The Flying Critic

NWA 747 - Daily Travel Photo

Northwest 747 at Tokyo/NRT

Flying Northwest Airlines A330 to London Gatwick (LGW)

In March of 2006 I flew Northwest Airlines to London Gatwick (LGW) on one of their A330s. 

This time I was in coach.  It wasn't that bad.  That's my nice was of saying it could have been worse but it was uncomfortable compared to Northwest's World Business Class in the front of their A330s.  Still, I got a couple hours of sleep and was able to tour London on my arrival day. 

The A330s are the only planes in Northwest's fleet that I enjoy.  The coach cabin has a good AVOD (audio video on demand) system, a tolerable seat pitch, and a 2-4-2 seat configuration with 17.5" wide seats.

Here is plane at MSP before boarding:

Here is the front half of the coach cabin during boarding (the lavatories separate the front and back parts of the coach cabin):

Here is the seat pitch in the coach cabin (said to be 31-33", this looks like ~32" to me):

While flying long-haul in coach can't be called relaxing, Northwest's A330s provide one of the best coach experiences of the USA carriers.

Delta, Northwest Pilots Agree To Joint Contract Terms

USA Today reports that Delta, Northwest pilots agree on terms of joint contract:

Delta and Northwest pilot negotiators say they have a tentative agreement with Delta management on a joint contract to cover both pilot groups when the companies combine later this year.

The two pilot groups still have to figure out a way to merge their seniority lists but this is a big step.

Delta Crown Room Club in Phoenix - Daily Travel Photo

Delta closed this Crown Room Club on April 30, 2008.   It seems like an odd club to close. Northwest and Delta are the two largest airlines that use the north pier of Terminal 3 where the club was located.  Their merger website says that 2.8 million people fly Northwest and Delta to/from Arizona each year (most to/from Phoenix).  I guess that isn't enough people to justify a Crown Room Club.

Earning Miles: New WorldPerks members can earn up to 6,000 Bonus Miles

If you don't have a Northwest Airlines WorldPerks frequent flyer account and will be flying Northwest or KLM between now and July 15, 2008 you can earn up to 6,000 Bonus Miles:

To be eligible for this offer, simply enroll in WorldPerks between April 15, 2008 and July 15, 2008. You will receive 1,000 Bonus Miles for any flight you take on Northwest Airlines or KLM within six months of enrolling. If you take a second roundtrip flight on Northwest Airlines or KLM during this six-month period, you receive 5,000 Bonus Miles.

Delta and Northwest announce 1Q financial results: DL $6.4 billion loss, NW $4.1 billion loss

Today Delta and Northwest reported their 1Q 2008 financial results.  They surprised many by announcing huge losses  Delta reported a $6.4 billion loss and Northwest reported a $4.1 billion loss. 

While this may sound like they should be in front of a bankruptcy judge instead of getting ready to present on their merger plans, it isn't that bad. Most of the loss was an accounting loss due to massive write downs on their goodwill.  Delta wrote down $6.1 billion and Northwest wrote down $3.9 billion.   They didn't lose this amount. 

Their actual losses for the quarter were $274 million for Delta and $191 million for Northwest.  These sorts of losses are not sustainable.  Delta's CEO is right that the industry needs to raise fares another 15-20% to stop the bleeding.  Merging is not the fix-everything make the world profitable and happy answer that United's CEO seems to think it is.

US Airways to start charging extra for some coach seats

US Airways announced that starting May 7 they will start charing extra for some coach seats similar to Northwest's Coach Choice scheme.  They even chose a similar name - "Choice Seat."

They sent out an e-mail to their frequent flyers announcing the program:

We've changed our seating options, but not for you 

Preferred Seats are now Choice Seats, but as a Dividend Miles Preferred member, you'll still be able to select exit row seats and aisle or window seats in the first several rows of Coach anytime after you book your flight. And just like before, you won't pay for the most desirable seats in Coach.

The USA Today's News in the Sky blog has 21 questions and answer about the new program that provides more details.

The announcement doesn't indicate how Star Alliance frequently flyers will be be treated.  In the past, these preferred seating areas in the front of the airplane have been reserved for US Airways Dividend Miles Preferred members but if you had elite status on other Star Alliance airlines like United you could also get booked in these preferred seats.  Hopefully Star Alliance flyers will still have access to these seats in advance for no charge (although this is not an official Star Gold/Silver benefit, so I have my doubts).

The key to the success of a program like this is to not screw your frequent flyers.  One of the benefits of having frequent flyer status is gaining access to better seat assignments.  In this aspect, it looks like US Airways is doing things right.  They are keeping the exit rows for elite members.  And the seats subject to this program can still be booked in advance by elite members for no fee.  Only at 24hrs before the flight (when web check-in opens) do the seats become available for people to pay to move to.

I predict that the program will be a "success" in that it will make US Airways some extra money but it will also anger some passengers - like the person who had to buy a last minute ticket on US Airways and gets assigned a middle seat in the back and has to pay for a window or aisle seat in the front at the airport even if that aisle or window seat goes unsold. 

Delta and Northwest Agree to Merge

The rumors have finally proven true.  The merger was just approved by Delta and Northwest:

ATLANTA (AP) -- Delta Air Lines has reached an agreement with Northwest Airlines to take over Northwest and create the world's biggest carrier.

The boards of both companies gave the deal the go-ahead Monday.

Delta said the combined airline will have an enterprise value of $17.7 billion. It will be based in Atlanta, and Delta CEO Richard Anderson will head the combined company.

Read the rest of the article here.

And so the consolidation has started.  Will this finally push United and Continental together?