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Friday, February 24, 2012

Caribbean, Central/South America, and Mexico - Carnival Celebrations Feb. 16-22

Carnival (Mardi Gras) events will take place in countries across Latin America and the Caribbean Feb. 16-22. Expect crowds around all event sites, with especially large celebrations in Rio de Janeiro and other cities in Brazil. Brazilian cities may continue to hold public events through Feb. 25. Assaults and petty crime, especially pick-pocketing and theft, typically increase during the holiday. Road closures and traffic congestion are likely. Main thoroughfares in large cities will probably be periodically blocked for parades and public events. Many major airports will be extremely busy before, during, and after Carnival events.

Bangkok - Valentine's Day Blasts

Due to a series of bombings in Bangkok on Tuesday, the United States and United Kingdom are among several countries urging citizens to be cautious when visiting the Thai capital. In a statement posted on its website, the U.S. Embassy said: "This message alerts U.S. citizens in Thailand that a series of explosions occurred in the vicinity of Sukhumvit Soi 71 in Bangkok on the afternoon of February 14. As a reminder we encourage U.S. citizens to maintain a heightened awareness when in public. Be alert for unattended packages/bags in public and report any suspicious behavior to the nearest law enforcement personnel."

Iberia - Four More Days of Strikes

Iberia is set to cancel half of its flights from Heathrow to Madrid on Friday in the latest strike by the airline’s pilots. The pilots are also scheduled to hold further strikes on Monday, February 20, Friday, February 24, and Wednesday, February 29, as the dispute over the creation of a new no-frills Spanish carrier, Iberia Express, continues. Iberia will cancel four of its eight daily flights from Heathrow to Madrid on the first three strike days although the list of cancellations for February 29 has yet to be published. In total, Iberia has had to cancel 378 flights across the first three strike days.

Frankfurt - Ground Crew Strike

Ground workers went on strike Thursday at Frankfurt Airport, Europe’s third busiest, leading to the cancellation of more than 150 flights. With more walkout plans in the works, hundreds more flights were likely to be cancelled Friday. Germany’s biggest airline, Lufthansa, said it had cancelled 100 flights within Europe because of Thursday’s strike. Trans-Atlantic flights were not interrupted. The airline said it expected 250 short- and medium-haul flights to and from Frankfurt would be canceled Friday, when the ground workers plan to walk out from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (0700 GMT, 2 a.m. EST to 2100 GMT, 4 p.m. EST), but that long haul services would operate mostly as normal.

Australia - Air Australia Ceases Operations Due to Insolvency

Air Australia ceased operations Feb. 17, stranding about 4,000 passengers at various domestic and international destinations. The troubled budget carrier is without funds to meet operational expenses, necessitating a complete halt to flight operations. The carrier offered international flights to Bali, Phuket, Honolulu, as well as Brisbane, Derby (RAAF Curtin), Melbourne, Perth, and Port Hedland in Australia. The airline had sold about 100,000 tickets for upcoming flights.

Q and A

What is the Fly America Act?

The Fly America Act is applicable to all travel that is funded by the U.S. federal government and requires that the traveler use a “U.S. flag” airline. The Fly America Act is incorporated into the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and applies not only to all U.S. federal government employees and their dependents, consultants, contractors, and grantees, but also to all U.S. government contracts issued to U.S. and non-U.S. companies. There is provision for use of carriers associated with Open Skies agreements provided the traveler completes a declaration that such an agreement exists. Carefully documented exceptions are permitted under special circumstances such as medical or safety reasons, non-availability of the authorized class of service on the U.S. Flag carrier, or when using the authorized carrier adds 2 or more connections, 6 or more hours, or requires a 4+ hour layover when changing planes. Cost is not deemed an allowable exception. The regulations are available in a simple Q&A format.

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Looking for an unusual place to stay?


Consider these unique accommodations:

  • Indulge your childhood fantasy with your own working crane. The Crane Hotel in Harlingen, Netherlands, offers accommodations inside a real working crane.
  • Built on the edge of the world's largest salt flat 220 miles south of La Paz, Bolivia, the Palacio de Sal (Palace of Salt) is built entirely of salt blocks. No licking the walls allowed!
  • Love planes, but hate to fly? A night at the Jumbo Stay in Stockholm, Sweden, might be just the thing. A retired 747 jumbo jet has been converted into 27 guest rooms.
  • Trains more your thing? Next time you're in Fairbanks, Alaska, try the Aurora Express, a B&B situated in converted Alaska Railroad cars and overlooking the beautiful Tanana Valley.
  • Dress warm when you stay 500 feet below ground at the Sala Silvermine in Sweden. No mobile signals down there!

Important Reminder For Online Profile Users!

United Airlines will be issuing new Mileage Plus numbers within the next couple of weeks. In order to ensure that the correct number is applied to your reservations so that you can receive the correct mileage credit it is important to update your profile.

  • If you currently have a United Mileage Plus Membership - replace the existing number with the new one as soon as you receive it
  • If you currently have a Continental OnePass number - re-label this number as "United" in your profile
  • If you currently have both United and Continental numbers - delete the existing United number and re-label the Continental number as United
Once Continental's OnePass program goes away in early March reservation systems will no longer recognize a "Continental" frequent flyer number, so it is important that you re-label that number as "United" in your online profile. If you have any questions, please contact your account manager or lead agent for assistance.