Airlines
Airlines
American, BA, Iberia Form Transatlantic Alliance
Airlines continue to seek scale by working ever more
closely together. The latest example of this is the
business agreement between American Airlines, British
Airways and
Iberia.
The airlines say the deal will give their customers more
destinations to choose from while helping the airlines
to save money and attract new customers, which in turn
would ease the upward pressure on airfares due to rising
fuel costs. Fuel prices are dropping but continue to
take their toll, as evidenced by the shutdown of the
discount transatlantic carrier Zoom Airlines (Source:
American, BA, Iberia press releases and Zoom website).
American, Delta Offer WiFi
Inflight Delta Air Lines made its’ announcement first
but American Airlines was first out of the gate with
inflight WiFi. American now has inflight WiFi on its
Boeing 767-200s flying between New York and San
Francisco and Los Angeles. The service costs $12.95 on
flights of more than three hours; travelers simply turn
on their WiFi enabled devices, including laptops, smart
phones and PDAs, once they hit 10,00 feet and are
connected to Aircell’s Gogo portal, the WiFi provider,
where they sign up for the service. Delta, meanwhile,
will offer WiFi on its domestic fleet of 330 mainline
aircraft, also with Gogo, introducing it on its MD 88/99
aircraft this fall and rolling it out fleet wide in the
first half of 2009. The service will cost $9.95 on
flights or three hours or less and $12.95 on flights of
three hours or more. (Source: American, Delta press
releases).
TSA Lets You Leave Your Laptop in Some Bags
The Transportation Security Administration will now let
you leave your laptop in its bag when you go through
security as long as it meets new “checkpoint friendly”
standards. These bags should have a
designated laptop-only
section; they must completely unfold to lie flat on the
X-ray belt; no metal snaps, zippers or buckles inside,
underneath or on top of the laptop-only section; no
pockets on the inside or outside of the laptop-only
section and packed in the laptop-only section other than
the computer itself. The TSA worked with laptop bag
manufacturers to come up with the new standards.
(Source: TSA press release).
Airline Eliminates Life Jackets
Air Canada Jazz is eliminating lifejackets, calling them
redundant since seats act as flotation devices.
Transport
Canada permits flotation devices, like the seats,
instead of life jackets if the planes fly within 90
kilometers of shore. The seat cushions lift off and have
restraints on the bottom through which passengers can
slip their arms through. There will be life jackets
available for infants. The idea is to save on weight and
fuel. (Source: Travel Pulse Daily).
United Furloughs Flight Attendants, Tests Charging for
Meals Over Atlantic
United Airlines is furloughing 1,500 flight attendants as a
result of flight reductions it announced this summer.
That is about 10 percent of its cabin workers and part
of its efforts to cut 7,000 jobs by the end of 2009.
It also began testing
charging for inflight meals over the
Atlantic. On transatlantic flights out of Dulles, it is
testing selling
Buy on
Board
options, including sandwiches, salads and snack boxes.
It will evaluate results at year’s end. (Source: press
reports, United press release).
Americans Divided on Inflight Cell Phone Use
Inflight wireless services could presage inflight cell
phone use. Americans are divided on whether or not
passengers should be able to use their cell phones
inflight, according to a study by the Department of
Transportation. The younger you are, the more likely you
are to favor it—almost half (47.7 percent) of 18- to
34-year-olds approved of the idea. Only a quarter of
those over 65 favored the move; those between 35 and 64
almost evenly divided—40 percent say they should
allowed, 46 percent said they should not and the rest
aren’t sure. (Source: DOT press release).
Hotels
Sheraton Opens at JFK
The Sheraton JFK Hotel, a new build, has opened at New
York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. The
150-room hotel is a full-service hotel with meeting
facilities, complimentary shuttle service to and from
the airport, a restaurant, indoor pool, business center,
fitness center and Club floor. (Source: Starwood Hotels
& Resorts press release).
Marriott Raleigh City Center Opens
The 400-room
Raleigh
Marriott City Center has opened next to the new
500,000-square-foot Raleigh Convention Center. The
16-story hotel is attached to the convention center and
has more than 15,000 square feet of meeting space, a
business center, swimming pool and fitness center. It
has two Italian restaurants and a 1,400 square foot
Starbucks. (Source: Marriott press release).
Cars
Avis and Budget Offer
“Flicks to Go”
Avis
Rent A Car and Budget Rent A Car are introducing
Flicks-To-Go, portable DVD players that attach to the
back of a car's headrest. They include a choice of
speakers for multiple viewers or two high-quality
headphones which customers can keep. (Source: Avis press
release).
Spotlight On…..
Record Airfares
If it feels as though you’re paying more for airfare,
there’s a reason. The latest American Express Business
Travel Monitor reports that domestic and international
airfares hit record levels in the second quarter of
2008. The good new is that companies can save money by
emphasizing travel policy compliance.
Among the study’s findings:
-
The average one-way domestic fare was $260, up $24
from the same period last year, a 10 percent
increase, and up $27 from the first quarter, a 12
percent increase.
-
The average one-way international fare hit its
highest level since the inception of the Business
Travel Monitor in 1999. These fares increased 11
percent over the same period last year, averaging
$1,080.
-
The percentage of international business class
tickets dropped to their lowest level since 2004.
Increases in the percentage of tickets purchased for
the back of the plane indicate that travelers are
trading down.
(Source: American Express press
release).
The Travel Team, Inc.
is committed to providing you with useful information
on the latest developments in the travel industry. The
following information has been compiled from a variety
of sources and is updated monthly.