What does the Delta and Northwest merger mean for me, the one with the frequent flier miles?

by Jamie Rhein on

As Grant reported, today the Justice Department has cleared the way for the merger between Northwest Airlines and Delta. Here’s a brief blurb from the Wall Street Journal that my friend at WalletPop, Tom Barlow E-mailed me.

Back in April, Grant wrote a post about why to be happy about the merger. Hmmm. I’m not sure about that given my future plans. Grant wasn’t too sure either.

I’m wondering if this merger will affect my trip to Denmark in a month. I have a Northwest flight to Copenhagen through Memphis and Amsterdam on December 2nd. My ticket (actually two of them) is thanks to 100,000 frequent flier miles (50,000 each). If my trip is messed up–the one I am taking with my daughter, I’m going to be sad. I actually have a stronger word in mind, but I’m being polite. From what I’ve read, we may not be affected. We’ll see.

As for the other Northwest frequent flier miles I have, I’ve a strong urge to book tickets now just in case. On the other hand, there are places that Delta flies that Northwest doesn’t, so perhaps I’ll hedge my bets. Frequent flier programs seem more and more like gambling ventures–or the stock market.

The time that it has taken for the Justice Department to decide if the merger is kosher or not has probably cut down the number of decisions the airlines might have to make. For example, perhaps with fewer amenities, Delta and Northwest won’t have to figure out which snacks to merge –or which type of pillows to use.

So long, Northwest. Department of Justice approves merger

by Grant Martin on

For those of you who were holding onto one last shred of hope that Delta and Northwest might not merge, you can go ahead and flush that down the toilet — the Department of Justice just approved the merger, saying:

“After a thorough, six-month investigation, during which the Division obtained extensive information from a wide range of market participants–including the companies, other airlines, corporate customers and travel agents–the Division has determined that the proposed merger between Delta and Northwest is likely to produce substantial and credible efficiencies that will benefit U.S. consumers and is not likely to substantially lessen competition.”

Not that we weren’t already heading full tilt into the merger. Just this week the two airlines integrated upgrade policies (now one can be upgraded on the other based on elite status), and the buzz about NW flight attendants getting fitted for Delta uniforms has already popped up in a few places in the underground.

So to speak, this message from the DOJ just puts the final nail in the coffin. Over the next twelve months you’ll slowly start seeing red tails disappear from the tarmac to become red white and blue, you schedules out of Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis and Cincinnati will get rejiggered and your boarding passes will suddenly carry the wrong name.

So long, Northwest Airlines. It was a fun ride while it lasted.

Nordic budget airline Sterling files for bankruptcy

by Anna Brones on

These are not great economic times, and they’re taking a toll on the travel industry. Icelandic-owned and Denmark-based Nordic budget airline Sterling announced today that it will file for bankruptcy, halting all of its aircraft. The slowdown of the travel market and rising oil prices put financial strains on the airline a year ago, but now with the fall of the Icelandic economy, and hence the funds of the airline’s owner, Sterling had no choice but to call it quits.

And although things are obviously bad for the airline, things aren’t any better for its passengers: the halting of flights has left thousands of them stranded at airports across Europe. Sterling announced that tickets purchased online at the Sterling website would not be refunded, nor would return flights be honored. Coming to the rescue, rival airline Scandinavian Airlines announced that it would offer Sterling passengers and crew members seats on its flights to Copenhagen, depending on availability. But that will only help a small handful; all in all, an estimated 40,000 customers are said to be affected by the bankruptcy.

Feeling flustered on a flight? Keep your pants on for heaven’s sake.

by Jamie Rhein on

One could keep a tally of flight experiences. Make two columns.

On one side write: “Great experiences where the crew and flight attendants were spiffy.”

On the other side write: “Travel misery where any minute you could go bonkers and take off your pants.”

Then, under each column, jot down those experiences that would fit under each. Geoff Vuleta does a similar activity in his article, “Tired and Impatient. Keep Your Pants On.” By the end I was laughing. Vuleta travels often and has seen it all.

From the women whose baby threw up on the both of them, but the attendant would not move the cart in order to let the woman pass by so she could get to the bathroom to clean up the mess– to the airline personnel who bought pizza for delayed passengers, he has an eye for what makes for misery, a bit of grace, and the absurd.

The part that made me laugh out loud was when Vuleta recounted how on one flight he was so flustered that he forgot where he was. When he took off his sports coat, he also took off his pants, neatly folded them, and put them in the overhead bin before starting to head down the aisle to claim his seat. It gave his traveling companion some comic relief.

Lufthansa to purchase bmi

by Grant Martin on

Lufthansa (LH) finally decided to pull the trigger today and purchase British Midland Airways, or bmi. The German carrier, who already has a 20% stake in the company will be taking over a majority share and absorbing the airline through the beginning of next year.

The merger had several strategic purposes. Primarily, as we’ve been seeing all this past summer, airlines have been keen to hook up to save on crazy fuel prices, operations and labor costs. Delta and Northwest are pulling the same hijinks in the States, and we’ve been hearing all sorts of crazy rumors about Continental and United and American. So in a way, it’s sort of a natural progression for the industry.

The other big advantage of to the acquisition is that now LH will have a larger share in landing slots at Heathrow, one of the world’s most sought after airports. This greater share will leverage the airline better against British Airways, who have the lion’s share of spots, and hopefully increase transatlantic revenue.

Conversely, from a miles perspective, many are considering this merger as the unfortunate loss of another great frequent flyer program. bmi’s Diamond club has always been one of the most generous, easy to qualify for programs, and as it gets usurped into Lufthansa’s Miles & More program, many are mourning the loss of their easy upgrades and lounge access around the globe. I suppose all good things have to come to an end.