We are usually apolitical here, but we’re impressed Obama actually has a transportation agenda. McCain, by comparison, is known for killing funding for Amtrak. We tried to find a policy on his website and failed. We’d love to see it though and analyze it similarly. We found a good analysis of the Obama policy on…
Effective today, September 11th, 2008, transportation security officers at airport checkpoints all over the country will be wearing new uniforms and badges. The new uniform will be blue, and a gold badge will replace the patch. Plans for this were announced over a year ago, and have finally been implemented. At the time, it was…
American Airlines is being sued by a man for allegedly misplacing his wife’s body for four days. According to the lawsuit, the body was so badly decomposed when it finally arrived that they had to forego a traditional open-casket funeral. Shares of United Airlines stock tanked on Monday(Forbes reports) when a six-year-old Chicago Tribune story…
Continental Airlines will charge a $15 fee for the first checked bag. This fee applies immediately to tickets bought for destinations in the United States and to flights between the U.S., Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Canada for travel on or after October 7th. Remember, those of you who purchased before Friday, September 5th…
Supposedly in response to customer feedback, United has reversed its decision to switch to Buy on Board Meals for most international flights. Mark Ashley over at Upgrade Travel has heard the change might actually have been due to pressure brought on United by its Star Alliance partners. For now, the idea of paying for international…
We’re curious when this idea will be ripped off by US television. Monach Airlines has trained eleven celebrities as flight attendants to be part of a reality show called CelebAir, which will begin airing tomorrow. If you are familiar with European celebrities, check out their dossiers here. One wonders how passengers will react to flying…
A Ryanair plane flying from Budapest to Dublin was forced to divert to Frankfurt Hahn Airport(nowhere near Frankfurt) when a “vegetable oil/mushroom soup type mixture” leaked from a jar in an overhead compartment onto a man. The man suffered an allergic reaction, his neck swelled up, and the plane was diverted. It remains to be…
Jazz, Air Canada’s regional airline, plans to reduce fuel consumption by dropping life vests from its flights, which equal about fifty-five pounds less on its 50-seater Dash-8s. Canadian regulations allow airlines to use floatation devices, such as the seat cushions, as long as the planes remain within 56 miles of shore.and a number of its…
United Airlines concerns us. In a time when many airlines are trying to get their act together, United seems to be making decisions to decrease the quality of their customer service. We’ve previously stated that we understand cuts are sometimes necessary, but there is a good and a bad way to approach them. They’ve even…
Are shoulder restraints coming to an airplane near you? On the Freakonomics blog, Steven Levitt reported that he encountered shoulder restraints on a recent United Airlines flight. Dr. Levitt, who has previously reported on the lack of data supporting the assertion that child booster seats increase safety beyond seat belts alone, was skeptical of their…
Reuters reports that American Airlines has accelerated its 737 delivery schedule, accepting six additional 737-800s in 2010, allowing more rapid replacement of its fuel-inefficient MD-80 fleet. The new schedule means American will get 76 of the new aircraft, 36 next year and 40 in 2010. We applaud them for putting money into renewing their fleet,…
Reuters reports that JetBlue is looking for 1000 of its frequent fliers to show up at JFK on August 23rd for a trial test of its new terminal, set to open next month. The volunteers would be expected to check bags given them by the airline, go thorugh security, and wait at the assigned gate…
Delta is teaming up with Air Cell, one of the companies working to put Internet back on planes post Boeing Connexxion. The system, Gogoâ„¢, will enable Delta customers traveling with Wi-Fi enabled devices, such as laptops, smartphones and PDAs, to access the Internet, corporate VPNs, corporate and personal e-mail accounts, as well as SMS texting…
It’s been a while since we’ve updated you on new routes. Life gets in the way. We’re trying to get back into the swing of things. Bear in mind, we don’t exactly do this for the money. The advertisements only pay for the web hosting. JetBlue is one of our favorite airlines. Despite their meltdown…
Over a week ago, Chris Elliott pointed out a recent fee applied by ultra-low-class Spirit Airlines. Spirit had hidden a $10 Convenience Fee in their Contract of Carriage for booking anywhere but at a counter. Now, booking online is certainly convenient, but this fee seemed somewhat dishonest. Spirit’s site is, to quote Elliott, “awash in…
With the announcement that Northwest would be charging for the first checked bag for all flights purchased on or after July 10th for travel on or after August 28th, it brings the total to four legacy carriers who charge for anything you put under the plane. The others are American, United, and US Airways(but they…
ExpressJet announced last week that it would suspend flying of several at-risk operations. ExpressJet and Delta have agreed to terminate their agreement for ExpressJet operations under the Delta Connection banner on September 1st. ExpressJet will cease its branded commercial operation under its own banner on September 2nd. The 39 aircraft currently used for these flights…
The US Airline Industry, specifically 12 airlines including AirTran, Alaska, American, Continental, Delta, Hawaiian, JetBlue, Midwest, Northwest, Southwest, United, and US Airways, has called upon the public to help them lobby Congress about oil speculation. The letter blames skyrocketing fuel for the thousands of lost jobs and severe reductions in air service. They attribute the…
Midwest Airlines…the Cookie, which successfully fended off a takeover bid last year, is racing to avoid bankruptcy in the high-cost fuel environment that has hurt so many carriers. It will ground 12 of its 37 jets, retiring its MD-80 aircraft, which will produce a reduction in overall flights. They are asking frontline employees to take…
United Airlines matched American Airlines’ $15 fee to check a single bag today. US Airways announced the same on all reservations booked on or after July 9th. US Airways will be charging $2 per nonalcoholic drink beginning August 1st. They’ve already rid themselves of free snacks in economy as of June 1st. In addition, US…
A New York couple has filed a lawsuit against American Airlines for putting their son at risk. . Their four-year old son has a severe nut allergy, which they claim they made clear to American when making their reservation and then told by a gate agent that there would be no nuts served on the…
This weekend, the International Air Transport Association(IATA) announced the industry’s conversion to 100% electronic ticketing. It was perhaps a bit idealistic. In the 1930s, IATA developed the first standardized hand-written paper ticket. In 1972, with increased automation, the IATA neutral paper ticket was developed. Any travel agent could use this to ticket almost any airline.…
The New York Post reports that a Manhattan lawyer is suing Delta Air Lines for one million dollars. He claims that their “absolute incompetence” ruined his elderly mother’s eightieth birthday celebration. Richard Roth says that he’d arranged for his entire family, including several cousins, to meet in Argentina. Roth started planning the trip in September…
Eos, the first of the luxury transatlantic carriers, followed MAXjet in declaring bankruptcy. The company’s financing to prevent this fell through, and ceased operations last night. They owe money to Servisair, Delta Airlines, United Airlines, and JFK Airport, to name a few. Eos boasted reasonable business class fares on an all business class plane flying…
Delta and Northwest have put up a website, announced a merger, , and are scheduled to webcast their official press conference on Tuesday morning. Such a move can trigger a wave of additional consolidation within the industry, as airlines line up to compete with a new mega-carrier. The consolidation of services, like with USAirways, once…