Travel News
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Air Canada
9/20/201110:48:55 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Air Canada is preparing for a possible strike tomorrow by its flight attendants. The carrier will try to operate at least part of its daily schedule, but it's also allowing passengers booked through Sept. 21 to change flights at no charge. See the airline's web site update on the strike for the latest news. Also, WestJet says it will add more flights tomorrow to accommodate travelers affected by any strike at Air Canada.
Israel
8/9/20119:12:35 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
A second international airport in Israel will be built
at Timna, approximately 18 km north of Eilat on the Red Sea, according
to a decision by the Israeli Cabinet last month. The construction of
the new airport, which is expected to be completed within three years
and replace the airports in Eilat and Ovda, will encourage the growth
of incoming international tourism traffic.
Passenger traffic is expected to be over 1.5 million people a year,
from both international and domestic flights. The new airport is
expected to bring in at least three times the amount of traffic than
the current airport in Eilat.
According to the Ministry of Transportation, the amount of passengers
passing through Ben-Gurion International Airport, is increasing
between 3-5% annually. In 2010, 11,485,509 passengers flew
internationally, in addition to 674,830 domestic travelers.
The new airport in Timna will be named after the late Israeli
astronaut, Ilan Ramon and his son Assaf, an Israeli Air Force pilot
who was killed in a training accident. In addition to the airport, a
light rail will be established to connect the airport to Eilat, and
the central bus station currently in Eilat will be moved to Timna.
Travelers who wish to drive to the airport will have the opportunity
to park at an expanded long and short term parking garage.
Delta
8/2/20116:08:47 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Delta Air Lines says it will begin processing ticket tax refunds for passengers who bought tickets on or before July 22 and have flown on those flights while the taxes remain suspended (due to Congress' failure to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration). No other major U.S. carriers have followed suit yet. Delta is waiting for guidelines from the Internal Revenue Service before it starts issuing refunds.
Continental
6/30/20119:42:41 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
United Continental says it's ending Continental's OnePass frequent flyer program on Dec. 31, moving OnePass members and their miles into United's Mileage Plus plan instead. The merged company plans to issue more details about 2012 rules, levels, and offers this fall. Meanwhile, the carriers' flight attendants picked the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA to be their new union.
Spirit
6/21/20117:39:50 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Spirit Airlines will begin charging fees when passengers don't print their boarding passes from home: $1 for printing at an airport self-serve kiosk, and $5 for having an airport agent print it (starting June 26, 2012).
United Airlines
6/20/20115:32:16 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
United Airlines finally fixed computer glitches over this past weekend that caused the cancellation of more than three dozen flights and delays for more than 100 other departures. The troubles affected a few thousand travelers, but United says its computers are now back to normal.
Japan Airlines
6/7/20118:53:48 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Japan Airlines will introduce nonstop Boeing 787 Dreamliner service next April between Boston and Tokyo/Narita.
St. Louis airport
4/25/20118:26:21 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
The St. Louis airport (Lambert) suffered extensive damage Friday from a strong tornado. The airport's Concourse C will remain closed indefinitely, but officials have re-opened unused gates in Concourses B and D to replace the shuttered C gates. Eleven airlines had resumed flights as of yesterday, and American is scheduled to resume its schedule today. If you traveling to, from, or through St. Louis via air, you should contact the specific airlines directly for service updates.
U.S. Transportation Department
4/20/20116:11:58 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
The U.S. Transportation Department announced new regulations protecting passengers that will take effect Aug. 23. These rules will extend the DOT's existing ban on tarmac delays for domestic flights lasting longer than three hours to international flights as well (though their time limit will be four hours). Also, airlines will be required to notify passengers promptly about flight delays longer than 30 minutes, and they must hold reservations for 24 hours at the quoted fare if the reservations are being made at least a week before departure. The new regs will force carriers to refund checked baggage fees if they misplace the bags and pay passengers bumped from flights up to $1,300 (double the current amounts), depending on how long they're delayed from getting on a replacement flight.
United Airline
4/15/201110:19:47 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Starting June 15, United Airlines will charge $75 when passengers who aren't elite frequent flyers book an award ticket within 21 days of the departure date. Premier-level frequent flyers will pay $50, and Premier Executive members will pay $25. Change fees on award tickets will actually drop in many cases after June 15.
Frontier
4/14/20116:41:59 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Starting with tickets purchased April 13 and afterwards, Frontier Airlines will reduce change fees (from $100 to $50 on economy tickets) and checked bags fees (from $20 to $15 on economy tickets). It's also permitting name changes for $50 and reducing fees for same-day confirmed flight changes, among other policy updates
AirTran
4/10/20118:44:09 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
AirTran launched its daily nonstop flights connecting Baltimore/Washington and Bermuda (with flights to Bermuda from Atlanta starting next month).
American Airline
4/6/201110:14:02 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
American Airlines will offer several new routes with its oneworld partners, including new daily nonstops from New York/Kennedy to Budapest, more flights from New York/Kennedy to Barcelona, and increased service between Miami and Madrid. Also, the carrier has begun its new daily nonstops between Los Angeles and Shanghai, along with more departures connecting Los Angeles with Chicago/O'Hare, Dallas-Fort Worth Las Vegas, Miami, and Orlando. Finally, it's launched daily Miami-La Romana (Dominican Republic) flights this week.
Southwest Airlines
4/4/20118:08:44 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Federal inspectors have found small cracks in three more Southwest Airlines planes similar to the one that suffered a five-foot-long tear in its fuselage after taking off Friday from Phoenix. The carrier grounded more than 80 planes for additional safety checks after Friday's accident, causing the cancellation of more than 600 flights this past weekend (plus another 100 or so flights today). U.S. regulators may force other carriers flying similar jets to run the same safety jets on their planes as well this week.
Air Canada
3/20/20117:59:45 AM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Air Canada will suspend several routes starting May 1 in an effort to reduce its operating costs: flights from Calgary to Chicago/O'Hare, London, and San Francisco; from Montreal to Washington/Dulles; and from Ottawa to Thunder Bay and Washington/Dulles. The carrier will also reduce frequency or use smaller planes on other routes later this year.
Delta
3/20/20117:57:53 AM Link 0 comments | Add comment
Delta Air Lines also suspended (temporarily, it says) its Detroit-Tokyo/Haneda daily service, allowing passengers booked on those flights to switch at no charge to its Detroit-Tokyo/Narita flights instead.
American Airlines
3/1/20119:08:26 PM Link 0 comments | Add comment
U.S. regulators fined American Airlines $90,000 for forcing passengers who'd been voluntarily bumped from flights to pay a $30 processing fee to redeem their overbooking vouchers at an airport ticket counter or via phone (they cannot be redeemed online). American says it had already ended the practice before the fine was levied.
