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Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.I hear Virgin America is a really good airline, but I’ve never chosen to fly them because they have a frequent flyer program that doesn’t interest me. For example they don’t have an option for international awards (the reason why I collect miles/points), they don’t have an elite program and their earning of points is based on spend....

The Boeing 747 — the “Jumbo Jet” or “Queen of the Skies” — is one of the most profound and innovative aviation products of all time. Its distinctive look, capabilities and sheer size has changed the world of aviation and long-haul travel forever. Yesterday, news broke that the engineer who created the beloved Boeing 747 in the 1960s, Joe Sutter, has died at the age of 95.Boeing released a statement remembering the “Father of the 747,” which reads:Joe led the engineering team that developed the 747 in the mid-1960s, opening up affordable international travel and helping connect the world....

TPG reader Leah sent me a message on Facebook to ask about earning the Southwest Companion Pass:“If I transfer points to Southwest to earn the Companion Pass, does it matter when those points were initially earned? For example, if I were to transfer Ultimate Rewards points earned in previous years to Hyatt and then to Southwest, would Southwest consider them ’earned’ in 2017?”Earlier this year, Southwest announced with little warning that points from hotel loyalty programs and other partners would no longer count toward Companion Pass status....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Earlier this year, JetBlue announced that it would significantly expand its fabulous Mint product to more transcontinental flights as well as some Caribbean flights from its hubs in Boston (BOS) and New York (JFK). Delta’s responded by sharing its plans to expand its own lie-flat product (Delta One) to another transcontinental route starting next spring....

The national flag carrier for Israel, El Al, is in hot water again for moving women passengers on a flight to accommodate ultra-Orthodox Jewish men.El Al flouted a 2017 court ruling that, on the grounds of discrimination against women, bans the practice of moving female passengers for the Jewish men who refuse to sit next to them because of their beliefs.A witness, Khen Rotem, posted on Facebook that El Al flight 2 departing New York (JFK) for Tel Aviv (TLV) last week was delayed for more than an hour after four ultra-Orthodox men refused to take their seats because they were next to women....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Looking to bolster its customer service on Twitter, Etihad just launched an invitation-only account for elite members. The @EtihadPremium handle will offer five-minute response times to customer queries, as well as help with retroactive mileage claims and access to exclusive deals....

Business-class options to Europe have become a lot more interesting in recent years due to product overhauls from many carriers. Among the most highly anticipated seats of the past few years were the stylish new ones Air France introduced aboard the 777-300ER back in 2014 — and thanks to a particular airfare deal, I was able to book a relatively cheap ticket and try it out for myself.BookingJust as there are certain cities from which you can regularly find relatively low premium fares, such as Colombo (CMB) or Cape Town (CPT), it seemed to me that there were some great deals on Air France business class if you were willing to fly to and from Bucharest (OTP) — that’s right, the Romanian capital seems to be one of those hidden gems where airfares tend to price out lower than other European destinations....

Bad news for men who somehow think it’s OK to tell women to smile or whistle at them as they pass by on the street, especially in France — now it’s illegal.This legislation has been in the works for about a year now, but it’s official as of Thursday morning, according to Reuters.The law would introduce on-the-spot charges of up to 750 euros for catcalling or other inappropriate, unwanted behaviors. While the government is not looking to “kill the culture of the French lover,” it will “forbid insulting, intimidating, threatening, and following women in public spaces....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Both the Chase Ink Bold and Ink Plus cards come with a variety of great perks including big sign-up bonuses (50,000 Ultimate Rewards points each when you spend $5,000 in 3 months), category spending bonuses like 5 points per dollar at office supply stores and on wireless/telecommunications services, cable and satellite television and radio services and 2 points per dollar on gas and hotels and all the benefits of being World MasterCards....

When Alaska Airlines flight attendant Sheila Fedrick helped rescue a teenage girl from a suspected human trafficker back in February, the incident made global headlines. But behind the scenes, carriers have worked for years to help combat modern-day slavery, as the Department of Homeland Security calls trafficking. Last year, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 1,952 suspected human traffickers and identified 437 victims, according to a spokesperson.To train employees how to recognize those situations, most airlines team up with organizations like Virginia-based Airline Ambassadors, Washington, DC’s Polaris Project, or the federal government, whose Blue Lightning Initiative has trained over 70,000 workers in the aviation industry to spot the signs of trafficking....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.It’s always heartening to see the way Americans come together to help each other in the wake of a national tragedy. Between last weekend’s mass shooting in Las Vegas, the earthquakes that have rocked Mexico and the hurricanes that have devastated parts of the US, Caribbean and Latin America, the past several weeks have been trying ones for the millions of individuals who have been affected by these disasters....

JetBlue is showing Boston some love with its latest special livery. On Monday, the New York-based carrier unveiled its Boston Celtics-branded livery — right in time for the team’s run in the NBA Playoffs.The bright green aircraft signifies JetBlue’s first-ever co-branded livery for an NBA team. The A320 — registration N595JB — was officially unveiled on Monday at Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), where both JetBlue and Celtics executives were in attendance....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.There’s a new member of the TPG family — quite literally. On Wednesday, TPG launched its latest vertical, TPG Family, featuring Summer Hull, or the founder of Mommy Points.And would it really be a true welcome if we didn’t throw a TPG event to celebrate the latest addition?...

Travelers at Orlando International Airport (MCO) were left scrambling from a TSA checkpoint security lane after smoke started emanating from a passenger’s bag. On Friday, the smoke coming from the bag caused an evacuation of the airport, as well as flight delays and cancellations.Video shows passengers waiting in a TSA security lane when there was reportedly a loud noise that came from a passenger’s bag. Not long after, smoke started coming from the bag....

Today, I want to share a story from TPG reader Sushil, whose made a hasty (and costly) decision during a trip to India. Here’s what he had to say:In May of 2017 I purchased a round-trip ticket through CheapOair for my travel to India, flying out of Los Angeles in December and returning in January of this year on Singapore Airlines. The first leg of my journey went well, but things got terrible during the return journey....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.It’s cold and I miss South America dearly already. My 11 day trip to Rio de Janeiro, Montevideo, Punta del Este and Buenos Aires was a complete success- I met a ton of interesting people from around the world, ate some incredible food, drank some new and inspiring cocktails, got a bit of a tan, and got to experience a wide spectrum of airlines and hotels....

TO THE POINT: While it may seem like an obscure airline to most travelers, Royal Air Maroc is a great option for those looking to use Etihad Guest Rewards to make a partner booking. The pros: a terrific award redemption, comfy lie-flat seats and stellar meal service. The cons: poor food options in the Air France lounge at JFK and sub-par blankets.TPG Contributor Michael Spelfogel recently experienced Royal Air Maroc’s new business-class product on the airline’s 787 Dreamliner from New York (JFK) to Casablanca (CMN)....

Early Monday morning, Romans woke up to the heaviest snowfall the city has received in six years. The rare winter storm prompted schools to close and iconic tourist sites like the Colosseum to shut down, in addition to many flight cancelations and travel disruptions. Yet, that didn’t stop many locals and tourists from savoring the blanket of snow.For a city with typically mild winter temperatures, Rome came to a halt, and many people in the Italian capital took the rare opportunity to ski, sled and have snowball fights....

TPG reader Sujay sent me a message on Facebook to ask about airline partnerships:“I tend to use United for domestic flights and Lufthansa for long-haul travel to Europe/Asia. Does it make sense to earn miles with different airlines in the same alliance?“As much as I preach the importance of diversifying your travel rewards, it’s also important not to spread yourself too thin. Earning only a handful of points or miles in a dozen different loyalty programs won’t do you much good, but investing too heavily in one program leaves you vulnerable to devaluation and a lack of availability....

Sign up for our daily newsletterEmail addressSign upI would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not share or sell your email. See privacy policy.Spotted: your all-access ticket to the scandalous lives of Manhattan’s elite.No, we’re not talking about a night at the 11 Howard Hotel, we’re talking about headbands, the steps of the Met, and macarons. The Lotte New York Palace hotel is offering a “Gossip Girl Getaway” for true fans of the show to pretend to be B and S for the day (that’s Blair and Serena, for the uninformed)....