Inside the Changing Airline Industry: Sean Cudahy on Air Travel, Loyalty and What’s Next at The Points Guy

Angela 0:05

Welcome to Media in Minutes. This is your host, Angela Toole. This podcast features in-depth interviews with those who report on the world around us. They share everything from their favorite stories to what happened behind the lens and give us a glimpse into their world. From our studio here at Communications Redefined, this is Media in Minutes. Today we’re talking with Sean Cuttahye, a senior aviation reporter at the Point Sky, where he covers airlines, transportation, loyalty programs, and the issues affecting how we travel. Before specializing in aviation, Sean spent nearly a decade in local television news, reporting in Charlottesville, Dayton, and Raleigh. He’s also written for outlets including NerdWallet, Fast Company, Fromers, CNN underscored, and the New York Post. Today his reporting takes him inside an airline industry that’s changing quickly from new routes and loyalty programs to evolving passenger experiences and the technology reshaping air travel. As a fellow former local TV reporter, I’m especially excited to talk about how Sean made the jump from covering daily news to becoming one of the journalists, travelers’ turn two for what’s happening in the skies. Sean, welcome to Media and Minutes.

Sean 1:17

Great to be with you. Thanks

Local TV Skills That Still Matter

Speaker 1:18

for having me.

Sean 1:18

Yes, I’m excited to talk with you. We have something in common. We both started in local television news. You spent, it looks like, about eight years reporting in local markets, correct? I did. I did. Yeah. We both have have been through that.

Angela 1:33

Yes. What did those years? I know. I’m sure I could know a little bit about this, but what did those years teach you that you still use in your reporting today?

Sean 1:41

Yeah, you know, I think it is um just that that in intense deadline-driven um, you know, you know, ethos, right? I think it, you know, there’s a scrappiness that I think TV reporters have. I started out in Charlottesville, Virginia, Market 183 at the time. Yes. Um, you know, I was one man banning. I was going out to, you know, whatever the news was at, you know, whatever hour in the day. I mean, there’d be times I’d be at a fire or a police situation at like three o’clock in the morning, and I’d have to, you know, shoot it with the camera, go back, edit the video, write the script, um, all while hitting that deadline. And I think that really just kind of sticks with me in every um, you know, form of journalism that I’ve gone on to, even if I’m not in the TV space.

Angela 2:22

Absolutely. The deadlines. I mean, I cannot miss one no matter what. And the part of being able to speak to anyone. You can talk to anybody.

Sean 2:31

That’s right. You know, TV reporters, I think it’s a different type of writing, but it’s one that I think is just so uh it’s it’s conversational. It’s we we are always preaching, you know, in the TV space, right how you talk. And I I try to keep that in mind even as I write for different mediums. And of course, today, with all the different platforms that have emerged, um, there’s a lot more video in my job today anyway, even though I’m not in TV.

Angela 2:56

Yes, it’s an like you said, every platform is is doing video. I mean, even local newspapers, which you wouldn’t have have thought,

Making The Jump To Aviation

Angela 3:04

you know. Um, how did you so how did you go from being a general assignment TV reporter to where you are now? And tell us a little bit about that.

Sean 3:12

Yeah, so I had, yeah, as you mentioned, I had been in TV for about eight years. I got to um a point when I was kind of making a career transition. My wife had just uh matched, I’m here in the North Carolina area. My wife had just matched down here for her residency, and I was um thinking through kind of what the next chapter of my career would be, and I had gotten in touch with some folks at TPG, and I, you know, I had always uh had an interest in airlines, in travel and transportation. Um, and you know, I I just I it felt like a great time to kind of specialize and go into a medium that was really, I thought, um, you know, uh for an outlet that I thought was really kind of on the cutting edge of telling stories, of uh doing some really exciting work that I had followed previously myself, um, for travel advice. And um, you know, I from there I’ve kind of uh moved specifically into covering airlines. And it’s an exciting field. It’s one that I think a lot of the the the talking to a general audience that that is is still so important. Um, though a lot of the the breaking news um, you know, experience that you have as a TV reporter, I think really comes into play when you’re covering the airline beat when things can change so fast. Um that’s you know, it’s just been a really exciting transition over the last several years.

Angela 4:23

Yes, that’s one of the things that journalists, if they if they go away from TV news, they miss that exciting breaking news part on some on some different roles. So it’s it’s great that you still have that. You get that little bit of adrenaline still, right?

Sean 4:36

Yeah, yeah. And you know, certainly we’ve had plenty of news over the last several years. Um obviously some of it um you know we’ve had there’s been you know tragic incidents, there’s been incidents that have affected a lot of consumers, um, you know, their wallets, um they’re you know, getting travel meltdowns, getting stranded somewhere. And I think it’s you know that that what what we do and what we try to focus on is helping people know how to get out of messes when they happen and you know, kind of putting yourself in the best position, you know, when you’re booking flights, preparing for a trip to try to avoid kind of the the the pitfalls in the first place.

The Race Toward Premium Cabins

Angela 5:08

Yes, your advice is always so helpful. It’s very, very much so. It’s such a wonderful outlet too. When you’re covering, you know, the in the specific industry that you’re covering, and aviation specifically, is constantly changing, as you’ve mentioned. What do you think is driving so much of that change in the industry right now?

Sean 5:26

I think there’s two things. I mean, there’s there’s many things that we’re seeing, but two of the things that we are spending a lot of time covering right now. One is this push to be for everyone to try to be premium right now. Um, we’re seeing even some of you know some of the budget airlines like Frontier, like Allegiant, they, you know, these airlines that have so long they’ve had, you know, all economy cabins. Now they’re adding first class seats to try to keep up with um, you know, the premium revenue that the big airlines like Delta and United have been raking in for years. And then you see the big airlines, um, you know, the Deltas and United’s and Americans of the world uh rolling out these just huge premium economy and business class cabins, unlike anything we’ve seen. Um, it’s just this kind of insatiable demand for these premium seats that we’ve seen over the last several years. And that’s all kind of tied in with where loyalty is right now for airlines. We know that, you know, these loyalty programs have gotten so big, so powerful. Um, you know, airlines make so much money today off of their credit card programs that are tied in with these, with the loyalty programs. And, you know, I think that there’s a lot being happening, there’s a lot happening in terms of uh, you know, kind of how airlines are making decisions that um you know is deeply tied in with these loyalty programs.

Loyalty Programs Get Complex And Pricier

Angela 6:38

Yes. You mentioned um, or you know, for those of us, I guess, who collect points and miles and loyalty programs, which is many people, as you mentioned, do you think they’re becoming for the consumer, not the airline, more valuable, less valuable, or just more complicated?

Sean 6:54

I think that there’s there’s definitely uh a complexity element to it. You know, I one of the we definitely have seen uh miles and points, and I, you know, I would extend that to the hotels too, by the way.

Angela 7:05

Yeah.

Sean 7:05

They have become less valuable over time, you know, just like we see inflation kind of on the cash side of things, we have definitely seen redemptions. You know, you need more miles or more points for a hotel night or for a flight than you did, you know, several years ago. Um, you know, we have definitely seen airlines kind of re-jiggering their programs, United in particular, where, you know, if you have a credit card, then a lot of the benefits, you know, you’re you can book a flight for fewer miles, you get more benefits. And if you don’t have it, then maybe you’re not coming out ahead compared to where you were a couple of years ago. So it’s kind of this two-track system that we’re seeing develop. But I think the bottom line is we do recommend generally if you have a big stash of points and miles, it’s better to use them sooner than later because they we we know they do not get more valuable with time.

Angela 7:52

Yes, I have found uh try to keep up with it, but it is difficult to when you finally, you know, are going to book a trip to figure out what the best way is to use those miles.

Sean 8:02

Yeah, and there’s still great value to be had, they can be life-changing still. I, you know, I in in addition to covering them, I use them. I travel you know all over the world with them. Uh, it can really come in handy, but I but I do think there’s uh a savviness that you have to have today to to make the best use out of them. And that’s obviously what we try to do every day.

Angela 8:21

Right. I was going to say, looking to the points guy is is very helpful for that. You mentioned the premium seats with airline ticket prices going up. Are you still seeing that demand on those premium seats?

Sean 8:33

We we’re seeing demand across the board. Uh, you know, it’s really that’s I think that the two forces are kind of working against each other. We’ve seen obviously between uh oil prices going up this year and also um airlines really just um seeing an opportunity, I think, to uh to to bring the kind of the baseline fares up from where they were a year or two ago. Um it it the fares might be coming down if it weren’t for if there were a big drop-up in demand, but we’re not seeing that. It was still packed all summer at airports, and airlines are just looking at their plans and they’re still so full, and they’re saying, well, we don’t really see a lot of incentive right now to drop ticket prices. So our outlook right now, unfortunately, is that there’s there’s not a whole lot of relief in sight for travelers, and there likely won’t be on the fare front unless we, you know, until we start seeing some sort of drop-off in demand.

Angela 9:20

Yeah, that’s too bad. It’s like you don’t want drop off in the demand either, but you want lower lower prices. You know, I guess you can’t have it both.

Basic Fares Spread To Every Cabin

Angela 9:28

Um, what airline or loyalty trend are you watching right now that you think travelers aren’t paying enough attention to?

Sean 9:35

I think it’s it’s sort of what I mentioned earlier, where you know, United earlier this year really kind of made some headlines in the industry, some some shockwaves, you might say, by creating this system where if you have a credit card, you’re gonna earn more miles for your flight than someone who doesn’t have one. If you don’t have a credit card, you’re gonna earn fewer than you did yesterday, that type of thing. Uh also, you know, Delta and United both giving, they’re both giving these uh discounts when you go to book your ticket with miles. I think we’re gonna see a lot more where that came from. The other thing, and this is sort of tied in with loyalty, um, for years there’s been these, there have been these basic economy fares, right? So you can get a discount, but deal with some restrictions if you if you book the basic economy. We’re now seeing basic fares expanded out to every single cabin on a lot of airlines. So you can pay $5,000 for a business class seat and not be able to actually pick what seat you’re flying in, uh, not be able to go into the fancy lounge that you thought you were going to be able to go in. Um we’re we’re just I think that is a big kind of shift with how airlines, you know, a few years ago you might have seen three or four different fair types. Now you could look and see like 10 or 12 or something.

Angela 10:40

Yes. And you have to pay close attention to what you’re booking and all the details of it to know that.

Inaugural Flights And New Products

Angela 10:46

You mentioned um traveling. How often do you travel for your current role?

Sean 10:52

Gosh, I, you know, it’s I I think for work, I’m probably on the road. Um, you know, I’d say it at least every other week I’m gone a couple of days. Sometimes I’ll go through a period where I’m home a little bit more. Sometimes I’ll go through a period where I travel every week in a month. It kind of depends. And then of course I’m mixing in some personal travel on the weekends too. So uh it’s been, I’ve done over a hundred thousand miles each of the last two years. And we’re at, you know, here in September, I think I’m at 85,000 and counting. So definitely a lot of hours in the sky.

Angela 11:21

Yes, that is a lot. Is there a story or assignment you’ve covered recently or while you’ve been there that stands out as a favorite?

Sean 11:29

And won’t ask you to pick one favorite, but well, I’ll kind of a category. I have had the chance to do some inaugural flights, which has been super fun. So I’ve gone up with United to Greenland, uh, Morocco, Singapore, um, and then uh American Airlines. I got to fly down when the new Tulum airport opened up in 2024. Um, you know, very convenient airport for travelers trying to get to Tulum, or at least a lot more than if you’re Cancun. Um, and you have done jet blue to London when they opened up that transatlantic route and to Dublin. So it’s it’s really fun. A lot of times you get this kind of big party at the gate. There’s all sorts of uh excitement on the plane. Um sometimes it’s a little bit like a party at 35,000 feet. Um and there’s also, you know, there’s very serious, you know, important news elements mixed in with that. And these are, you know, key economic driving routes that are opening up for these airlines, you know, kind of historic aviation moments. So um that’s been a lot of fun. Um usually do a couple of those a year, and um, you know, we’ll see where the where the next one is.

Angela 12:29

Do you usually get the first class seats?

Sean 12:32

Sometimes sometimes I sometimes I get to try out, you know, it’s a it’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it. Uh trying out those. I was I got to try United earlier this year just rolled out their new business class plus product, their Polaris Studios, where they have cab and special wine service up front. Um, I got to fly that one 17 hours to Singapore, which was, you know, there’s I’ve had worse seating assignments for a flight.

Angela 12:57

That is nice. So you’ve also had, as you’ve mentioned, a chance to see and fly some pretty interesting new aircraft and products.

The Airbus A321XLR Route Revolution

Angela 13:06

Is there anything coming to air travel, you know, that’s not quite here yet that you’re excited about?

Sean 13:12

I think one of the things that um we’re really seeing, I I wouldn’t say it’s not here, but it it’s barely here is this new um Airbus A321 XLR. So it’s a new type of aircraft that just debuted at the beginning of 2024. You’ve you’re see uh American United first two US airlines to fly it. And this is a basically a small single aisle plane that has the range to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. So I think one of the big kind of travel um transformations that’s gonna happen with this plane, and we’re already seeing it start to play out, is that airlines are gonna be able to open up routes to much smaller markets in Europe. So United just announced service to a bunch of cities in Europe, a bunch of markets from Luxembourg to Marseille to Valencia, um, places that they they never would have flown with a big plane, uh, but now they have kind of the more flexibility with a smaller aircraft to open up these really kind of unique new routes. Uh Americans got big plans around it too. Iberia and Aerlingus from Europe are, they’re using it to open up nonstop right flights between Europe and smaller US cities. So I think that’s really kind of what we’re talking about is just the ability to, it doesn’t all have to be New York to London. It can be uh Indianapolis to Dublin or these routes that that you wouldn’t have previously thought existed. And I think it’s gonna make transatlantic travel a lot more accessible to a lot of communities on both sides of the ocean.

Angela 14:38

That’s great. And we living in the Midwest, I love that idea too, where we could possibly get there easier or nonstop without having to go to one of the coasts.

Sean 14:47

So much more convenient.

Pitching Tips For PR Pros

Angela 14:48

Yes, definitely. Um, much of our audience are PR professionals, so I definitely want to talk about pitching and how to help you best. What kinds of pitches are actually you know most useful to you?

Sean 15:00

I think the biggest thing when I when I in terms of pitches that I get into my inbox every day is, you know, I if if you can really make sure that you understand what the reporter covers, that would be my best um you know advice. You know, that yes, I cover airlines, but there’s you know a specific um you know type of story that we cover. You know, we there’s um you know, you I would be doing research into the types of stories the reporter has covered in the past. What types of stories do you, you know, if if if if see if kind of what you’re pitching sort of matches up with something they’ve covered? And if it doesn’t, at face value, maybe figure out a way that that it might appeal to the reporter. I would definitely make the the pitch as individually tailored as possible. Uh, you know, I think sometimes when we get a uh you know a pitch that is clearly just blasted out, copied and pasted to a whole bunch of different journalists, a lot of time I think it feels like something that’s probably not unique. It’s you know, maybe something that a lot of other outlets are going to end up covering. Um, you know, the more you can kind of tailor it to both how that reporter works and also um, you know, what their outlet’s needs are, I think is really the the best key to success there.

Angela 16:05

Yes. For you specifically, how much do you need to tie it to miles and points?

Sean 16:11

Yeah, you know, I think I I think it it definitely is that’s one of the best things that you can do if you can demonstrate how um, you know, what the you know, how it matters to either your miles, your points, or to someone who’s traveling and using those miles and points. You know, if there’s a a new route that got announced that is on an airline that you can book with miles, you know, maybe show how that, you know, why that destination might be a good value for consumers. I think that’s definitely um, you know, something that we’re interested in. And um, you know, just I for for us, it’s really a matter of um, you know, trying to help the consumer as they they make their their decisions around travel and using their points and using their miles. Um I think that’s really sort of the key.

Angela 16:52

Yes. And I’m sure timing is very important. So if someone has news tied to a new route, a destination, loyalty partnership, you know, anything like that, how far ahead, if they can, should they be reaching out?

Sean 17:05

Yeah, so we are we’re certainly uh a newsroom in the sense that we cover news as it comes in on the fly. But of course, the like everybody else, the more advanced notice we can get, the better. Um that’s you know, obviously to to do the best job with the story, to do the best um planning around resources. Um, you know, sometimes if you know a what something that would be a good story comes in on the a Thursday, but we’ve had a major wave of news and we’ve got every one of our reporters tied up covering those major stories. Well, you know, our bandwidth all of a sudden maybe gets chewed up a little bit. But if we have something already slotted in, whether that’s under embargo or something that we’ve talked about in advance and you know, maybe gotten some advanced access to it, um I think we’re always we certainly always respect those terms and and I think that’s always helpful with getting, you know, coverage planned into the calendar. Um every um outlet loves to be able to kind of have some advanced planning going on.

Angela 18:00

Yes. Yes, absolutely.

Best US Airlines Rankings Explained

Angela 18:02

You recently also worked on the Points Guys annual ranking of the best US airlines. Yes. After looking at first, what an undertaking that must be, probably, but also after looking at all of that data, what do you think travelers misunderstand most about um, you know, when they ask what’s the best airline?

Sean 18:22

Yeah, well, so we we cut we obviously come to an answer every year and we we label what we, you know, our data shows that the best airline is. And I I mentioned data, it is data driven. So it’s not just something we’re deciding in a back room. Um, shout out to Delta, which is now one at seven straight years. But I think um just because there’s that overarching answer to what is the best airline objectively based on our data, um, you know, we have lots of different categories. And the thing that’s important to me might not be the same thing that’s important to you. And we try to, in this report, really kind of give this holistic look at what some airlines do well, what other airlines don’t do well. Um, you know, Allegiant, for instance, smaller budget airline, they won our reliability category. Uh, we have four key categories in the report. They had a really good year when it came to just running that on-time operation, not losing bags. Um, one of my favorite stats that was in the report is that Allegiant and Delta also, by the way, they bumped, involuntarily bumped a total of zero passengers. Well, some other did it thousands of times. So uh definitely impressive there. Um, you know, American Airlines, they had kind of a tough year last year when it came to being on time and cancellations, kind of a rough year on that front, but American uh won our loyalty category. Um, and that’s a you know big reason their miles have just kind of time and time again uh come out ahead in some of our valuations, um, you know, versus the competitors.

Angela 19:46

Okay. I have noticed that the basic economy, I think whatever the lowest one is, you don’t get mileage or you don’t get loyalty points. Is that true on every airline?

Sean 19:55

A bunch of airlines, that’s another big trend we’re seeing in the industry. So a bunch of airlines have, you know, it used to be basic economy basically started becoming a big thing on the airlines in the mid-2010s. They were trying to compete with the budget airlines. And, you know, in the the the the quote unquote old days, uh they airlines used to tell you, oh, if you book basic economy, you’re not gonna be able to bring like a full-size carry-on on board. You won’t be able to use the overhead bins. Now they’re really going after your miles. They’re saying, Oh, no miles if you book basic economy, or uh, you know, no getting into the lounge if you, even if you’re a member, even if you have a credit card. Um that’s kind of what we’re seeing now.

Credit Cards And Smarter Booking Habits

Angela 20:30

What about credit cards? Do you have a favorite airline credit card?

Sean 20:33

Oh gosh. You know, I I have credit cards with a handful of the airlines. I also have um some hotel credit cards and um, you know, some of the cards where you can transfer to you know the to a bunch of different hotel and airline partners. I think one of the things that we really preach today, you know, because any airline, any hotel company, they can kind of change the value of the points at any time. One of the things that we advise is just to have as well-rounded a strategy as possible. So you have some miles in this program, some miles in that program, you’re kind of covered for for any future developments.

Angela 21:05

Yeah, that’s good advice, definitely. I’m kind of curious about your own personal travel habits after covering this industry every day. Um, you know, being an aviation reporter, has that changed the way you book flights or travel?

Sean 21:19

It definitely has um, yeah, I I there’s a couple of things. I I’m I definitely try to cast a wide net. That’s one of the things I preach in terms of advice for finding, you know, flight deals. Um, you know, a lot of time I, you know, when I set out to plan a trip for, let’s say, next spring, I don’t necessarily know where I’m going to go. I’m gonna look, look and find where the award deals are the best, where the the cash prices are the best, and then maybe plan the trip and even the trip dates around that. Sometimes that’s easier said than done when it comes to school calendars, to um, you know, work calendars, PTO, but that’s really one of the best things. And then also, I, of course, I do a lot of because I’m you know sort of a geek for this stuff and for for work purposes, of course. Um, I like to, you know, sample different products. So we went to Scotland earlier this year um for a vacation and I made sure to fly American Airlines’ newest plane. Um, you know, I’m always trying to hop on a new plane from an airline or even get on a plane to test out their new Wi-Fi system. So there’s there’s a lot of uh of of that mixing and matching going on.

Angela 22:19

Yes, definitely. Are you as obsessive about point seat assignments, aircraft craft types, lounges as we’d think you would be?

Sean 22:29

What what gave it away? No, yeah, yeah. I I you know I I I think it’s important, you know, both from I it’s it’s definitely something that’s kind of a hobby of mine, but I also think it’s important for me to be able to try out as much of the different lounge products and aircraft types and airline apps and routes as I can. That way I can relay that information back to our readers and give them the best picture.

Angela 22:52

Definitely. Where are you typically booking through? What are you what are you looking at?

Sean 22:56

Uh I typically so my my strategy, I usually will start when it comes to finding flight deals. I’ll usually start by using a site like Google Flights or Kayak to try to kind of cast, you know, see what all the pricing is looking like and kind of play with different routes and cities and dates. And then I typically will book directly through the airline and hotels. Um, you know, I a lot of folks will use different travel, you know, uh third-party companies out there. Um, I tend to book direct just to make sure, you know, for the airline, from the airline standpoint, to make sure I can make ticket changes. It’s usually a little easier if you book directly. And then also um for the hotels, I like to take advantage of my elite status benefits. And sometimes if you go third party, it can be a little hard to capitalize on that.

Angela 23:36

Yeah, definitely. We’ve made that mistake earlier in our lives. Learn to go directly

Devaluations, Transparency, And Award Tools

Angela 23:41

for sure. I have to ask before we go, if you could make one change to air travel tomorrow, anything from the airport experience to airline policies to anything else, what would it be?

Sean 23:53

Oh gosh. Well, I you know, I to go back to the to the points theme. Um, I think all of us at TBG would would love it if um would love to see uh the devaluations go away. You know, I know it’s business, I know there’s lots of different reasons for it, but it’s just it can be really frustrating when you’ve accrued, you know, 100,000, 200,000, 500,000 points in a airline program. And I definitely don’t want to let the hotel programs off the hook. We see it um definitely happening in the hotel space too, where the points just, you know, a you know, a redemption that you could have gotten for 50,000 points a year ago. Now you need, you know, 75 or 80,000 points. It can just be really frustrating. There’s not as much trans. The airlines have gone to dynamic pricing, hotels too, where the the amount that you need for a redemption just can really change from one day to the next. Again, business reasons for that, but if I could wave a magic wand, I think um some more transparency around that. I think um a lot of the the consumers and members would would certainly appreciate.

Angela 24:52

Yeah, definitely. Is there a the a best tool that you use to look at to look at that?

Sean 24:57

Yeah, there’s a bunch of tools out there. We we we list a bunch of them on our website, but um, there’s you know, seats.ero, there’s roam.travel, there’s uh a bunch of different tools that’ll help you kind of find a word space uh and kind of make the best use of what the reality is. Also, I the thing that I always remind people is you don’t have to book even if you want to fly on a certain airline, be sure to check their partners too. So I will use Alaska Airlines, their Atmos Rewards points. I will use those to book flights on American. You can use Air France Miles to book flights on Delta. Um, there’s lots of different tricks out there um to kind of maximize the

Where To Follow Sean And Closing

Angela 25:32

space. That’s great. How can our listeners best follow your work and connect with you online? I am let well, of course, my my email inbox is always open. Uh I am on X at Sean Cuttahye, uh, LinkedIn, and um I do a lot of work on Instagram these days, which is also my name, Sean Cuttahye. Um, you know, whether it’s doing videos or posting updates on stories or fielding tips in our inbox. Perfect. Thank you so much. We will put those links in our show notes as well.

Speaker 25:59

Great to be with you.

Angela 26:01

That’s all for this episode of Media and Minutes, a podcast by Communications Redefined. Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to our show. We’d love to hear what you think. You can find more at CommunicationsRedefined.com/Podcast. I’m your host, Angela Tuell. Talk to you next time.