A collection of interesting bits and pieces from around the world of travel and beyond…
Marriott Bonvoy 110,000,000 customer cases opened since April 2018?
Marriott Bonvoy customer service has been struggling since the program merged with Starwood Preferred Guest in August 2018. Loyalty Lobby quotes a post (that was apparently originally posted on this site) from a former Marriott Customer Service agent which suggests a staggering number of complaints have been made in the last year.
Boeing 747 tips backwards at Doha’s Hamad Airport
On 17 March, the Boeing 747-281B of Fars Air Qeshm (EP-FAB) of Iran was damaged at Doha International Airport.
This happened after the cargo handling workers unloaded the aircraft incorrectly. They unloaded the cargo from the nose of the aircraft first. Consequently, the aircraft became tail heavy and tipped backwards.
https://samchui.com/2019/03/18/boeing-747-tips-backwards-at-dohas-hamad-airport/
After decade of hype, space tourism might be ready to launch
Fifteen years after Richard Branson launched Virgin Galactic and his ambitious plans for taking tourists into space, the billionaire entrepreneur’s much-delayed dream finally appears to be close to reality.
Virgin Galactic last month logged its second successful manned flight into space, and the head of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) predicted the industry could see the launch of space tourism as early as this summer.
https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Airline-News/Space-tourism-might-be-ready-to-launch?ct=lux
How a fleet of robots will park cars at Lyon airport
Airport parking can be a headache, both for rushed passengers who want to make sure their car is safe, and the airports increasingly losing out on parking revenue to services like Uber.
But a French robotics firm thinks it has a solution.
Stanley Robotics has developed automated valets who, after years of testing, will be rolled out at Lyon-Saint Exupéry airport over the coming weeks.