On the Go – September 14, 2023

Industry News – Click on the title to read the full article. Many of the sources below require a free registration to gain access to the article. If a paid registration is required, the individual source will be noted.

Airlines

Delta to Revamp SkyMiles Elite Status Requirements (Source: Business Travel News)
Delta Air Lines beginning Jan. 1, 2024, will streamline its SkyMiles program and set Medallion Qualification Dollars as the sole qualifier for Medallion status, the airline announced Wednesday. Currently, members can earn status with MQDs as well as Medallion Qualification Miles and Medallion Qualification Segments.

United Airlines Opens Spacious Denver Lounge (Source: Travel Weekly)
United Airlines opened its largest airport lounge on Wednesday at Denver International Airport’s Concourse B. “Denver is a hot spot for us as an airline,” said Alexander Dorow, United’s head of clubs and lounges, noting that it is “our largest hub in terms of number of customers that are flying through here every day,” and also “a tremendous connecting hub for us.”

Southwest Study Aims To Make Boarding More Efficient (Source: CNBC)
Southwest Airlines is testing the impact of changes like improved signage and music in the jetway to cut the time it takes to load passengers onto an aircraft. “Having extra minutes at our scale, the math adds up really quickly,” said Chris Parks, director of innovation at Southwest.

North American Carriers’ August On-Time Performance Improves (Source: Business Travel News)
After slipping for two months in a row, North American carriers’ average on-time performance turned around in August, increasing 6 percentage points from July to 71.8 percent, according to Cirium’s latest monthly report.

Delta Air Lines Brings Crew To De-Icing “Boot Camp” (Source: The Associated Press)
Delta Air Lines brought about 400 employees to Minneapolis this summer for an annual “boot camp” that teaches them to de-ice aircraft, after which they return to their home bases to train co-workers. “I would never have guessed that Jacksonville, Florida, or Pensacola or Tallahassee would need to de-ice aircraft — and they do, so we train employees there as well,” said Jeannine Ashworth, vice president of airport operations.

Hotels

Tennessee Hotel Inspired By Rail Travel Reopening After Redo (Source: Travel + Leisure)
After a two-year, $19 million revamp, the 127-room Hotel Chalet at The Choo Choo in Chattanooga, Tenn., will reopen to guests on Oct. 31. The hotel features 25 guestrooms housed in restored Pullman train carriages from the 1920s and 1960s, as well as a pool, a courtyard with a garden and fire pits and a restaurant serving upscale Southern cuisine.

Leisure Travel

Venice Will Give Day-Tripper Fee A Test Run (Source: Travel Weekly)
Tourist-flooded Venice approved guidelines for testing a new fee for day-trippers on peak visitor weekends next year.  The city council gave the go-ahead for the guidelines, tweaking earlier plans for a fee that was announced a year ago. Final approval of the plan will come up for consideration on Sept. 12.