2018 Your Travel Year In Review
Dec 27, 2018, 11:21 am
#46
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
Programs: DL PM, MR Titanium/LTP, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 10,130
Always love this thread. Another year over 100k for me but for the first time in a few years that number includes over 100k on paid travel (mostly work) plus another 27k of award travel on an epic honeymoon.
The stats:
Total Flights: 82
Total Miles: 131,292
New Countries (5): French Polynesia, Indonesia (Bali), Spain, Sweden, Romania
Total Countries (12): Australia, Canada, England, French Polynesia, Italy, Indonesia (Bali), Japan, New Zealand, Romania, Singapore, Spain, Sweden
New Airports (10): ABE (diversion), ARN, AMS, BNA, BOB, DPS, MAD, OTP, PPT, RST
Most Visited Airports (excluding RDU homebase): ATL, DTW, JFK, SFO
New Airlines (6): Air Tahiti, Air Tahiti Nui, LATAM (SYD - AKL 5th Freedom), Singapore Airlines
New Aircraft: 787-10 (SQ), ATR-72 (Air Tahiti), A340-300 (Air Tahiti Nui)
Op-up: First ever op-up on a TATL/TPAC flight on DL 231 CDG - RDU. Got the new seat assignment beep while boarding and the print-out said 1B, took me a second to fully register what happened followed by me praying for the doors to close as quickly as possible before they changed their mind
Shortest Flight: PPT - BOB 161mi
Longest Flight: LAX - SYD / SYD - LAX 7488mi
Best Flight(s): Flew SQ Suites on JFK - FRA - SIN (stopover) - SYD as part of our honeymoon. Had really great crew on all 3 flights. The actual hard product was a treat to finally experience though if we're being honest I found the bed way too hard so it wouldn't be my first choice in the future (either paid or with miles) but was awesome to check off the list. Also had the pleasure of flying JL F again home on NRT - ORD and was reminded how much I love the JL F product: incredible comfortable seats, Hibiki 17 -- though I hear it's no longer offered, consistently the best steak on a plane (and only one worth ordering), and a great crew who found out it was our honeymoon and toward the end of the flight gave us a little honeymoon gift of JL toy planes (with heart stickers) and a signed postcard
Here's to another great year of travel in 2019
The stats:
Total Flights: 82
Total Miles: 131,292
New Countries (5): French Polynesia, Indonesia (Bali), Spain, Sweden, Romania
Total Countries (12): Australia, Canada, England, French Polynesia, Italy, Indonesia (Bali), Japan, New Zealand, Romania, Singapore, Spain, Sweden
New Airports (10): ABE (diversion), ARN, AMS, BNA, BOB, DPS, MAD, OTP, PPT, RST
Most Visited Airports (excluding RDU homebase): ATL, DTW, JFK, SFO
New Airlines (6): Air Tahiti, Air Tahiti Nui, LATAM (SYD - AKL 5th Freedom), Singapore Airlines
New Aircraft: 787-10 (SQ), ATR-72 (Air Tahiti), A340-300 (Air Tahiti Nui)
Op-up: First ever op-up on a TATL/TPAC flight on DL 231 CDG - RDU. Got the new seat assignment beep while boarding and the print-out said 1B, took me a second to fully register what happened followed by me praying for the doors to close as quickly as possible before they changed their mind
Shortest Flight: PPT - BOB 161mi
Longest Flight: LAX - SYD / SYD - LAX 7488mi
Best Flight(s): Flew SQ Suites on JFK - FRA - SIN (stopover) - SYD as part of our honeymoon. Had really great crew on all 3 flights. The actual hard product was a treat to finally experience though if we're being honest I found the bed way too hard so it wouldn't be my first choice in the future (either paid or with miles) but was awesome to check off the list. Also had the pleasure of flying JL F again home on NRT - ORD and was reminded how much I love the JL F product: incredible comfortable seats, Hibiki 17 -- though I hear it's no longer offered, consistently the best steak on a plane (and only one worth ordering), and a great crew who found out it was our honeymoon and toward the end of the flight gave us a little honeymoon gift of JL toy planes (with heart stickers) and a signed postcard
Here's to another great year of travel in 2019
Dec 27, 2018, 4:57 pm
#47
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: LHR
Programs: VA Gold, QF Gold, Accor Platinum
Posts: 119
Total Airports: 19
Total Flights: 29
Total Miles: 35,006
New Countries (3): Panama, Brazil, Cuba
New Airports (12): SDU, GRU, BSB, GIG, GYN, PTY, HAV, SCU, ATL,BNA,CLT, TSV
New Airlines (4): COPA, LATAM Brazil, Cubana, Delta
Shortest Flight: SYD-CBR 148mi
Longest Flight: DFW-SYD 8,638mi
Total Flights: 29
Total Miles: 35,006
New Countries (3): Panama, Brazil, Cuba
New Airports (12): SDU, GRU, BSB, GIG, GYN, PTY, HAV, SCU, ATL,BNA,CLT, TSV
New Airlines (4): COPA, LATAM Brazil, Cubana, Delta
Shortest Flight: SYD-CBR 148mi
Longest Flight: DFW-SYD 8,638mi
Dec 27, 2018, 8:01 pm
#48
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Indonesia
Posts: 361
It's been practically a year of short flights for me, most were for work. CGK-SUB (or reverse) was a dominant route. May next year be better!
Personal highlights were:
- The only premium segment was CGK-KUL in MH J (737) from a mistake fare lol. I think GA biz is still better
- A trip to East Lombok after two big earthquakes. Really sobering experience.
- First helicopter ride, not very comfortable one as I recall...
Total Airports: 14
Total Flights: 45
Total Miles: 23,227
New Countries (1): Thailand
New Airports (7): KNO, LSW, JOG, DMK, HKT, PEN, LOP
New Airlines (2): Indonesia AirAsia X (XT), Thai AirAsia (FD)
Shortest Flight: 86 mi JBB-SUB
Longest Flight: 1,447 mi CGK-DMK
I also had my first 737max flight flown with Lion Air (prior to the infamous crash).
Personal highlights were:
- The only premium segment was CGK-KUL in MH J (737) from a mistake fare lol. I think GA biz is still better
- A trip to East Lombok after two big earthquakes. Really sobering experience.
- First helicopter ride, not very comfortable one as I recall...
Total Airports: 14
Total Flights: 45
Total Miles: 23,227
New Countries (1): Thailand
New Airports (7): KNO, LSW, JOG, DMK, HKT, PEN, LOP
New Airlines (2): Indonesia AirAsia X (XT), Thai AirAsia (FD)
Shortest Flight: 86 mi JBB-SUB
Longest Flight: 1,447 mi CGK-DMK
I also had my first 737max flight flown with Lion Air (prior to the infamous crash).
Dec 27, 2018, 10:13 pm
#49
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: SFOSJCOAK
Programs: AA-EXP & 1MM+, AS, MR-LTT, HH Gold
Posts: 7,581
I pretty much frequent the same airports most of the times. Was able to re-qual for AA EXP. I added some trains and hotel nights.
Total Airports: 26
Total Flights (48): JNB-HKG; HKG-HND; NRT-LAX; LAX-SFO; SFO-LAX; LAX-HKG; HKG-NNG; NNG-HKG; HKG-LAX; LAX-SFO; SFO-DFW; DFW-FCO; FCO-OSL; OSL-DOH; DOH-AKL; AKL-ZQN; ZQN-AKL; AKL-TUO; AKL-DOH; DOH-OSL; BGO-KRK; KRK-ATH; ATH-JTR; JTR-ATH; ATH-FCO; FCO-JFK; JFK-SFO; SFO-LAX; LAX-HKG; HKG-NNG; HKG-PVG; PVG-HND; HND-HKG; HKG-JFK; JFK-SFO; SFO-PHL; PHL-PVD; JFK-YVR; YVR-DFW-DFW-ANC; ANC-DFW; DFW-SFO; SFO-DFW; DFW-CMH; CMH-LAX; LAX-PVG; PEK-LAX; LAX-SFO
Total Miles: 124,871 BIS Miles. Re-qualified for AA EXP
New Countries (4): Norway; Poland; New Zealand, Greece
New Airports (10): PVD; CMH; OSL, BGO, KRK, ATH, JTR, AKL, ZQN, TUO,
New Airlines: DY; OA; AZ, A3
Shortest Flight: ATH-JTR 136 miles
Longest Flight: QR DOH-AKL; 9032
Trains (8): Oslo-Myrdal; Myrdal-Flam; Voss-Bergen; Nanning-Shenzhen; Shanghai-Hefei; Hefei-Xi’an; Xi’an-Beijing; Beijing-Baoding
Hotels: 46 hotels; 113 nights
RTW: 2x; (DONE4 & DONE3 nesting)
Total Airports: 26
Total Flights (48): JNB-HKG; HKG-HND; NRT-LAX; LAX-SFO; SFO-LAX; LAX-HKG; HKG-NNG; NNG-HKG; HKG-LAX; LAX-SFO; SFO-DFW; DFW-FCO; FCO-OSL; OSL-DOH; DOH-AKL; AKL-ZQN; ZQN-AKL; AKL-TUO; AKL-DOH; DOH-OSL; BGO-KRK; KRK-ATH; ATH-JTR; JTR-ATH; ATH-FCO; FCO-JFK; JFK-SFO; SFO-LAX; LAX-HKG; HKG-NNG; HKG-PVG; PVG-HND; HND-HKG; HKG-JFK; JFK-SFO; SFO-PHL; PHL-PVD; JFK-YVR; YVR-DFW-DFW-ANC; ANC-DFW; DFW-SFO; SFO-DFW; DFW-CMH; CMH-LAX; LAX-PVG; PEK-LAX; LAX-SFO
Total Miles: 124,871 BIS Miles. Re-qualified for AA EXP
New Countries (4): Norway; Poland; New Zealand, Greece
New Airports (10): PVD; CMH; OSL, BGO, KRK, ATH, JTR, AKL, ZQN, TUO,
New Airlines: DY; OA; AZ, A3
Shortest Flight: ATH-JTR 136 miles
Longest Flight: QR DOH-AKL; 9032
Trains (8): Oslo-Myrdal; Myrdal-Flam; Voss-Bergen; Nanning-Shenzhen; Shanghai-Hefei; Hefei-Xi’an; Xi’an-Beijing; Beijing-Baoding
Hotels: 46 hotels; 113 nights
RTW: 2x; (DONE4 & DONE3 nesting)
Dec 28, 2018, 1:03 pm
#50
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: RDU
Programs: Status? What's status?
Posts: 211
Total Airports: 25
Total Flights: 148
Total Miles: 72,754
New Countries (1): England
New Airports (7): LHR, MLB, RAP, BNA, TLH, MOB, OMA
New Airlines (0):
New Aircraft (1): A332
Shortest Flight: Tied - DTW-YYZ, ATL-BNA – 214 Miles
Longest Flight: ATL-LHR – 4,205 miles
Most Flown Airline: DL, 144 Flights/70,788 miles
Most Flown A/C: MD88, 57 Flights/23,457 miles
Total Flights: 148
Total Miles: 72,754
New Countries (1): England
New Airports (7): LHR, MLB, RAP, BNA, TLH, MOB, OMA
New Airlines (0):
New Aircraft (1): A332
Shortest Flight: Tied - DTW-YYZ, ATL-BNA – 214 Miles
Longest Flight: ATL-LHR – 4,205 miles
Most Flown Airline: DL, 144 Flights/70,788 miles
Most Flown A/C: MD88, 57 Flights/23,457 miles
Dec 28, 2018, 4:51 pm
#51
Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 4
Total Airports: 18
Total Flights: 43
Total Miles: 37,308
New Countries (3): Ireland, Germany, Italy
New Airports (4): BOS, DUB, FRA, MXP
New Airlines (2): Lufthansa, KLM
Shortest Flight: ORD-GRB 174 Miles
Longest Flight: ORD-FRA 4336 miles
Most Flown Airline: Delta 26 Flights
Personal Highlights
-Iberia ORD-MAD in Business, return in Premium Economy
-ORD-FRA-MXP in LH Business for 70K United miles. ORD-FRA on the 747-8
-AMS-DTW on the Delta A350 in Premium Select
-JFK-DUB round trip in Delta One
Total Flights: 43
Total Miles: 37,308
New Countries (3): Ireland, Germany, Italy
New Airports (4): BOS, DUB, FRA, MXP
New Airlines (2): Lufthansa, KLM
Shortest Flight: ORD-GRB 174 Miles
Longest Flight: ORD-FRA 4336 miles
Most Flown Airline: Delta 26 Flights
Personal Highlights
-Iberia ORD-MAD in Business, return in Premium Economy
-ORD-FRA-MXP in LH Business for 70K United miles. ORD-FRA on the 747-8
-AMS-DTW on the Delta A350 in Premium Select
-JFK-DUB round trip in Delta One
Dec 29, 2018, 6:16 am
#52
Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Germany
Programs: Oneworld Emerald, *A Gold, Sixt Platinum, Etihad Gold
Posts: 108
My Flight Year 2018:
- 46 Segments
- 123,078 km
- 34 Airports
- 22 Countries
- 26 Airlines
Besides all the flying around Europe for my job I just flew to Asia 3 times: to Bangkok, Hong Kong & Cambodia, via Singapore & Auckland to Japan, and via Bangkok to Myanmar and Bali. Oh, and one flight via Beijing to South Korea for my job as well.
In total I'm at 293 segments, 900,000 km and 70 airlines:
Solid year for me, despite working full-time!
- 46 Segments
- 123,078 km
- 34 Airports
- 22 Countries
- 26 Airlines
Besides all the flying around Europe for my job I just flew to Asia 3 times: to Bangkok, Hong Kong & Cambodia, via Singapore & Auckland to Japan, and via Bangkok to Myanmar and Bali. Oh, and one flight via Beijing to South Korea for my job as well.
In total I'm at 293 segments, 900,000 km and 70 airlines:
Solid year for me, despite working full-time!
Dec 30, 2018, 2:59 am
#53
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: JER
Programs: BA Gold/OWE, several MUCCI, and assorted Pensions!
Posts: 32,145
Ah, the Annual Willy-Waving Thread
My genuine sympathy to those who rack up insane amounts of work travel, and spend so much time away from home.
Here's my OAP's mite, all leisure (CE/CW) and seeking warm places, apart from a couple of trips to UK (in Y) for medical treatment and paid for by our Health Department:
Total Airports: 10 - LHR, LGW, LCY, DUB, MLA, KIN, PHL, PHX, CPT and of course JER.
Total Flights: 24 - BA 16, AA 4, BE 4.
Total Miles: 37,214 - BA 25,710, AA 10,686, BE 748!
New Countries (0): Same old stuff!
New Airports (1): LCY
New Airlines (0): But renewed acquaintance with BE after a 13-year gap!
Shortest Flight: JER-LGW 161 miles
Longest Flight: LGW-CPT 5,998 miles
Most Flown Airline: BA 16 flights
Personal Highlights:
- Managing to get a 2-4-1 to CPT for the 3rd year running!
- Experiencing LCY for the first time [actually that should be a Low-light].
- Experiencing Titan and PrivatAir substitutions on BA (LGW-MLA-LGW and LGW-JER)
My genuine sympathy to those who rack up insane amounts of work travel, and spend so much time away from home.
Here's my OAP's mite, all leisure (CE/CW) and seeking warm places, apart from a couple of trips to UK (in Y) for medical treatment and paid for by our Health Department:
Total Airports: 10 - LHR, LGW, LCY, DUB, MLA, KIN, PHL, PHX, CPT and of course JER.
Total Flights: 24 - BA 16, AA 4, BE 4.
Total Miles: 37,214 - BA 25,710, AA 10,686, BE 748!
New Countries (0): Same old stuff!
New Airports (1): LCY
New Airlines (0): But renewed acquaintance with BE after a 13-year gap!
Shortest Flight: JER-LGW 161 miles
Longest Flight: LGW-CPT 5,998 miles
Most Flown Airline: BA 16 flights
Personal Highlights:
- Managing to get a 2-4-1 to CPT for the 3rd year running!
- Experiencing LCY for the first time [actually that should be a Low-light].
- Experiencing Titan and PrivatAir substitutions on BA (LGW-MLA-LGW and LGW-JER)
Dec 30, 2018, 1:04 pm
#54
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: ORD
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 16
Combo of work and leisure. Qualified for 1K for the first time with a little push at the end of the year. Discovered this forum recently which has an incredible amount of useful information. Let's see:
Airports: 31 - ORD, SFO, LAS, EWR, EZE, IGR, GRU, RAO, RNO, DEN, LAX, DFW, ATL, AUS, LGA, LHR, AMS, SLC, YUL, ATH, FRA, SEA, IAH, DCA, IAD, CRW, YWG, YYQ, SJD, SIN, HNL
Flights: 64 - 52 UA, 3 Aerolineas Argentina, 2 Passaredo Brazil, 2 AC, 2 BA, 2 charter, 1 LH
New countries: 7 - Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, England, Netherlands, Greece, Singapore
Total BIS: 105,771 mi
Shortest: IAH-AUS (142 mi)
Longest: SFO-SIN (8430 mi)
Airports: 31 - ORD, SFO, LAS, EWR, EZE, IGR, GRU, RAO, RNO, DEN, LAX, DFW, ATL, AUS, LGA, LHR, AMS, SLC, YUL, ATH, FRA, SEA, IAH, DCA, IAD, CRW, YWG, YYQ, SJD, SIN, HNL
Flights: 64 - 52 UA, 3 Aerolineas Argentina, 2 Passaredo Brazil, 2 AC, 2 BA, 2 charter, 1 LH
New countries: 7 - Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, England, Netherlands, Greece, Singapore
Total BIS: 105,771 mi
Shortest: IAH-AUS (142 mi)
Longest: SFO-SIN (8430 mi)
Dec 31, 2018, 2:06 am
#55
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: New York
Posts: 7,347
Travel Review 2018:
2018 is a relatively mellow travel year, as I have traveled a bit less than 2017. I flew 191 flights, which equals to 281,581miles in total. I spent 595 hours and 6 minutes in the air. JetBlue, unsurprisingly, is the airline which I flew the most, in both distance and numbers in 2018. Distance wise, British Airways is my second, and Singapore Airlines is my third. Number wise, Alaska Airlines is my second, and British Airways is my third. In the field of aircraft types, I flew the most on both Airbus A321-200 Sharklet and A320-200, which is the main type of Airbus narrow body planes used by JetBlue. Distance wise, Boeing 777-300ER, which is the favorite long-haul planes used these days, easily wins. In terms of special flights, my highlight is definitely flying the final revenue flight operated by Virgin America. It is sad for most of us, who are there from the beginning, including being on its first revenue flight. Virgin America had a great run, but unfortunately, the public cares more about price than affordable quality service. 2019 will be an exciting year, as there will be finally a new A380 operator – ANA All Nippon Airways. I am not sure if I can buy a ticket on its inaugural A380 flight but will definitely try it next year. Wish everyone another successful and safe travel year in 2019.
New Airlines:
1. Sounds Air
2. Air Milford
3. bmi regional
4. Nextjet
5. Condor
6. Stobart Air
7. Amakusa Airlines
8. Wideroe Airlines
9. Air Malta
10. Volotea
11. Edelweiss Air
12. Contour Airlines
New Airports:
1. Blenheim/Marlborough Airport
2. Queenstown International Airport
3. Milford Sound Airport
4. Moscow Domodedovo International Airport
5. Jönköping International Airport
6. Karlstad International Airport
7. Vilnius International Airport
8. Bologna Guglielmo Marconi International Airport
9. Hamburg International Airport
10. London Southend Airport
11. Aso Kumamoto International Airport
12. Amakusa Airfield
13. Trondheim Værnes Airport
14. Bergen Flesland Airport
15. Florence Peretola International Airport
16. Malta Luqa International Airport
17. Cagliari Elmas Airport
18. Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport
19. Prudhoe Bay/Deadhorse Airport
20. Barrow Wiley Post-Will Rogers Memorial Airport
21. Catania-Fontanarossa International Airport
22. Mykonos Island National
23. Iwate-Hanamaki Airport
24. Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport
New aircraft type:
1. Cessna 208 Grand Caravan I
2. SSJ-100-95
3. ATR 42-600
4. Embraer EMB-190-E2
5. Boeing 737-900 Scimitar Winglet
6. Airbus A320-200 NEO
Inaugural Flights:
1. Virgin America’s Final Revenue flight – VX 1948 SFO-LAX April 24, 2018
2. JetBlue’s Inaugural Boston to Minneapolis/St Paul Flight – B6 835 May 3, 2018
3. JetBlue’s Inaugural Minneapolis/St Paul to Boston Flight – B6 836 May 3, 2018
4. Icelandair’s Inaugural Cleveland to Keflavik flight – FI 836 May 16, 2018
5. Hawaiian Airlines’ Inaugural Long Beach to Honolulu – HA 69 June 1, 2018
6. StarFlyer’s Inaugural Flight from Taoyuan to Kitakyushu – 7G 800 October 28, 2018
7. EVA Air’s Boeing 787-9 Inaugural Flight from Hong Kong to Taipei – BR 867 November 1, 2018
8. JetBlue’s Inaugural Long Beach to Bozeman Flight – B6 10 December 13, 2018
9. JetBlue’s Inaugural Bozeman to Long beach Flight – B6 9 December 13, 2018
2018 is a relatively mellow travel year, as I have traveled a bit less than 2017. I flew 191 flights, which equals to 281,581miles in total. I spent 595 hours and 6 minutes in the air. JetBlue, unsurprisingly, is the airline which I flew the most, in both distance and numbers in 2018. Distance wise, British Airways is my second, and Singapore Airlines is my third. Number wise, Alaska Airlines is my second, and British Airways is my third. In the field of aircraft types, I flew the most on both Airbus A321-200 Sharklet and A320-200, which is the main type of Airbus narrow body planes used by JetBlue. Distance wise, Boeing 777-300ER, which is the favorite long-haul planes used these days, easily wins. In terms of special flights, my highlight is definitely flying the final revenue flight operated by Virgin America. It is sad for most of us, who are there from the beginning, including being on its first revenue flight. Virgin America had a great run, but unfortunately, the public cares more about price than affordable quality service. 2019 will be an exciting year, as there will be finally a new A380 operator – ANA All Nippon Airways. I am not sure if I can buy a ticket on its inaugural A380 flight but will definitely try it next year. Wish everyone another successful and safe travel year in 2019.
New Airlines:
1. Sounds Air
2. Air Milford
3. bmi regional
4. Nextjet
5. Condor
6. Stobart Air
7. Amakusa Airlines
8. Wideroe Airlines
9. Air Malta
10. Volotea
11. Edelweiss Air
12. Contour Airlines
New Airports:
1. Blenheim/Marlborough Airport
2. Queenstown International Airport
3. Milford Sound Airport
4. Moscow Domodedovo International Airport
5. Jönköping International Airport
6. Karlstad International Airport
7. Vilnius International Airport
8. Bologna Guglielmo Marconi International Airport
9. Hamburg International Airport
10. London Southend Airport
11. Aso Kumamoto International Airport
12. Amakusa Airfield
13. Trondheim Værnes Airport
14. Bergen Flesland Airport
15. Florence Peretola International Airport
16. Malta Luqa International Airport
17. Cagliari Elmas Airport
18. Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport
19. Prudhoe Bay/Deadhorse Airport
20. Barrow Wiley Post-Will Rogers Memorial Airport
21. Catania-Fontanarossa International Airport
22. Mykonos Island National
23. Iwate-Hanamaki Airport
24. Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport
New aircraft type:
1. Cessna 208 Grand Caravan I
2. SSJ-100-95
3. ATR 42-600
4. Embraer EMB-190-E2
5. Boeing 737-900 Scimitar Winglet
6. Airbus A320-200 NEO
Inaugural Flights:
1. Virgin America’s Final Revenue flight – VX 1948 SFO-LAX April 24, 2018
2. JetBlue’s Inaugural Boston to Minneapolis/St Paul Flight – B6 835 May 3, 2018
3. JetBlue’s Inaugural Minneapolis/St Paul to Boston Flight – B6 836 May 3, 2018
4. Icelandair’s Inaugural Cleveland to Keflavik flight – FI 836 May 16, 2018
5. Hawaiian Airlines’ Inaugural Long Beach to Honolulu – HA 69 June 1, 2018
6. StarFlyer’s Inaugural Flight from Taoyuan to Kitakyushu – 7G 800 October 28, 2018
7. EVA Air’s Boeing 787-9 Inaugural Flight from Hong Kong to Taipei – BR 867 November 1, 2018
8. JetBlue’s Inaugural Long Beach to Bozeman Flight – B6 10 December 13, 2018
9. JetBlue’s Inaugural Bozeman to Long beach Flight – B6 9 December 13, 2018
Dec 31, 2018, 6:00 am
#56
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: NYC
Posts: 214
Miles flown 42,698
Flights 22
Longest flight DXB-IAH/IAH-DXB (8,165 miles and blocked for 16 hours westbound), followed by IAH-DOH (8,045 miles)
Shortest flight JMK-ATH (83 miles), narrowly beating ATH-PAS (91 miles)
New countries 5: Oman, Qatar, Cyprus (x2), Greece, UAE
Airports visited 11
New airports visited 7: MCT, LCA, ATL, ATH, PAS, JMK, DXB
Airlines flown 8
New airlines flown 6: Oman (WY), Cyprus (CY), Aegean (A3), Sky Express (GQ), Volotea (V7), Emirates (EK)
Best flight experience Emirates Business Class on the A380 DXB-IAH: my only non-Y itinerary this year was BEY-DXB-IAH-DXB-IAH, for which I transferred SPG points to JAL to redeem. Out of the four legs in J, I enjoyed the longest leg DXB-IAH the most. As it is a daytime flight, I felt like I could most enjoy the experience and spent some time at the bar. The load was quite light. The flight attendant said that there were only like 176 people on the flight across all three classes. Emirates was the last of the ME3 for me to try flying in Business Class, and given that JAL raised their award charts and passes along the high fuel surcharges, I might not be flying them again unless I start transferring to/buying Alaska.
Flights 22
Longest flight DXB-IAH/IAH-DXB (8,165 miles and blocked for 16 hours westbound), followed by IAH-DOH (8,045 miles)
Shortest flight JMK-ATH (83 miles), narrowly beating ATH-PAS (91 miles)
New countries 5: Oman, Qatar, Cyprus (x2), Greece, UAE
Airports visited 11
New airports visited 7: MCT, LCA, ATL, ATH, PAS, JMK, DXB
Airlines flown 8
New airlines flown 6: Oman (WY), Cyprus (CY), Aegean (A3), Sky Express (GQ), Volotea (V7), Emirates (EK)
Best flight experience Emirates Business Class on the A380 DXB-IAH: my only non-Y itinerary this year was BEY-DXB-IAH-DXB-IAH, for which I transferred SPG points to JAL to redeem. Out of the four legs in J, I enjoyed the longest leg DXB-IAH the most. As it is a daytime flight, I felt like I could most enjoy the experience and spent some time at the bar. The load was quite light. The flight attendant said that there were only like 176 people on the flight across all three classes. Emirates was the last of the ME3 for me to try flying in Business Class, and given that JAL raised their award charts and passes along the high fuel surcharges, I might not be flying them again unless I start transferring to/buying Alaska.
Dec 31, 2018, 6:19 am
#57
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: London
Programs: Mucci (Scirocco Sash), BAEC Gold, IHG Diamond Ambassador
Posts: 864
Thanks to the TR writers for the continued inspiration in this forum!
Total Sectors/Miles: 34 sectors and 47,779 miles
Longest Flight: LHR – SIN (6759 miles)
Shortest Flight: MDZ – SCL (121 miles)
Classes (by distance/sectors): F (d: 24% / s: 9%) / J (65% / 56%) / Y (11% / 35%)
New Countries: 1 – Chile
New Cities/Towns/Locations: 4 – Santiago, Valparaiso, and Patagonia in Chile; Valle de Uco in Mendoza.
New Airports: 4 – LBA, NQY, SCL, PUQ
New Airlines: Aerolineas Argentinas (AR) and LATAM Brasil (JJ) and Chile (LA)
New experiences: Domestic F on AA for the short hop LAX-LAS on the new cabin A319, which was just about enough time to knock back a few G&Ts; it's much more luxurious than what we're used to in Europe of course, but i can see how US-based flyers would find it quite bare bones. Also flying on AR short-haul in Condor Economy AEP-MDZ in an appealingly retro 2-2 configuration up front, and in Business on LA’s 787 from SCL-GRU, nice hard product with attentive service.
Best experience: The one that stands out is one of the shortest sectors I did, LHR-LBA in Club Europe on BA (a tier point driven weekend break) – outstanding service from a really attentive and engaged cabin service manager serving the few rows of business class. A great example of how BA can be great when it deploys great people, even with only average hard product on balance.
Less impressive experience: Domestic flying in Brazil/Chile/Argentina remains pretty basic and those plane configurations are tight, although I found the LATAM streaming entertainment option quite good and a godsend for the long-ish leg SCL-PUQ (long when you are in a single class config anyway!)
Total Sectors/Miles: 34 sectors and 47,779 miles
Longest Flight: LHR – SIN (6759 miles)
Shortest Flight: MDZ – SCL (121 miles)
Classes (by distance/sectors): F (d: 24% / s: 9%) / J (65% / 56%) / Y (11% / 35%)
New Countries: 1 – Chile
New Cities/Towns/Locations: 4 – Santiago, Valparaiso, and Patagonia in Chile; Valle de Uco in Mendoza.
New Airports: 4 – LBA, NQY, SCL, PUQ
New Airlines: Aerolineas Argentinas (AR) and LATAM Brasil (JJ) and Chile (LA)
New experiences: Domestic F on AA for the short hop LAX-LAS on the new cabin A319, which was just about enough time to knock back a few G&Ts; it's much more luxurious than what we're used to in Europe of course, but i can see how US-based flyers would find it quite bare bones. Also flying on AR short-haul in Condor Economy AEP-MDZ in an appealingly retro 2-2 configuration up front, and in Business on LA’s 787 from SCL-GRU, nice hard product with attentive service.
Best experience: The one that stands out is one of the shortest sectors I did, LHR-LBA in Club Europe on BA (a tier point driven weekend break) – outstanding service from a really attentive and engaged cabin service manager serving the few rows of business class. A great example of how BA can be great when it deploys great people, even with only average hard product on balance.
Less impressive experience: Domestic flying in Brazil/Chile/Argentina remains pretty basic and those plane configurations are tight, although I found the LATAM streaming entertainment option quite good and a godsend for the long-ish leg SCL-PUQ (long when you are in a single class config anyway!)
Jan 1, 2019, 10:23 pm
#59
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: ATL
Programs: DL, Hilton Gold, PriorityPass
Posts: 89
This year was my second busiest year after last year.
Total Airports: 46
Total Flights: 74
Total Miles: 144,978
New Countries (5): Senegal, Czechia, Brazil, Portugal, and Turkey
New Airports (4): DSS, GJT, PNS, MCI, SAT, PRG, GIG, SAV, RSW, YYC, MDW, VCE, LIS, AUS, CLE, IST
New Airlines (3): Qantas, Flybe, Turkish Airlines
Shortest Flight: DTW-CLE 95mi
Longest Flight: SYD-LAX 7,488mi
Looking forward to a great 2019!
Total Airports: 46
Total Flights: 74
Total Miles: 144,978
New Countries (5): Senegal, Czechia, Brazil, Portugal, and Turkey
New Airports (4): DSS, GJT, PNS, MCI, SAT, PRG, GIG, SAV, RSW, YYC, MDW, VCE, LIS, AUS, CLE, IST
New Airlines (3): Qantas, Flybe, Turkish Airlines
Shortest Flight: DTW-CLE 95mi
Longest Flight: SYD-LAX 7,488mi
Looking forward to a great 2019!
Jan 3, 2019, 10:22 am
#60
Join Date: Feb 2017
Location: Austin, TX
Programs: BAEC Gold, HHonors Diamond, Marriott Titanium, UA Gold (*G), DL Silver, Makers Mark Ambassador
Posts: 4,642
Total Airports: 24
Total Flights: 100
Total Miles: 59,588
New Countries (3): Germany, Austria, Slovakia
New Airports (7): MUC, VIE, HOU, YQB, YYZ, GSP, LHR
New Airlines (3): British Airways, WestJet, Air Canada
Shortest Flight: GSP-CLT - 76 miles
Longest Flight: JFK-LHR - 3443 miles
Most Flown Airline: American - 82 Flights
Personal Highlights
First ever 747 flight - LHR-JFK
4th of July Weekend in Quebec City on AA, AC, and WS
9 days in Europe for Christmas on AA, BA, and AF
Total Flights: 100
Total Miles: 59,588
New Countries (3): Germany, Austria, Slovakia
New Airports (7): MUC, VIE, HOU, YQB, YYZ, GSP, LHR
New Airlines (3): British Airways, WestJet, Air Canada
Shortest Flight: GSP-CLT - 76 miles
Longest Flight: JFK-LHR - 3443 miles
Most Flown Airline: American - 82 Flights
Personal Highlights
First ever 747 flight - LHR-JFK
4th of July Weekend in Quebec City on AA, AC, and WS
9 days in Europe for Christmas on AA, BA, and AF