January Dispatches

Premium seats are the new black, Silver is bankrupt, and Alaska goes big in Oregon

A winter morning at Denver International Airport.

Notes from the Runway

The holidays, and holiday travel, are — thankfully — over. My family trip to Colorado included an unfortunate 15-hour delay at Washington’s Dulles International Airport that was, in a sense, eye opening. How does one entertain two young children for 15 hours in an airport on Christmas? For one, creeping delays, as annoying as they are, were our unwanted friend — they forced us to move around and change things up for the kids every few hours. Another source of endless distraction were our Magna-Tiles MicroMAGS travel set (thanks New York Magazine!). And I must give credit where credit is due, the kids room in the new-ish Etihad Lounge at Dulles was a lifeline when it came to whiling away the hours. Also, I think it’s long past time that Dulles added an airside outdoor terrace or patio (Concourse E, maybe?). We eventually made it to Denver, at 1 a.m., but it was a travel day I do not wish to repeat.

Whiling away the hours in the kids room in the Etihad Lounge at Dulles.

---

What I’m Writing

Flying soon? You may notice that more airlines are offering you more seating options, particularly more comfy alternatives like extra-legroom seats or even “first class” on a discounter. Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Southwest Airlines, and Spirit Airlines are all adding new premium seats as they chase new revenue sources. (The Washington Post)

Silver Airways, one of the few remaining independent U.S. regional airlines, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization just before New Years. The airline is still flying, and plans to secure new capital and cut debt — it owes millions to everyone from aircraft lessors to the IRS and the Fort Lauderdale airport — as part of its restructuring. (The Points Guy)

Alaska Airlines is making good on its promise to beef up its Portland, Ore., hub this year. Since the beginning of January, it has announced new nonstops from PDX to Fairbanks — it’s new longest Embraer E175 flight — and Houston Bush, as well as resume service to Eugene, Ore., all on May 15. Alaska will certainly be putting PDX’s fab new terminal through its paces. (The Points Guy)

Alaska, Delta, JetBlue, JSX, and Southwest are all adding new sun runs in January. And United and WestJet are boosting options to snowy locales. Here is a round up of notable new routes launching this month. (Travel + Leisure)

'Living Room' Airports

---

What I’m Reading

St. Louis-Lambert selected HOK to lead design on a new consolidated terminal due to open around 2032. In good news, the architects intend to preserve and reuse Minoru Yamasaki’s 1956 domed terminal: “We want to truly reuse it and give it new life. That’s because, (A) it’s a great structure, and (B) it’s part of the story. It’s really cool when you can marry the old and new together.”

Decongestion pricing in Manhattan launched at 12:01 a.m. on Jan. 5, ending years of debate over the policy to reduce traffic and raise capital for the MTA. And preliminary data shows the $9 toll is working: travel times fell 34% on major crossings into Manhattan and traffic levels were down 7.5%.

Ciclovia is a beautiful example of city opening space to people, and people coming together. It is seriously one of the best urban events that I've ever encountered on my travels, in cities like CDMX, Panama City, and São Paulo.

Henry Grabar

visited Bogotá, the home of Ciclovia, to write about the event’s 50th anniversary.

Yonah Freemark published his annual round up of U.S. transit openings “scheduled” in 2025 — as with any big infrastructure project, dates are more guidance than fixed. Some exciting additions include Honolulu’s Skyline to Middle Street via the Honolulu airport, the new airport station on the Los Angeles Metro, and an extension of Kansas City’s popular streetcar.

Be sure to check out

Hayden Clarkin

’s new newsletter,

The Transit Guy

. A good first read is his case for Chicago-Twin Cities high-speed rail. This is the corridor where Amtrak’s new Borealis train beat ridership projections by 90% in the first 22 weeks of service — and that was with a seven-plus-hour trip.

As an avid skier, I found

Gad Allon

’s latest newsletter on ski passes and the affordability of the sport fascinating:

“As a family, after skiing for years in Colorado and Utah, we moved to the French Alps. While this may sound snobbish, it’s actually more sensible. For example, this winter, lift tickets were 59 Euro per day even during the holiday season. Ski instructors are cheaper. Food is cheaper (and much better), and accommodation is more affordable. The flight fare is comparable.”

My experience certainly aligns with Allon’s on cost and quality in the Rockies. Maybe it’s time that I took my family skiing in Europe too.

Indiana's New Transformer Tower

---

What I’m Listening To

Sad news twice over during the holidays. On Dec. 25, an Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer E190 crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, after likely being shot at by Russian anti-aircraft defense systems. And four days later, a Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 crashed during landing in Muan, South Korea. Ian Petchnik and Jason Rabinowitz did a good job overviewing the unfortunate events on FlightRadar24’s AvTalk podcast.

I joined Marketplace to discuss the recovery in business travel, and what that could look like in 2025.

"It is a political crisis, a leadership crisis, and a constitutional crisis in South Korea." Considering the importance of South Korea to the U.S., it’s surprising that what's happening there is not a bigger story here. Good listen from Today, Explained.

SAS before the holidays released a really well done video (below) inspired by the female pioneers who defied norms to become the first female pilots in commercial aviation.