Reuters reports that BA Chairman Martin Broughton said today that the new Open Skies agreement risked ceding benefits to U.S. Airlines in return for only “miniscule concessions” from Washington. We can’t disagree with them, although we hope Open Skies comes to be. European carriers would not be allowed to fly domestically in the U.S., which…
With the recent Open Skies initiative referring to Fifth and Seventh Freedom rights, we decided it was time to review…courtesy of the Cranky Flier. Six through Nine though, according to him, are mostly unofficial. First Freedom – Airlines from Country A may fly through Country B’s airspace without landing Second Freedom -Â Airlines from Country…
Ben Mutzabaugh of Today in the Sky asked whether or not Southwest is trying to change its no-frills image. Now, Southwest’s product has remained consistent since the beginning. It has been consistent quality and customer service…not luxurious, but not what people come to think when they think no frills. For Europeans familiar with the likes…
Spirit has taken the first step to bringing Ryanair-like structures to the United States. In a press release entitled ‘Great News!!!’, Spirit is now offering the opportunity for passengers to ‘customize their travel experience and save’. While we understand the idea of “liberates customers from being forced into paying for services they do not desire…
This morning, we found out about the Spirit policy, which is set to take effect June 20th, and we were completely shocked. No one had taken notice of it yet, so we forwarded the news, which has widepsread implications, to some of our fellow travel bloggers, to get their two cents in. Upgrade Travel Better…
Alaska Airlines has announced it will offer seasonal service once-daily from Anchorage to San Francisco from June 3 through August 20th. Alaska Airlines’ summer schedule also offers daily nonstop service between Anchorage and Chicago; Denver; Los Angeles; Portland, Ore.; Seattle; and Vancouver, British Columbia. The service will be operated using 737-700s. Airtran Airways will introduce…
We’ve been checking Neeleman’s flight log waiting for the announcement of a new Contract of Carriage. It is finally up and we reviewed the new Contract of Carriage…and Controllable Irregularity is finally defined. “Controllable Irregularity as used in Section 36, means a delay, cancellation, or diversion that is not caused by Force Majeure Event. For…
Bloomberg reports that Jetblue is grounding their Embraer 190 aircraft starting on Thursday, March 8th to fix persistent software problems. Jetblue will be contracting with Expressjet to operate four ERJ145 50-seater regional jets to replace the 190s as they are grounded two at a time. All passengers will have the option of changing their flight…
Reuters reports that according to the EU Council’s legal service, the Open Skies vote must be unanimously backed by all 27 EU member states. While the EU decides on transport issues by qualified majority voting, the open skies agreement is a ‘mixed agreement’ involving the competences of both the Union and the member state…thus requiring…
An Iraqi man wearing wires and concealing a magnet inside his rectum triggered a security scare at LAX yesterday. USA Today reported that he was carrying a “suspicious item.” We suppose the truth was too shocking…His bags, however, made it onboard and the US Airways plane bound for Philadelphia was diverted to Las Vegas where…
Jetblue can’t seem to stay out of the news. We’d love a good Northwest story right now. We’ve always admired them, and continue admire them even after this…but our patience wears thin. So…we’re going to consolidate them. This in no way belittles the seriousness of the situations. An accidental fuel spill at Kennedy Airport left…
Boeing took the first step Friday in ending production of C-17 military cargo planes in 2009, by notifying suppliers it will no longer buy parts for the jet not under contract or firmly committed. Unless the U.S. or other government expresses interest in additional aircraft, Boeing will shut the production line. Embraer delivered the first…
Continental announced that it will launch daily flights from Newark to Mumbai beginning October 30th…subject to government approval. Continental has operated service to Delhi since 2005. The flights will be operated used 777-200 aircraft. Delta will add service from Ft. Lauderdale to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic(Eff. June 7th) and from Los Angeles to Belize City,…
ATA will be adding service from Chicago-Midway to Oakland and Ontario, effective May 11th. ATA will also add service three times per week from Oakland to Kona, Hawaii effective June 14th. On June 15th, they will begin service four times weekly from Oakland to Lihui, Hawaii and daily nonstop service from Las Vegas to Maui,…
American Airlines is setting aside money to pay its employees their first profit-sharing payments since 2001. This is subsequent to their ongoing labor issues. American avoided bankruptcy in the last decade through cost-cutting and concessions made by labor, and as the employees watch management receiving bonuses…they feel entitled to their fair share after the sacrifices…
Our friends at the Coalition for Luggage Security are always good for a bit of amusement. On Thursday, they commented on the security breach at Orlando, where airline employees were able to travel with drugs and weapons to San Juan. They are calling for Congressional Hearings. We don’t necessarilly disagree with them that the situation…
We keep an eye on David Neeleman’s blog to see what he has to say about things. He acknowledged that people have some issues with the term Controllable Irregularity and clarified them himself… What are some examples of Controllable Irregularities? “Controllable” means “within JetBlue’s control.” Some examples include: gate unavailability upon arrival; flight delay or…
Spirit Airlines, along with its new bag policy, has opted to go a step further with its pay for everything platform. You can join the $9 Fare Club…which gives you… Guaranteed Exclusive Member-Only Low Fares(at least once every six weeks) On-site and e-mail access to deals Automatic enrollment in the “innovative” FREE SPIRIT frequent flyer…
US Airways had agreed to buy the Airbus 350 as part of an agreement for financial assistance during its merger. However, with it behind schedule, Today in the Sky reports that they are looking at the possibility of going with Boeing. Also from Today in the Sky, on June 3rd, Alitalia will add three flights…
We’re very much in favor of Open Skies between the United States and the European Union. Despite the shortcomings of the plan, the overall benefits are distinctive. The Guardian reported that the United Kingdom would approve the deal despite the “American advantage.” Their concern now is that the valuable slots as London Heathrow might be…
TAM will start operating service from Sao Paulo to Cordoba, Argentina effective March 29th. Midwest Airlines will launch service from Milwaukee to Raleigh/Durham beginning June 1st. Also on that day, it will upgrade Milwaukee to BWI from 32 to 50 seat regional jets, and from Milwaukee to Des Moines…all service will now be on 32-seat…
Hundreds of passengers were stranded for hours overnight, the Associated Press reports, due to bad weather in the New York area. Pilots and officials blamed some of the problems on a shortage of deicing fluid and a new federal regulation giving pilots a narrow window to get their planes in the air once the chemicals…
We are not surprised that the Imams thrown off a flight last November are now suing for discrimination. While US Airways told them that they were banned, forcing them to take another airline home, they now claim that was a miscommunication and they are welcome back on the carrier. US Airways, however, stands behind its…
Boeing has started negotiations with airlines around the world over the future design of the popular 737 as it prepares to dominate that market. Boeing is already dominating the market for larger jets, exceeding rival Airbus’s orders. Airline input is essential in producing a new product that sells. Over six thousand 737s have been sold…
We received the following travel horror story. Nothing we can say will fix the situation. But we do have a few thoughts.