We regularly check in with the Upgrade Travel Blog. In their post yesterday, entitled Come Fly the Safety Skies, they ponder the idea of an airline that puts safety first. With our recent posts on security measures and hijack-proof aircraft, we thought we would ponder this seriously, although perhaps to a bit of an extreme.…
In our recent post, we reviewed the depiction of American Airlines in the recent ABC docudrama. American executives have responded to this with the following message to anyone who asks about the miniseries. “We are outraged by how American is portrayed in ABC’s program. It is not factual, and very unfortunate.” The Star-Ledger reported on…
Bruce Schneier, the security expert we referenced in a post earlier today, was one of several experts asked by the New York Times op-ed section along with other experts to explain the major reason why the United States hasn’t suffered a major attack since 2001 and what recommendations they would have for avoiding attacks in…
Passengers on Allegiant Air Flight 436 from Las Vegas to Cedar Rapids, Iowa Sunday night were evacuated on the plane’s emergency slides. The plane was taxiing to the terminal when smoke began to fill the cabin. The slides were deployed only 250 yards from the terminal due to the unknown nature of the situation, and…
The Boston Globe reports that an antiterrorism drill went awry Wednesday night. In a training exercise at Boston’s Logan Airport, the State Police hid 8 ounces of plastic explosive on the rear bumper of a Massport pickup truck to test bomb-sniffing dogs and handlers. However, a Massport employee, unaware of the drill, moved the truck…
A suspicious package was found around 8:30AM local time Monday morning inside a rental lot across from the terminal at Long Beach Airport. The investigate shut down the terminal until members of the LA County Sheriff’s department Bomb Squad detonated the package, described as a carrying case, about two hours later. About eight departures were…
A United Airlines flight from Atlanta to San Francisco was diverted to Dallas after finding an unclaimed Blackberry on board. According to a TSA spokesman, it was diverted “out of an abundance of caution.” In simple layman’s terms…that is called overreacting. Authorities didn’t send military fighter aircraft to escort the plane down, as the Associated…
Regional Jets currently operate approximately one-third of US domestic flights. The use of these jets has only increased over the last 5 years. While most regional jets in use today, such as the CRJ-100, the aircraft involved in the recent Comair disaster, and the ever popular Embraer 135 and 145 jets, both of which are…
Trials have begun on the first hijack-proof airplane. The plans are being developed in Europe by a consortium of interests including French-based Airbus. The Project, called Security of Aircraft in the Future European in the Future European Environment(We assume that is to form the acronym SAFE). This new aircraft supposedly would include microphones that will…
In an effort to avoid giving our readers the impression everything in air travel news is depressing, we bring you this report from USAToday. Various enterprising pilots around the country are hiring out their planes as lovenests, taking couples up in planes with curtains and mattresses for a rendezvous at 40,000 feet. This particular report…
The Associated Press reports that an Air Canada flight clipped wings with a Shuttle America plane while taxiing to the runway on Saturday, causing a brief traffic delay. Air Canada Flight 723 was bound for Toronto when it impacted a Shuttle America flight bound for Chicago operated on behalf of Delta. LaGuardia Airport traffic was…
A Cessna was forced to make an emergency landing on Parc Avenue in Montreal this afternoon. The pilot and his passengers were on an aerial tour of the city when their engine cut out. There was no damage fortunately, save to a single street sign. The Canadian Press reports here. It is one way to…
Mohammed Ghanem, a legal permanant resident of the US and a native of Yemen, was stopped on Thursday, the Detroit Free Press reports, with a knife hidden in a phone book. The inside of the book had been carved out, and the knife was inside. Despite that, his lawyer, who spoke with the Detroit Free…
Americablog.com comments here on how American Airlines is portrayed in ABC’s docudrama, The Path to 9/11. Here is what they have to say: Here’s what the “Path to 9/11” claims American Airlines did on the morning of September 11. According to Disney/ABC, American Airlines at Boston Logan had Mohammad Atta at its ticket counter and…
Northwest has recommited itself to Indianapolis as a focus city, or hublet with its latest announcement of service expansion in a press release on Thursday. Northwest announced for one it is expanding its service to New York’s LaGuardia Airport. When it began this service with its regional partner, Pinnacle Airlines, Indy’s hometown airline, ATA, was…
Boston’s Logan Airport is receiving opposition over a planned 9,300 foot taxiway between two parallel runways. If such a taxiway is approved, construction could begin next year with an estimated completion in 2009. Over the past year and a half, Logan Airport has experienced several circumstances in which planes have come to close to each…
In a twist, thirty former TWA flight attendants picketed outside the Association of Professional Flight Attendants(APFA) headquarters. After American Airlines bought TWA when it was in bankruptcy in 2001, TWA employees were put at the bottom of the seniority list. They carried placards stating, “A real union protects all of its members.” At TWA, the…
Vnunet.com reports that scientists at University College London are developing a system called Optag, that combines RFID tags and closed-caption tv cameras to track passenger movements in busy airports. The system will work by placing these tags on boarding passes. While the possible benefits are many…passengers who are late for their flights can be located,…
The LA Daily News had an article last week about a mother and her difficulty in getting understanding from Delta Airlines in a death situation. Betty Haack made arrangements in April to visit her son in July, and ended up moving them back a week…not to visit her son, but to bury him after he…
Aero-News Network reports that the first 737NG with in-seat video was recently delivered to Jet Airways, an Indian carrier. The latest 737-800 offers a Panasonic in-seat video system as an option, as standard outlets(not power ports) throughout the cabin. Boeing refers to it as the most technologically advanced single-aisle jet family on the market today.…
Jetblue began its new three daily nonstop flights to Houston’s Hobby Airport today. For the inauguration of service, they are offering a $79 fare, or $99 with onward connections. Regular fares will begin at $117. Hobby Airport was built as Houston’s primary airport and remained that until 1969, when Intercontinental Airport was opened. Hobby remains…
The new USAirways still in many ways remains two carriers. It operates flights separately, it still has duplication of staff, and it has not settled various integration issues. In New York, the old USAirways pulled out of JFK to serve LaGuardia exclusively years ago, while America West has always flown to JFK. Technically, the Las…
As Gotta Go! comments, the Hyatt Hotel is partnering with Baggage Airline Guest Services, an Orlando-based organization, to provide service at some locations. Baggage Airline Guest Services(BAGS), is an organization that is authorized to issue boarding passes for some carriers and will, as part of their service, take your bags from the hotel to the…
Yesterday, CNN reported that the lone survivor in the Comair flight crash in Lexington, KY regained consciousness. James Polehinke was the co-pilot on that flight and while he may be able to shed light on the subject, his doctors advised family members not to question him on the subject until he is recovered more fully.…
The London Free Press reports today that an Air Canada crew on Sunday threw a child off a plane. The plane, heading from Toronto to Cancun, was forced to turn back when a six year old passenger refused to fasten his seatbelt. The child was travelling unaccompanied. At last, finally, someone who deserves to be…