The Next Trip - An Aviation and Travel Podcast

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Boarding Pass 136: Crew Scheduling: We Need You... 20 Min Ago Jul 04, 2022

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Happy 4th of July to our American listeners! On this holiday weekend Doug gets a call to fly to Taiwan, 20 minutes after the check-in time, to cover a 777 first officer opening. We tape with Doug in a glorified hotel “jail” cell in Taipei with the country still under severe Covid-19 restrictions. We talk about Doug’s trip to Asia, Drew’s “seconds to cancelation” story about how everything has to come together in Airport Ops to get a flight out of the gate and off the ground. We also discuss:
The A380’s are making a triumphant comeback with Lufthansa and Korean dusting off the “Supers”
The JetBlu/Frontier/Spirit telenovela continues with Spirit extending the shareholder vote date to July 8
We discuss another poll on how you choose a flight, this time when money is no object. Drew is upset with the results….again

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Boarding Pass 135: Trust Us, We're All Trying! Jun 27, 2022

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Just off our Boeing 777 and Piper Warrior flights we are pumped up and ready to talk aviation! Doug gets to fly a frequent flier across the 4 million mile mark and Drew gets comfortable with Warrior landing patterns and touch and goes. We then dive into:
A listener’s poll about how you decide on what ticket to buy (price, schedule, service?)
Jetblue increases its offer for Spirit
US Transportation Secretary asks airlines to do better
Air India is in talks to buy 300 narrowbodies and 50 A350’s
Skywest forms charter subsidiary to fly 30-seat planes with lower pilot requirements
Pre-cleared cities

We end with a listener’s love-hate relationship with his hometown airline, Norwegian.

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Boarding Pass 134: Doug Flies the 777! Jun 20, 2022

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Doug is fresh off his first 777 flight with a trip from San Francisco to Honolulu, to Guam, and back. Drew has a bunch of questions for Doug on the 777 and the airports he visited, and has his own story flying the other end of the spectrum - a single engine Piper Warrior. Other topics on this episode:
Biden Administration lifts the testing requirement to travel to the US
Jetblue/Spirit/Frontier merger triangle drama continues
The new Air Force One will not have the Trump inspired dark livery - we’ll tell you why
We do a tank dive on TWA and its merger with AA after you asked or it

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Boarding Pass 133: Kentucky to California Jun 13, 2022

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Drew heads out to California with Next Trip contributor, Greg from Kentucky, while Doug waits to fly the 777. We discuss Kentucky aviation and our crazy trip out to LAX which involved a few changes due to full flights everywhere. Greg talks about Cincinnati, Ohio’s airport, CVG, which is actually in Kentucky, the large cargo hub at Louisville, and the lack of air service at Lexington. We also discuss:
Jetblue sweetens the pot with a better offer for Spirit
Is it time to make airplanes wider?

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Follow Greg on Twitter at @gpetelex or on Instagram at gwpet01
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Boarding Pass 132: CRM Jun 06, 2022

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Doug is still waiting to be called to work his first 777 flight and Drew gets some family time in between crazy busy operations shifts. Busy or not, we always find time for our avgeek podcast break. Speaking of work and pleasure, what’s a good term for a combination business/leisure trip? Bleisure, Lisness, WFV (working from vacation)? We share your great ideas.

What is CRM, crew resource management, and how does it apply in any work environment, not just on the flight deck?

Also on this show:
Cancelations and delays rise around the world as the recovery hits roadblocks
Norwegian settles a contract dispute with Boeing and orders 50 737 MAX 8’s

We do a go-around on our 767-400 story from last week with some added fun facts

We end the show with a great question about regional airlines from Drew’s flight instructor Kathleen and a big thank you to flight attendants around the world for your hard work. Happy International Flight Attendants Day!

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Boarding Pass 131: Why Not the 767-400? May 30, 2022

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Doug is going stir crazy at home waiting for “the call”, with his first 777 assignment, and Drew is trying to keep the operation from getting crazy with 4 ramp closures for lightning within a few hours. To get our minds off our week, we obsess about why the 767-400 wasn’t successful with only 37 built. We continue our discussion about a new “Golden Age” of aviation with Bombardier flight testing the Global 8000, which will be the fastest passenger airplane, and the growth of luxurious airport lounges. Also on this episode:
Lufthansa partnering with MSC to buy 80% of ITA, the successor to Alitalia
We make a whole segment out of a listener comparison of European and US premium products - thanks Guy!

Check out this great historical lounge overview by Lounge Review.

https://loungereview.com/the-use-of-airline-lounges-as-a-marketing-tool-history-and-innovation/

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Boarding Pass 130: Alliances May 23, 2022

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What was the first airline alliance - was it STAR, NW/KL, oneworld, Wings? We discuss international alliances that help improve revenues and ease passenger connectivity across carriers. Also, we believe we may be entering a new Golden Age of Aviation with supersonic airliners running on sustainable fuel, electric sea gliders, and airlines competing on improved passenger experience. Doug waits for the call to fly his first 777 and Drew has a busy week with flight training, irregular ops at work, and two Next Trip listeners visiting. Other topics:
jetBlue is at it again, now with a hostile takeover bid for Spirit
EU drops its mask mandate but Italy and Spain keep masks on plane
US airlines continue to press for lifting testing requirements to enter the country
FAA still needs more data before Boeing 787 deliveries can resume
China Eastern plane may have been intentionally crashed

We finish the show answering great questions from listeners regarding passenger experience on the 787 and 777, Eurobiz, and possible new mid-continent airline hubs.

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Boarding Pass 129: EuroBiz May 16, 2022

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What's better, having a middle seat open, lounge access, and high quality meals, or a bigger seat? We discuss Eurobiz vs US domestic First. Other topics on this episode:
Non-pairwise widebodies…what are they?
Japan may open to tourists
Fedex gets it’s first SkyCourier - weird but functional
Republic Airways asks for minimum new pilots hours of 750 vs 1,500
WN improves inflight product
Avianca and GOL try to team up
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Boarding Pass 128: Project Sunrise May 09, 2022

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Drew is fresh off his third private pilot training flight so get ready for more small plane pilot memoirs. Doug is more excited about Drew’s business trip and asks him if it was better than Zoom - spoiler…..uhhh YES!! Also on this episode:
Qantas orders the A350-1000 to launch Project Sunrise nonstop flights between Sydney and London and New York
Spirit rejects jetBlue's offer to merge
Airlines offer reduced price or free wifi. Does wifi or messaging affect which airline you choose
The FAA's confusing new aircraft wake turbulence categories

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Boarding Pass 127: Bigfoot May 02, 2022

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We’re going from Guppies (737’s) to Bigfoot (777) as Doug finishes 777 training. One of the striking features of the 777 is its huge main landing, the largest on any aircraft. We dig into landing gear and getting aircraft on the ground vs. off the ground on this episode. Other topics discussed
Drew flies jetBlue Mint for the first time

Delta flight attendants start getting paid during boarding

Is the A220 the 787 of long, thin domestic routes. Breeze starts A220 transcon flights
ANA says outlook for air travel in Japan is improving

We end the show sharing listener comments on flying on the 747, getting through Amsterdam Schipol Airport, and airline boarding cutoff times.

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