It’s time for another Ask Cranky. Today, we’re looking at an operations question from a reader.
…How many extra planes do airlines keep on hand to fill in for maintenance issues that require longer than a day to fix? Or maybe a maintenance issue that is longer than a day
There are a lot of different milestones that can be used to determine when a merger is truly complete. The one I always use is when you can no longer book a flight on both airlines. 
For United and Continental, that day comes this Saturday.
In the wee hours of …
Five things not to do on airplanes – CNN Out of the Office
This was fun to pick through five things people shouldn’t do on airplanes. I’m sure you guys have plenty to add to the list.
United Makes New First and Business Class Confusing—We Make It Clear – Conde …
This became a big discussion on Twitter, so I thought I’d bring it here. In a couple months, my wife and I are taking the little guy on his maiden voyage, and we had the chance to upgrade using miles on a cross country trip. Would you do it with …
Have you been through Miami lately? Unless you’re an American Airlines-loyalist, the answer is probably a firm “no.” While American’s presence continues to strengthen, other airlines are running away in droves. The latest is Delta, which dropped its last attempt to make non-hub flying there work this week. Why is …
The next stop for Spirit’s growth train here in the US is in an unlikely place . . . Denver. Why would Spirit go into a market where there’s certainly no shortage of capacity? Something tells me that the airline wants to send Frontier a message.
Spirit will begin daily …
Gather ’round, kids, because it’s story time. Today, I’ll tell the story of a once bright star that burnt out quickly. But not everyone believed it burnt out – some thought that it secretly retained its glow, just waiting to be reborn. Now, 25 years later, it’s happening, well, sort …
“Cranky Flier” Explores Decline in Small City Airline Service – Part 2 of 2 – ExpertFlyer Hot Topics
In part two of this series, I look at the government programs to help keep small service, primarily Essential Air Service. The conclusion? These aren’t going to cut it – and in …
We’ve had a couple of interactions with upgrades lately and more often than not, mileage upgrades are becoming less useful.
First, we had someone flying Delta to Europe. The “M” fare that Delta requires you buy to use an upgrade with SkyPesos was so high that it was only a …
American recently decided to revamp its check-in lobby at LAX, and the result is going to be the blueprint for all of American’s hubs. American invited me to come on up and take a look last week. The highlight? The Flagship check-in service for the fancy pants travelers. I also …
Today is Valentine’s Day, so how about a little LUV story? One of the things about Southwest’s takeover of AirTran that I like the most is the transition plan. The way it’s being done is incredibly customer-friendly, and it’s likely to have a very minor impact on travelers, unlike what …
Frontier has been moving on its plan to reinvent itself very quickly, and last week it rolled out some big changes that will fall into place over the next few months. In short, the old Midwest Airlines hubs are shrinking while it grows its presence in Colorado where competitors aren’t. …
