View From the Wing

JetBlue Keeps TSA Fees It Must Refund After Award Tickets Are Canceled — Judge Lets Passengers Sue by Gary Leff on July 7, 2026 JetBlue has been keeping taxes when a customer cancels their award ticket. Passengers are suing. The airline tried to get the case thrown out of court – but a judge ruled against them on Monday. When you buy an airline ticket, some taxes are owed right away, and the airline has to send the money to the government whether you travel or not.

United Airlines Sold Window Seats Without Windows. Now A Judge Is Letting Passengers Sue by Gary Leff on July 7, 2026 United Airlines is being sued for selling window seats without windows. And in a big blow to the airline, they lost their motion to dismiss on Monday, July 6, 2026. The airline sells some seats next to the fuselage that don’t have windows beside them. Customers are paying seat assignmnet fees expecting to look out the window but they can only look at the interior wall of the cabin.

I received an invite to X Money, which is Elon Musk’s new financial account: in-app wallet; peer-to-peer transfers; Visa debit card; bill pay, wires, and bank transfers; savings account. The $25 signup bonus posts instantly – there is no account activity required. Remember that X.com was Musk’s original online payments and banking company that he founded in 1999 and merged into what became PayPal a year later (he was CEO of PayPal for about 5 months until he was ousted by Peter Thiel).

Starlink Wi-Fi Has Always Been Free On Planes. Copa Airlines Is About To Change That by Gary Leff on July 6, 2026 Airlines will be able to charge extra for Starlink wifi for the first time. Until now, Starlink wifi has always been free. That’s been a requiremnet by Starlink from the very first launch of their service.

IHG One Rewards Kills Email Support. Members Can Still Argue With AI Or Send A Fax by Gary Leff on July 6, 2026 The 1990s called IHG One Rewards. They want their fax back. Loyalty Lobby flags that IHG hotels has eliminated e-mail customer service for its loyalty program, directing customers to call, use their chatbot, or send a fax instead. While IHG has improved elite benefits in recent years, they’ve had some of the worst customer service for decades.

The Biggest Rewards Credit Cards In A Nutshell: What They’re Actually Good For, And Where They Fall Short by Gary Leff on July 6, 2026 I receive compensation for content and many links on this blog. Be aware that websites may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened. Citibank is an advertising partner of this site, as is American Express, Chase, Capital One, and others.

A few weeks ago we learned that Chase would open a Sapphire Lounge at the Miami airport in concourse E. It will be 13,793 square feet near gate E7. The Miami airport E concourse is connected to the American Airlines D concourse, and sees flights from American, Alaska, British Airways, Finner, Iberia, Qatar, Aer Lingus, Royal Air Maroc and others such as Gol, Avelo and Arajet.

Hotels Are Being Hit With Fake Guest Complaint Emails That Install Malware, And No One Knows Why Yet [Roundup] by Gary Leff on July 6, 2026 News and notes from around the interweb: Hotel front desk and reservations staff are being phished with fake “guest complaint” emails about bedbugs and bad stays. The emails look more legitimate because they hop through real services like Calendly and Google redirects.

Passenger Stranded By British Airways Got His Own Private United Airlines 737 To Take Him Home by Gary Leff on July 6, 2026 After a man’s British Airways flight from London Heathrow to Chicago O’Hare diverted to Cincinnati on the 4th of July, that passenger says BA “abandoned him.” They “refused to help” get him back home and, he says, after “10+ calls to [American Airlines and British Airways] ustomer service” told him to: “figure out [your] way home and situation on [your] own Storms were...

First Class Hot Nuts Feel Stale — It’s Time For Airlines To Serve Something Better by Gary Leff on July 5, 2026 Is it time to eliminate hot nuts in first class? They’re boring and they do not distinguish the product. It’s like airlines aren’t even trying. And that’s why coming up with a replacement seems like a real opportunity to wow customers with something different.