New Look For Frontier Airlines

Last week Frontier and Southwest decided to re-brand, though I'm not sure why.  Anyway, I spotter the new Frontier design when going through Denver this week. It looks good, but the old design looked good too.  

New and Old Frontier Designs

New Frontier Design

Fan Error

My laptop wouldn't start because of a fan error.  It's fixed now and posting will resume shortly.

A much more reliable fan

Orbitz and American Are Friends Again

Orbitz and American Airlines are friends again and will play nice. This is a bummer, I was hoping this fight would last more than a day.

American Will Play Nice With Others

Orbitz Worldwide (NYSE:OWW) announced today that it had reached an agreement with American Airlines to continue to offer American Airlines and US Airways flights on all of its sites. Consumers should see all available flights immediately. All tickets previously purchased on Orbitz Worldwide sites remain valid.

"We are pleased that our long-standing relationship with American Airlines allowed us to quickly resolve business matters and that we continue to offer a broad range of options, including American Airlines and US Airways flights, to the millions of shoppers who book travel on our global sites each day," said Sam Fulton, president of Orbitz.com.

American & US Airways Won't Sell Tickets on Orbitz

I use Hipmunk and Travelocity to book tickets and rarely pay to fly American or US Airways, so the news that American Airlines (US Air too) will stop selling tickets through Orbitz doesn't impact my travel rituals.  It is interesting that a major airline is removing their tickets from a major(ish) online travel site.  The fees Orbitz demands must be ridiculous.  American will lose some business from this, but it must be worth it.  Fighting the booking engine fees will also show the seriousness of threats made to other websites; American isn't bluffing.

Now Departing Orbitz for AA.com

None of this matters to Southwest flyers because Southwest tickets are only sold through Southwest.  Other major carriers can't copy that model now because too many people prefer comparison sites and won't check other airlines that aren't listed.

Not a Problem for Southwest

Fun Photo

United and Southwest 737's in Denver

United Trying to Make an Extra Buck With Cashless Cabins

United will sell you a prepaid debt card in the airport now.  The idea is to take a passenger's money two additional times because the card comes with a large purchase fee and then the passenger will promptly use it to pay for check in related fees or buy on board items.  Spirit Airlines is the best at ancillary revenue, but they haven't thought of this idea yet.

Airport Prepaid Card Vending Machine

Complex Sheraton Shower Handle

The Sheraton Phoenix Airport hotel wins the complex shower handle competition.  I've never seen one like this before and the hotel even includes directions for use.  The hotel is being renovated, so I hope on my next visit I can have regular plumbing.

Directions Required