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I received the e-mail below from British Airways last night:

Dear Matthew,

I'm happy to announce the launch of our 2010 Face of Opportunity Contest. We'll be giving a free flight to hundreds of companies with up to 250 employees plus hosting exclusive conferences and networking events in New York and London led by business pioneers and celebrity speakers.

Last year British Airways helped over 600 growing businesses by giving them free flights to hundreds of destinations worldwide. Now it's your chance. Enter by October 21, 2010, and let us know where you'd like to go and why it will help your business grow. Up to 250 companies will be invited to fly free from New York to London and beyond on British Airways.

If you or your business isn't eligible, please feel free to forward this email to anyone who could benefit from this unique opportunity for small businesses.

There's a lot more to our Face-to-Face program, so be sure to visit our Business Hub at ba.com/facetoface. You'll find success stories from last year's winners, weekly blogs, articles and other tools to help your business make the most of face-to-face meetings worldwide.

Warm regards,
Anne Tedesco
Vice President, Marketing

Looks like an attractive offer to me. Those with small businesses composed of less than 250 employees would be wise to look into this further.

Check out Sara and Bobby's appearance on today's episode of Sonoran Living on the ABC affiliate in Phoenix, Arizona. They discussed how a little planning on what to bring to the airport can make your flight more enjoyable. In addition they discuss some kid friendly things to bring along.

Although I am "pro-business" in many respects, I don't like to see workers get screwed and have been sympathetic to the plight of UA flight attendants in the post 9/11 era of dramatic salary reductions and benefit cuts.

When I travel on UA I proudly wear my orange "Glenn's Gotta Go!" bracelet (that always seems to encourage FA's) and voice my support for a new labor contract that does not only reward the fat cats at the top.

While one incident won't change this view, I was deeply disturbed to read this account of a recent United IAD-ORD flight on Flyertalk:

Was sitting in 21B on UA 991 from IAD to ORD this morning. After the beverage service, I watched two flight attendants spend about 40 minutes opening every can of unopened soda and juice, about four trays worth, and pour the contents down the drain in the mid-cabin galley in Economy. They also empied about a dozen full unopened bottles of water. Overheard one of the FAs speaking with another crewmember about union action.

If these allegations are true, not only is this petty and childish behavior, but it is against the law. I condemn the FA's who took part in this jejune temper tantrum. While I wouldn't fire the FAs over this action (if it was their first offense), I would deduct the cost of the beverages from their paychecks.

A new labor contract is in the works and I suspect we'll hear threats of strikes and witness a decline in service levels in the coming months, unless UA rolls over and concedes to the (unreasonable in this economy) demands of the unions.

I'm not one who blames labor unions for the problems of a corporation, but if the story above is true, I expect that the AFA condemn the actions of those two FAs.

Until I learn more about this issue, I will be leaving my "Glenn's Gotta Go" bracelet off when I fly on United this week and next.

I still miss XM Radio on United, but earlier in the year United teamed up with Microsoft to offer "Zune inflight audio" across the UA fleet. The new audio selections have been well recieved by passengers and United and Zune are now taking their relationship a step further.

In the coming months, look for portable Zune players in premium cabins (and perhaps for rent in economy) on flights between Hong Kong/Australia and the United States.

The obvious question, of course, is who doesn't already carry a portable media player with them on a 14-hour flight? Microsoft's answer is that the Zune will be packed with exclusive music and some movies that have yet to be released on DVD.

Without looking at the economic considerations factoring into this partnership, I applaud the move to make Zunes available onboard UA's longest flights (any improvements on UA should be applauded). I would prefer, however, Jetstar's iPad rental.

(tip of the hat to Sean)

In this week's flight crew podcast Bobby and Sara are once again joined by Gailen and our guest this week is Kitty Bean Yancey a leisure travel writer with USA Today. We discuss:

• Kitty's recent column on the tension flight attendants face
• Why it was easier in the "old days" to call the Captain for problems in the cabin
• How full flights and carry on bags are adding to the stress levels
• Using the bathroom "in your ticketed cabin"
• Give us your trash - please!
• and more...

What experience have you had? Write in below!

We hope to see you every week in the lounge, where we'll dish the dirt and give you a peek behind the galley curtain! Remember to check out Sara's blog at TheFlyingPinto.com and Bobby's at UpUpAndAGay.com. If you have a comment about something we've spoken about, question for our panel of flight attendants, or if you just want to say "hi!" call our comment line at: 620-CREW-LGE (620-273-9543).

Download MP3

It's time for another trip report! This report will recount my airline travel and adventures in South America in July.

^{I: Introduction}

^{II: Los Angles to Washington Dulles via Denver in United First}

^{III: Washington to Buenos Aires in United Airlines Business Class}

^{IV: Business Class (Cama) Bus Service from Buenos Aires to Iguazu Falls}

^{V: Breakfast in Paraguay, Lunch in Brazil, Dinner in Argentina + Brazilian Side of Cataratas}

^{VI: Iguazu Falls from the Argentinian Side + Sheraton Iguazu Falls}

^{VII: First Class (Super Cama) Bus Service from Iguazu Falls to Buenos Aires}

^{VIII: Exploring Buenos Aires}

^{IX: Day trip to Colonia, Urugay}

^{X: Review: Park Hyatt Buenos Aires}

^{XI: Buenos Aires to Washington, DC in United Economy}

^{XII: IAD-LAS in United F + Las Vegas + LAS-SFO-BUR in United F/Y}

---

United Airlines once had a powerful presence in South America. Rio De Jinero, Sao Paulo, and Buenos Aires remain, but Caracas, Lima, Santiago, and Montevideo have been cut. With TAM now a member of Star Alliance and Continental boasting a notable presence in South America, the losses have been somewhat compensated for.

Nevertheless, I continue to be drawn back to United—perhaps in hope that I’ll have that rare great flight where FA service levels surpass that of industry leaders like Singapore, Lufthansa, and Swiss. So when I found a fare to Buenos Aires with a 14 hour layover in Boston that was cheaper than a trip to Boston alone on the same dates, I gladly set aside a few extra days to visit Argentina.

On my way to Burbank airport to ticket the itinerary, just a few hours before the hold expired, I still wasn’t sure if I wanted to go. I get tired of traveling alone and it was winter in South America. But I booked it. And I’m glad I did.

In addition to my meeting in Boston (which was postponed the day after I booked the ticket), I scheduled in a long layover in Denver on the outbound and a long layover in Las Vegas on the return. United has not tightened the routing restrictions on most of their international tickets so it is still possible to book four segments in each direction, with a layover of up to 24 hours between each segment.

I was booked into L-Class, which meant the only way to upgrade the international segments was with a large chunk of miles and co-pay. Though I love United’s lie-flat business class seats, I wasn’t about to fork over so much for a leisure trip. But economy isn’t too bad, especially on international flights where the younger and more energetic FAs (relatively speaking) tend to work the back. I ordered a Hindu meal (generally decent out of IAD) and did not give flying in business class a second thought.

The plan was to stay one night in Montevideo and three nights at the Park Hyatt in Buenos Aires. Using “Welcome Back” nights from my Hyatt account, I booked the room and really looked forward to staying at a $500/night 5-star hotel rather than a $15 hostel. But then my friend Laura sent me a text message asking if I was going to Iguazu Falls. I hadn’t thought about it, but started doing a little research to see if the 650 mile trip north was feasible. Flying was expensive and there was no award space on LAN Argentina from AEP-IGR on the dates I wanted. Most of the guides I read heralded long distance busses to go from Buenos Aires to Puerto Iguazu. They were also relatively cheap—more on that later—so I planned to take the bus. That meant only two nights at the Hyatt and only two full days in Buenos Aires. But it all worked out.

Fasten your seatbelts. It's time for another trip report.