Travel-On Travel Industry News
This newsletter is published weekly. Please click to subscribe to this newsletter.

Travel-On/Travel Place will be closed on Labor Day

In observance of Labor Day, our offices will be closed on Monday, September 3. If you need assistance with your travel plans during this period, please contact our Emergency Travel Helpline number listed on your itinerary.

Have a safe holiday!

Friday, August 31, 2012
Events We're Watching

Libya - US Department of State Issues Travel Warning
On Aug. 27, the US Department of State issued a travel warning advising US citizens against unnecessary travel to Libya on grounds of increased violent crime and political violence throughout the country, including the capital Tripoli and Benghazi. The announcement coincides with the formal re-opening of the US Embassy in Tripoli, which now offers full consular services to US citizens operating in the country. In response to increased political violence in Libya, iJET is raising the Country Security Assessment Rating (CSAR) terrorism subrating from a 2 (low) to a 3 (moderate). The overall CSAR remains unchanged at 4 (high).

India - Kingfisher Airlines Pilots Launch Indefinite Strike
A section of Kingfisher Airlines pilots based in Mumbai launched an indefinite strike starting Aug. 29 over unpaid salaries. The striking pilots claim that they have not received their salaries since March. The strike could lead to cancellations of a significant number of flights. Kingfisher Airlines is currently operating only a small fraction of its usually scheduled flights due to financial problems.

Nepal - General Strike in Pokhara Aug. 31-Sept. 1
Members of the Pokhara International Regional Airport Concern Committee (PIRACC) will organize a general strike in Pokhara, Kaski District, Aug. 31-Sept. 1. The strike will include a shutdown of all flight operations at the domestic Pokhara Airport (PKR). Transport on the streets of Pokhara will also largely come to a halt, though emergency vehicles will be permitted. Most businesses will probably shut down during the strike. Violent clashes are possible. In the past, protesters have repeatedly attacked vehicles and businesses that defied strike calls; similar action cannot be ruled out during the upcoming action. PIRACC members also intend to stage demonstrations.

Lufthansa - Cabin Crew Strike
The Unabhangige Flugbegleiter Organisation (UFO) union, representing two-thirds of Lufthansa's (LH) 19,000 cabin crew, began a series of warning strikes at Frankfurt (FRA) airport Aug. 31. About 1000 LH cabin crew members walked off the job at 0500 to launch an initial warning strike set to last till 1300. The airline canceled more than 200 short- and medium-haul flights, primarily between Frankfurt and other cities in Europe. Officials also canceled a small number of long-haul flights between Frankfurt and Atlanta, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Seattle. Residual delays are likely even after the strike ends at Lufthansa clears its flight backlog. Strike leaders are deliberately planning to give only six hours advance warning before each additional strike so as to maximize disruptions. In addition to the Lufthansa hub in Frankfurt, strikes could occur at the Berlin, Hannover, Bremen, and Munch airports. Lufthansa is not obligated to refund tickets for flights that are canceled due to strikes. For travel within Germany, passengers may exchange their tickets for Deutsche Bahn train travel vouchers. The strike will probably lead to high demand for alternate flight and rail service, making booking such reservations more difficult or costly.

Hurrican Isaac
Hurricane Isaac made landfall a second time along the coast of southeastern Louisiana early Aug. 29 before slowly tracking inland and weakening into a tropical storm. The system, however, has been moving very slowly, meaning that some areas have been subject to torrential rainfall, storm surge, and high winds for many hours. This has resulted in severe flooding, significant property damage, and massive power outages. Most damage has been concentrated in southern Mississippi and southeastern Louisiana thus far, but storm-related threats will shift northwestward to northern Louisiana, Arkansas, and eventually Missouri as the system tracks away from the Gulf Coast. The storm will continue to weaken, but very heavy rain will likely cause flash flooding and areal flooding over a vast area in affected states along the Mississippi River. More than 1,300 flights were cancelled during the storm and though airport operations are returning to normal it will take time to clear the backlog.

Russia - Irkutsk Temporarily Reduce Operations
Aviation authorities plan to reduce scheduled flights to and from Irkutsk International Airport in Irkutsk Sept. 2-30 due to runway marking and lighting upgrades. IKT will be closed from 1300 to 2200 Sept. 2-16 and from 1300 to 2100 Sept. 17-30.

United States - Restricted Travel Zones for Democratic National Convention
To enhance security during the 2012 Democratic National Convention (DNC), authorities in Charlotte, N.C. will restrict private and public transportation. Motorcade travel is likely to cause intermittent traffic disruptions and road closures Sept. 2-7. The main venues are Time Warner Cable Arena and Bank of America Stadium. Road closures and parking restrictions will begin at 0900 Sept. 2 and last through 0500 Sept. 7 on many roads near the two venues. Authorities will also close Interstate 277 (John Belk Freeway) between Interstate 77 and Independence Boulevard (US 74) from 0530 Sept. 6-0200 Sept. 7. Areas within one block of Time Warner Cable Arena are accessible only to individuals with event specific credentials. Regularly scheduled commercial and passenger flights arriving at CLT are not subject to temporary flight restrictions. However, flight delays may occur due to heightened air traffic and security.

Philippines - Earthquake
A 7.6-magnitude undersea quake struck off the eastern coast of the Philippines late Friday. A tsunami alert originally was issued for several countries, but most of them were soon lifted, leaving warnings only for the Philippines, Indonesia and Palau, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said. At least one house collapsed and power was knocked out in several Philippine cities, local radio reported. The quake, with preliminary magnitude 7.6, hit at a depth of 21.7 miles and was centered 66 miles east of Samar Island, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Q and A

If I am unable to make the trip can I give the ticket to a colleague instead?

The name on the ticket must match the name on the government-issued ID of the person traveling so the short answer is no, it is not possible for someone else to travel on your ticket. A few airlines will permit a name change on a ticket for a fee (often $250), plus the standard change fee (often $150). So, if you know you would have no opportunity to re-use the ticket at a later date and the value is substantially more than $400 it could be worthwhile to pay for a name change to save the remaining value of the ticket.

Submit a question

  • Though only one survives today, there have been five United States in the world - the United States of Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, Indonesia, and America
  • London lies a bit north of Winnipeg, Canada, while Rome lines up almost perfectly with Chicago
  • Including the 16 Commonwealth realms that share Queen Elizabeth as their monarch, there are 44 countries that have some form of monarchy
  • Mandarin Chinese is the first language of about 14% of the population, followed by Spanish at just over 5% and English at just under 5%
  • At about 8,000 feet, Antarctica has the highest average elevation of any continent
  • Bermuda's Somerset Bridge, built in 1620, has a gap just wide enough for a sailboat mast to pass through with careful steering

Triple Points on Hertz

U.S. and Canadian residents may start earning tripe points on rentals (any car class, any length of rental) from September 4th to December 15th, 2012.

To register, simply visit www.HertzTriplePoints.com and enter your Gold number. In order to qualify, the traveler must be a Gold Plus Rewards member and register at the above link. Points can be redeemed for upgrades, free rental days, or airline frequent flyer miles. See Hertz Triple Point Promotion