Fly and Apply! Or... not.

This just might be the most desperate or the most aggressive marketing of a credit card that I have ever experienced. I recently took a trip to Jamaica to attend a wedding and flew on US Airways. About half way through each flight, a flight attendant came on the PA system to announce a special deal for us.

Here is the 'deal':
Barclays (a financial services company) teamed up with US Airways to create a limited time 'special' offer for a credit card. By signing up for their card, you would automatically receive 25,000 air miles good for travel in the U.S. or Canada. If you paid $99, you could also receive a companion pass for someone to fly with you. If you submitted your application on the plane, they would give you another 500 miles. And all of this for the 'low' annual fee of $79. No mention of an interest rate although I didn't take the application so that I could find it amidst the fine print.

Is this desperate marketing? Or aggressive marketing? Or both? What better way to capture the attention of 200+ people who have nowhere to go, many of whom probably paid for their flight with a credit card and are now being presented with such a 'great' deal.

What's next? Credit card marketing during half-time at a football game?