Triangle Trip

I was the first person on the plane and noticed there were quit a few pillows and blankets in overhead bins. I also heard the flight attendants making multiple announcements telling passengers to help themselves to the pillows and blankets. After 3/4 of the plane have boarded and we were running out of overhead space, I saw flight attendants rearranging the bags in the overhead bins. I noticed pillows and blankets were taking up half of one bin. The flight attendant was walking around offering pillows and blankets to passengers and there were no takers.

With all the airlines nickle and diming passengers on the smallest stuff, they failed to see that pillows and blankets is an area they should can cost and may make passengers happier. I am not sure how much of the budget goes to pillows and blankets but I am sure there’s a cost. Airlines have to buy the pillows and blankets then clean them on every flight. I’m sure passengers would give up free blankets and pillows in exchange for a can of soda vs a tiny cup filled with ice.

Pillows and blankets takes up overhead space. Experienced and business travelers will not use pillows or blankets as they’re usually prepared. I saw 10% of the plane with the neck pillows which I am not sure if they work. Other travelers who needs pillows and blankets can easily use their jackets. If you don’t have a jacket because you heading to Hawaii and coming from a warm place like southern California? Well, that’s too bad. You should always travel with a light jacket.

Airlines can get rid of pillows and blankets to save money or use the proceeds to offer better services. Why offer a service to customers when only 10% would value or even use it? If the airline believes the the 10% of passengers would like the pillows and blankets, they can sell it to those passengers to make more money and pass the cost savings to other customers like me who never use it. Perhaps US Scare has got it right for once. USAir began charging for pillows and blankets back in Feburary 2009. I am sure US-Scare’s pillows and blankets annoucement did not get too much slack compared to charging $1 for coffee and $2 for a soda.

Many of you are probably thinking:  What is Triangle Trip?

The standard definition of a triangle trip in the travel world is:  a round trip booking with a stop over that has a purpose.  Triangle trips allow travelers to avoid purchasing three one way tickets.  You will need to know each airline’s hubs to make your triangle trip pay off and minimize the costs and layovers.

For example, you live in New York and want to go to Seattle for a wedding.  At the same time, you would like to golf in Phoenix before the wedding.  You will need to book a triangle trip that has a connection in Phoenix to reduce the cost of your travel — otherwise you would have to buy three one way tickets.  To accomplish the triangle trip, you will have to make some sacrifices such as making a stop over on your return or outbound.  The proposed itinerary for what I described would be booking a US Airways triangle trip from JFK to PHX because most of west bound US Airways flights have a stop over in Phoenix and you’ll have the benefit of getting a non stop flight.  After spending a few days golfing in Phoenix, you can hop on a plane from PHX to SEA to attend your wedding.  Your return trip from SEA may not be a non stop flight but that’s the sacrafice. 

We want to wish our readers a happy new year — a prosperous 2009!