American Airlines and Brazil’s GOL will establish a reciprocal codeshare agreement and frequent flyer program partnership. The deal is expected to open 20 additional South American destinations to the AA network and deliver more that 30 US destinations to the GOL route map. As part of the move American also announced a dozen new flights at its Miami hub, the primary gateway to Latin America.
Loyalty
Premium products, loyalty continue to drive Delta’s growth
lta Air Lines closed out 2019 much the way it started the year. Revenue is up and costs are mostly under control. Perhaps most important, however, is that the company is seeing gains in premium revenue and the SkyMiles loyalty program.
IAG snaps up Air Europa to boost Latin American operations
Consolidation continues in the global aviation market, this time delivering a shift in transatlantic services. International Airline Group announced this morning its intentions to buy Air Europa. The Spanish carrier will become part of the Iberia operation within IAG though remain an independent brand, at least to start. The deal is valued at 1 billion euro and full integration is expected by 2025.
A WiFi Challenger: PaxEx Update 1 Nov 2019
Can LiFi replace WiFi on board, opening up more spectrum for passengers? And can new satellite launches deliver the capacity that airlines need for inflight connectivity? Plus an expanding award chart and plans for a massive fleet expansion in India.
MilePlay: Inside the numbers of United’s loyalty gamification & personalization push
Personalization and gamification. If you’re running a loyalty program these are key considerations that drive member engagement and incremental revenue generation. It is hard to judge the results from the outside looking in, but United Airlines opened up recently, sharing the success of its MilePlay promotions.
Aeroplan seeks a hybrid loyalty solution with program relaunch
Aeroplan is coming home and Air Canada has a LOT of big ideas on what that will mean for the future of its loyalty program. The program won’t relaunch for members until late 2020, but significant changes are already underway to lay the groundwork for the new program. Mark Nasr, AC’s Vice President, Loyalty & eCommerce, recently spoke with PaxEx.Aero to review some of the changes that members can expect to see.
Delta seeks subscription success with SkyMiles Select
Is it a new, lower elite tier that passengers can just buy outright, a threat to the co-branded credit card cash cow that drives so much of the airline’s profits, or just another way to get passengers to pay up for services at a margin far beyond their hard costs? Probably a bit of all three and then some.
Goodbye GPUs, Hello PlusPoints: United revamps elite upgrade scheme
United Airlines is adjusting the way its top MileagePlus elite members will pay for upgrades. And, at least to start, none of the upgrade costs are increasing.
Slot jockeying and Wifi Deals: PaxEx Update for 2019-09-20
Jockeying for more access to Heathrow and more fast wifi flying lead this week’s PaxEx news, with a new livery and loyalty program buy-back also making waves.
PaxEx Update: World Aviation Festival 2019
So much happening at the World Aviation Festival this year but a few bits stood out above the rest for direct impact on passengers. Here are a few of the highlights from Air Canada, TAP Portugal, EasyJet and more.