan Am R.I.P.... again.
No, this post does not take place in 1999. Over the weekend, Pan Am airlines shut down, again. The airline that shut its two routes down at the end of February was a far cry from the high flying airline that became ubiquitous in airports around the world. Instead of having an international bent, Pan Am "Clipper Connection" was a service of Boston-Maine Airways and flew to Trenton, NJ, Portsmouth, NH and Bedford, MA. At one point, it also flew to other exotic locations like Gary, IN and Sanford, FL.
Even though Pan Am Mark II was nothing like its legendary predecessor, it is sad to see the name disappear. It's also sad to see another smaller airport lose its last regularly scheduled air service, as Trenton Mercer Airport (TTN) now sits without an airline, after Delta Connection (Big Sky) stopped serving the airport last year.
With the price of fuel getting higher and higher, we will likely see the end of other airlines this year. At least one of the big American airlines - United, Delta, Continental and Northwest - will dissolve into another, and other low cost carriers like JetBlue, Frontier and Skybus are facing some serious challenges on the financial front. As air travel starts to get more expensive, and the airlines networks start to contract somewhat, is this the end of the golden age of cheap travel? I hope not. I still have lots of places I want to jet off to. 2008 could be a watershed year for the industry, though, and the next few months will be ones to watch both on and off the tarmac.
Even though Pan Am Mark II was nothing like its legendary predecessor, it is sad to see the name disappear. It's also sad to see another smaller airport lose its last regularly scheduled air service, as Trenton Mercer Airport (TTN) now sits without an airline, after Delta Connection (Big Sky) stopped serving the airport last year.
With the price of fuel getting higher and higher, we will likely see the end of other airlines this year. At least one of the big American airlines - United, Delta, Continental and Northwest - will dissolve into another, and other low cost carriers like JetBlue, Frontier and Skybus are facing some serious challenges on the financial front. As air travel starts to get more expensive, and the airlines networks start to contract somewhat, is this the end of the golden age of cheap travel? I hope not. I still have lots of places I want to jet off to. 2008 could be a watershed year for the industry, though, and the next few months will be ones to watch both on and off the tarmac.
Monday, February 04, 2008
United Enhances Baggage Service with New Fee
United Airlines announced today its newest customer service initiative. Charging passengers who bring a second bag. It's long been accepted practice for most airlines to accept two bags to place down below in the checked luggage area. United, faced with a competitive environment and higher fuel costs are looking to make that money up somewhere.
First they tried to impose a $25 fuel surcharge per flight segment. With nobody matching, that fee was quietly withdrawn a few days later. Today, they've announced that same fee returning, but only for customers who purchase a discounted fare and check a second bag. This will, by United's own account, affect one quarter of passengers on domestic flights. It's generally assumed that International flights will be unaffected. Also frequent fliers with status will be exempt as well.
They aren't the only carrier with recent changes in baggage. Southwest made their policy for extra baggage more in line with most other US carriers, now only accepting two bags without an extra fee. United's step further gets them just one level above Skybus and Spirit who charge for all baggage.
It starts to make me wonder if there's a good reason for flying the "majors" anymore. Outside of having a larger network, they generally have higher prices, and the same service.
First they tried to impose a $25 fuel surcharge per flight segment. With nobody matching, that fee was quietly withdrawn a few days later. Today, they've announced that same fee returning, but only for customers who purchase a discounted fare and check a second bag. This will, by United's own account, affect one quarter of passengers on domestic flights. It's generally assumed that International flights will be unaffected. Also frequent fliers with status will be exempt as well.
They aren't the only carrier with recent changes in baggage. Southwest made their policy for extra baggage more in line with most other US carriers, now only accepting two bags without an extra fee. United's step further gets them just one level above Skybus and Spirit who charge for all baggage.
It starts to make me wonder if there's a good reason for flying the "majors" anymore. Outside of having a larger network, they generally have higher prices, and the same service.
Friday, February 01, 2008
Four Small Airports
Today, Cranky Flier was talking about British Airways' recent announcement that they'll be flying narrow body jets across the Atlantic, from the New York area to downtown London, out of the not often used London City airport. The more I read about that, the more I thought about the smaller airports that I've used over the last few years.
Smaller airports generally mean shorter wait times to check in, go through security and a pleasant environment. Unfortunately, it also means there is a lot less to do in the case of a long wait time. I've gone through my share of them. Some still offer regular jet service, some don't.
1. Lubeck, Germany - currently serviced by Ryanair
Lubeck is a northern German focus city for the low cost Irish airline, Ryanair, offering service to five different destinations. The old small terminal building has a restaurant and bar, and little else. But at least there's beer! The actual behind security area resembles a steel pole barn. Because that is basically what it is with four "gate areas" which are really just barn doors with desks in front of them. This was my first experience with the Ryanair cattle call, and the cement floor and undecorated barn experience of the airport definitely helped make the livestock feeling come alive.
2. Reims, France - currently not serviced by any airline
Reims is a tiny tiny building with virtually no services. Just a glorified waiting room. The odd thing about this airport is the baggage carousel. It's an indoor outdoor carousel. So when your bag is taken off the plane, it sits on the conveyor belt outside, their baggage system is literally, pull the bag on the plane and set it on the carousel.... If you miss your bag as it rotates through, it ends up back outside for another round with the elements. If it takes you a bit to get to the front of the baggage line, you can end up with a very wet bag, as what happened to me flying to France on Ryanair back in 2003.
3. South Bend, IN - currently served by Delta, Northwest, United, CapeAir and Allegiant
This small regional airport, about 90 miles from Chicago, is a pleasant place and has quite a bit of traffic going through it. Most of it are on small regional jets and turboprops. Cape Air flies 10 seat planes out of South Bend down to Indianapolis, for example. The operations definitely don't feel like a larger airport. In my recent experience, the deicing of the plane was done on what looked like the back of someone's modified pick up truck with a cherry picker attached. There are a couple places for coffee and a bar. But no services whatsoever on the other side of security, just vending machines and two cramped gate areas that serve as entire concourses.
4. Flint, MI - served by AirTran, Delta, Northwest, American, Continental, Midwest
This small airport 35 miles north of Detroit feels like a larger airport. In fact, it's grown quite a bit and is now the third largest airport in the state, just behind Grand Rapids and ahead of Lansing - whose airport does feel larger, even though it isn't.
The terminal was rebuilt within the last few years and it is, from the outside, meant to be reminiscent of a wing. From the inside, its reminiscent of Fisher Price. I was sitting in the snack bar/restaurant area of the Airport and looking around, I noticed its got all the "amenities" of a big time airport and laid out like a playset would be. The snackbar, the giftshop and shoe shine stand, just above the gates... And no sharp corners to hurt the kids! Aside from the playful nature of the terminal, it is very easy to get from point A to B. 10 minutes from check in to gate... and thats with Security check.
Labels: airlines, airports, flint, france, germany, london, lubeck, reims, south bend
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Skybus comes to Chicago, sort of.
Last month the highly anticipated news came down from Columbus. The new ultra low cost carrier, Skybus, will be expanding its roster of destinations to include Chicago. Well, sort of. It will be flying to Gary-Chicago Airport, about 15 miles east of the city in Gary, Indiana.
To me this seems like such a smart move. Chicago is currently served by two overcrowded and extremely busy airports, Midway and O'Hare. Gary has no other airlines to compete for gate space with currently, and the airport is literally a couple hundred feet from Interstate 90. Attempts have been made to make Gary a regional airport alternative to the big Chicago mess, but with little success - as Casino Air, Hooters Air and most recently SkyValue have tried and failed to breathe life into the little airport that can't quite could.
This opportunity could be different however. With $10 seats, and a better funded operation behind it, Skybus could make Gary a successful destination for them. Plus, it's suddenly convenient for the million or so people that are considered Chicago area people who live minutes from Gary but an hour plus from the other airports.
The only problem? Skybus is only scheduling one destination for Gary and that's Greensboro, NC. Personally, I'd love to see a Gary to New Jersey route, but that's most likely because I want the chance to fly without the hassle of Midway or O'Hare.
To me this seems like such a smart move. Chicago is currently served by two overcrowded and extremely busy airports, Midway and O'Hare. Gary has no other airlines to compete for gate space with currently, and the airport is literally a couple hundred feet from Interstate 90. Attempts have been made to make Gary a regional airport alternative to the big Chicago mess, but with little success - as Casino Air, Hooters Air and most recently SkyValue have tried and failed to breathe life into the little airport that can't quite could.This opportunity could be different however. With $10 seats, and a better funded operation behind it, Skybus could make Gary a successful destination for them. Plus, it's suddenly convenient for the million or so people that are considered Chicago area people who live minutes from Gary but an hour plus from the other airports.
The only problem? Skybus is only scheduling one destination for Gary and that's Greensboro, NC. Personally, I'd love to see a Gary to New Jersey route, but that's most likely because I want the chance to fly without the hassle of Midway or O'Hare.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Keeping you Happy - Delta v. JetBlue
Let's face it, flying to your destination is often the least fun part of the trip. Sometime endless waits in the terminal, very little to eat on board the plane... creature comforts can be few and far between. Although this kind of thing might be expected in budget adventure travel, I've found few places where the waiting, boredom and lack of amenities to be more annoying than flying somewhere. So far this year, I've flown 13 segments in the air, 6 with Delta, 6 with JetBlue and one with Southwest. Having the most experience with Delta and JetBlue, let's take a look at the Creature Comforts offered, and which has the better product.
In Terminal - Edge: Delta
The best way to compare terminal amenities is to do this at their Hubs. JetBlue has Terminal 5/6 at JFK, which is under renovation and is too crowded and although the food is alright and there is good selection, its often hard to find a place to sit. Having free Wi-Fi is a plus though, and its easy to access up to date information on your flight through your cell phone as their mobile friendly website is easy to access.
On the other hand, Delta has lots of different food options in their hubs in Atlanta and New York. JFK's Terminal 2/3 options are actually head and shoulders above JetBlue's. A Bobby Flay restaurant? Balducci's Deli? That's pretty amazing. Also, the sheer number of eateries available to you in Atlanta without leaving your terminal is a big plus. But what takes the cake for Delta is the Crown Room. Granted, the Crown Room costs money to wait in - about $25. But you get a comfortable place to sit, a couple TVs to watch, and the most important part - an open bar. Nothing makes four hours at JFK pass faster than a glass of wine or five. The average glass of wine in a JFK bar costs $13+tip. Two drinks at the Crown Room and you're already ahead of the game.
Legroom - Edge: JetBlue
Delta coach - Domestic 31-32", International 31-32" pitch. (Pitch refers to leg room between seats on a flight.)
JetBlue - 32-33" pitch on their smaller jets, 34-36" pitch on their A320's. A way roomier ride all the way around.
In Flight Entertainment - Edge: JetBlue
Jet Blue offers free TV on every flight. On some international routes, the Live TV does not work so the premium movies are offered for free instead. Jet Blue offers 36 channels. In many of their planes, 100 channels of XM radio is also available - although that is not yet fleet wide standard. Headphones for the system were free, the airline does now charge, however.
Delta has a seat back IFE on some 757 and 737 planes. It offers 16 channels of Live TV for domestic flights, some premium HBO content and also games to play. The games are a neat way to kill time, but my experience was that some of the monitors just weren't working at all, and that not all channels on the Live TV were operational, limiting me to about 12 options. Delta's seat back IFE also offers MP3 listening and the selection is quite diverse. If this was available on a much wider range of planes that Delta uses, this would actually be a better system. The flight tracking channel is also superior to JetBlue's as well. Unfortunately, on other longer haul products, movies are still shown on in flight monitors, that barely work. Audio jacks are often inoperational as well. And on many flights, the only in-flight entertainment is the kid behind you kicking your seat.
In Flight Service - Toss Up
Jet Blue offers unlimited snacks, but never a meal. Delta offers meals internationally still, but otherwise offers snack packs. The signature JetBlue snack is Terra Blue potato chips. These are kind of nasty. The signature Delta snack is the Biscoff cookie, which I have a love affair with. Both airlines have had excellent service from the flight crew, so I have no real fault here.
Winner: JetBlue (but just barely)
If I'm flying domestic, and I'm flying a long distance, I'm sticking with JetBlue, even it's a little more. The better TV product, the more space to put my legs in wins out over a better terminal experience. However, Delta wins on network. There are very few places that Delta can't get me to, while JetBlue has very little service to the midwest from the northeast, the route I'm most likely to fly.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Blogs I'm Loving.
Once a week or so, I want to share the blogs that I loved reading these past few days. Two really struck me this week.
First, with Delta and Northwest exiting bankruptcy, we all know that it's a good thing for the airline itself. But is it good for the average Joe Economyclass? Upgrade: Travel Better isn't so sure.
Second, I love a good exotic travel story. And these days, it doesn't get more far flung than Pyongyang. In fact, it doesn't get more exotic than flying there on the state run airline of North Korea. Knife Tricks reviews his flight on Air Koryo.
Once a week or so, I want to share the blogs that I loved reading these past few days. Two really struck me this week.
First, with Delta and Northwest exiting bankruptcy, we all know that it's a good thing for the airline itself. But is it good for the average Joe Economyclass? Upgrade: Travel Better isn't so sure.
Second, I love a good exotic travel story. And these days, it doesn't get more far flung than Pyongyang. In fact, it doesn't get more exotic than flying there on the state run airline of North Korea. Knife Tricks reviews his flight on Air Koryo.
