Exactly five years ago today, I published the first post of The Cranky Flier. Actually, back then I wasn’t on any sort of schedule so I put five posts live. I guess I 
had a lot more to say. Want to know how much times have changed since then?
- One post was on Delta’s ill-fated effort to build a regional jet hub to Mexico from LA.
- Another post was about getting a snail mail anniversary card from Southwest for my time in the program. (Snail mail? What’s that?)
- A third post was about the Mini car ad promoting a $39 drive cost from LA to San Francisco. I’m guessing it’s not that cheap anymore, but I haven’t done the math.
- A fourth one discussed the hot market for airlines trying to get China rights. (That’s not a problem today.)
Yep, times have changed, but one thing hasn’t. As I said in my very first post, “I have a lot of seemingly useless knowledge about the airline industry that somehow comes in handy sometimes. I’m always getting emails and phone calls from friends asking for advice on buying tickets, getting to the airport, etc. Now I’ve decided to move these conversations to a public forum so others can benefit.” Since then, it’s been a great ride.
I’ve published 1,641 posts since that day, and there have been more than 23,000 comments (not including spam). There have been more than 4.5 million page views from over a million unique visitors in 226 countries from Christmas Island to Niger, French Guiana, you name it. On top of that, there are nearly 7,000 subscribers. (If you want Cranky in your inbox for free, go here.)
Simply put, it’s pretty awesome, and I have you all to thank. Sure, I can write this stuff, but if nobody is commenting, then it’s no fun at all. Where else could you get more than 300 comments on an airline that doesn’t exist and probably never will?
I’m spending the rest of this week like Oprah. No, I’m not giving out cars or anything like that, but I’m giving other stuff away to thank you for coming to the site and for participating. I’ve contacted a handful of airlines to see if they’d be interested in contributing to the celebration, and a few have agreed to contribute some trinkets to the cause. I’ve also dug into my memorabilia stash and decided to give away a few small things. Stay tuned this week for more info on that.
And as I said up top, if you’re in Southern California, mark this Saturday on your calendar. I think it’s time for a Cranky get together, and what better place to do it than at the In ‘n Out at LAX? I’ll be there from 11a to 1p, and my friend Johnny Jet will be joining me. So if you’d like to come by and do some good old-fashioned spotting, swing by and say hello.
Thanks for five excellent years so far. What are some of your favorites posts? Images? What would you like to see more of in the next five years?
