Which Famous Mother-in-Law Was a Flight Attendant? The Airline Quiz

May 16, 2011 -- I thought that after weeks of writing about ugly topics like bag fees and the rising cost of oil and airline tickets, we could just kick back a bit and have some fun. So I put together a quiz about air travel.

Note that I start off with a softball, but it gets a little more complicated as you work your way through all twelve questions. The answers (with explanations) and the scoring system are at the very end. Good luck.

For more travelnews and insights view Rick's blog at farecompare.com

The Air Travel Quiz

1. Which airline(s) gives you at least one free checked-bag?

A. Southwest

B. Southwest and JetBlue

C. Southwest and AirTran

D. Southwest and Alaska

E. None of the above

2. Which airline recently lowered its bag fees?

A. None of them

B. AirTran -- maybe to more closely align itself with new parent Southwest

C. Frontier -- possibly because it flies in some of Southwest's markets

D. American Airlines -- executives were getting tired of all the complaints

E. United -- executives said they can get by on less money

3. How much will your carry-on bag cost you on Spirit?

A. It's free

B. It's free if you're a member of the carrier's $9 Fare Club

C. 25 bucks

D. From $20 to $45

E. $9

4. Which airline started the first frequent flyer miles program?

A. United

B. American

C. Pan Am

D. TWA

E. People Express

5. Which airline was recently named one of the top winners for best overall loyalty program among frequent flyers?

A. Air Canada

B. Air France

C. Spirit

D. United

E. Southwest

6. Which airlines were Travel+Leisure's 2010 best domestic and best international airlines?

A. JetBlue and Cathay-Pacific

B. Southwest and Emirates

C. Virgin America and Singapore

D. Virgin America and Virgin Atlantic

E. Midwest and Singapore

7. What is the airline code for Southwest Airlines?

A. SW

B. WN

C. WS

D. AB

E. B6

8. What is the airport code for Sioux City, Iowa?

A. SAX

B. SEX

C. SIX

D. SOX

E. SUX

9. Which airline used to offer a free bottle of booze as a way to drum up business?

A. AirTran

B. JetBlue

C. Southwest

D. Virgin America

E. Aeroflot

10. Which airline is Steven Slater associated with, and why?

A. He was the lone passenger on the first commercial U.S. flight in 1914 on the long-defunct St. Petersburg-Tampa Airline

B. He was the Southwest flight attendant who exited his plane via emergency slide, beers in hand

C. He safely piloted his US Airways plane into the Hudson after a bird strike

D. He worked at American before scoring big with his book, "Coffee, Tea or Me"

E. None of the above

11. Who is not a former flight attendant?

A. Prince William's new mother-in-law (flight attendant for British Airways)

B. The wife of Russia's Vladimir Putin (flight attendant for Aeroflot)

C. The first female pilot of a Boeing 747 (flight attendant for TWA)

D. Madonna (flight attendant for Allegheny Airlines)

E. None of the above

12. Which air travel "celebrity" was asked who he'd cast to play himself in a movie, and who did he name?

A. Chairman of Virgin Group Richard Branson: actor Robert Pattinson

B. Former Southwest CEO Herb Kelleher: actor Johnny Depp

C. Former US Airways Capt. "Sully" Sullenberger: actor Charlie Sheen

D. Steven Slater (see #10): actor James Franco

E. Sometime-Qantas spokesman John Travolta: actor John Travolta

Answers to Quiz:

1. B. Both Southwest and JetBlue give you your first checked bag for free, and Southwest gives you a second gratis as well. If you stumbled on this, it may be because JetBlue doesn't make quite as much fuss over this as Southwest does. Who knows, perhaps JetBlue execs want to keep their options open in case they do ever decide to start charging for that first bag.

2. C. Frontier lowered a few fees, notably significantly reducing its ticket change fee and it also lopped $5 off its $20 first checked-bag fee, if you check in online.

3. D. Spirit has to make this complicated: There are six different payment levels for carry-on bag fees, the lowest being $20 for "$9 Fare Club" members and the highest being $45 for non-members who check their carry-on bag at the gate.

4. B. American Airlines came up with the first miles program back in 1981; its AAdvantage program was a hit from the start and is still one of the largest programs in the world with 67 million members.

5. A. Air Canada's Aeroplan took top honors at the 2011 Frequent Traveler Awards for the geographical category, "Americas". Other winners included Lufthansa and Emirates.

6. C. Virgin America and Singapore; both were number one the year before, too.

7. B. WN is the airline code for Southwest (while its stock ticker is LUV). Folklore has it that since SW was taken, they just picked on randomly from the "free list." All the other codes are real and belong to the following airlines: SW -- Air Namibia; WS -- WestJet; AB -- Air Berlin; B6 -- JetBlue.

8. E. The airport in Sioux City, Iowa is known by the code SUX (and the folks there have fun with it; they sell a lot of SUX souvenirs). The other airport codes are real, too: SAX -- Sambu, Panama; SEX -- Sembach, Germany; SIX -- Singleton, Australia; and SOX is Sogamoso, Colombia.

9. C. In its early days, Southwest hit on the plan of luring business travelers with a special bonus -- a free fifth of Chivas Regal. I understand it was rather popular.

10. E. Slater was a flight attendant with JetBlue before his notorious escapade which involved a meltdown and a plane exit via the emergency slide -- yes, with beers in hand.

11. D. Madonna was not a flight attendant, although I suppose there's time for one more "reinvention."

12. A. Richard Branson was asked a number of out-of-left field questions for a series of videotaped interviews last year, and one of them was who he'd pick to star in a movie about his life. He suggested the young actor from the "Twilight" series.

Scoring: Give yourself 1 point for each correct answer.

1 -- 3: Sorry, you're sitting in the back by the lavatories.

4 -- 6: You're stuck in a middle seat but at least it's over the wings.

7 -- 9: Treat yourself to a seat on the aisle and a free pack of peanuts.

10 -- 12: Upgrade to first class, you savvy traveler, you.

This work is the opinion of the columnist and does not reflect the opinion of ABC News.

Rick Seaney is one of the country's leading experts on airfare, giving interviews and analysis to news organizations that include ABC News, The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Reuters, the Associated Press and Bloomberg. His website, FareCompare.com, offers consumers free, new-generation software, combined with expert insider tips to find the best airline ticket deals.