Business News
Everyone’s elite, but not for long. Airlines make travel perks harder to earn this year


The new Delta SkyClub at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Terminals 2 and 3 where the reimagined state-of-the-art facilities will soon welcome millions of guests each year.
Media News Group | Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images
When United Airlines gate agents call the first boarding group, Ted Cohen notices something he never saw in his decades crossing the globe as a music industry executive: crowds.
The “preboarding” group includes members of United Global Services, an invitation-only status for top customers, and United Premier 1K, an upper-level tier in the airline’s Mileage Plus frequent flyer program.
“It used to be two or three people, and you used to say, ‘Who is that?’ And now it’s a small army,” said Cohen, who leads a digital entertainment consulting firm and has lifetime elite status on United and American Airlines.
Welcome to air travel’s era of mass luxury.
Travelers willing to shell out more for tickets and popular rewards credit cards are swelling ranks in front cabins and airport lounges. Now airlines are trying to handle the surge of big spenders — without compromising the appeal of their lucrative loyalty programs and most expensive seats. This year, not everyone will make the cut.
The largest U.S. carriers — Delta Air Lines, American and United — are raising spending requirements to earn some elite frequent flyer tiers that grant free upgrades, early boarding, discounted or complimentary lounge memberships and other perks.
Executives say the richer requirements are the product of the pandemic. Airlines had extended frequent flyer status without requiring travelers to meet the usual annual thresholds because would-be passengers were sidelined. In the meantime, customers kept spending on their rewards credit cards, racking up points and perks along the way.
“We feel like we’re royals even though we’re not rich at all,” said Damaris Osorio, a 27-year-old based in New York who runs a vintage clothing business.
Osorio frequents airport lounges on trips booked with rewards points that she earned through strategic credit card use and sign-up bonuses. Last year she and her fiance traveled to Brazil, Chile, Argentina and Italy, all on flights she paid for with points.
She said she cares little about sitting in the front of the plane, but has a preference for the American Express Centurion Lounges, which she gets into with one of her Amex cards. Osorio realizes she’s not alone.
“You notice how much busier it’s getting at the lounges,” she said. “I go as early as possible to maximize what I’m taking away.”
Next month, Amex Platinum cardholders will be charged $50 for each guest they bring to a Centurion Lounge. Those cardholders can currently bring in two guests for free.
‘If everyone is special, no one feels special’
For the airlines, hordes of high spenders are a good problem to have two years after the pandemic drove them into a $35 billion hole, despite billions in taxpayer aid. Airlines are profitable again, with travel roaring back and flyers who are willing to pay up for a little bit more space or privacy on their trip.
Airlines’ lucrative credit card partnerships helped them stay afloat in the pandemic. They sell miles to credit card companies, and bringing in billions of dollars.
Now they have a lot of travelers itching to cash in rewards.
If they call biz class boarding and it’s like the start of the Indy 500 … it’s not going to be a pleasant experience.
Henry Harteveldt
founder of Atmosphere Research Group
Delta said in an investor presentation last month that premium products and non-ticket revenue will make up 57% of its sales this year, up from 44% in 2014 and 53% in 2019, before the pandemic. That category includes revenue from top-end international business-class seats, extra-legroom seats and other sources, such as its partnership with American Express.
After some customers complained about crowds and long lines at its Sky Club airport lounges, Delta said late last year that it will raise the prices and the requirements to gain access to those facilities. Earlier in 2022, it also instituted a three-hour time limit for lounge use and created a VIP line for high-status holders.
CEO Ed Bastian said recent policy changes aim to address pandemic-era status extensions and the rise of customers spending more for travel.
“We’ve got to address that in some way to be fair to everybody, because as they say, ‘If everyone’s special, no one feels special,'” Bastian said in an interview last month. “We’re trying to do it in a fair way.”
United’s chief customer officer, Linda Jojo, put it similarly at a recent industry conference. “If everybody has status then nobody has status,” she said.
In November, United said it was raising the requirements to earn status and perks.
United also opened a new mini-lounge at its hub at Denver International Airport, catering to customers on the go who are flying on regional feeder jets, a move that could help free up space in larger facilities for travelers hanging out longer.
United Airlines Polaris lounge at Newark Liberty International Airport
Leslie Josephs | CNBC
Last month, American Airlines said customers will have to spend or fly more to reach the lowest elite tier in its AAdvantage frequent flyer program. Customers will soon need 40,000 so-called loyalty points instead of 30,000 for Gold status.
Bigger space for big spenders
Delta, American, United and American Express have been opening bigger airport lounges to fit more travelers.
American and its trans-Atlantic partner British Airways in November opened new, high-end lounges at John F. Kennedy International Airport with showers, bars and lots of workspace. The three lounges roughly double the square feet that American previously offered at JFK to about 65,000 square feet, an airline spokeswoman said.
“There’s a tremendous demand for it, and we got to make sure that we are taking care of customers how they want to be taken care of,” American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said at the JFK lounge opening.
Several full-service carriers have also moved away from long-haul first class cabins in favor of more premium economy seats — in between business-class and standard coach seats — and larger business-class cabins that fit scores of travelers, particularly on long flights.
Many of the newer business-class seats are roomier and come with more amenities than first-class seats of the past.
A new American Airlines and British Airways lounge at John F. Kennedy International Airport, November 29, 2022.
Leslie Josephs | CNBC
American Airlines is planning to get rid of a separate first class on some older planes used to fly longer routes in favor of a single, expanded, business class featuring new suites with doors.
The airline said premium seats on its long-haul fleet will increase by more than 45% by 2026.
But with the expansion of that cabin comes the risk of diluting the premium feel, said Henry Harteveldt, a former airline executive and founder of Atmosphere Research Group.
“If they call biz class boarding and it’s like the start of the Indy 500 and you have 70 people jostling to get down the jet bridge, it’s not going to be a pleasant experience,” he said.
‘I don’t sit behind the wing’
With demand still strong, redeeming miles for flights this year might cost more.
Michael Calarco, a part-time consultant who helps travelers book trips with their rewards points, said it’s been harder to find seats lately because planes are flying so full after travel restrictions lifted, including to international destinations.
He recommends flyers be as flexible as possible with their dates if they want to cash in their points for a trip, and to avoid major holidays.
“There’s not much I can do if someone wants to go to the Maldives two months away,” he said.
Some travelers say comfort is worth cashing in chunks of the points they’ve been sitting on.
“I don’t sit behind the wing,” said Mark Ophaug, 40, who works at an educational technology company and has a top-tier status with United’s Mileage Plus program. He and his husband are planning to visit his in-laws in Buenos Aires this year and plan to use United PlusPoints to upgrade to lie-flat seats.
“It’s a long flight, and I want to lie down,” Ophaug said.
Business News
Lucid to cut 1,300 workers amid signs of flagging demand for its EVs


Lucid Motors CEO Peter Rawlinson poses at the Nasdaq MarketSite as Lucid Motors (Nasdaq: LCID) begins trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange after completing its business combination with Churchill Capital Corp IV in New York City, New York, July 26, 2021.
Andrew Kelly | Reuters
Struggling EV maker Lucid said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that it plans to cut about 18% of its workforce, or roughly 1,300 employees, as part of a larger restructuring to reduce costs as it works to ramp up production of its Air luxury sedan.
Lucid said it will incur one-time charges totaling between $24 million and $30 million related to the job cuts, with most of that amount being recognized in the first quarter of 2023.
News of the job cuts was first reported by Insider earlier on Tuesday. Lucid’s shares closed down over 7% on Tuesday following the Insider report.
In a letter to employees, CEO Peter Rawlinson said the job cuts will hit “nearly every organization and level, including executives,” and that affected employees will be notified over the next three days. Severance packages will include continued healthcare coverage paid by Lucid, as well as an acceleration of equity vesting, Rawlinson wrote.
Lucid ended 2022 with about $4.4 billion in cash on hand, enough to last until the first quarter of 2024, CFO Sherry House told CNBC last month ahead of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report. But there have been signs that demand for the high-priced Air has fallen short of Lucid’s internal expectations, and the company may be struggling to convert early reservations to sold orders.
Lucid said that it had more than 28,000 reservations for the Air as of Feb. 21, its most recent update. But it also said that it plans to build just 10,000 to 14,000 vehicles in 2023, far fewer than the roughly 27,000 that Wall Street analysts had expected.
With Lucid’s factory currently set up to build about 34,000 vehicles per year, the company has warned of continuing losses.
“As we produce vehicles at low volumes on production lines designed for higher volumes, we have and we will continue to experience negative gross profit related to labor and overhead costs,” House said during Lucid’s earnings call on Feb. 22.
Lucid hasn’t yet announced a date for its first-quarter earnings report.
Business News
Virgin Orbit extends unpaid pause as Brown deal collapses, ‘dynamic’ talks continue


NEWQUAY, ENGLAND – JANUARY 09: A general view of Cosmic Girl, a Boeing 747-400 aircraft carrying the LauncherOne rocket under its left wing, as final preparations are made at Cornwall Airport Newquay on January 9, 2023 in Newquay, United Kingdom. Virgin Orbit launches its LauncherOne rocket from the spaceport in Cornwall, marking the first ever orbital launch from the UK. The mission has been named Start Me Up after the Rolling Stones hit. (Photo by Matthew Horwood/Getty Images)
Matthew Horwood | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Virgin Orbit is again extending its unpaid pause in operations to continue pursuing a lifeline investment, CEO Dan Hart told employees in a company-wide email.
Some of the company’s late-stage deal talks, including with private investor Matthew Brown, collapsed over the weekend, people familiar with the matter told CNBC.
Hart previously planned to update employees on the company’s operational status at an all-hands meeting at 4:30 p.m. ET on Monday afternoon, according to an email sent to employees Sunday night. At the last minute, that meeting was rescheduled “for no later than Thursday,” Hart said in the employee memo Monday.
“Our investment discussions have been very dynamic over the past few days, they are ongoing, and not yet at a stage where we can provide a fulsome update,” Hart wrote in the email to employees, which was viewed by CNBC.
Brown told CNBC’s “Worldwide Exchange” last week he was in final discussions to invest in the company. A person familiar with the terms told CNBC the investment would have amounted to $200 million and granted Brown a controlling stake. But discussions between Virgin Orbit and the Texas-based investor stalled and broke down late last week, a person familiar told CNBC. As of Saturday those discussions had ended, the person said.
Separately, another person said talks with a different potential buyer broke down on Sunday night.
The people asked to remain anonymous to discuss private negotiations. A representative for Virgin Orbit declined to comment.
Hart promised Virgin Orbit’s over 750 employees “daily” updates this week. Most of the staff remain on an unpaid furlough that Hart announced on Mar. 15. Last week, a “small” team of Virgin Orbit employees returned to work in what Hart described as the “first step” in an “incremental resumption of operations,” with the intention of preparing a rocket for the company’s next launch.
Virgin Orbit’s stock closed at 54 cents a share on Monday, having fallen below $1 a share after the company’s pause in operations.
Virgin Orbit developed a system that uses a modified 747 jet to send satellites into space by dropping a rocket from under the aircraft’s wing mid-flight. But the company’s last mission suffered a mid-flight failure, with an issue during the launch causing the rocket to not reach orbit and crash into the ocean.
The company has been looking for new funds for several months, with majority owner Sir Richard Branson unwilling to fund the company further.
Virgin Orbit was spun out of Branson’s Virgin Galactic in 2017 and counts the billionaire as its largest stakeholder, with 75% ownership. Mubadala, the Emirati sovereign wealth fund, holds the second-largest stake in Virgin Orbit, at 18%.
The company hired bankruptcy firms to draw up contingency plans in the event it is unable to find a buyer or investor. Branson has first priority over Virgin Orbit’s assets, as the company raised $60 million in debt from the investment arm of Virgin Group.
On the same day that Hart told employees that Virgin Orbit was pausing operations, its board of directors approved a “golden parachute” severance plan for top executives, in case they are terminated “following a change in control” of the company.
Business News
Historic UAW election picks reform leader who vows more aggressive approach to auto negotiations


Supporters wave signs during an address at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, on September 5, 2012 on the second day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC).
Mladin Antonov | AFP | Getty Images
DETROIT – United Auto Workers members have ousted their president in the union’s first direct election, ushering in a new era for the prominent organized labor group ahead of negotiations later this year with the Detroit automakers.
The union’s new leader will be Shawn Fain, a member of the “UAW Members United” reform group and local leader for a Stellantis parts plant in Indiana. He came out ahead in a runoff election by hundreds of votes over incumbent Ray Curry, who was appointed president by union leaders in 2021.
Fain, in a statement Saturday, thanked UAW members who voted in the election. He also hailed the election results as a historic change in direction for the embattled union, which he says will take a “more aggressive approach” with its employers.
“This election was not just a race between two candidates, it was a referendum on the direction of the UAW. For too long, the UAW has been controlled by leadership with a top-down, company union philosophy who have been unwilling to confront management, and as a result, we’ve seen nothing but concessions, corruption, and plant closures,” Fain said.
Curry, who previously protested the narrow election results, said in a statement that Fain will be sworn in on Sunday and that Curry is “committed to ensuring that this transition is smooth and without disruptions.”
“I want to express my deep gratitude to all UAW staff, clerical support, leaders and most of all, our union’s active and retired members for the many years of support and solidarity. It has been the honor of my life to serve our great union,” Curry said.
More than 141,500 ballots were cast in the runoff election that also included two other board positions, a 33% increase from last year’s direct election in which neither of the presidential candidates received 50% or more of the votes.
The election was overseen by a federal monitor, who did not immediately confirm the results. The election results had been delayed several weeks due to a run-off election as well as the close final count.
Shawn Fain, candidate for UAW president, is in a run-off election with incumbent Ray Curry for the union’s highest-ranking position.
Jim West for UAW Members United
Fain’s election adds to the UAW’s largest upheaval in leadership in decades, as a majority of the union’ s International Executive Board will be made up of first-time directors who are not part of the “Administration Caucus” that has controlled the union for more than 70 years.
Fain and other members of his leadership slate ran on the promise of “No corruption. No concessions. No tiers.” The last being a reference to a tiered pay system implemented by the automakers during recent negotiations that members have asked to be removed.
The shuffle follows a yearslong federal investigation that uncovered systemic corruption involving bribery, embezzlement, and other crimes among the top ranks of the UAW.
Thirteen UAW officials were convicted as part of the probe, including two past presidents. As part of a settlement with the union in late 2020, a federal monitor was appointed to oversee the union and the organization held a direct election where each member has a vote, doing away with a weighted delegate process.
For investors, UAW negotiations with the Detroit automakers are typically a short-term headwind every four years that result in higher costs. But this year’s negotiations are anticipated to be among the most contentious and important in recent memory.
Fain has said the union will seek benefit gains for members, advocating for the return of a cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, as well as raises and job security.
The change in the UAW comes against the backdrop of a broader organized labor movement across the country, a pro-union president and an industry in the transition to all-electric vehicles.
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