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Tag: American Airlines View All Tags

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American Airlines' New 'Black Atlas' Network Targets Minority Travelers

October 12, 2009 at 11:18 AM | by JetSetCD | 0 Comments

Does the world really need another traveler social network? A whimpered "yes?" comes from the direction of American Airlines, who this week will be launching BlackAtlas.com, a part-facebook, part-travel guide serving as "your passport to the black experience." Indeed they are targeting African-American air travelers, who want to read articles titled "5 1/2 Things About Brooklyn" and watch videos about places like "Sonia's Hair Salon" in Madrid.

The Site doesn't officially launch until Thursday the 15th, but from sneak peek screenshots and more, we're thinking it looks like an expensive new toy for an airline which maybe shouldn't be spending that money right now.

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The Airline Holiday Travel Grinch Strikes Again

October 12, 2009 at 9:11 AM | by kjb | 0 Comments

We thought this would happen, and we’re not too thrilled about it: The holiday surcharge that was introduced last month on some airlines has slowly crept into new dates as well. At first it was just Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day; however, now it seems like every major holiday except for Flag Day is associated with a $10 each way fee.

According to fare tracking website FareCompare, some airlines have now added additional dates in which these holiday fees apply. November 30; December 19, 26, and 27; March 14, 20, 21, and 28; April 11; and May 28 all now may increase your airfare cost by about $20 round trip when the surcharges are tacked on.

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How To Make Sure Your Pet Gets On Your Flight

September 30, 2009 at 10:28 AM | by MsRebecca | 0 Comments

Last week, American Airlines and Sherpa Pet Group gave away two trips (one to Miami and the other to San Francisco) to pet owners who schlepped out to a PETCO store in New York with their suitcases packed, and ready to go. The stunt was timed to promote Sherpa’s new Guaranteed On Board™ pet-travel program. Which sounds fancy in name, but is really just a way to make sure crazy pet parents do their homework before bringing an overweight Fluffy to the airport in a non-compliant purse. Say, one from Juicy Couture.

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This Year's Holiday Season To Be Hampered By Airline Grinch Fees

September 28, 2009 at 8:38 AM | by kjb | 0 Comments

You may have already noticed that the Christmas decorations have arrived at your local discount store, but like it or not, the major airlines also have a little decorating already planned for the holiday season. Last week, several domestic airlines decided to tack on an additional surcharge for travel during the peak travel season around Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. American Airlines started this fee earlier in the week, and by the time we were ready for the weekend, United, Delta, and US Airways had joined the party.

According to the fare tracking website FareCompare, this new miscellaneous $10 fee applies for November 29, January 2, and January 3. So far it appears that Santa and his reindeer are safe, as nothing has been announced for travel immediately around Christmas. However, we’ll let you know if you’ll need to leave an extra cookie for him just in case.

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Canada's Most Famous Squirrel Turns To Twitter To Promote Travel

September 25, 2009 at 8:56 AM | by Omri | 0 Comments

Remember this photo from a month ago, with Melissa Brandts and her husband, joined by the world's most recent celebrity squirrel? It went from Lake Minnewanka, in Canada's Banff National Park, to the National Geographic "Photo Of The Day" site. Then it went pretty much everywhere.

American Airlines is betting you remember this mini-meme quite well, which is why they've pulled their "French guy training squirrels on scooters" advertisement out of the vault. In case you missed the not-entirely-unobnoxious ad when it originally aired in the spring, here it is again:

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Brussels Sprouts Air Routes To Go Up Against Eurostar

September 23, 2009 at 9:29 AM | by JetSetCD | 0 Comments

If you're looking to make a tour of European capitals, or just have business that takes you from London to Brussels, what is the typical route you'd take between the two capitals? Thanks to the English Channel Tunnel, the answer is easy: the Eurostar from London's St. Pancras Station straight to Brussels Midi Station. There are also ferries that get the job done, but rest assured that the Eurostar is the fastest and most convenient way.

If this is the case, then why are American Airlines and United joining a bevy of other low-cost carriers and European airlines in flying between London and Brussels? The new routes, which at 218 miles are slightly shorter than a hop between Chicago and Toledo, are obviously for the convenience of American and United passengers making a switch in London.

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The Cocaine Smugglers Of American Airlines Spotlight Puerto Rico's Drug Problems

September 22, 2009 at 9:30 AM | by JetSetCD | 0 Comments

They say it never snows in Puerto Rico, but there was a whole bunch of white powder hitting the fan when some crew were arrested over the weekend after their cocaine smuggling operation of over a decade was found out.

According to the AP, the workers, a "mix of baggage handlers and other members of the ground crew, were part of a ring suspected of sending at least 9,000 kilograms (19,840 pounds) of cocaine over the past decade to destinations that include Miami and Orlando, Florida, and New Jersey. Of course this just throws the spotlight onto Puerto Rico as a major stepping stone to the US for drug traffickers, what with the lack of customs since Puerto Rico is already American soil.

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Southwest Hopes To Fill Seats By Offering Double Rewards Credits

September 21, 2009 at 10:33 AM | by kjb | 0 Comments

We all know that airline travel has been down due to the economic situation, and when you combine that with the fall travel season things become very slow. That’s why a few airlines have searched through their marketing box and have pulled out the double frequent flyer miles promotion. American Airlines and United have announced that they’ll be providing double elite-qualifying miles through the middle of December. Those are the miles that get you airline status, and fancy upgrades, but won’t help you add to your frequent flier piggy bank for that dream vacation.

Southwest Airlines usually isn’t a follower of such trends as they kind of pride themselves on going their own way, but they too are now offering a fall travel rewards promotion. It's not a true double Rapid Rewards bonus, because their business select passengers won’t get the full bonus. However, we never spring for business anyway, so we’ll be happy enjoying one bonus credit for one-way trips and two bonus credits for round-trip flights.

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Scott Weiland's Seizure Causes Flight To Make Emergency Landing

September 21, 2009 at 8:38 AM | by JetSetCD | 0 Comments

Of all the places to have a seizure, onboard an airplane in-flight is definitely not the best choice. But then, you can't choose where or when you have seizures, as former Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland discovered on Friday, when his seizure forced the emergency landing of his American Airlines flight.

The plane was en route from Los Angeles to Miami and Weiland was scheduled to debut his clothing line "Weiland for English Laundry" at Mansion nightclub in Miami on Saturday. After the emergency landing at Dallas-Fort Worth, Weiland quickly recovered and resumed his trip in time for the party. He does have a history of seizures, so this incident wasn't caused by anything flight-related.

Related Stories:
· Scott Weiland Has Seizure On An Airplane [TMZ]
· STP Front Man Scott Weiland's Seizure Caused Plane To Be Diverted [CelebrityCafe]
· Celeb Travel Coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: bribriTO; PaperMag]

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American Airlines Crew Busted After Decade Of Smuggling Cocaine

September 16, 2009 at 8:46 AM | by JetSetCD | 0 Comments

You won't see it offered with in-flight meal service, but that doesn't mean your flight crew hasn't got a stash of it in the back; it's cocaine, and $20 million dollars worth of the nose candy has apparently been ferried into and out of Puerto Rico by American Airlines staff since 1999. The drug traffickers were recently arrested in a sting, with most cuffed in Puerto Rico where they would load up the suitcases stuffed with illicit substances.

While crossing international borders may be as easy as going to the drug store for flight crews, this one seems to have made it a drug store business. Along with the arrests, the police seized some $18 million dollars worth of property owned by the men, so they weren't exactly playing it cool. Still, it did take the DEA some ten years to catch them; we would have thought they'd have quit by now to live in the lap of ill-gotten luxury, but greed for more had properly caused them to hold onto their menial American Airlines jobs so long.

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American Airlines Seriously Considering Turning Japanese

September 15, 2009 at 5:48 PM | by Omri | 0 Comments

The recession has been particularly cruel to Japan Airlines. Since expensive intercontinental travel is exactly the kind of thing thing that corporations are trying to replace with teleconferencing, JAL is particularly vulnerable to dips in demand. The result has been a $1 billion loss in the last quarter.

The financial hardship has opened JAP up for partial acquisition, and reports have it that both American Airlines and Delta are interested in getting their piece. The stakes are pretty high and include JAL's presence at Tokyo's Haneda Airport, one of the few alternatives to Tokyo's "thank you for landing, please enjoy your upcoming four hours in traffic" Narita International:

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Look, It's Brad Pitt on a Plane!

September 8, 2009 at 9:34 AM | by juliana | 1 Comment

It no longer seems as if first class is safe for mega-celebrities like Brad Pitt. A stalker passenger on a United flight from LAX to JFK last month found himself sitting across the aisle from Brad and decided to film the Super World Traveler and send it off to Star Magazine. Star promptly posted the video on their website. Ahh, the perils of an iPhone with video capabilities.

Brad doesn't seem to be doing anything too unusual--just eating, drinking, trying to get some sleep, hitting up the lav, reading a magazine, scratching his nose--so this video is purely voyeuristic. That is, if you can get over the shock of finding out that Brad Pitt flies United.

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