Leaving on a jet plane

[samhexum]

These are my personal pet peeves of air travel...

This post is dedicated to the dearly departed Delta Airlines, whose bankruptcy has touched us all. *tear*

Frequent flyer pet peeves. The list forever continues

After doing a little research, I'm completely confused. I see people selling or trying to buy miles on ebay or craigslist, then I read threatening policy statements on airline web sites, then I see articles on other sites talking about a gray area. Anyone have direct experience of knowledge in this area? Thanks in advance for any advice.

I'm not sure this is the right place, but here goes. I have read comments about various US airlines and accounts of them that indicate many should be condemned to Hell but that is to digress. I plan to start travelling to and in the US more often in part to meet some of the guys I have seen in this forum (I did travel in the US in the past, paid for by my employer). With whom should I fly? Who has good service, and who has frequent flyer programs worth thinking about?

 

My travel is not all about harvesting airline miles, but I'm not about to ignore them!!

The stewardess made the announcement that "as we have a very full flight, we'd like to ask you to step out of the row so people can get by."

 

My response to this is people are standing in the aisle because they are putting luggage and other bags in the overhead storage.

 

Personally I'd like the airline not charge me $50 dollars to check two luggage bags. In addition I'd like a forward seat pocket that is larger than a kitty flap door opening and can actually hold stuff.

 

But it looks like neither I nor the stewardesses are going to get what we want.:mad:Gman

As I posted in the SA forum, I am having a bitch of a time trying to use ff miles for Brazil next summer (winter!). So I tried Europe, going in to either Paris or London. Well, they have changed Delta's miles level to a three-tiered system. And guess what? The lower tier is NEVER available. So our ff miles have been seriously devalued. The taxes on a Europe flight are almost $300 as well.

After all of that, I tried Bangkok and actually got selections for dates at a lower tier. But when I clicked "continue" the dates were suddenly no longer available. All this time I am seeing pop-ups telling me how wonderful the new three-tiered system is to make it easier for me to get the dates I want. Ha! I need a sugar daddy!

For four years in a row I was able to use 90,000 miles to get a business elite ticket to Rio, but for next year, the lowest available on Delta is 100,000 and guess what? That's never available. I checked all of July 2009 and not one single day has anything less that 200,000 miles.

Delta has an ad today in the NY Times advertising NY to GRU at less than $500 each way, but from where I live the RT fare is over $2000. Am I ever going to cross the threshold into Club 117 again? Only with a sore butt as coach is available...for 100,000 miles.

 

World’s most frequent flyer has an insane weekly itinerary

 

Tom Stuker loves going the extra mile. Give or take a few million.

 

The world’s most frequent flier just racked up a record-setting 21 million miles flown. That’s nearly 844 times around the equator.

 

“I’m a flying junkie,” the 65-year-old Nutley, New Jersey (Martha Stewart's home town), resident told The Post. “If I spend more than a week in one place, I’m like, ‘I gotta get back in the air.’ I’m more afraid to be on the ground than in the air.”

 

On July 19, he broke his own record of 20 million — which was set only in January.

 

“That’s the fastest I’ve ever done a million,” said Stuker, who flies exclusively with United.

 

His jet-setting devotion began in 1984, when he traveled to Melbourne, Australia, to do management consulting for an auto dealer.

 

“I fell in love with the country,” said the now semi-retired Stuker. “I’ve been back over 350 times since.”

 

By 1997, Stuker’s business was thriving — and so was his obsession.

 

“All of a sudden, after I hit 10 million [miles], I started getting into the world records and flying more competitively,” he said.

 

The married father-of-three added it’s “the romance” of flying, not the destinations, that’s his passion. For the most part, he’s traveling just to travel — not for work or vacation — and is known to stay in Australia or Japan for a day.

 

“I mean why does Joey Chestnut eat hot dogs?” he asked of the competitive-eating champ. “I just really love everything about flying.”

 

That includes the first-class seats, “mega VIP status” and lavish perks that come with being the top miles gatherer, he admitted.

 

United regularly treats him to a multitude of luxurious bonuses, like tarmac-transfer service in a Mercedes-Benz, complimentary cocktails, the ability to skip lines and membership in its exclusive Polaris Lounge — outfitted with showers, private offices and, often, a slew of celebrities.

 

Stuker is full of starry stories: sitting next to Janet Jackson and Steven Tyler in first class, and getting Bill Murray to leave his brother a voicemail. (Stuker’s wife, who often travels with him, was treated to a call from Kenny G.)

 

“I usually try to engage them in conversations they may have never had before,” said Stuker of celebs. “I’ll ask, ‘What was your biggest disappointment growing up?’”

 

When he’s not chatting up his cabin-mates, Stuker will blow through all the in-flight entertainment “in about a week” — so he spends his time in the air texting, watching sports and planning more trips. He also pops an Ambien to doze through the flight.

 

Once he arrives at a far-flung destination, he’ll take a three-hour power nap to combat jet lag.

 

Many compare his lifestyle to the 2009 film “Up in the Air,” starring George Clooney as a travel addict.

 

“So much of that movie is bulls–t,” Stuker said. “The biggest fallacy is [that] it’s impossible for him to do the flight schedule he does when he lives in Omaha.”

 

Stuker also pays out of pocket for every one of his trips, saving his miles to give to family members, charities and others.

 

And his favorite place to go? “Home,” he said. “I don’t get to go there that often.”

[+ sam.fitzpatrick]

And his favorite place to go? “Home,” he said. “I don’t get to go there that often.”

 

Too bad his voluntary travel schedule doesn't let him get home enough.

[+ azdr0710]

...to each his own...but United? Really?

 

I know, but it's probably because United is the busiest airline at EWR (his probable home airport?)

[mike carey]

I have discussed airline preferences with three escorts. They all had elite status, one with each of the big three. Each was [currently] confident in his choice (and none seemed about to change). A fourth favours Delta mainly because his home base makes it the only realistic choice. If the 737 Max comes back into US service, my desire to avoid flying in those jets will override my airline preference for internal US flights.