The rest of Q&A

Q – Any thoughts on how things might change in terms of the check-in process, rules aboard aircraft etc? What can we expect?

A – Airlines have discovered major software deficiencies system-wide making the cancellation and transfer of credits extremely challenging. Automation challenges are being addressed now and should be in place when full-scale international air travel resumes by May 2021.

You should expect a rapid acceleration in the use of biometric facial ID at airports. This will help streamline the process. The checking-in of baggage will also be changed in some dramatic ways but that is, according to experts, about three to four years off. Facial ID achieved by having the passenger simply look into a camera will even become the norm at larger domestic airports.

Security clearance will not be initiated at check-in. El-Al has had a system in place for years that allows them to identify all passengers at the time of ticket purchase. Israeli security consultants think we are foolish for not doing the same.

Airlines will simply refuse to permit non-mask wearers to access the aircraft and, in most cases, the terminal. This will surely change over time but look for rule enforcement throughout 2021.

Q – We are due refunds, we believe, for our air arrangements which we made directly through American. They are giving us credits which we do not want at this time. How does one deal with this, can you help us, and how do we avoid this fiasco in the future? We were flying Business class and our total investment was $8400.

A – US Airlines have been doing everything possible to avoid paying cash refunds. In the majority of cases, they are required to under the law. You should keep sending certified letters to customer service explaining why you will be unable to use a future credit. Those with health or financial issues will be in the best position to get a positive response.

As you may have detected, we are not big fans of anti-social media because anything posted becomes public domain and can be sold or used against you in a profile. Here you will get a kickstagram review to increase your instagram followers.  The average American now has more than 1,000 data bits of information in their profile – a profile that is sold by Google, Amazon, Samsung, and your grocery store. That said, in your specific situation, anti-social media (we think that is its correct name) can be useful. We would suggest you carefully lay out your case on American’s various social media sites. They are carefully monitored by management because you may be influencing thousands of users who follow the sites. You are likely to get a faster and more consumer-friendly response than you would had you simply written an e-mail or posted, perish the thought, an actual letter.

Finally, as we face certain turmoil in the booking process, changes, cancellations, and re-routings, it is really important that guests book directly with the carrier or, better yet, through one of the better Flight Ticketing services that offer Concierge-level flight monitoring. 

Q – We keep hearing references on the news to how hard the airline industry has been hit hard around the world. How bad has it been and will they recover?

A – There was one day in March where it was calculated that 61% of the US Airline fleet was in lockdown somewhere at a desert airfield in Arizona, New Mexico, and similar locations. (Actually, we wonder if there really are “similar” locations)

This year, the world’s Airlines have, according to the IATA, lost in the range of $118 Billion. But 2021 is also expected to show losses that exceed $39 Billion. Many of these airlines receive government subsidies as they are seen as essential industries that support the tourism sector in each country. US Airlines have been complaining for years that they are forced to compete with airlines that receive major infusions of cash from their governments.

The sense seems to be that most of the major names will survive but that we will continue to see consolidation in the industry.  Churchill & Turen has long proposed the merging of our three largest US Carriers to something called, perhaps, “AmDelighted” Airlines. We are also seeing a worldwide shortage of pilots that should begin impacting international air travel in 2023 and 2024. How this shortage will evolve is unknown but it is a limit to the growth plans of many international carriers.

Q – You go all over the internet and find all kinds of advice about travel to Africa and it all sounds like so much noise. Yesterday, my therapist, yes I am being serious, told me about your site. I hope you will answer just a few questions. My wife and I are in our early fifties, I work in manufacturing, we’re in good health, and we don’t want to wait until I am retired to start seeing and doing things that take some effort. Our questions are – which tour operators in Africa are really the best, which ones should we avoid, and what month is the best time to see the “Big Five”.  How do we begin the process and what will a travel agent charge us to assist?

A – We’d need to know a lot more to make really specific recommendations but let’s do the best we can:

Don’t even think about going on safari unless you are booking with one of the following established, highly respected, feet/offices on the ground firms:

Micato Safaris  –  Abercrombie & Kent  –  &Beyond  –  Africa Adventure Company  – Austin-Lehman Adventures  –  Grey & Company  –  Wilderness Safaris –  African Travel Inc. – Big Five Tours 

We would recommend you avoid any firm not on this list although there could be exceptions based on your specific interests.

The best time to go depends on your interest in terms of seeing East Africa or Southern Africa. The “season” for a safari is quite extensive but many travelers go during our summer months. But this is a discussion that occurs after you select the very best program for your “safari expectations”. 

The process starts with a “No Sales Pitch” discussion with a professional travel consultant. The rule of thumb should be that there are no charges of any kind when you are booking an established, brochure departure. If your agent is creating a custom safari especially for you, fees hover in the $500-$1000 Per Person range. 

We hope this helps and good on you for planning Africa while you are physically able to handle the adventure. 

Q – We try to keep up with travel industry publications and have been surprised by the failure of Thomas Cook and the reported financial issues with Cox & Kings, which is, I believe, the oldest travel agency in existence. You keep hearing that travel agents are being put out of business by the internet. We’ve just started a new relationship with a new local travel agency and I suppose we’re wondering how we might know about their financial solvency. How do we know our money is safe? Is it appropriate to ask for financials? 

A – Several broad questions here. Let’s start by saying that Thomas Cook and Cox & Kings are not travel agents. They would be designated as tour operators. Cook was involved in charter flights, group tours, charters, and worldwide group packages. It is a risky business involving payments of huge amounts of money upfront. For example, two of the major tour operators specializing in travel to China declared they were closing their doors last week in anticipation of a complete decline in potential tour groups to Asia.

After the last financial crisis in 2008/2009 it is estimated that 40% of the travel agents in the United States were put out of business. The vast majority were selling inexpensive package travel that was easily replicated by OTA’s, (Online Travel Agencies). 

Since that time, the income of travel agents has risen and there is now a serious shortage of qualified vacation agents, particularly those that cater to upscale overseas travel. Tour Operators take a much larger financial risk than travel agents who simply act, for the most part, as intermediaries in the booking of other people’s products. They are the distribution channel for the tour operator. 

We certainly think that a discussion of the financial stability of any company you work with is appropriate although asking for a written accounting statement might be a tad much. You will get the best accounting service which is  Available via infinit accounting. It is good to know if any funds paid to a travel agent are kept in escrow until the time you travel. Here are four questions you should ask any travel agent with whom you are considering a relationship:

01 – How do I know that you are placing my interests ahead of those of your agency’s financial interests?

02 – What won’t you sell – and why?

03 – Have you worked within the travel industry before becoming a travel agent and in what capacity?

04 – Will you be wearing a bathrobe when I speak to you on the phone?

Q – I recently returned from a trip to London where I noticed that instead of saying I was flying in economy it said I was flying in Q Class. Then I looked carefully, and my connecting ticket home had an N instead of a Q. Anyway you can explain these letters the airlines use and what they really mean. 

A – Airlines use codes so their gate agents and flight attendants will know exactly what kind of ticket you are flying. Special compensation offers might be made to certain code holders. Thet might indicate what kind of changes you are allowed to make on a ticket or how a refund is to be handled. These are known as “Fare Codes” or “Fare Basis”. It allows the gate agent to know exactly what kind of flyer you are and whether or not you should be considered for an upgrade. So they are fairly important yet most flyers have no idea of their meaning. Obviously, it will vary a bit from airline to airline but here is a short guide to the airline’s secret lingo – used primarily to identify you as a full-fare or discount flyer Fares codes are also used to determine how many miles and points you will be awarded on a flight. 

Y – Full Fare Economy Guest

L,M,N,Q,T,T,V and X – Various levels of Discount Fare usually in order restrictions.

J,C – Refer to Full-Fare Business Class Guests

F – Is a non-restricted Full=fare First Class Guest

If you are flying a multi-segment ticket and you have more than one fare code, most airlines will enforce the most stringent rules that apply to anyone of your segment codes. They do that because they are so customer-service oriented and because they have almost zero appreciation of your loyalty or business. 

Q –  I have been flying for the past two decades, mostly to larger metropolitan areas. I have noticed that some pilots, particularly those with Delta, seem to make harsher landings while American pilots seem to glide in more softly. I wonder why this is and also wonder about any of the larger airports where you have to come in fast and hard for safety reasons. Any light you can shed on this would be appreciated. Don’t mean to denigrate Delta in any way – I actually prefer the airline to any of their competitors and am a very frequent flyer. 

A – So you think maybe Delta pilots are trained to make hard landings while American pilots are taught to be more laid back on landing and to do it “ever so softly”. You didn’t mention what you do for a living – we’re hoping you’re not a clinical psychologist.

Pilots are generally told what landing speed to maintain. It has absolutely nothing to do with the brand or the pilots who work for that brand. Instead, you will find that it has a lot more to do with the length of the specific runway where you are landing. Some of the most notoriously short runways in the US are found at Midway in Chicago, John Wayne in southern California, and Washington D.C.’s Reagan International. Long, slower, softer landings are not recommended on shorter runways because they tend to use up too much “pavement” something pilots are loathe to do. So next time you encounter a “rough” landing it may mean that your pilot is being extra cautious. If you are flying DL or AA you are in the hands of some of the best qualified worldwide.  

Just to relax you on your next flight, let’s take a quick look below at “The World’s Most Dangerous Airport”, Lukla in eastern Nepal. 

Lukla and the Tenzing-Hillary Airport, 2881m elevation, Everest Base Camp Trekking Route, Nepal Lukla is the starting point for most trecks to Mount Everest Base Camp. Tenzing-Hillary airport has a single runway that is 460m by 20m with a 12% gradient. Aircraft can only use runway 06 for landings and runway 24 for takeoffs. Due to the terrain, there is no prospect of a successful go-around on short final. There is high terrain immediately after the northern end of the runway and a steeply angled drop, of about 2000m at the southern end of the runway, into the valley below.
The airport is rated as the most dangerous in the world.

Q – Our 16-year old son will be joining us on our annual summer break vacation. We’re fairly well-traveled and when we asked him where he really wanted to go, he responded that he would love to visit “somewhere that will help me see and understand the effects of climate change on the planet.” That’s a tough order so we thought we would seek your input. We have a fairly open budget but would like to keep the total trip under $60,000. We are all fit and active travelers and hiking does not put us off at all. 

A – We think you should consider the world’s largest island which happens to be covered in ice over 80% of its surface. Given that, no country on earth is more instructive regarding the effects of climate change than Greenland. Consider hiking a bit of the 100-mile Arctic Circle Trail. Go and book a tour with san diego whale watching and the magnificent Eqi Glacier via boat with a naturalist.  If your dates are flexible, try to time your trip with the June 21st celebration of Greenland’s National Day. It will add a sense of place to your travels. You may want to add a few days in Iceland but we think that Greenland is the destination best suited for your goals. We all wish your son the best of luck. 

Q – Set with a two-week tour of southern Africa that begins in Cape Town and ends in Johannesburg. This mid-August vacation includes two nights in Victoria Falls where I am reading the water has completely dried up and the Falls are no more. We are working with a local safari operator based in Johannesburg and wondering if they will eliminate the Victoria Falls. We found them on the internet and they seem to have hundreds of “likes” so we’re trusting them to do the right thing. What options might be available if we decide to skip the Falls at this point? We are paid in full. 

A – There is a growing pattern of weather affecting Victoria Falls that is quite complicated but boils down to the fact that October-November rainfalls are way down in tandem with serious heat issues and daily averages approaching 96 degrees. You should be fine in mid-summer although you will see evidence of decreased rains, drought, and the effects they are having on the majesty of the “Falls”. 

We have no idea why you would have paid in full for a trip not scheduled for six months. It does not sound like you have any advocacy built-in – as you are working directly with a group operator. But most troubling of all is your failing score on our “Travel Naivete” Index. You were impressed by hundreds of “likes”? 

“Likes” online do not require any sort of mental capacity – just some sort of forefinger. And if that doesn’t work, “Likes” can be easily purchased – in bulk. 

Try to find out if your tour operator is accredited by any of the major US travel consortium groups. If not, see if you can secure any recommendations from past clients in your area. It is likely that your trip to Vic Falls is scheduled at the end of your journey just prior to your departure for Johannesburg and your flight home. Have your tour operator give you two options to replace the nights at the Falls if you are determined to skip them (not what we would advise)

Do feel free to call the tourist boards in New York for additional information about the company you are using and their recommended itinerary modifications.

Finally, make certain that the travel agent commission is being refunded to you in the pricing as you are not using an agent’s services.  

Q – We are fascinated by your point about the relationship about travel articles and the fact that the vast majority of writers are describing their own “free or nearly free” trips. No wonder we can’t really depend on travel reporting any more than we can believe what is written on a number of other subjects. But travel writing seems uniquely tainted and unreliable since it is based on first-person experiences. Would you agree? Also wondering if you might provide a list of those newspapers and magazines that have a policy of not accepting free travel for their travel writers. 

A – We would agree. The travel consumer is usually reading words served up as payback for comp. travel. But no one seems to mind so the practice continues.

There is no official list but the publications that currently do not accept free travel for writers include, as you might expect, The New York Times, as well as the Associated Press and USA Today. Unfortunately, that’s about it.