Earn 900 Northwest Frequent Flyer Miles In Ten Minutes

Special thanks to Andy for this timely reminder.

In the past we reported on earning 400 easy frequent flyer miles for completing WorldPerks University online quizzes, which consist of answering a few multiple choice questions about the Northwest Airlines frequent flyer program. If you haven't completed the quizzes yet, now is a great time to do so. 

In addition, with the Delta/Northwest merger already in progress, you can earn 500 Delta miles for linking both your Delta and Northwest accounts together - then, turn right around and transfer those miles back to your Northwest account, fee free. The linking bonus runs through April 30. 

These combined activities will net you 900 Northwest Miles. Not too shabby for 10 minutes of work! 

Earn 300 WorldPerks Miles for Obtaining an Insurance Quote

Northwest WorldPerks members can earn 300 bonus miles for requesting a free insurance quote with 21st Century insurance. In addition, earn 1,000 miles for taking out a new policy with 21st Century. Click here for more details.

Northwest & Delta become Delta Airlines

As expected, Northwest and Delta Airlines announced the two will merge and become the world's largest airline. The process of merging is expected to take 6-8 months, and is subject to government approval. Delta will retain the name for the new airline. The airlines have contacted members of their frequent flyer programs stating their frequent flyer miles and status will be unaffected by the merger.

Meanwhile, the airlines created a new website to boast of the new airline and positive effects they feel will result.

San Francisco to New York (Newark) $209 Roundtrip w/taxes

Scoop up a ticket quickly...these will not last. "Fair" availability (as of 10:30am) and limited day/season restrictions make this deal HOT. No season restrictions, meaning the fare is valid through the end of the year, no blackout dates and no day limitations on this - yes, you can travel on weekends at this price (April particularly).

Visit: http://www.travelocity.com/ - search SFO-EWR (not NYC) using the flexible dates option. Fares are sold out on some days. Fare Basis: K14RV3N 14-day minimum advance purchase.

San Francisco to New York (JFK) $205 RT/taxes included

Northwest Airlines and SkyTeam partners are offering this great deal to NYC.
Pretty decent availability even through the Summer months. Fare Basis: K7RX6N
Visit http://www.farecompare.com/ or http://www.travelocity.com/ (choose "flexible dates" option) or http://www.nwa.com/

Read More: Fare Basis Code: Unscramble to reveal the mystery behind your fare

Oakland/San Jose - Istanbul, Turkey $533 rt/taxes included

Pretty good deal into Istanbul. Promotional Fare on Northwest Airlines/KLM. Valid thru March. Booking class "V" and available at www.nwa.com. Flights from Oakland include segments on Alaska Airlines.

United Airlines awarded non-stop service San Francisco to Guangzhou, China

Other new U.S to China routes to follow under new airways agreement
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded a new direct route to China to United Airlines, making it the first U.S. carrier to offer daily, nonstop service between San Francisco and Guangzhou. The San Francisco to Guangzhou service will begin in spring of 2008 utilizing a Boeing 777 aircraft, including United First, Business, Economy Plus and Economy classes.

Also awarded was a Atlanta-Shanghai route to Delta Airlines. Delta will be the first U.S carrier to offer this route as well.

These new routes mark the first additions since the Chinese government signed an open airways agreement with the U.S this past July. Other new routes being considered are Chicago to Beijing (American), Newark to Shanghai (Continental), Detroit to Shanghai (Northwest), and Philadelphia to Beijing (US Airways).

Northwest Airlines bonus miles for "going to school"

Just in time for the start of school, Northwest Airlines has announced 2 new courses at WorldPerks® University.
For each course, read a short description of a product or service Northwest offers, answer 3 (simple) questions and earn 100 Northwest Airlines Worldperks miles.

WP101, WP102, WP200 have been available for a while now. WP201 and WP 202 were just added. That's up to 500 free Northwest miles! Plus, they have some extra credit opportunities if you do real well on your tests. Miles for "going to school" - sign me up! =P Here's the direct link

The Rise & Fall of the 'online booking bonus'

By Mike Grasso

So sad. Delta Airlines has discontinued its online booking bonus of 500 miles.
Airlines which historically have offered online booking bonuses initially did so to lure people to book tickets through their computer, rather than a travel agent or on the phone. Back in the day, many reservations booked online at the airlines website scored you upwards of 1000 added frequent flyer miles.

Since then, airlines have initiated service fees for booking reservations with an agent - ranging from $10-$40 bucks. Some airlines have also trimmed, cut, and slashed travel agent commissions on booking air-only reservations. Finally, online travel sites such as Expedia and Travelocity often charge a service fee, albeit it minimal, for booking air tickets. All of this has worked to the airlines advantage, to the point where online booking bonuses are rarely necessary to get folks to travel with the mouse directly to the airlines website.

Delta joins Northwest in discontinuing online booking bonuses, while United, Continental and U.S Air only offer 500 miles, and American now down to 250 bonus miles.

Northwest Airlines continues to cancel flights across the nation today. Friday and Saturday reports indicate up to 8% of NW scheduled flights had been canceled. (Usually an airline cancels no more than 2% of daily flights for various reasons). San Francisco and Sacramento airports are included on the list of cancellations this weekend, which are expected to continue as a result of ongoing pilot shortages. Be sure to check your flight status with the airline before heading on down to the airport. Northwest Airlines.

Three global airline alliances include 82% of the world's top 60 carriers

Oneworld 21.6% (ie: American Airlines)
Star Alliance 27% (ie: United Airlines)
SkyTeam 22.5% (ie: Northwest Airlines)
Unaligned 28.9% (ie: JetBlue)


All three airline alliances are seeking to sign carriers out of such emerging markets as China and India.

For the consumer, the added benefit may be more opportunities to earn and spend frequent flyer miles with airlines in each alliance without having to belong to each airline's frequent flyer program.
Contributing source: Business Travel News

Long live the days of the empty middle seat

Most U.S. airlines are reporting that planes are the fullest they have ever been in operating history according to the U.S DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. This has direct implications to passengers.
LOAD FACTOR BY YEAR
2006 79.2% (percent of seats filled on aircraft)
2005 77.6%
2004 75.5%
2003 73.5%
2002 71.8%
2001 70.0%
2000 72.4%

First, on average, you're more likely than ever in history to not have an empty seat next to you. So don't you dare move that armrest in the up position just yet.

Second, and probably more significant relates to cancelled flights. A fully booked flight where all seats are taken, then subsequently cancelled by the airline, can become a battle (or war) trying to accommodate all those unhappy folks on other flights. Less of a problem when planes were less full. Ahh, remember those days.
Third, if you are flying standby it also becomes more difficult because - you guessed it - there are fewer seats likely to be "open" for you to slip into. Miss your flight, and you may have a long wait at the airport. "Grande Latte please..."
Of course loads vary by time, market and revenue management techniques by the airline.

But, overall, those planes are running pretty darn full these days. Northwest, JetBlue and United have 2006 loads of 84%, 81.6% and 81.7% respectively. Southwest and AirTran have the lowest loads, 73.1% and 72.8% during the same year - meaning on average those planes are only about 3/4 full.

500 Northwest bonus miles when using Paypal for purchase

Northwest Airlines just added a new promo which provides 500 Northwest Worldperks miles for any roundtrip ticket paid through PayPal. Purchase must be made by September 30, 2007 for travel through the end of the year. You can continue to use any payment method that Paypal accepts (ie: Visa/MC, checking) for your purchase.

Miles for your time and thoughts

The "E-miles" program, offering frequent flyer miles in exchange for your time and thoughts (fill out surveys), is currently offering a sign-up bonus of 250 Northwest Airlines miles to new members.
The program is available to Delta, Continental, and US Airways members as well, though not with a sign-up bonus.

I've used e-miles for the past several months. I recommend not using your primary email address as new offers and other associated junk mail may soon fill your box. The earned miles post too your respective frequent flyer program each quarter in 500 mile increments.

The Phone Call You Don't Want

Northwest Airlines canceled 14% of Sundays flights, 11% of Monday & Tuesday flights nationwide; places phone calls to some unlucky customers.

A game of 'He said, she said'. Nobody is taking blame for massive Northwest Airline flight cancellations over the weekend through today, including flights to the Bay Area. Pilots blame poor management planning and staffing issues. NW bosses point fingers at bad weather and disrupted work schedules. Some warned this was inevitable, still others warn of more to come. Some customers have reported receiving phone calls from the airline hours or days in advance of the scheduled flights to offer alternatives. Others, less happily have found out when they check-in at the airport.


If you have plans to fly Northwest over the next several days, be sure Northwest has your current contact information. Also, you can register for NW's free flight update alerts via their website in case of schedule changes or cancelations.

Northwest & Southwest Slash fares to/from Colombus Ohio

Likely in response to SkyBus' low price model, NW & SW airlines have slashed prices to amazingly new lows. NW is offering fares to/from Oakland, San Jose & Sacramento to Colombus for $98+ tax roundtrip...and SW offering DING fares for $30 each way. You must download DING from the Southwest website in order to see these fares. Most flights are for August and September.

"Free" 300 Northwest frequent flyer miles

Northwest Airlines "WorldPerks University" is an ongoing program where you can earn 100 frequent flyer miles for each course you complete. Each course takes about 2 or 3 minutes.
Currently there are 3 courses available. Every mile helps the frequent flyer account!

September 11, 2006 NEWSLETTER

Good day and good night to all. Here is the latest INflightOUT newsletter. Note the new address i'm sending it from; to reduce the spam-o-grams into my personal account where these newsletters were previously dispatched from. As always, muchas gracias amigos for the positive feedback and offerings related to this newsletter. It's a pleasure to make it for ya. Feel free to forward to friends. -Mike

150 easy American Airlines miles for watching a 2 minute video clip on Bose Noise-Cancelling headphones.

Mileage News
Next month United begins charging $50/$75 fees for travelers redeeming United miles within 14 and 7 days of departure date. This may be to encourage last minute travelers to buy the more expensive (last minute) fares rather than using miles. Fee not applicable to 1K's and up. Similar fees are charged by other airlines as well. United continues however to allow free changes to award tickets - should your travel needs require it. A huge plus for the United mileage plus program.

American Airlines Short Hops allow for a 10,000 mile reduction when redeeming miles for flights of 750 miles or less. Valid through February 2007.
Example, SFO-LOS ANGELES or SANTA ANA or NEW YORK-BOSTON, CHICAGO OR MONTREAL, Canada ( normally requires 25,000 miles to redeem, but under this promotion is only 15,000 miles. Similar to the United promo running through 2006.


Double Southwest Airlines RapidReward credits for college students up to age 23 (not us old folk still in college) who sign up for RR program. Forward this deal to a young'un you might know. =)

$50 off now Orbitz.com Hotel bookings + another bonus later. Good coupon!
Book a hotel or hotel + flight package for 3+ nights by October 8, 2006 and receive $50 off instantly when you use SAVENOW promotion code. Good for travel by December 31, 2006.

Airbus' 380 SuperJumbo went on it's first test flight - with passengers last week. The Jumbo jet now expected to be released in 2007 will permit cabin seating up to 555 people!
No U.S-based airline has signed on to purchase one of these giants yet, but San Francisco International is one of only a few U.S airports equipped to handle this hunk'a machinery should foreign airlines choose a San Francisco routing.

HOT Fare Deals as of Monday Night
SAN FRANCISCO to
Los Angeles $49 each way FRONTIER AIRLINES
London $503 round trip (taxes included!) DELTA AIRLINES November, December - about $100 more for February, March 2007
Pittsburgh PA $185 round trip (taxes included) AMERICAN AIRLINES Through March

OAKLAND to
Santa Ana/Orange County $98 round trip (taxes included) ALASKA AIRLINES through mid October
Burbank, LAX, San Diego $49 fun fares each way SOUTHWEST AIRLINES (may need to book by midnight tonight)
(example: fly to LOS ANGELES for New Years celebrations)

INTERISLAND Hawai'i flights as low as $29 each way on Hawaiian, Aloha and Go Airlines through 2006. An amazingly inexpensive fare. Tickets to be purchased by 9-12-06.

Pretty decent Hawai'i air+hotel packages from NorthwestAirlines Vacations from $335/person (double occ) for a few weeks in October and November.

Historically speaking, the months of October and November generate some rock-bottom fare deals throughout Western Europe (ie: <$450). Be patient, but also keep checking websites like farecompare.com for limited-time fare drops.

Travel Tip: When traveling outside of the U.S, it's a good idea to make a photocopies of your passport and leave with a trusted friend and bring a copy with you - seperate from your actual passport. This reduces the potential for a vacation-gone bad. Some have suggested scanning your passport and emailing a copy of yourself so you have an electronic copy available as well.


"What to do when bumped from a flight" (When your flight is cancelled) NY Times article


"A traveler must have the back of an ass to bear all,
a tongue like the tail of a dog to flatter all,
the mouth of a hog to eat what is set before him,
the ear of a merchant to hear all and say nothing."
Thomas Nashe

May 26, 2006 NEWSLETTER

Welcome to Issue #4 of the INflightOUT newsletter. May 26, 2006.
(feel free to forward to friends)

United, American and Frontier Airlines are all offering some version of "double miles" for future flights this year. You must register for the promo on the airlines' respective website! Hurry. UA/AA cut off for registration is May 31.

Southwest Airlines considering a new policy of assigned seating; fyi They considered this in 2004 as well, but obviously never implemented it. Here's the latest... Click here for Washington Post story

*WHY WE TRAVEL* (editor favorite)A beautiful collection of images from across the globe. These images have appeared in the New York Times, but this link is the cummulative slide show. The captions compliment the pictures well. Click Here for the Slide show

Alaska Airlines now offering Red Bull on all flights. It claims to be the 1st airline in the world to offer Red Bull. $5 charge in economy, free up front.

JetBlue flyers who also own the AmericanExpress JetBlue card receive a free complimentary coctail when flashing the card onboard any JB flight. Valid through June.

FREE AIRPORT WIRELESS SERVICE. Free service at Sacramento International, John Wayne/Orange County, Long Beach. Many airports charge $6-10 for this service. Click here to find out other FREE airport locations around the country.

NEW BAY AREA SERVICEIceland Airlines - Resumes non-stop service San Francisco to Reykjavik, Iceland 4 times a week, with good connections if you want to continue to mainland Europe. Iceland had an extensive GLBT marketing campaign recently promoting extensive outdoor activities and entertainment. Fares historically have been very competitive - allowing a few days in Iceland, then continue elsewhere in Europe for < $600. For now, nothing like that on their website. Keep your eyes open for it though.

Northwest Airlines - NEW daily non-stop service to Indianapolis starts June 1. 1000 bonus miles on this route. Airtran - also starts SFO-Indianapolis June 8.

Hawaiian Airlines - to offer "as low as" $43 each way tickets for inter-island travel starting October 1st. Likely competing with Mesa airlines who recently started island service. Book early for these fares! Source: Pualani Ohana Newsletter.

AmericaWest - their website is gone! Finally switches over to US Air. Travelers flying US Air "west" (ie: America West) can request United Airlines credit. Although not official on their website, there have been many reports successfully doing this. (US Air is part of Star Alliance - but America West was not)