Travel Week in Review – March 22, 2024

Ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft will cease services in Minneapolis beginning May 1. The Minneapolis city council initially passed the measure last week, which would increase driver wages to the equivalent of the local minimum wage of $15.57 an hour, according to the Associated Press. The companies would have to pay drivers at least $1.40 per mile and $0.51 per minute for a ride, or $5 per ride, whichever is greater, excluding tips. Read More…

American Airlines currently lags Delta and United financially. But American believes it can close that gap — with a strategy that diverges from its legacy rivals. At its Investor Day earlier this month, its first in seven years, American executives laid out a vision for increasing profitability that leans heavily on growing the rank-and-file membership of the AAdvantage loyalty program. American also plans to add first-class seats on retrofitted planes and on regional aircraft, which sounds like a bid to increase. Read More…

After a spate of high-profile airline industry incidents, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby has issued a memo addressing safety concerns. In the memo Kirby said safety is the airline’s top priority, according to a report from The Points Guy. The airline CEO also discussed United’s own safety incidents, including acknowledging the airline has had “a number” of such incidents. “While they are all unrelated, I want you to know that these incidents have our attention and have sharpened our focus,” Kirby wrote, per The Points Guy. Read More…

Members of American Airlines’ AAdvantage loyalty program “soon” will be able to use their miles to pay for Wi-Fi on board aircraft, the carrier announced Wednesday. The new ability will roll out in the next few weeks on a “couple select aircraft,” and by the “summer travel season,” be available on all of the carrier’s Viasat-equipped narrowbody aircraft, according to the carrier. Once connected, passengers will have access with gate-to-gate connectivity on most mainline aircraft. Read More…

When it comes to the unpredictable nature of airport security, any trick travelers can use to avoid long waits in line can help prevent major headaches at the start of their journey. Especially during peak travel times like spring and summer, even the smallest change can make the difference between missing and making a flight. To help make the security screening process more efficient amidst increasing travel demand. Read More…