Many of us seem to be obsessed with our frequent flyer miles. I really used to be but luckily, I’ve been able to control my addiction to finding out just how many miles I’ve accrued. But it really irks me to see statistics like this one: In 2007 alone, 39 billion miles expired from frequent flyer accounts. Come on, people! If you’re not going to use your miles, consider treating a friend or relative to a free trip or donate your miles to a charity. It takes a long time (and a lot of money) to accumulate a significant number of miles, so don’t let them go to waste.
Hopefully AwardWallet.com can help you stay on top of this. The site is designed to help travelers keep track of their award program balances. Simply provide your account numbers and log-in information and they’ll keep track of all your frequent flyer miles, club points and other reward programs (airlines, hotels, car rentals, train travel rewards, credit cards, etc.). They’ll even track rewards for your entire family or company.
Are you interested in airline analysis? If so, then check out AirlineFinancials.com. Not only do they have the usual SEC and BTS data but the analysis here includes dozens of easy to interpret charts and graphs, which compare airline finances and operations with numerous breakdowns from labor costs to passenger ticket expense. They cover only U.S. airlines: Air Tran, American, Alaska, Allegiant, Continental, Delta/Northwest, Frontier, JetBlue, Southwest, United and USAir. But if you're looking for stock advice or predictions, you’d better look elsewhere because author Robert Herbst doesn’t provide them. Mr. Herbst has been a commercial pilot since 1969 and his aviation experience and financial background provides a unique analytical perspective into the airline industry.
