Throughout the week, our team shares articles they’ve stumbled upon which may interest our readers, even if they might not otherwise merit a full post. Here are some of the posts we found interesting this week: The Knights of Malta, Delta addresses toxic fumes, debit cards deconstructed, bribes for good reviews, and the head of Atmos gets candid.
Were the Knights of Malta glorious heroes or brutal bullies?
One of the most fascinating things Greg and I learned in Malta was about the strange role Knights play in the island’s history. More specifically, the “Knights of Hospitaller” or the “Knights of Saint John.” This was originally an order of knights established to nurse sick pilgrims back to health, but eventually became something of a military force as well. The capital city of Valletta is an impressively walled city, which was essentially built (and walled) by the Knights when they made Malta their permanent domain in the 1500’s.
The story, as our local tour guide told it, was that the locals didn’t care that much for the Knights and their presence until they helped them stave off some 50,000 Turks who intended to invade Malta in “The Great Siege” in the mid-1500s, not that long after the Knights had first arrived on the island. Against all odds and greatly outnumbered (making up just over 9,000 with local Maltese and Knights combined), the Knights somehow helped defeat the Turks. This successfully changed local sentiment, and the Knights got to work building insanely thick walls around the city of Valletta. That is, of course, they got to work making their slaves do it. :-/
This article does a great job telling some of the other stories we heard on our tour with Ben and describing what happened to those knights in the end. (Hint: they still exist…kind of…)
Delta Replaces Engine Units in Effort to Address Toxic-Fume Surge on Planes
Here’s a problem I had no idea was happening, which will now haunt my flying experiences: apparently, toxic fumes have been leaking into the air supply on some Delta planes, causing health risks for passengers and crew members alike. Now they’re replacing engine units on some ~300 Airbus jets to try to address this leak of neurotoxins into the cabin. Luckily, they’re already around 90% finished with this effort, so I’m arriving at this source of anxiety late. (And most importantly, after a recent Delta flight where this probably would have turned into a constant “is that neurotoxin I smell?” paranoia.) Of course, Delta’s not the only airline using Airbus jets…so why aren’t we hearing of other airlines fixing the engines on Airbus jets?
What’s left of a debit card after it soaks in acetone for half an hour (and does it still work??)
The BBC “Secret Genius of Modern Life” series soaked a bank card in a glass of acetone to dissolve it layer by layer until just the microchip and a tiny, secret antenna wire were left. Amazingly, the tap to pay still worked from this little tinsel-looking pile of wire!
Lol: Marriott Hotel Bribes Guests For Posting Positive Reviews Online
The Aloft Miami Brickell is sending an email to recent guests stating:
If you happen to receive a survey from Marriott Bonvoy regarding your recent visit, we kindly invite you to share your thoughts with us. A perfect 9 or 10 not only inspires our team but also helps us continue raising the bar in service and hospitality.
That already is fairly leading, but technically not problematic or blatantly bribing. That is…until the next part of the email:
“As a token of our appreciation, we will be happy to award you with 3,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points for completing the survey with a top score.”
How did this make it into approved copy? As Ben points out, this actually violates Marriott’s own policies, which prevent properties from offering compensation in exchange for a specific score or review.
Alaska VP Bashes Other Carriers’ ‘Monopoly Points’ & Other Juicy Reddit Tidbits
The head of Alaska Airlines’ loyalty program, Brett Catlin, did an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) on Reddit recently. Here are some of the interesting bits that came out of it (and the amusing ways Catlin dissed the competition.)
One user asked about award price changes they thought looked a little devaluation-ish, and Catlin got a bit spicy with his response, first defending Alaska Airlines’ pricing by explaining that higher award prices may show up simply because now all seats can be bought with points (where there previously wouldn’t have always been a redemption option). He then added the delightfully salty quip, “We’re not in the business of giving out monopoly points like some of our competitors.” Which airline do you think Catlin was targeting with this comment?
Also, when talking about the recent loss of partners like LATAM and Singapore Airlines, he made another sort of cryptic comment, likely meant to jab at Delta, saying, “It’s too bad when consumers end up with less choice given the influence some very large carriers choose to wield over their partners.” (Delta apparently owns a stake in LATAM). Then, finally, he also commented about Alaska’s intentionality in ” avoiding a ‘coupon book’ style card.” This is an obvious reference to recent couponizations like we’re seeing with the American Express Platinum Card® and, of course, the Chase Sapphire Reserve®.
He also stated that top-tier Alaska elites get upgraded to First ~60% of the time when flying on a main cabin ticket. (Tim says that his own experience is actually even higher than that.) Compare this to the fact that, as the original article’s author points out, Delta reserves just 12% of the First Class cabin for upgrades, selling the rest outright.
Want to learn more about miles and points? Subscribe to email updates or check out our podcast on your favorite podcast platform.
The Order of Malta abandoned its military mission in the 1790s but has maintained its original mission of caring for the poor and the sick. Its headquarters is in Rome on Via Condotti and dispenses just under $1 billion annually in relief. When the tsunami hit Thailand or the hurricane hit the Philippines, it was the first relief organization to arrive. To fund these operations, among other sources, it is the second largest grower of grapes in Italy.
It maintains ongoing operations in many countries which are funded by local members. Clinics in remote areas of Lebanon, a drug clinic in the Red Light District of Amsterdam, clinics for the homeless, and soup kitchens are a few examples.