world reviewer
Cranky Flier
Member statistics
- Member since
- 23rd January 2009
My name is Brett, and I’m an airline dork. I’ve had the bug since I was young. As a kid, I never missed a chance to go to LAX and pick up airline timetables. My grandmother even took me to an airport hotel for my birthday one year so I could watch the planes land. By the age of 12, I had become a travel agent. Soon after I was volunteering at Traveler’s Aid.
Since that time, I’ve worked in several places in the industry.
Cranky Flier's activity
- 16 Nov 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Virgin Atlantic’s Taxi Share Service Is a Decent Start
Virgin Atlantic has teamed up with Taxi2 (and it’s oddly-registered Tongan website taxi.to) to help passengers share cabs to their destination. This to me is a great idea, but they haven’t taken this far enough. Hopefully this is just the first step."
- 03 Nov 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post If You Want to Try Wifi Onboard, You’ll Have Plenty of Free Chances
It’s no surprise that when you make something completely free, people use it a lot more often than if you make them pay. Duh. And that’s why it’s not surprising to see airlines scrambling to find a way to offer wireless internet for free. Just in the last"
- 27 Oct 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post How Did Those Northwest Pilots Miss the Airport?
You know the story – Northwest 188 from San Diego to Minneapolis decided that Wisconsin was a better destination. Once pilots realized they had gone too far east, they turned around and landed. As far as I’m concerned, the excuses given by the pilots seem"
- 22 Oct 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Using Electronics on Takeoff, Standing Flight Attendants (Ask Cranky)
Are the rules regarding no electronic devices upon takeoff and landing really necessary? Are the regulations based on science? Could an iPod or Laptop really bring down a 777?"
- 20 Oct 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Virgin America Tries Letting People Without Carry-Ons Board First
We’ve seen a million different boarding schemes over the years. First there was boarding by rows, then came group boarding, and now many are going to the all-at-once cattle call strategy. But Virgin America is trying something different. They want to let"
- 15 Oct 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post The Travel Promotion Act Makes Travel More Difficult
You’ll hear lots of fanfare around the Travel Promotion Act these days, but you certainly won’t hear it from me. In fact, I think it’s time for a rant."
- 01 Oct 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Why Algae Won’t Fly Anytime Soon
We’ve heard people talk about biofuels for quite awhile now, and algae has always been promoted as one of the best possible hopes for mass production. It’s renewable and it doesn’t take from existing food supplies."
- 26 Sep 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post American and United Add $10 Surcharge For Peak Holiday Travel
It looks like United and American have decided that you don’t pay enough to travel on the peak holiday travel days, so they’ve added a $10 surcharge. Is this a new fee? Nah, I think it’s just the lazy man’s fare increase."
- 11 Sep 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Virgin Atlantic Links Up with Eurostar
It’s always good to see airplanes and trains coming together to make a more seamless travel experience. Now it appears that Virgin Atlantic has linked up with Eurostar to provide easy one-stop booking on Eurostar’s chunnel routes to Brussels and Paris. Un"
- 03 Sep 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post An Exclusive Look at Bird Strikes
I really haven’t written much about bird strikes on the blog. Yes, they happen a lot, and they can be dangerous, but the hype after the FAA released its data was certainly overdone. I didn’t see a need to join in. But when someone from Tableau Software,"
- 25 Aug 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post An Onboard Wifi Update
I’m at the National Business Travel Association (NBTA) conference this week, and I spent awhile chatting with the folks at AirCell (provider of wifi fun) yesterday. That made me think it was a good time for a wifi update, especially since there has been s"
- 19 Aug 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post TSA Now Needs Your Birthdate and Gender
It was just a couple of months ago that the TSA started requiring you to use your exact name as it appears on your ID, and now, they need more. As of last Saturday, August 15, you’ll have to give your birthdate and gender as well."
- 09 Aug 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post How Does an Accident Impact an Airline’s Schedule? (Ask Cranky)
Today we’ve got an interesting Ask Cranky question from a curious reader . . ."
- 06 Aug 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post International Airlines Start Adding Fees, Making Cuts Like US Carriers
It was only a matter of time until global carriers started following in their US counterparts’ shoes, right?"
- 26 Jul 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Fare Hikes on Domestic Routes
The airlines have been busy lately trying to hike fares on domestic routes, and so far it looks like they’ve been successful."
- 20 Jul 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Details of Obama’s Wild Plane Ride
Last year, when then-Senator Obama was busy criss-crossing the country in support of his presidential bid, he ran into some trouble on one of his flights"
- 30 Jun 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Ryanair Wants To Let People Bring Unlimited Carry On Bags
Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary loves to spout off about his dreams about the future of Ryanair, but that doesn’t mean it will happen. We’re still waiting to see those pay lavs, right? But I think O’Leary’s head is in the right place here."
- 04 Jun 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post How Often Do Airlines Fly Into Areas Without Radar Coverage? (Ask Cranky)
Here’s a very timely Ask Cranky that was spurred by the Air France accident earlier this week. I’m sure many of you heard that the airplane was flying in an area where there was no radar coverage, and that might be surprising."
- 02 Jun 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Why do Fares Change so Often? (Ask Cranky)
You know what time it is, kids? That’s right, it’s Ask Cranky time! (I need to get out more often.) There have been some great questions coming into the inbox lately. Please keep it up, as I’m always more than happy to answer them."
- 27 May 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Zeppelin Ride Above Long Beach (Trip Report)
It’s safe to say that I never expected to be able to ride in a Zeppelin in my lifetime. Actually, I didn’t even know they still made Zeppelins until recently, but sure enough they do."
- 15 May 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Talking to Emirates About Onboard Mobile Phone Use (Across the Aisle Interview)
Last week, I had the chance to chat with Patrick Brannelly, Emirates VP Passenger Communications and Visual Services. The topic? Onboard mobile phone use. This should spark some pretty interesting debate."
- 10 May 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post US Airways Now Scanning Bags at Planeside, Improving Bag Tracking
It seems like a simple request. All we want as customers is for an airline to take as much responsibility for our bags as FedEx would. We want to see our bags scanned everywhere so we can see where they are, and if they do get lost, we want to know when w"
- 08 May 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Airlines Start Getting Smart About Power Outlets Onboard
"It’s been incredible watching every airline scramble to figure out when and on what planes to install internet. As more and more airlines get wi-fi up and running on more and more planes, they need to address the closely-related problem..."
- 03 May 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post French Polynesia From the Air and On the Ground (Trip Report Part 2)
Hope you enjoyed part 1 of the trip yesterday. We finished up with Bora Bora and we headed back to the airport for our flight over to Tikehau. That’s where we pick this back up today."
- 01 May 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post French Polynesia From the Air and On the Ground (Trip Report Part 1)
Ok, I’ve finally been able to get the trip report together and it’s a long one so I broke it up. I have Taha’a and Bora Bora in part 1 today and Tikehau and Tahiti in part 2 tomorrow."
- 07 Apr 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Flying to the Netherlands Just Got Cheaper Thanks to Scrapped Eco Tax
Environmentalists aren’t going to be happy to hear that the so-called “eco tax” imposed by the Dutch government is going away. Why? It’s all about the numbers."
- 24 Mar 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Air France Rolls Out New Premium Economy Class
The growing popularity of the premium economy cabin continues as Air France has decided that the time has come to roll out “Premium Voyageur” on their widebodies. Upon first glance, it looks like a strong entry."
- 23 Mar 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Air Force One Up Close
And now for something completely different. Today, we’re going to forget about commercial aviation and talk about Air Force One. I had the chance to see it up close yesterday, and I’ve got plenty of pics."
- 19 Mar 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Expedia and Travelocity Drop Booking Fees (Temporarily)
"There’s good news out there for those of you who like to book your travel using online travel agents."
- 17 Mar 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post FLTAdvisor Tells You If Your Flight is Really On Time
"I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people say that they wish airlines would just be more honest with them about delays."
- 10 Mar 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Air Asia’s Really Odd Promotion to Turn Bloggers into Pilots
I know that being a pilot doesn’t hold nearly as much caché as it used to, but Air Asia is really trying to drive this profession into the ground even further. They need pilots, so what are they doing? In their own words . . . ."
- 05 Mar 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Spirit Adds a PUF When You Buy a Ticket
A piece in the Wall Street Journal yesterday noted that Spirit is planning to start charging a PUF, or Passenger Usage Fee, for anyone who doesn’t book their tickets at the airport ticket counter."
- 02 Mar 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post Forget Charging for Lavs, Ryanair Is Eliminating Ticket Counters at Airports
All the Ryanair buzz this morning is about some casual comments made by Michael O’Leary suggesting he wants to charge people to use the lav onboard. Well of course he does."
- 27 Feb 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post TSA Begins Testing Security Without a Metal Detector
Pop quiz: Where is the one place in the continental United States where you’ll never be asked to walk through a metal detector before boarding a commercial aircraft? The answer is . . . Tulsa."
- 12 Feb 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post V Australia Welcomes Us Onboard at LAX
Friday marked the first aircraft delivery for V Australia, Virgin Blue’s long haul arm that will inaugurate service on February between Sydney and Los Angeles."
- 23 Jan 2009
Cranky Flier wrote a blog post TripAdvisor Says People Watch Safety Briefings; I Call Bullshit
TripAdvisor put out the results of a study yesterday regarding airplane safety. I’m sure it was spurred by the US Airways accident last week, and I have to say that the results seem absolutely, completely wrong."
