| Friday, February 11, 2005 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
United Airlines Announces Pilot Recall -- (02/09/05) United Airlines will recall 150 pilots from furlough to cover its scheduled flying for the remainder of the year. United is taking this step to offset anticipated pilot retirements. United Offers Nonstop Summer Service to Vail -- (02/09/05) United Airlines will offer daily nonstop summertime service to Vail from its hub airports in Chicago and Denver, providing the only air summer service to Vail from these cities. US Airways Express Announces Nonstop Summer Service Between Washington, D.C. and Hilton Head -- (02/10/05) US Airways Express announced its expanded summer schedule to Hilton Head, S.C., with weekend nonstop roundtrip flights from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, beginning April 3, 2005. BWI Airport Gets Explosives Trace Detection Portal -- (02/08/05) The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that Baltimore-Washington International Airport (BWI) will be the eighth airport to receive a new explosives detection trace portal to screen passengers at the Pier D security checkpoint, starting today. The equipment is part of the Phase II pilot program to test and evaluate the trace portal for screening passengers for explosives. TSA's Registered Traveler Program Still Waiting on the Tarmac -- The TSA's much-discussed "registered traveler" program, among the most popular initiatives the agency has announced, delivers few benefits, according to participants. Travelers say a combination of poor planning, slow roll-out, and broken equipment renders the program of marginal worth and places its tantalizing benefits just outside reach. Bush Seeks $1.5 Billion Hike In Air Security Fees -- (02/07/05) President George W. Bush is seeking a $1.5 billion increase in airline security fees in his new budget for the fiscal year that will begin Oct. 1, despite the objections of the airline industry, which said it already is overtaxed. TMCs Ponder UAL's Carrot -- (02/07/05) United Airlines' proposal last month to its top travel agency partners regarding use of alternate distribution systems drew mixed responses from agency executives and industry observers. Many praised the airline for bringing new possibilities to the forefront but voiced apprehension about inability to aggregate content, the logistics of moving transaction volume and the economic impact on relationships with global distribution systems and corporate clients. Meanwhile, new distribution entrants G2 Switchworks and ITA Software claim they are building systems that soon will offer agents new features and customer benefits at a fraction of the cost of existing GDSs. CO Simplifies Discounts: Airline Aligns Negotiated Corporate Terms To Published Fares -- (02/07/05) Continental Airlines is taking the next step in ongoing corporate pricing reform in the airline industry by aligning negotiated discounts with actual published domestic and international prices rather than basing contract terms on airfare classifications. Scandinavian Airlines Offers Wireless Broadband Internet Connection -- Scandinavian Airlines will be the first airline in the world to offer a solely wireless broadband internet connection on board their aircrafts, as well as the very first airline to have it's entire long-haul fleet equipped with the service. You will be able to surf the web, check your e-mail and log on to your company's intranet onboard their Airbus A340 and Airbus A330 aircrafts. Planned introduction on their long-haul routes is this month and remaining aircrafts will be fitted by April 2005. Delta's Low-Cost Carrier
to Expand Service -- Delta's low cost carrier, Song Airlines,
is planning to grow its fleet by one-third this year. The airline plans
to begin nonstop coast-to-coast flights from New York to Los Angeles,
San Francisco, Seattle, San Juan and Aruba. Song will add 12 Delta-owned
Boeing 757 planes to its fleet of 36 on May 1, 2005 and will expand service
by 36 new flights through September Number of Late Flights in U.S. Increases -- According to figures released by the U.S. Government more than 1.4 million US domestic flights, nearly 20 percent of all arrivals, were late in 2004. Flights are considered late if they are at least 15 minutes behind schedule. Bad weather is usually blamed for most flight delays. The Transportation Department also said that the 19 airlines reporting results had more complaints about customer service and mishandled baggage than the 18 carriers that provided data in 2003. The on-time performance range was narrow with Northwest Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Southwest Airlines at or above 80 percent. American Eagle posted the lowest rate at 73 percent. Delta Air Lines was worst among the biggest airlines at 76.2 percent for the year. Americans Should be Cautious
when Traveling to Mexico -- Americans traveling across
the U.S./Mexican border might want to rethink Online travel sites respond to queries at a sluggish pace -- (02/07/05) While the Internet offers phenomenal advances in travel technology and marketing, online travel websites are nevertheless slow to respond to customer inquiries. InternetWeek reports that consumer surveys and an analysis of more than 40 travel sites conducted by the Boston-based Customer Respect Group (CRG), revealed that 24% of airlines, hotels and resellers of their services, never answered customer inquiries, and 33% did so more than a day later. This means that more than half of online travel websites are slow to respond to customer inquiries. On-Time Flight, Baggage Handling Performance Eroded In 2004 -- (02/04/05) The domestic airline industry, struggling to reverse a financial crisis, yesterday received more negative news when the U.S. Department of Transportation issued a report showing deteriorating customer service metrics. DOT's Air Travel Consumer Report for full-year 2004 included worse on-time performance data, a higher ratio of mishandled baggage, a growing number of customer complaints and more involuntary denied boardings. TSA Opens "Maryland Three" Airports to Transient Aircraft Operators -- (02/10/05) The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) today announced it will assume responsibility for ground security requirements and procedures at three general aviation (GA) airports located within the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area Flight Restricted Zone. Under TSA’s interim final rule, transient operations will now be allowed to resume at the three airports. The three are College Park Airport, Potomac Airfield and Washington Executive/Hyde Field – commonly referred to as the “Maryland Three” airports. TSA’s New ‘Pledge to Travelers’ Emphasizes Security, Customer Service -- (02/09/05) The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) today unveiled its 'Pledge to Travelers,' a statement of rights and expectations for all persons who go through the screening process at America’s airports. The Pledge is TSA’s latest demonstration of the agency’s ongoing commitment to customer service in the fulfillment of its security mandate. TSA's Expedited No Fly List and Selectee List Clearance Procedures -- It is a procedure to expedite the watch list clearance procedures and ask that passengers who experience these delays submit information to TSA, including select personal documents, so that we may formally verify that their identity is distinct from persons on a TSA watch list. This process focuses on individuals who experience delays in receiving a boarding pass or are subjected to additional screening every time they pass through a TSA checkpoint. This procedure will not affect other standard screening procedures currently in effect at security screening checkpoints, and airlines may still require a brief period of time to comply with identity verification requirements at the ticket counter prior to issuing a boarding pass. Survey Illustrates Scope Of Business Travel Recovery -- (02/08/05) A survey of business travelers jointly released today by three industry organizations highlights the extent of the corporate travel industry's recovery and its effect on corporate travel policies. Airline liquidations may not clear murky US skies -- (02/08/05 Reuters) - Squeezed by high fuel prices and aggressive price cutting by discount airlines, traditional U.S. carriers are facing another dismal year. If dismal enough, the industry's crisis could actually be good news for its strongest players, as it could force weaker rivals out of business for good, easing competitive pressure. Amtrak president blasts zero-funding proposal --(02/07/05 Reuters) - The Bush administration has no plan for Amtrak other than bankruptcy, the national passenger railroad's president told employees on Monday after the White House proposed no operating subsidy in its 2006 budget. Alitalia cancels 141 flights over Thursday strike -- (02/09/05 Reuters) - Italy's flag carrier Alitalia (AZPIa.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) will cancel 141 flights on Thursday, most of them on international routes, due to a four-hour strike by cabin crew and ground staff seeking improved working conditions. American Airlines Removes Pillows from Flights -- American Airlines confirmed that as of February 15, it is pulling the pillows off most of its domestic routes other than the trans-continental flights and those to Hawaii. Flights to the Caribbean and Latin America will also go without the pillows. Even the first-class cabin on the shorter flights will go without pillows. American first pulled the pillows on its MD-80 fleet last November and saved $300,000. The expansion of the pillow cost-cutting should save another $375,000, according to American spokesman Tim Wagner. The planes will still have blankets available for customers. Budget proposal to raise 9/11 security fee on air tix -- (02/08/05 Travel Weekly) The Sept. 11 security fee on airline tickets would increase substantially under the Bush administration fiscal year 2006 budget proposal released Feb. 7. Under the budget proposal the administration sent to Congress, the fee would increase $3 on one-way flights, to $5.50 for a nonstop and $8 for a multi-leg ticket. That means a traveler could pay as much as $16 for a roundtrip ticket, compared to no more than $10 under the current fee structure. The Bush administration said the increase, along with air carrier security fees, will "recover nearly all of the $4.5 billion cost of airport screening operations." But the Air Transportation Association (ATA), Business Travel Coalition (BTC) and National Business Travel Association (NBTA) already are lobbying against the hike as unfair and harmful. Although the fee is for passengers, the ATA argues airlines would have to absorb the cost themselves or lose business because of higher ticket prices. The BTC also is worried about the impact on financially struggling airlines. The NBTA, meanwhile, estimated the fee increase would cost businesses more than $400 million on domestic travel each year. Study projects business travel rebound in two years (02/08/05 Travel Weekly) -- Business travel is expected to rebound, but it may take another two years, according to the 2004 Business and Convention Travelers Report, the first study to examine corporate travel compiled jointly by the Travel Industry Association (TIA) and the National Business Travel Association (NBTA). Suzanne Cook, TIA™s senior vice president of research, said at a press conference here, Between 1998 and 2003, U.S. domestic business and convention travel declined more than 14%. The good news is that we began to see signs of recovery in 2004. The study shows business travel rose 4% during the first half of 2004 and to a similar level during the third quarter as well. It now looks like when the final numbers are in for last year, we will exceed our recent forecast of a 4% increase in business travel in 2004 and we expect similar gains this year, Cook said. Should that trend continue, business travel could return to levels last seen in 1998, a peak year for business travel. The study also found that the majority of U.S. business travelers (65%) are infrequent travelers who take 1 to 4 business trips a year. However, they account for only 20% of the total business trip volume. Frequent business travelers, those who take 10 or more trips a year, make up 17% of all business travelers, taking 64% of all business trips. Overall, the average business traveler takes 7 business trips a year. Other key findings: On the road and in the air Service with(out) a smile (or the worsening of travel conditions) |
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