Week in Review

With GBTA’s headquarters located in Alexandria, VA just outside of Washington, D.C., there has been much talk of the impending blizzard. USA Today writes about how the east coast blizzard is already a travel nightmare thanks to preemptive cancellations and notes that airlines are waiving changes fees ahead of the snowstorm.

Let’s talk loyalty. Skift reports that, “competition is heating up in the airline and hotel space to the point that operators are now actively trying to steal each other’s top customers.” In a Road Warrior Voices column in USA Today, Kevn Farrell asks if Delta has gone too far with their changes, in effect losing customer loyalty.

In airline news, Buying Business Travel’s Tom Newcombe reports on a new airline association that includes five of Europe’s largest airlines created with the goal to influence European aviation policy and tackle issues such as rising airport costs and air traffic controller strikes. Business Traveller Asia Pacific writes that travellers departing on flights out of Hong Kong will no longer have to pay fuel surcharges.

BTN highlights a logistical challenge for travel programs in their article about one European travel manager’s quest to get rail operators online.

Is your company planning to do business in Cuba? The Miami Herald reports that American Airlines is hopeful it will be flying regularly scheduled service between the United States and Cuba within the first half of this year.

This week’s list: 3 ultrabooks for business travel from the South China Morning Post.