I have been an avid reader since age 2 (I swear – and my Dad will confirm it). I read books, magazines, cereal boxes, billboards and just about anything else with letters. And for someone who loves to read as much as I do, the Google Reader is a godsend.
I have myriad interests, and the Google Reader allows me to get feeds from blogs covering those interests: aviation, business aviation, journalism, multimedia and social media. So let’s take a look in my Aviation folder so I can tell you some of the blogs you should be reading. This is by NO means my complete list, and the list below is in no particular order.
- CrankyFlier - Brett Snyder is the little brother I never wanted but got stuck with anyway (I say that with love in my heart). But seriously, Brett writes a humorous, yet informative blog on the whimsies of the airline business. He offers a take that only someone who became a travel agent at age 12 and had his grandmother book a hotel at Los Angeles International Airport so he could watch the planes. And bonus – he also writes about travel over at BNET.
- Flightblogger - What can I say about Jon Ostrower? This man has forgotten more information about the Boeing 787 Dreamliner than most of us will ever know. Did you read “The price of Boeing’s 787 sales success?” I rest my case.
- Delta/JetBlue/Southwest blogs – When airlines jumped into blogging, I was a bit apprehensive, because I’ve seen some really bad corporate blogs that had no personality, only regurgitating the latest talking points. All three of these carriers tapped their own employees, who bring their unique voices to these blogs making them actual must-reads. Delta gets bonus points for ANY post from archives manager Marie Force and Southwest gets the same for Flashback Friday posts!
- Air Transparency - I heard airline employee Jesse Ziglar speak on an episode of the Airplane Geeks podcast and I was hooked. Ziglar works his magic by explaining the good, the bad and the ugly of how the airlines work – in language my 5-year-old daughter can understand. His topics include weather delays, the tarmac delay rule, deicing aircraft and crew uniforms.
- Chris Elliott’s Elliott.org - I wonder when Chris ever finds time to sleep, with writing this website and writing on consumer travel issues for National Geographic, Tribune Media Service, the Washington Post, MSNBC, USA Today and CNN.com, among others.
- PlaneBusines Banter/Plane Buzz - The subscriber-based Banter and free Buzz are both penned by Holly Hegeman, who offers her own unique humorous/serious take on the business of airlines. I’ve been reading her since she was the airlines analyst for The Motley Fool, and I take her work seriously enough to pay for my own subscription to the Banter.
- The TSA Blog - before I moved over to the business aviation beat, I wrote about airports and airport security. When one of the public affairs folks gave me a call almost three years ago to pitch me on the blog launch, I admit I was HIGHLY skeptical. I thought the blog would read like the old Soviet government update reports. I was wrong, and continue to admit it. This blog has done a lot to put a human face on an agency that’s more vilified than the IRS. Blogger Bob and his team have done a good job in explaining, as much as possible, what TSA does and why. Bonus points for allowing comments and taking the time to answer as many as possible.
- Swelblog/Swelbar on Airlines - Bill Swelbar is a Research Engineer in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s International Center for Air Transportation. He gets into the weeds — but always interesting — on airline/aviation policy. A recent post, “Unbundling, Rebundling and Now De-Commoditization,” he breaks down how the airlines have been forced to adapt in things including how they sell tickets and how to keep passengers loyal to their brand.
- I’m Black And I Travel - One, because I’m both. Blog owner Greg Gross and I are kindred spirits, letting the world know of our travels and expounding on the joys of travel from our own personal experiences. And Greg has given me access to a large community of black travel bloggers, which has helped me expand my own network.
- RickSeaney.com - If you want to keep up with air fares, Rick is your guy. He’s the CEO of FareCompare.com, created to keep track of airfares for airlines worldwide. You can also watch fares from your hometown via Twitter. What’s not to love?
So that’s my list. What are you reading? I’m always looking to add to my folder! Also, in the next few weeks, I plan on doing a reader question edition of this blog. So if you any questions, now is the time to start submitting them. Thanks!
Tags: Air Transparncy, Airplane Geeks, aviation, Benet Wilson, blog, cranky flier, Delta Air Lines, elliott.org, FareCompare.com, flightblogger, Google Reader, I'm Black And I Travel, JetBlue, Jon Ostrower, Plane Buzz, PlaneBusiness, Rick Seaney, Southwest Airlines, Swelblog, TSA
Have you seen the April issue of Airline Passenger Experience magazine? Editor Mary Kirby has been hitting it out of the park with great content, with stories on the science of aircraft boarding, the fun of onboard retail therapy and the ongoing debate on paid versus free WiFi. Full disclosure — I have a ball writing a regular column for the magazine (this month, I review the food offerings in JetBlue’s Terminal 5 at JFK Airport).
