Airline Weekly Lounge

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

Virgin Atlantic CEO Corneel Koster on Fuel, AI, and ATC Meltdowns

#50 trending · Business News

Gordon Smith sits down with Virgin Atlantic CEO Corneel Koster on the sidelines of Skift Global Forum in New York. They discuss how fuel costs are weighing on the airline

Oct 1
18 min

What American, Southwest and United Told Investors

Gordon is joined by Jay and Meghna to unpack the recent Morgan Stanley Laguna conference, where executives from American, Southwest and United set out where they think th

Sep 24
37 min

Airlines Post Record Revenues But Costs Catch Up

Gordon and Jay open with why record revenues still aren't covering a sharp rise in costs, then turn to what JetBlue's latest outlook tells the rest of the industry. Foll

Sep 17
41 min

The Air Canada Anko Inherits

In part one, Gordon and Jay weigh the opportunities in front of Air Canada against the challenges that come with them. In part two, the conversation turns to China, and w

Sep 10
38 min

Why US Airlines Are Betting Big on Europe in 2027

In part one, Jay and Meghna discuss the latest transatlantic expansion announcements from United and American Airlines and what they reveal about how US carriers are reth

Sep 3
32 min

Qatar Airways: Skift Global Forum Preview

In part one, Gordon and Jay discuss some of the biggest talking points at Qatar Airways, as the airline's CEO, Hamad Ali Al-Khater, prepares to join the Skift Global Foru

Aug 27
32 min

Skift Global Forum 2026: Aviation Preview

In this week's show, Gordon and Jay discuss two industry giants that are due to speak at the Skift Global Forum 2026 in New York between September 22-24. The conversation

Aug 20
39 min

Turkish Airlines' Turbulent Quarter

In part one, Gordon and Jay discuss a mixed set of Q2 results for Turkish Airlines. In part two, the conversation turns to Allegiant Air, with the U.S. carrier now taking

Aug 13
29 min

Swiss Shines But Lufthansa Lags

Swiss out-earned the entire Lufthansa Group network division it belongs to last quarter, while the core Lufthansa brand slid back into an operating loss. Gordon and Jay w

Aug 6
33 min

Airshow Highs and Earnings Season Realities

In part one, Gordon and Jay discuss the highlights from last week's Farnborough International Airshow, reviewing the big deals and longer term impact of the event. In par

Jul 30
42 min

Why 2026 Is Aviation's Most Volatile Year Since COVID

The airline industry is navigating its most unpredictable period since the pandemic, with fuel prices, geopolitical tensions, premium travel demand, and aircraft shortage

Jul 23
1 h 01 min

How Many Planes Does the World Need?

Ahead of the Farnborough Airshow, for this special episode Gordon Smith and Meghna Maharishi are joined by Darren Hulst, Boeing's VP of Commercial Marketing. The conversa

Jul 18
26 min

Can a "New Class of BNPL" Become a Strategic Loyalty Play?

ClarityPay recently partnered with JetBlue to introduce a new pay-later program that combines embedded financing, loyalty, and personalization to drive incremental revenu

Jul 16
17 min

How Much is EasyJet Worth?

An approach from U.S. private equity firm Castlelake has reopened the question of what EasyJet is actually worth. Gordon and Jay run through the latest takeover chatter b

Jul 9
43 min

Does SAS Really Need 40 A330neos?

Does SAS Really Need 40 A330neos? In part one, Gordon and Jay discuss SAS Scandinavian Airlines' new widebody order and ask whether the carrier can justify that many add

Jul 2
37 min

Is Las Vegas Out of Luck?

Las Vegas air traffic is down 6%. Gordon and Jay work through what's behind it, then turn to a U.S. market headed firmly the other way. Follow the Hosts: Gordon Smith

Jun 25
37 min

What's the Most Profitable Airline in the World?

The latest Airline Weekly global earnings scoreboard is in and the airline on top may not be the one you'd expect. Jay joins Gordon and Meghna to sort the winners from

Jun 18
35 min

The IATA AGM Debrief

Gordon joins Jay from Rio as the IATA AGM wraps. The two then turn to Brazil itself: one of the world's largest aviation markets, and one of its most consolidated — a com

Jun 11
40 min

Inside the Minds of America's Airline CEOs

Gordon and Jay decode the most revealing CEO commentary from the Bernstein investor conference — what executives signaled about capacity, consolidation, and the months ah

Jun 4
38 min

EasyJet's Tricky Quarter and Atlanta's Crown

A rough quarter for easyJet has the numbers telling a stark story. In part one, Gordon and Jay dig into a -27% operating margin and the missteps, market pressures, and in

May 28
45 min

Chart trend

Position in the Business News chart (US), last 90 days.

#1#49#96JulAugSepOct

#22

all-time peak

398

days in the top 50 since Nov 2024

Chart positions

Where Airline Weekly Lounge ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Oct 5, 2026).

#56 ▼ 6 Business News US

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

I like the podcast and usually the topics as well. What drives me crazy is having to constantly adjust the audio volume so I can hear what Jay is saying. His speaking volume often tails off as he makes his way through his presentations/sentences making it hard to determine what it is he is saying. Beyond that the podcast is interesting and informative for airline geeks.

mtee2 · Sep 2025

The first episodes with Jay back were a bit awk, but the pod and the publication has gone back to the numbers, details and analysis that I find insightful. It has gone from an if I have time pub and podcast to a must read and listen.

Eric 36 · Aug 2022

Content is find for mindless commutes. Jay seems like a lovely person but his speaking volume and microphone is not meant for podcasting. Need a consistent volume and a better microphone. The most recent episode about Korean Air was maddening with the volume fluctuations.

Mjc3000 · Apr 2025

Not a big podcast listener but I wanted check out what’s out there during a long drive and now I like this. Just long enough episodes and nice news bits from industry.

Bıktıkartik · Mar 2023

I have tried to give this podcast a go for a while, as I work in aviation and enjoy aviation podcasts. These two hosts go off on red herring tangents and they are not nearly as polished as other aviation podcasts. I don’t think I can listen to them anymore. As others have said, they’re likely nice guys but this show is just a bunch of mumbling more times than not, due to them not really having a grasp of the topic or having done good research and needing filler as a result.

Stefanr.22 · Jun 2026

These guys clearly know the business and provide great insights into an exciting industry. Unfortunately, it seems like nobody listens to the episodes before they’re launched and that no editing is being done. Time to bring in some advertisers so you can pay someone to edit/produce or hire a high schooler. Either option would be better than what you’re putting out at the moment.

KeroseneKowboy · Dec 2023

We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.