I've been dealing with a number of family issues over the last week, so I apologize for the brevity of recent posts and the noticeable gaps between them. Just to warn my six readers, the next couple weeks don't look much better. But, never lose hope. I have so many trip reports and hotel reviews to bring you (some from places I never even mentioned I was traveling to) that I trust will be worth the wait.

Today, a simple question for you: how did the United Airlines transition from ...

Matthew spoke a few days ago about the all important passenger systems integration between United and Continental that took place and the possible 'armagaddon' that such endeavours have brought in other airline mergers. That fact that I was supposed to fly from Chicago to Houston on United some 35 hours after this transition had me a little concerned.. So far it turns out to have been for no reason.

I made a few advance preparations to help my travel a little bit easier: ...

At 0100 Central Time on Saturday, 03 March, United Airlines will flip the switch, transitioning from its Apollo Reservation System it has used for the last four decades to Continental's in-house SHARES system. Will the transition be smooth? History suggests no.

To be blunt, the history of these kinds of data transitions is horrific. When US Airways and the old America West combined computers in March 2007, travelers were inconvenienced for weeks, and as many as 70 percent of the ...

As the 03 March 2012 Continental-United integration date moves closer, we are already seeing what the new "United" will look like in some stations. Philadelphia, for example, rolled out the new Continental-esque flight display screens for United flights last week.

Take a look:

 

Here's my observations:

We no longer know ...

I don't typically blog about my boring business travel. Every now and then there's something surprising like an emotional support dog or WiFi on a United filght, but today I just felt that not only was the service really great on the United (Continental) flight from Phoenix to Houston, but the food was also great as well. Combine that with the fact that the Continental 737-900 is my favorite domestic plane in the post-merger fleet. That makes for a bloggable flight.

It's been a long ...

Reader Sandy asks:

Matthew, I received the following offer from United in my e-mail box. I was about 10K miles short of 1P [Premier Executive] status last year, so I am tempted to take advantage, though it looks expensive. What do you think?

Sandy, that's a tough question and the answer will depend on your flying plans for 2012. $ 1691 for 10,000 EQMs is a hefty fee and holding Premier Executive status only for the sake of holding ...