Your Weekend Reads for March 24, 2017

The big news of the week was all about the sudden ban by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security of laptops and tablets on flights in and out of the U.S. to Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Morocco, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates’ Abu Dhabi and Dubai, citing “security measures.”

But questions arose about the targeting of the Big Three Middle East carriers -- Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways -- in the wake of an ongoing Open Skies battle with the Big Three U.S. carriers, American, Delta and United. "If you squint hard enough, there is some justification on a security basis for this, but the implementation has been haphazard and in manner that is particularly targeted at and does harm to the commercial interests of a set of airlines that has been the source of much competitive hand-wringing from U.S. airlines," Airways senior business analyst Vinay Bhaskara said in an interview with Business Insider.

And an editorial in FlightGlobal magazine said “the selective ban by the UK and US governments is at best inconsistent and at worst ineffective.”

A Mesa Airlines Beech 1900D. Photo courtesy of Mesa Air Group

In a previous life, I was director of communications and community affairs for Mesa Air Group, a regional airline based in Phoenix that flies as American Eagle and United Express. But as Mesa Airlines, the carrier operated Essential Air Service (EAS) flights across the country. The EAS program was created after airline deregulation in 1978 to ensure that small communities still had access to the air transportation network. One of my jobs was to do presentations to communities to get their EAS contracts.

The program has been on the chopping block for years, but has always been protected by senators and representatives keen on protecting air service for its constituents. And now President Donald Trump has announced plans to cut the EAS program under his proposed skinny budget, potentially ending air service to 171 communities, reports Skift.

A Cathay Pacific first class cabin. Photo courtesy of Cathay Pacific

As Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific posted its first loss since 2008, Qantas CEO Alan Joyce had one word of advice for the airline: adapt, reports Skift. Cathay’s loss was driven by a drop in business travel and competition from Chinese carriers.

British Airways is going through its own financial challenges, driven by increased competition from European low-cost carriers. This is leading the UK flag carrier to cut amenities in its first class cabins including an amuse-bouche with the first drink, fresh flowers in the lavatories, a generously sized washbag and a pair of slippers, reports the Telegraph. Airline staffers say the cuts are damaging BA’s elite brand, while the carrier acknowledges the cuts but adding that it’s committed to providing a high-quality service.

U.S. airlines were positively giddy when flight restrictions to Cuba were lifted by the Obama Administration as part of the normalization of relations with the Caribbean nation in December 2014. And there was a frenzy by the airlines to get flights to Cuba, with the first flight -- by JetBlue -- landing on Aug. 31, 2016. But now the Miami Herald reports on announcements by Frontier Airlines and Silver Airways to end their flights to Cuba, citing weak passenger demand.

We’ll end the week with the news that after an internal review, Alaska Airlines has decided to eliminate the Virgin America brand by 2019, reports the Fort Worth State-Telegram. After Alaska acquired the popular San Francisco-based carrier, CEO Brad Tilden said he believed in “the power of the Virgin America brand, and we don’t want to lose all that loyalty.” But it was not to be.

Because I care, here are five more stories for your reading pleasure this weekend. Enjoy!

• Skift: Royal Jordanian Says Its In-Flight Experience Is Still Great Despite Electronics Ban
• Business Insider: 5 must-have apps for people who travel a lot
• View from the Wing: Emirates Now Gives Business Class Lounge Access to Economy Passengers
• Fortune magazine: These Airlines Offer Free Meals (Not Just Snacks) on Their U.S. Flights
• Business Insider: Inside the secret plane bedrooms where pilots sleep on long-haul flights

EDITOR’S NOTE: Benét J. Wilson is a freelance aviation/travel writer based in Baltimore who is available for your writing and branded content/content marketing projects. She’s the Air Travel Expert for About.com. Follow her travel-related magazines on Flipboard: Best of About Travel, a joint curation venture with her fellow About Travel Experts; Travel-Go! There’s Nothing Stopping You, all about the passenger experience on the ground and in the air; and Aviation Geek, a joint magazine sharing everything you need to know about the commercial aviation industry. Check out her travel-related boards on Pinterest and follow her on Twitter at @AvQueenBenet, on her Aviation Queen Facebook Page and on Instagram at aviationqueen.