The Professor’s Minute Minute — October 2, 2025

 

Six observations to sharpen your view before anyone else does.

Old folks flying? — Senior travel bookings are rising and tech is adapting to their needs.

https://www.phocuswire.com/senior-travel-booking-technology-trends

Is this new? I think so. — A fresh framework in that doc is quietly redefining how we think about travel demand.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1t5kSXAR3hQaa0XsaaesFRgcrzMemkJs7X63usZTCm2g/edit

Top teams. — The 2025 Corporate Travel 100 list highlights which firms are setting the standard.

https://www.businesstravelnews.com/Corporate-Travel-100/2025

Did we forget the consumer? — A new “Offer → Order” blueprint dives into consumer buying in flight booking.

https://revman.substack.com/p/offer-order-blueprint-is-buying-plane

Agentic AI from McKinsey — McKinsey’s new report explores how “agentic AI” could reshape travel.

https://substack.com/redirect/ac9b1e12-3cdd-4e9a-b968-0190745b2107

Quirky: The true cost of ChatGPT? — Bloomberg graphs reveal how data centers’ electricity use is ballooning.

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2025-ai-data-centers-electricity-prices/

Sources:

• PhocusWire

• Google Doc

• Business Travel News

• RevMan / Substack

• McKinsey / Substack Redirect

• Bloomberg Graphics

Hashtags: #PMM #Travel #Aviation #SeniorTravel #TechTrends #Consumer #AI #DataCenters #Electricity #Innovation #Quirky

Image description: A cubist, Picasso-style canvas: an elderly traveler climbing stairs, fractured circuitry running skyward, angular corporate figures in motion, abstract AI robot heads floating above, two silhouetted consumers exchanging a ticket, and jagged electric currents feeding glowing data-center blocks. Bold, whimsical, surreal. No text anywhere.

📣 Don’t forget: Follow the full archive at

https://t2ni.blogspot.com

And check out the Best of the Week on LinkedIn & Instagram.

Professor’s musings: https://t2impact.blogspot.com

Old archive: https://www.tumblr.com/professorsabena

The Professor’s Minute Minute — October 1, 2025

Six quick hits to make you smarter before the kettle boils.

This was bound to happen — Office visits are rising as hybrid work becomes the norm.

https://killercharts.substack.com/p/the-death-of-working-from-home

Does crime pay? — US crime rates are nearly half of what they were in 2001.

https://usafacts.org/answers/what-is-the-crime-rate-in-the-us/country/united-states/

Sad story — A stowaway was found dead in an aircraft’s landing gear.

https://www.travelmole.com/news/stowaway-found-dead-in-planes-landing-gear/

A word to the wise when travelling — Insurance may not cover complications tied to Ozempic use.

https://travelweekly.com.au/agents-alert-the-ozempic-insurance-gap-your-clients-cant-afford-to-miss/

The Brazilian love match has been called off — Azul–GOL merger talks have ended.

https://aviationweek.com/air-transport/airlines-lessors/daily-memo-azul-gol-merger-talks-end-now

Quirky — A Ryanair passenger ate their passport mid-flight, forcing a diversion.

https://aviationa2z.com/index.php/2025/09/30/ryanair-flight-diverted-after-passenger-eats-passport/

Sources:

• Killer Charts

• USAFacts

• TravelMole

• Travel Weekly AU

• Aviation Week

• Aviation A2Z

Hashtags: #PMM #Travel #Aviation #WFH #HybridWork #CrimeStats #TravelInsurance #Ozempic #Brazil #Azul #GOL #Ryanair #Quirky

Image description: A surreal artist collage: a glowing office turnstile, a crime-rate graph falling over a skyline, landing gear silhouette with ghostly figure, floating pill blister pack with a travel tag, Azul and GOL tails splitting apart, and a bitten passport drifting in the sky. Whimsical and slightly dark, no text included.

📣 Don’t forget: Follow the full archive at https://t2ni.blogspot.com and look out for the Best of the Week recap every Sunday on LinkedIn and Instagram.

You can also read the Professor’s musings here: https://t2impact.blogspot.com

And explore the old archive: https://www.tumblr.com/professorsabena

The Professor’s Minute Minute — September 30, 2025

 

The Professor’s Minute Minute — September 30, 2025

Five big stories (and one quirky) shaping travel, aviation, and humanity today:

• Virtual Interlining Goes Next-Gen

  Eurowings is pushing the boundaries by embedding codeshare integrations directly into its website and app — creating a more seamless experience. We’re finally moving beyond clunky links and PDFs into real dynamic connectivity.

• A Quarter Century of Travel’s Greatest Hits

  Travel Weekly celebrates 25 years with a retrospective of the industry’s highs, lows, and weird pivots. Sometimes we forget how far we’ve come — and how often we circle back to the same debates.

• PLAY Airlines Collapses

  Iceland’s disruptor airline has officially gone bust. Another cautionary tale about over-ambitious expansion and fragile transatlantic models. Expect a fight over refunds and stranded pax.

• Africa’s Liberalization Stalls (Again)

  After years of promises, African airline liberalization faces another slowdown. Aviation remains key to economic development — and this is a missed opportunity for connectivity and growth.

• Blue Origin Expands New Shepard Fleet

  Jeff Bezos is still reaching for the stars — literally. More vehicles, more launches, and maybe one day a profitable space tourism business.

• Quirky: The Original Airline Computer System

  Sabre transformed aviation decades ago. Airways Magazine has a fascinating piece on how this system laid the groundwork for everything we do in travel tech today.

Image Vibe:

A vibrant, angular Picasso-style Cubist composition using bold reds and cool blues, representing movement and interconnectedness — evoking the sense of network maps and travel routes crisscrossing the globe.

Sources:

• Eurowings codeshare integration: Travel and Tour World

• 25-year retrospective: Travel Weekly

• PLAY Airlines collapse: Independent

• African liberalization slowdown: Aviation Week

• Blue Origin expansion: Aviation Week

• Quirky (Sabre history): Airways Magazine

Hashtags:

#Travel #Aviation #Airlines #Tourism #TravelTech #AI #Innovation #Picasso #Connectivity

The Professor’s Minute Minute – September 29, 2025

 

AI reality checks, angry customers, Canada in the spotlight, SAF tunnel vision, and Emirates pushing 777X further right—plus a drone verdict that stings.

1. Airline AI reality check

   PROS’ Chief AI Strategist Michael Wu lays out where airlines actually are on AI—great slideware, thin plumbing. Read and calibrate.

   (PhocusWire)

2. Air Canada’s 54,000-claim backlog

   Post-strike turbulence moves from the tarmac to the inbox. That many claims is a reputational debt with interest.

   (CTV News)

3. All eyes on Canada (and Montréal)

   ICAO opens its Assembly in Québec with major investment pledges; policy gravity is shifting north.

   (ICAO)

4. IATA doubles down on SAF

   Still selling sustainable aviation fuel as the path to net zero. Chemistry, cost curves, and feedstock realities say: “not alone.”

   (IATA)

5. Emirates 777X now 2027

   Cabin plans scrapped, deliveries slide—again. The flagship that keeps moving right on the Gantt chart.

   (AviationA2Z)

6. Quirky: Drone pilot jailed & fined $156k after Mini-3 collides with LA firefighting aircraft. Deterrence or overreach? You decide.

   (AirGuide)

📣 Don’t forget:

The Professor’s Minute Minute → https://tinyurl.com/ynvpddfw

The OFFICIAL Professor Sabena Blog → https://tinyurl.com/j9x8cmhm

Explore the old archive → https://tinyurl.com/njj9z6p4

#Tags

#Aviation #Airlines #TravelTech #AI #CustomerExperience #ICAO #IATA #SAF #Emirates #777X #AirCanada #DroneSafety #AviationNews #Picasso

Sources

• PROS / Michael Wu on airline AI: https://www.phocuswire.com/pros-chief-ai-strategist-michael-wu-airlines

• Air Canada claims backlog: https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/air-canada-says-54000-claims-still-in-backlog-after-summer-strike/

• ICAO Assembly investments: https://www.icao.int/news/icao-assembly-opens-quebec-announcing-major-investment

• IATA on SAF & net zero: https://www.iata.org/en/pressroom/2025-releases/2025-09-23-01/

• Emirates 777X deliveries pushed to 2027: https://aviationa2z.com/index.php/2025/09/25/emirates-cancels-777x-business-class-plan/

• Drone pilot sentence & fine: https://airguide.info/drone-pilot-sentenced-to-jail-and-156k-fine-after-dji-mini-3-collision-with-la-firefighting-plane/

Style verification (and image vibe): Monday → Blue Period. Cool, muted blues; calm, reflective mood; angular planes suggesting a wing/fin and terminal canopy; no text.

The Professor’s Minute Minute — September 28, 2025

 

Ryanair boarding pass debate continues.

Letters are pouring in — and this one is particularly sharp — calling out Ryanair’s “digital only” policy.

French pensioners win the life lottery.

Apparently, they earn more than working-age citizens. I suddenly have a retirement plan.

Delta swaps out toxic A320 engines.

Passengers may soon enjoy fresh air again after Delta moves to replace engines linked to cabin fume issues.

Air Canada pays the price.

The flight attendant strike reportedly cost CA$270 million. Labor disputes: expensive lessons in “human capital.”

Lufthansa’s long road back.

The flag carrier faces an uphill battle to recover competitiveness. Big isn’t always beautiful — sometimes it’s just slow.

Quirky of the Day:

Futurist Parag Khanna paints a fascinating picture of where humans will live next. Space colonies? AI-designed cities? Read and decide: Where Humans Live in the Future

📣 Don’t forget: Follow the full archive at t2ni.blogspot.com and look out for the Best of the Week recap every Sunday on LinkedIn and Instagram.

You can also read the Professor’s musings here: https://t2impact.blogspot.com

And explore the old archive: https://www.tumblr.com/professorsabena

#Tags:

#Travel #Aviation #Airlines #Tourism #TravelTech #Lufthansa #Delta #AirCanada #Ryanair #Pension #Labor #Picasso

The Professor’s Minute Minute – September 27, 2025

 

Digital-only boarding, awards night, AA’s premium problem, C919 slips, Microsoft’s rethink—and a quirky history of Sabre.

1. Ryanair goes fully digital

   Mandatory digital boarding passes from next month. Fewer queues, more phones, inevitable edge cases.

   (Irish Times)

2. UK travel glitterati

   TTG’s Travel Industry Awards 2025: a who’s-who snapshot of the sector’s movers and shakers.

   (TTG Media)

3. American’s premium rhetoric vs reality

   A sharp take: AA still has a revenue problem—premium talk isn’t matching outcomes (and that debt load looms).

   (The Airline Observer)

4. COMAC’s C919 falls behind

   Filings show delivery targets slipping—the long road from certification to dependable production.

   (Reuters)

5. Microsoft trims defense work

   WSJ: Microsoft pulls back engagement with Israel’s defense ministry—watch for enterprise and geopolitics to intersect in cloud deals.

   (Wall Street Journal)

6. Quirky: How Sabre transformed aviation and IT — from punch cards to PNRs to the modern GDS stack, a brisk history lesson.

   (Airways)

---

📣 Don’t forget:

The Professor’s Minute Minute → https://tinyurl.com/ynvpddfw

The OFFICIAL Professor Sabena Blog → https://tinyurl.com/j9x8cmhm

Explore the old archive → https://tinyurl.com/njj9z6p4

#Tags:

#Travel #Aviation #Ryanair #DigitalBoardingPass #Awards #AmericanAirlines #COMAC #Microsoft #GDS #Sabre #Picasso

Style verification: Saturday → Neoclassical Picasso (clean lines, sculptural forms, warm ochre/cream with muted blues; no text on the image)

The Professor’s Minute Minute – September 26, 2025

Data partnerships, dominance disputes, IPO hopes, agency consolidation—and one lucky stowaway ducking death.

1. Amadeus + ForwardKeys = Data squared

   Amadeus is betting big on traveller intelligence by partnering with ForwardKeys. Expect better forecasting tools — and a few privacy debates.

   (Moodie Davitt Report)

2. Ryanair faces abuse-of-dominance probe in Italy

   Italy’s antitrust authority files a chargesheet alleging Ryanair abused its dominant position. This could reshape distribution battles.

   (Global Competition Review)

3. Who saw this coming? Bing surges

   Microsoft’s search engine sees a surprising growth wave, suggesting Google’s grip on search might actually be loosening.

   (Growth Memo)

4. Beta Technologies preps for IPO

   The eVTOL startup is ready to test public-market appetite. Will investors bite, or is the sector still too frothy?

   (The Air Current)

5. Direct Travel + ATPI merge to form $6B powerhouse

   Massive agency consolidation is here: Direct Travel acquires ATPI to create one of the largest players in the Power List ecosystem.

   (Travel Weekly)

6. Quirky: Afghan teen survives flight from Kabul to Delhi—hidden in the landing gear. A terrifying reminder of what desperation drives people to do.

   (Aviation24)

---

📣 Don’t forget:

The Professor’s Minute Minute → https://tinyurl.com/ynvpddfw

The OFFICIAL Professor Sabena Blog → https://tinyurl.com/j9x8cmhm

Explore the old archive → https://tinyurl.com/njj9z6p4

#Tags:

#Travel #Aviation #Amadeus #Ryanair #Data #Bing #SearchEngines #eVTOL #TravelTech #Consolidation #Picasso

Style Verification: Friday → Classic Cubism (strong geometric shapes, limited palette, bold but slightly playful — perfect for end-of-week wrap-up energy)

The Professor’s Minute Minute – September 25, 2025

 

Nvidia buys its way to the future (as if it hand't already done so, the FAA actually hires (perhaps) enough controllers, Sabre bets on Agentic APIs, and Boeing closes the book on a widebody era.

1. After all we are family now

   Nvidia and OpenAI deepen their relationship with a $100B+ deal aimed at securing AI compute capacity. Data center spending just went into overdrive.

   (WSJ)

2. FAA finally meets controller hiring goal

   The agency hits its 2025 air traffic controller hiring target. It’s still not enough to fix ATC capacity woes — but it’s a rare win.

   (AviationWeek)

3. Affordable Skies pushing for change

   Grassroots advocacy continues for making air travel cheaper and more accessible. A rare dose of optimism.

   (Affordable Skies)

4. Sabre seizes Agentic API first-mover advantage

   PRNewswire reports Sabre launches a full suite of Agentic APIs — a significant move in travel tech and possibly the first at-scale play in this emerging area.

   (PRNewswire)

5. The last 777-300ER rolls out

   Boeing ends production of its iconic 777-300ER, marking the end of an era for long-haul twins that reshaped airline networks.

   (AviationA2Z)

6. Quirky: The Fall of Kodak — KillerCharts does a forensic dive on how a market titan missed its moment, a cautionary tale for today’s disruptors.

   (KillerCharts)

---

📣 Don’t forget:

The Professor’s Minute Minute → https://tinyurl.com/ynvpddfw

The OFFICIAL Professor Sabena Blog → https://tinyurl.com/j9x8cmhm

Explore the old archive → https://tinyurl.com/njj9z6p4

#Tags:

#Travel #Aviation #AirTrafficControl #AgenticAI #TravelTech #Boeing #777300ER #AirlineEconomics #Picasso

Style Verification: Thursday → Synthetic Cubism (bold colors, layered textures, collaged feel — reflecting big structural shifts in tech and aviation)

The Professor’s Minute Minute – September 24, 2025

France’s money mess, shared AI clones, Brussels airport mayhem, Canada’s data retreat, and tariff truths—plus a quirky twist on lost luggage theatre.

1. Why France can’t fix its finances

   Government spending, falling revenue, and structural rigidity keep France stuck in fiscal fog. KillerCharts breaks it down.

2. Google’s ‘Gems’: shareable AI assistants

   TechCrunch introduces “Gems”—your custom Gemini AI clones you can share. Great until your clone does something embarrassing.

3. Cyberattack disrupts Brussels flights

   Reuters reports a cyberattack at Brussels-Airport causing widespread delays and cancellations. Vulnerability of modern infrastructure on full display.

4. Canada backs off U.S. data sharing

   CBC notes a policy reversal: Canada eases up on data flow agreements with the U.S., citing privacy concerns and domestic backlash.

5. Tariffs are just stupid

   Another quiet truth from KillerCharts: tariffs distort supply chains, erode competitiveness, and seldom protect what they intend to.

6. Quirky: Cork Airport just unveiled a massive mural “The Wonder of Travel” — 180 square meters, painted on the southern facade of its short-term car park. It chronicles aviation’s early days and its modern era in vivid colour.(Cork Airport, “The Wonder of Travel” mural) 

📣 Don’t forget:

The Professor’s Minute Minute → https://tinyurl.com/ynvpddfw

The OFFICIAL Professor Sabena Blog → https://tinyurl.com/j9x8cmhm

Explore the old archive → https://tinyurl.com/njj9z6p4

#Tags:

#Travel #Aviation #Finance #AI #CyberSecurity #DataPrivacy #Tariffs #Innovation #Picasso

Sources:

• France finances: KillerCharts

• Google Gems: TechCrunch

• Brussels cyberattack: Reuters

• Canada data policy: CBC

• Tariff critique: KillerCharts

• Quirky: NZ luggage therapy spin-wheel program (NZ airport press release)

The Professor’s Minute Minute – September 23, 2025

Runway wins, Aegean shifts, baggage horror, ID wars, big M&A—and a mural that celebrates travel’s magic.

1. Gatwick gets its 2nd Runway approved

   A massive milestone for UK aviation — capacity relief, slot battles, and a fresh round of NIMBY complaints ahead.

   (The Times)

2. Aegean is moving

   Fleet, network, and strategy shifts at Greece’s flag carrier suggest a big pivot coming.

   (AirFinance Global)

3. Gruesome find at Tampa Airport

   Customs officers uncover human bones in a traveler’s luggage. A chilling reminder that airport security isn’t just theatre.

   (SimpleFlying)

4. UK Digital ID push

   Calls for a UK-wide Digital ID are intensifying; columnists say opposition is flimsy.

   (The Times)

5. Pro’s Holdings acquired by Thoma Bravo

   Major consolidation in travel tech — could reshape pricing and revenue management tools.

   (Morningstar)

6. Quirky: Cork Airport unveils a giant 180-square-meter mural titled “The Wonder of Travel,” a colorful ode to aviation’s past and present on the car park facade.

   (Cork Airport)

📣 Don’t forget:

The Professor’s Minute Minute → https://tinyurl.com/ynvpddfw

The OFFICIAL Professor Sabena Blog → https://tinyurl.com/j9x8cmhm

Explore the old archive → https://tinyurl.com/njj9z6p4

#Tags:

#Travel #Aviation #Gatwick #Airports #AegeanAirlines #DigitalID #TravelTech #MergersAndAcquisitions #AirportArt #Picasso

Style Verification: Wednesday → Analytical Cubism (fragmented, geometric, layered energy — a midweek “intellectual” feel)