American Airlines’ Woes and 8 Other Top Aviation Stories This Week

What’s Gone Wrong at American Airlines? American Airlines has made a lot of excuses for its performance this year. It blames so many of its problems on a labor dispute and the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max. But perhaps there’s something more here?

This Startup Wants U.S. Airlines to Use Buses to Replace Smaller Regional Jets: It’s hard to think of the bus as a disruptive form of mass transportation. But who knows? Maybe this company, Landline, will revolutionize how Americans buy airline tickets.

Thomas Cook Collapses, Ending 178-Year Reign in the Travel Business: The bankruptcy and liquidation of Thomas Cook is a monumental blow to the travel industry. The collapse of the company will continue to have ripple effects across the industry for a long time to come.

Fallout From Thomas Cook’s Demise Will Reach Far and Wide in Travel: Expedia, Webjet, and On the Beach all had exposure to Thomas Cook, but given their size they can probably handle it. It’s the smaller tour operators and travel agents that will be the hardest hit.

United Airlines Simplifies Seat Upgrades With Points Incentives: The majority of U.S. travelers don’t have to worry about how they’ll upgrade on United Airlines. But United’s most loyal customers, who contribute more than their share of revenue, care deeply about the process. United can’t make things too difficult for them, or they will defect.

Asia Reels From Thomas Cook’s Collapse as Travel Businesses Sort Through the Confusion: Kuoni died, and now Thomas Cook, even though the jury is out if it’s just the UK business or continental Europe or the Nordic operations as well. Thomas Cook’s tour operating market in its glory days practically made Asia tourism, so many across the region are mourning this loss, reconciling themselves with the fact that nothing lasts forever.

Can Thomas Cook’s Surviving Brands Find New Homes? Thomas Cook wasn’t just a UK business: It had operations across Europe, some of which were pretty profitable. They’re now in a race against time to secure their future and find new owners.

Ryanair and Expedia Settle Screen-Scraping Lawsuits on 2 Continents: Screen-scraping lawsuits are as old as the internet. We don’t know if any money changed hands when Ryanair and Expedia settled lawsuits in the United States and Ireland, but what seems apparent is that Ryanair flights have gone missing on Expedia websites. Case(s) closed.

Airline-Owned SITA Seeks to Ride a Software Boom to Lift Sales: It’s glamorous to be a turnaround artist who parachutes into a troubled company and restores growth. But change can be slow and painful. Just ask Barbara Dalibard, the CEO of SITA, the airline-controlled tech provider.