Airlines

Airlines offer travel advisories/waivers for weather & 737-9 MAX inspections

Between the storms in many regions of the country and the grounding of all Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft for inspection, there are a lot of flight cancellations, schedule disruptions, and airline travel alerts.

Here are links to the current travel advisories and waivers (as of early Tuesday, January 9, 2024) in effect for some of the major airlines. Be sure to check your airline’s website for the latest updates on these advisories,

Alaska Airlines

On its website, Alaska Airlines is advising travelers that due to Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft inspections and winter weather in the Northeast, they are offering a flexible travel policy for travelers who want to change or cancel their flights. Original travel dates include January 9.

American Airlines

American Airlines has a travel alert for close to 60 cities that may be affected by severe weather in the Eastern US and Canada. The airline will waive your change fee if you traveling in any fare class and are scheduled to fly January 9-10 and can travel instead January 9 – 15. See here for more details on American Airlines’ travel advisory.

Delta Air Lines

for Delta Air Lines has travel advisories posted for winter weather in the Midwest that may affect more than two dozen airports and as many in the Northeastern U.S.

JetBlue

JetBlue has also issued travel alerts for winter weather in the Midwest and the Northeastern US.

In the Midwest, the airline will waive change/cancel fees and fare differences for customers traveling through January 9 to or from Chicago (ORD), Detroit (DTW), Kansas City (MCI), Milwaukee (MKE), and Minneapolis – St. Paul (MSP). The travel alert covers about 15 airports in the Northeast. Customers may rebook their flights through January 13.

Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines has travel alerts posted for the Midwest and the East Coast.

United Airlines

For those scheduled to fly on a Boeing 737-9 MAX airplane, United Airlines offers these options:

You can reschedule your trip and have the change fees and fare differences waived. Your new flight must be a United flight departing by January 18, 2024. Tickets must be in the same cabin and between the same cities as originally booked. Trips rebooked after January 18, 2024, will still have the change fee waived, but there may be a fare difference. Cancelling and getting a full refund is also an option.

SFO Airport remembers Virgin America. Do you?

Remember Virgin America?

The carrier began operating in 2007 and became a passenger favorite thanks to leather seats, cool cabin mood lighting, premium entertainment systems, a super-catchy award-winning safety video (see below), and its high-energy flight and ground crews dressed in hip, casual uniforms.

Virgin America’s planes had cool names, such as Jefferson Airplane, Legally High, and Let There Flight. And when new routes were kicked off, Richard Branson would often show up

The airline ceased operations in 2018 following its acquisition by Alaska Airlines. But the airline lives on in the collection of the SFO Museum at San Fransisco International Airport (SFO).

A new exhibition at SFO, titled VX Forever: The Legacy of Virgin America includes flight and ground crew uniforms and accessories, inflight service items, promotional material, seats, photographs, and ephemera.

Look for the free Virgin America exhibit pre-security in the Aviation Museum and Library in the International Terminal of San Francisco International Airport through November 17, 2024.

(otos courtesy SFO Museum)

What? Alaska Airlines to merge with Hawaiian Airlines

On Sunday, Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines announced a plan to merge in a deal that has line Alaska Airlines buying Hawaiian Airlines for $1.9 billion.

“This combination is an exciting next step in our collective journey to provide a better travel experience for our guests and expand options for West Coast and Hawai‘i travelers,” said Ben Minicucci, Alaska Airlines CEO in a statement.

Peter Ingram, Hawaiian Airlines President and CEO said, “Since 1929, Hawaiian Airlines has been an integral part of life in Hawai‘i, and together with Alaska Airlines we will be able to deliver more for our guests, employees, and the communities that we serve.”

What does this mean for travelers?

While many details are still unknown, and some are likely to change before the deal officially goes through (a 12 to 18-month process) here are some of the highlights of this weekend’s announcement, from a message sent to customers on Sunday evening by Alaska’s Ben Minicucci:

The brands will remain: The Virgin America name was retired after it was purchased by Alaska Airlines. But Alaska Airlines says it plans to keep the Hawaiian Airlines brand on airplanes, at airports, and elsewhere. “It will exist alongside the Alaska Airlines brand, supported by a single operating platform and industry-leading loyalty program,” Minicucci said in his statement.

There will be more destinations: The deal will bring a combined network of 138 destinations, including non-stop service to 29 international destinations such as Tokyo, Seoul, Sydney, and Auckland, as well as over 1,200 global destinations through the oneworld Alliance, Alaska notes in its statement. The combined airline will have a fleet of 365 narrow- and wide-body airplanes, according to Alaska.

Headquarters to remain in Seattle: The new combined organization will be based in Seattle and headed by Alaska Airlines CEO Ben Minicucci, but Honolulu will become a new key hub.

What about ticket prices? There is where this deal could have a downside. “Competition between airlines is the single biggest cause of cheap flights,” notes Going’s Scott Keyes, “A merger between these two airlines—whose route maps have dozens of flights that overlap—would result not in more cheap flights for consumers, but fewer.”

How do the flight attendants feel about this?

On Sunday, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO (AFA), which represents over 6,800 Flight Attendants at Alaska Airlines and 2,200 Flight Attendants at Hawaiian Airlines, released a statement:

“Our first priority is to determine whether this merger will improve conditions for Flight Attendants just like the benefits the companies have described for shareholders and consumers. Our support of the merger will depend on this.

“As a practical matter, our union Constitution and Bylaws provides a detailed process for this review with AFA leadership from each airline. Mergers take time – this will not happen overnight. Our union will continue to press forward in negotiations at Alaska Airlines. Alaska Flight Attendants, joined by Hawaiian Flight Attendants, will be on the picket line on Dec. 19 as holiday travel takes off.”

Airlines respond to Maui wildfires

The news about the wildfires on the Island of Maui is heartbreaking and frightening.

As of Thursday evening, officials were reporting that the wildfires had killed at least 54 people, with the number expected to rise.

Figuring out how many buildings, trees and other parts of the landscape have been burned is difficiult. But satellite images such as the ‘before’ and ‘after’ image of the historic town of Lahaina shared by Maxar Technologies are offering devastasting images.

Tourists told to get out and stay home

The Hawaii Tourism Authority is telling tourists and visitors who are in Maui to leave. Those with trips planned are being asked to cancel or postpone.

“In the days and weeks ahead, our collective resources and attention must be focused on the recovery of residents and communities that were forced to evacuate their homes and businesses, ” the authority said on it website. “Visitors who have travel plans to visit Maui in the coming weeks are encouraged to consider rescheduling their travel plans for a later time.”

Airlines, others helping out

“The images of Lāhainā burning – enveloped in an impenetrable cloud of black smoke – have been difficult to witness. Our hearts are with our community members, employees and all those devastated by the Maui fires,” Hawaiian Airlines said in a statement, “As Hawaiʻi’s hometown carrier, we pledge to support disaster response efforts until the demanding work of recovery is complete.”

The airline is adding flights to support evacuation efforts, capping ticket prices between Kahului, Maui (OGG) and Honolulu at $19 until August 11, and offering a travel waiver for passengers with tickets to or from OGG through the end of the month.

The airline is also carrying essential cargo such as medical supplies to Maui and donating catering items, amenity kits, mattress pads, pillows and other supplies for evacuees arriving at Kahului Airport.

Other airlines are helping out with evaucation flight and travel waivers too.

Alaska Airlines flew a rescue flight to Maui with relief supplies for local residents – everything from water and food to pillow, blankets, baby formula and diapers. The Seattle-based airline is also helping ot evacute travelers to Seattle and is adding additional rescue flights.

Travel Waivers for Maui

Here are links to the airline travel waiver policies currently in effect for Maui:

Alaska Airlines

American Airlines

Delta Air Lines

Hawaiian Airlines

Southwest Airlines

United Airlines

Westjet

How to Help

Hawaii Tourism suggests donating money to the Maui Strong Fund.

If you’ve got airline miles to spare, you can also donate those.

Here is a link to the Donate Miles to Charity page for Hawaiian Airlines, which lists the American Red Cross of Hawaii, the Blood Bank of Hawaii, and the Hawaii Humane Society among the beneficiaries.

The Alaska Airlines Care Miles Program has a disater relief pool.

United Airlines’ Mileage Plus on a Mission page lists the American Red Cross and Airlink among its partner charities.

You can also donate directly to the Airlink global humanitarian organization here.