U P F R O N T

Airlines' Q2 Financials (cont)
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Over the past week, we received financial results for the 2nd quarter (Apr. - June), for ATA and United, filling in the remaining gaps in our performance overview.

The following table shows quarterly earnings both with and without the government security subsidy and other 1-time items.

                     (A) - Excluding gov't subsidy, etc.
                     (B) - Inclusive of the above
                     * millions

Whither KLM?
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A recent Reuters report quotes a KLM spokesperson thusly: "KLM wants to keep its successful alliance with Northwest. But if it is in the best interest of both parties, the contract includes the terms under which the link can be ended."

For context, KLM is in discussions with both Air France and British Air, which would lead respectively to KLM's membership in the Delta-led SkyTeam alliance or in the oneworld alliance, which is co-anchored by American and BA.

But with Northwest and Continental's recent link-up with Delta, and the expectation that both would be incorporated into SkyTeam, the odds seemed stacked in favor of KLM following longtime partner, Northwest, down that same road.

Stay tuned.

M I L E S & P O I N T S

American Offers Bonus for Hawaii Packages
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AAdvantage members who book American Airlines Vacations packages of 5 nights or more to Hawaii will earn 8,000 bonus miles. Book a package online to earn an additional 3,000 bonus miles.

To earn the bonus, make reservations by Sept. 30 and travel between Aug. 15, 2003 and January 31, 2004.

> More...

American Adds Miles-for-Mortgages Partner
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AAdvantage members may now earn miles-for-mortgages through Wells Fargo's First Class Home Financing program.

Members will receive 1,000 AAdvantage miles for every $10,000 of the loan amount on new purchases or refinances, with no limit on the number of miles that can be earned.

For details, call 1-866-324-8127 or go here.

Exchange Amex Points for More SkyMiles
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Through Aug. 15, Amex Membership Rewards members will receive a 15% bonus when exchanging points for miles in Delta's SkyMiles program.

So, with the bonus, 1,000 MR points convert to 1,150 miles in SkyMiles.

Registration is required.

> More...

Best Western Launches Award Card
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Best Western's Gold Crown Club International (GCCI) now has its own affinity credit card, the Best Western MasterCard issued by Juniper Bank.

Cardholders earn 1 GCCI reward point for every $3 spent at Best Westerns and 1 point for every $5 spent elsewhere. New customers receive a Global Free Room Night Voucher good for 1 free night after using the card for the first time.

There's no limit on the number of points a cardholder may earn.

The card has no annual fee and charges a 9.9% annual percentage rate (variable).

> More...

Continental, VS Link Programs
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Continental and VS (the 2-letter code for Sir Richard Branson's airline, whose name triggers spam filters) are now mileage partners.

Effective Aug. 1, Continental OnePass members may earn and redeem miles for VS flights, and VS flying club members may earn and redeem miles on Continental flights.

The mileage link builds on a codeshare agreement which has been in place since 1998.

You Have... Northwest Bonus Miles
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Northwest is offering WorldPerks members up to 2,000 miles to receive e-mail.

Earn an initial 1,000 miles by signing up for NWA E-mail before Sept. 30. Remain on the e-mail distribution list through Dec. 31 to receive an additional 1,000 miles.

Offer is available to first-time NWA E-mail subscribers only.

> More...

US Airways Vacations Is Dividend Miles Partner
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Dividend Miles members will now earn miles on the air portion of vacation packages booked through US Airways Vacations.

> More...

S T E A L S & D E A L S

Deal Alert from SmarterLiving.com
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This week's hot deals from SmarterLiving.com...

Systemwide deals from Southwest starting at $78
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Southwest has announced sale fares starting at $78 roundtrip to/from all of the cities it serves, for travel from Aug. 19, 2003, through Jan. 16, 2004. Book tickets at least 14 days in advance and by Thursday, Aug. 28.

The lowest fares range from $78 to $198 roundtrip for flights on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Saturdays; flights on other days are available for $88 to $278. That means you can take a short-haul trip for under $100 no matter what day you travel, or fly cross-country during the week for less than $200.

If you know when you want to fly this fall or winter, plan and book your trip soon, because the seats available at the lowest prices may disappear quickly.

> More...

Fall sale fares to Hawaii starting at $309
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Now's a good time to book a fall vacation to Hawaii, with sale fares starting at $309 roundtrip. Fly from major California cities, as well as Las Vegas and Phoenix, on Hawaiian, or take a trip from select cities all over the country to 4 Hawaiian destinations, on United.

Travel dates and advance purchase requirements vary by airline.

> More...

S I T E 2 S E E

JoeSentMe
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Joe Brancatelli, Grand Poobah of the JoeSentMe website and BizTraveLife newsletter, doesn't mince words. The following, reprinted with permission, is from this week's edition of his newsletter:

"In their rush to turn frequency programs into general marketing plans, the Big Six have taken on a raft of shopping partners and both the airlines and the retailers seem intent on ripping off travelers. One example: the Continental OnePass alliance with Calyx & Corolla, the flowers-by-courier service.

"The OnePass deal seems sweet: Earn 15 miles for every dollar spent when you follow a OnePass link and buy at the C&C Web site. But the OnePass link drives you to a rigged version of the Calyx & Corolla site. Only C&C's most expensive products--the bouquets bundled with ugly, overpriced vases--are listed on the site. And a "catalog quick order" function, which should permit you to order C&C's more reasonably priced flowers-only products, has been disabled. Enter a valid code for a flowers-only bouquet and the OnePass version of the site spits out a phony error message. Of course, none of these games are played at C&C's public site, which lists the firm's entire inventory and happily processes the same "catalog quick order" codes that the OnePass-specific site rejects. In other words, if you want to shop smart, you can't have OnePass miles. I say a pox on both their houses. I won't buy from Calyx & Corolla--or follow a OnePass link to one of its marketing partners again--ever again."

> More...

R E A D E R R A N T S & R A V E S

This Week's E-Mailbag
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"I have been trying for two months to use FF miles for tickets to Mazatlan, Mexico from Tampa, FL for March, 2004.

"When I first started calling and checking the airline's web page their story was nothing available for the 35,000 FF mile category. Finally I had people telling me that they had not released the 35,000 mile category out of Florida yet and to keep checking. I have been calling or checking the web page every three or four days for at least 2 months.

"I called again on 7/29/03 and was told that the 35,000 mile category was full they had only the "Easy Pass" for 70,000.

"When did all the seats go, or had they really already gone back in May when I first started checking? No one could answer this. Their answer was 'It's spring break time'. However, I was able to get seats for the days I wanted by using American Airlines FF miles.

"This is not the first time that I have been unable to use my FF miles on Continental but have been able to use them for my desired time periods on other airlines and haven't started nearly as far in advance as I did this time. Also, other times I have been much more flexible on dates than I was on the Mexico trip. What good are my over 140,000 Continental FF miles when they don't ever seem to have seats available on their standard miles?

"I will no longer fly Continental or use their credit card."

- Polly

"Well, AA said if I financed a home through CountryWide home loans, I would get the equivalent of a mile for each dollar financed. Guess what? I hired a broker to handle the paperwork and now CountryWide says I am ineligible. Thanks for telling me after I did business with these people who gave lousy service anyway. The AA brochure sure didn't say anything about that. AA tried to make me happy by giving me 5,000 miles but said they couldn't do anything about CountryWide. What kind of crap is that!"

- Stephan

"I've been a reader of your Crier for a couple of years now and have always found your information extremely useful. However of late I'm quite amazed that you have not reported on any of the major changes to American in Saint Louis and what is happening to the "third hub" - or now quaintly (and sarcastically) referred to by locals as a 'Hub-lette'.

"American is making some drastic changes with a cut of over 50% of their flights (from 417 to 207) and a movement of much of the service to RJ's rather than the larger jets. It will likely have some major effects on the local economy and greatly impact the American network. This news does not seem to have hit outside of the region."

- A.J.

S W E E P S & F R E E B I E S

From Hilton: Hawaiian Vacations Giveaway
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Enter Hilton's Hawaiian Vacations Giveaway by Sept. 30 to win 1 of 70 prizes, including 9 grand-prize trips to Hawaii for 6 nights/7 days.

To be entered automatically, book a hotel stay online at a Hilton Family brand website (www.hilton.com, www.doubletree.com, www.embassysuites.com, www.hampton-inn.com, www.hiltongardeninn.com, www.homewoodsuites.com). It's also possible to enter without making a purchase..

> More...

Until next week...