$549 Package to BeijingDecember 14 2005
Go Today has the cheapest package to Beijing I’ve seen: $549 gets you a flight and 6 nights hotel (including breakfast). Flights are good from New York, LA, San Francisco, Portland and Seattle. The deal is good January 10th through March 30th.
Is it warm in February in Beijing? Uh, no. No, it’s not. But is it crazy, crazy cheap? Yes, yes it is.
American to Fly from Dallas LoveDecember 14 2005
American Airlines announced that it will launch flights from Dallas Love Field to Kansas City and St. Louis beginning in March. Southwest previously announced the same routes.
American then said that they will end service to six cities because of the move to Love Field (the airline has long held that if routes from Dallas Love were opened up, it would mean reduced service from DFW). But the reality is this: the routes they are dropping from DFW, the airline has admitted, were dropped in part because they weren’t making money. So, if we were to take a step back, American is complaining that they had to drop unprofitable routes so they could compete (on possibly other unprofitable routes) at a different airport. Fascinating.
Life and Death PoliciesDecember 14 2005
Two stories addressing the life and death policies of airlines:
Life: A woman on a flight from Fresno to San Francisco was asked by a flight attendant to stop breast feeding her baby because it was making other passengers uncomfortable. The flight attendant later said that it was the policy of the airline—Skywest, operating as United Express— to ban on-board public breast feeding. Apparently she was wrong. In any case, I really, really wish this had happened on Hooters Air, but it didn’t. I’m not even entirely sure why this was news. But there ya go.
Death: Northwest Airlines has a bereavement fare program where you can get a discounted fare if a close family member dies. Well, because airlines cannot possibly have any goodwill whatsoever, Northwest now requires the passenger to enroll in its frequent flyer program to be eligible for the fare. It’s almost as if they want people to hate them.
American Eagle to Test Soda SalesDecember 13 2005
Let the nickel and diming begin: American Eagle, American Airlines’ regional affiliate, will begin charging $1 for sodas on flights out of Los Angeles. The move is a test to see whether people will pay $1 for a soda (duh). Sure, Ryanair can get away with this—after all, they’re offering a million free seats right now, but American Eagle isn’t a lowfare carrier. And this is where things are getting mixed up. As airlines are now charging for curbside check-in, pillows, soda, nuts, pretzels and whathaveyou, you’ll see free TV on Song. It’s a crazy world out there.
103 Dead in Nigeria Plane CrashDecember 12 2005
103 people, mostly students, were killed when their Sosoliso Airlines DC-9 crashed in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Seven people survived the accident. I typically poo-poo when people start saying that this airline or that airline is unsafe, but Nigeria has had a truly miserable airline safety record. Seven weeks ago another fatal crash killed 117 people in Lagos. Most airlines there fly old aircraft that are not well maintained (the old is not the problem, the not-well-maintained is the problem) and seem to have no issue landing in miserable weather. On the flip side, driving through the country is far less safe than flying, so it’s important to keep in mind that if you have to get from Lagos to Abuja (or wherever) most of your options suck.
Southwest Airlines Plane Skids Off Runway, Killing 1December 09 2005
(As noted yesterday, I hope you’re not hearing this first from me…)
A Southwest Airlines 737 skidded off the runway yesterday during a snowstorm at Chicago Midway, killing a boy who was in a car struck by the aircraft. Please ignore some of the speculation I’ve already heard on the news this morning that Midway’s runways are too short. This is nonsense.
(on a personal note, I flew out of Midway airport yesterday morning and it was sunny…hard to believe the snowy scene I saw on the news last night was the same day.)
Virgin America Seeks Approval to LaunchDecember 09 2005
Virgin America, the US-based startup backed in part by Richard Branson, may finally launch next year. The carrier filed the required paperwork with the government yesterday and announced that it had secured $177 million in financing. Not too shabby. The airline also noted that it will move its headquarters from New York to San Francisco to be closer to its operating base.
Man Killed By Air Marshalls After Bomb ThreatDecember 08 2005
You’ve probably read this already (because I sure as hell hope you’re not getting your news from me), but a guy was shot and killed by air marshalls in Miami after he said he had a bomb in his carry-on bag. The man, who is reportedly bipolar and had not taken his medication, was connecting to an American Airlines flight in Miami after a flight from Colombia.
In typical overreaction, I’m looking forward to psychological screening in addition to the normal belt-n-shoe removal at the airport. Sir, please remove your shoes. And do you hear voices telling you to do terrible things? And take out your laptop. And do you sometimes feel the world is out to get you? And has anyone unknown given you a package. Or a lobotomy.
US Airways to Keep Power PortsDecember 08 2005
If you’re a US Airways frequent flyer you may have been annoyed with the recent announcement that it was removing power ports from its coach seats. Be annoyed no longer. The airline has changed its mind, and is even considering putting the ports in the aircraft it acquired from America West. Nice.
Korean Air Cancels Flights Due to Pilot StrikeDecember 08 2005
Are you flying Korean Air in the next couple of days? Uh, you might want to call the airline. The carrier has cancelled half of its flights today in anticipation of a pilot strike. Oddly, I have flown Korean Air exactly once, and my flight was cancelled because of a pilot strike (though they re-routed us on Singapore Airlines, which was like being told your Yugo broke and that the only car they can replace it with is a Ferrari. For free.) That’s neither here nor there. If you’re flying them, I’d call and check first.
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