5 Awesome Airport Lounges

Thai Airways First Class Lounge, Bangkok

Passengers begin their journey at an exclusive check-in area, so there is virtually no waiting for security and passport control. Once all formalities are complete, golf carts whisk them inside the lounge, where they can relax in semi-private rooms. Travelers can book a spa treatment -- including a 30-minute neck and shoulder or foot massage, or an hour long full body massage -- in their own private spa bungalow.

Lufthansa First Class Terminal, Frankfurt

This separate terminal, which the airline likens to a small luxury hotel, also has its own exclusive check-in and security checkpoints. Passengers can while away the time before their flight in leather armchairs and sofas or nap in comfy daybeds. Those who wish to relax with a spirit have plenty to choose from, including 80 different brands of whiskey. There is a top-quality restaurant, a cigar lounge, and wonderful shower and bath facilities. Every passenger also gets his or her own personal assistant. Guests are chauffeured to their plane in a Porsche or a Mercedes-Benz.

Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse, London

Order a colorful cocktail from the 14-meter (45-foot) bar or indulge in menu selections such as potato and watercress soup, smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, or duck à l'orange. The cool decor includes a ceiling to floor Japanese water wall and a den with a pool table and video game consoles.

JetQuay Terminal, Singapore

This lounge at Singapore's Changi Airport is not airline-affiliated, so access to it isn't included in the price of your ticket. Rather, it is available to passengers traveling in any class for an extra fee. If you're departing from Singapore, staffers will take care of your baggage, help you with travel formalities, and when it's time for you to depart, drive you to your gate in a buggy. If you're flying into Changi Airport, they will meet you on arrival and help with immigration clearance and luggage. The lounge's amenities include a business center, private meeting rooms, board room, massage chairs, showers, nap rooms and free Internet access.

The Wing, Cathay Pacific First Class Lounge, Hong Kong

This spacious lounge overlooking the terminal and the runway includes The Library, for quiet reading, and The Haven, for dining. The Cabanas offer private bath and shower suites complete with lounge chairs.

Adapted from CNN Travel, visit for more info and pictures: http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/10/travel/luxurious-arport-lounges/index.html?hpt=tr_c1

Original article by A. Pawlowski

Airline Rankings: Best and Worst for Flight Delays

With the overall percentage of flights arriving on time at a dismal 78.6 percent, choosing an airline with reliable service is becoming even more essential for travelers. Here are the best and worst airlines for arriving on schedule.

5 WORST:

1. Jet Blue, 72%
2. Comair, 74.6%
3. Atlantic Southeast, 75.2%
4. American Eagle, 75.5%
5. ExpressJet, 76%

5 BEST:

1. Hawaiian, 92.7% (the leader for the past three years)
2. Alaska, 86.9%
3. United, 83.8%
4. AirTran, 83.5%
5. Mesa. 83.4%

For a more detailed description of the study, see this: http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/best-and-worst-airlines-for-delays/1

What to do if you are bumped from a flight

Here is a helpful article written by George Hobica: http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/04/travel/flight-bumping-tips/index.html?hpt=tr_c2

A few highlights:

Passengers can now collect up to $1,300 for being bumped from a domestic flight if they arrive at their destination more than two hours later than scheduled, under Department of Transportation rules revised earlier this year. (The previous maximum was $800.) Passengers can also get as much as $650 (up from $400) if they get to their destination within one to two hours of the scheduled time according to the new rule.

Elite tier members of an airline's frequent flier program are typically less likely to be bumped. You should also know that the folks in the cheap seats have lower priority on some airlines than the ones who paid full fare. So if you're a very frequent flier at the highest tier of your airline's program and/or paid a full fare (or are a business or first class passenger) you're more likely to get on board than the poor chap who paid next to nothing for his coach ticket.

If the airline won't issue you a seat assignment when you buy your ticket, that's a red flag and you might want to choose another flight or carrier.

Passengers should insist on a check instead of a travel voucher (a free round-trip flight, for example), which many airlines typically offer, because vouchers come with restrictions and can be difficult to redeem (you sometimes can only cash them in at the airport).

If your ticket does not show a fare (for example, a frequent-flier award ticket or a ticket issued by a consolidator), your denied boarding compensation is based on the lowest cash, check or credit card payment charged for a ticket in the same class of service (e.g., coach, first class) on that flight.

If you're bumped but arrive at your destination within an hour of the original time, there's no compensation owed.

Often, a seat may open up at the last minute if someone does not board. Also, it's usually only the gate agent at the airport who can handle the booking for the next flight and issue compensation. Calling the airline's toll-free number will not get you anywhere. If the gate agent instructs you to go to a customer service counter to be rebooked and/or receive compensation, then you can try calling the 1-800 number for assistance, but compensation is almost always issued at the airport by the agent who handled the flight.

Avoid peak travel days (Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday are best) and seasons (the day before Thanksgiving and the Christmas holiday periods are notorious for being bump-prone) when planes tend to be jammed full.

Of course, the easiest thing you can do is book way ahead and arrive early. Way early. Don't buy a ticket if there are no assigned seats available. And be loyal: attain some status in your airline's frequent flier program and you're less likely to be ill-treated.

Delta's Economy Comfort Being Added to Entire Fleet

Delta recently introduced a premium-economy cabin, called Economy Comfort (which is much like United's Economy Plus), on lenghty international flights. The passengers traveling in Economy Comfort are treated to extra legroom and priority boarding. The feedback was so positive the airline has decided to extend the Economy Comfort seats to its entire fleet (more than 550 aircraft and 250 regional jets). This expansion is the latest in Delta's $2 billion (plus) enhancement.

AirBerlin to Increase U.S. Presence

Starting in the summer of 2012, AirBerlin will introduce a new service between Los Angeles (LAX) and Berlin (SXF) - making AirBerlin the first carrier to service this route. The service will not be offered every day, but will operate Monday, Wednesday and Friday. AirBerlin will also be increasing flight frequencies between New York (JFK) and Berlin and Düsseldorf (DUS), San Francisco (SFO) to Düsseldorf, and Miami (MIA) to Düsseldorf, further connecting the United States and Germany.

Best Major Airlines for Business Travel

Business Travel News publishes annual rankings of the major airlines for business travel, which can be telling signs of on airline's overall quality for travelers. This year's results are based on a poll of 406 travel managers and buyers who spend at least $500,000 a year on flights booked in the United States. The rankings only include the five largest domestic airlines.

Here are the 5 ranked from best to worst according to BTN's airline score, which is comprised of data gathered from 10 different categories:

1. Delta Airlines*
BTN airline score: 3.14

2. United Airlines/ Continental
BTN airline score: 3.12

3. US Airways
BTN airline score: 3.07

4. American Airlines
BTN airline score: 2.94

5. Southwest
BTN airline score: 2.9


*This is Delta's first time at the number one spot.

For a more detailed report of this information, see this: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44876792/ns/business-us_business/

Southwest Airlines 3Q Losses Due to Fuel Hedges

Southwest Airlines experienced losses of $140 million for the third-quarter, its first loss in two years. Last year in the same quarter, Southwest made profits of $205 million. A portion of this loss can be chalked up to Southwest's purchase of AirTran Airways in May 2011, a $1 billion purchase. Southwest is already the most flown airline by U.S. passengers.

The major factor in the difficult quarter for Southwest is due to fuel hedges- like an insurance policy against unforgiving spikes in oil prices. High fuel costs forced Southwest to spend $1.59 billion in fuel for the quarter, a 71% increase from last year's figure. Southwest spent an average $3.23 a gallon on fuel, up from $2.47 in the previous year.

Southwest has been saving money by re-negotiating AirTran's contracts and expects to be able to save $400 million a year once completely worked out. Overall, Southwest is faring quite well- especially when compared to other North American airlines like American Airlines which reported losses of $162 million in the third-quarter, its 14th quarter out of the past 16 that incurred losses.

For a more detailed analysis: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Southwest-posts-3Q-loss-on-apf-2592141335.html?x=0

DOT Proposing Increase in Accessibility to Air Passengers with Disabilities

The Department of Transportation may require airlines and travel providers to provide non-discriminatory accessibility to travelers with disabilities. According to the Census Bureau, here are an estimated 50 million American's with a disability (roughly 1 in 6), many of which face significant barriers when navigating air -and other forms of- travel.

According to msnbc.com, the proposed updates to be made include: requiring airports to "adopt an accessibility standard that mirrors the one the Department of Justice put in place for automated teller machines, which must now have Braille instructions and buttons, headphone jacks (for verbal instructions) and plenty of room around the units to allow physical access for people using wheelchairs and other assistive devices."

Msnbc also reports that in addition to airports updating their physical accessibility, "carriers and travel agents would have up to two years from the roll-out of the regulations to update or redesign their websites. While they do that, DOT would keep in place regulations requiring carriers to make any discounted Web-based fares and amenities available — at no extra charge — to travelers with disabilities who cannot use a carrier's inaccessible website."

This is not the first time these types of proposals have been made, and they are typically met with opposition from airlines and the like who are hesitant to spend the money to provide accessible devices and websites. This time around is no different in terms of opposition, but the Department of Transportation estimates that a reduction in the number of assistance calls due to inaccessible websites will result in savings of $11.8 million over 10 years and that $45.9 million would be saved by airlines in labor costs, making arguments citing increased costs difficult to maintain.

Find the original article here: http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/10/11/8259446-dot-wants-more-accessible-airline-websites-kiosks

Tips from MSNBC on How to Get Some Sleep on a Flight

Here are some tips on how to capture some too-often elusive sleep on an airplane (not that any of them are exceptionally mind-blowing... but still worth a look).

1.) Don’t drink caffeinated coffee, tea, soda or eat chocolate (or anything else with caffeine) for six to eight hours before a flight or during one.

2.) Bring earplugs and an eye shade to block out light and sound (some airlines hand these out). Pack a pillow and a blanket- or use the airline provided ones, though they are definitely not as comfy- in order to stay warm, as your body temperature naturally drops when you sleep.

3.) Don't take a sleeping pill- it doesn't do much good, and doctors advise against it on flights due to its potentially adverse effects on your health.

4.) Take advantage of airline services that promote friendlier sleeping conditions (they vary by airline/ flight). For example- some airlines offer a variety of on board sleep aids, including mood lighting, “do not disturb” stickers, and other amenities,

or upgrade to business or first class- many of these seats can now be turned into flat, horizontal beds and make you feel less like a sardine,

(or check out something like Air New Zealand's "Skycouch," in economy which lets three adjoining seats morph into one giant couch-like seat).

5.) Trick yourself- do things you would normally do at home before bed like: brush your teeth, change your clothes (into something more like pajamas if you really want to mimic your home routine) or whatever else you typically do (so long as it is legal to do on a crowded airplane of course!).

Find the original story here: http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/09/28/8014756-cant-sleep-on-a-plane-tips-to-help-you-catch-a-few-zzzs

Transportation Department Consumer Rules Holds Ground Against Airlines

see article by Bill Poling here: http://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Government/Southwest,-Spirit-and-Allegiant-lose-challenge-of-consumer-rules/

My Advice on the Richmond Internation Airport: Use It! It's Good!

The uncannily pleasant airport experience I have been treated to at the Richmond International Airport (RIC) has forced me to do three things: 1.) ponder if I am the unknowing main character of a new Twilight Zone episode, 2.) suspectingly peek over my shoulder and glance about my peripherals seeking out Ashton Kutcher, maniacally waiting to emerge from behind a suspiciously located tarp-covered section of scaffolding with his trucker hat and Punk'd hidden camera crew, and 3.) -the one I have decided (barely) warrants the most credibility- to indulge the uncommon urge I have to share the positive feelings I am brimming with after the experience I encountered at the Richmond International Airport.

RIC in a word: amazing.

This was my first experience flying into and out of RIC and it is truly wonderful. Though Richmond, VA is a secondary city, the airport is big and new, features excellent, informative, and easy to follow signage, is impeccably clean, and is extremely easy to access both internally and externally.

I have since learned that in 2007, the airport completed construction of a multi-million dollar renovation process, expanding the terminal building by 155,000 square feet- quadrupling the amount of usable floor space in the ticketing hall and baggage claim areas, doubling the space for security checkpoints, and doubling the outdoor curbside loading/unloading zones to help ease vehicle congestion for arrivals and departures.

In 2010, an expansion of the North Parking Garage was completed, adding 2,600 on-site parking spaces. Total parking at RIC is now more than 10,000 spaces. In June 2010 a new business center opened in RIC's upper level connector, offering travelers free WiFi, work stations and meeting room space. In addition, a USO center opened for U.S. Armed Forces personnel and their families.

The following airlines serve the airport: Air Tran, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta, JetBlue Airways, United Airlines, US Airways, Air Canada, and Vision Airlines.

The airport's website hosts a wealth of information and is easy to navigate (much like the airport itself) and offers monthly statistics, financial information, and a ton of information that is helpful for travelers.

Here is the link for the website: http://www.flyrichmond.com/

Naked Scanning Images to be Eliminated from Airport Security?

An update on the controversial airport imaging machines that expose passengers' nude bodies:

Pending legislation may make revealing anything other than a generic stick-like figure outline of the passenger being scanned illegal. If anything suspicious shows up during the scan, a red box will surround the area in which the item is disclosed, rather than providing the TSA agent full disclosure of the dis-clothed passenger.

msnbc reports: http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/09/14/7762175-naked-scanners-may-soon-be-on-the-way-out

For a report from a couple of months ago about new airline technology protecting passenger privacy, see this: http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/07/20/7120677-tsa-new-scanner-software-will-protect-passenger-privacy

Of course, the proposed amendment will have to be passed by both the House and Senate and signed into law by President Obama before these procedures are put into action.

Air Travel Update: Flights Fuller than Ever!

An all time record 86.4 percent of seats were filled in all flights in the months of July and August 2011 (some airlines reporting much higher numbers- in the 90s!). This number has been increasing since airline deregulation in the 1970s. Considering the continuing elimination of pleasantries provided for air travelers (without astronomical costs attached to them) and the propensity for airplane cabins to resemble sardine cans, it is pretty amazing to consider airlines' struggle for profits.

More on dismal profit outlook: http://money.cnn.com/2011/06/06/news/companies/airline_industry/index.htm


Check out this article from Associated Press for more about full flights:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Armrest-wars-Flights-are-apf-692102837.html?x=0

THAI Airways Expansion

Two months after being awarded 5th place in the World's Best Airline category at the World Airline Awards in June 2011 (a considerable climb compared to 2010's 9th place ranking), THAI Airways has just announced the launch of a new low-fare airline to take place in July 2012.


Thai Smile Air- a fitting name for the "Land of Smiles" country- will operate out of Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok and will feature a fleet of eleven Airbus 320 aircrafts, each with a seating capacity of 174 passengers. The airline will initially serve secondary route markets within Thailand such as Ubon Ratchathani and Chiang Rai, with the goal of expanding internationally as early as 2013.

This is not the only bit of expanding THAI Airways has on its plate in the near future. A statement by THAI President, Mr. Piyasvasti, made clear that "Thai Smile will not affect THAI's plans to also launch Thai Tiger Airways, a discount carrier in partnership with Singapore's Tiger Airways, which will materialise as soon as possible."

East Coast Travel -and Stranded Travelers- Recovering from Hurricane Irene

With Hurricane Irene's departure from the Eastern United States, travel operators have been forced to attempt to restore regularity to the travel schedule with as much rapidity as possible. Immense numbers of flights, public transportation systems, business and leisure travelers, and local residents were affected by the damage inflicted by the Category 1 hurricane. Despite the tragedies and damages done by the storm, it is fortunate that the storm did not escalate as expected. MSNBC reports on the recovery process for East Coast travel.

Article from MSNBC.com follows:

The nation's planes, trains and buses had their first full day of near-normal service since Thursday, as most passengers stranded by Hurricane Irene slowly made their way home.

Airlines said overall Tuesday that despite some scattered issues, including a handful of delays and cancellations, most flights were running smoothly because of the overtime put in by crews put in the day before. Most ran extra flights Monday to clear the glut of travelers waiting to fly.

Flight tracking service FlightAware reported only 159 flights were scratched compared with more than 1,700 on Monday. Nearly 14,000 flights were scrapped in the hours before, during and after the storm. That's the most in any four-day period in more than a year, surpassing cancellations during either of the massive snowstorms this winter.

United Continental, Delta and US Airways expect to finish shuttling the majority of stranded travelers to their final destinations Tuesday. American Airlines spokesman Ed Martelle said it cleared its backlog of passengers in New York waiting to take off. And JetBlue spokesman Mateo Lleras said every passenger affected by the storm should be brought to their destinations by the end of the week.

Most airlines reported few problems getting planes back in the air and getting travelers where they needed to go. But some officials said that the decision to shut down major airports — especially the closure of New York's five main airports by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey — caused a scramble.

David Holtz, the managing director for operations at Delta, had just about finished its cancellation plan around 6 p.m. on Friday and could have kept flying at New York's Kennedy airport through Saturday evening when airport officials said they would close at noon Saturday.

That "threw a huge monkey wrench into our planning," he said. Delta canceled additional flights to adjust to the earlier closing.

Airport officials thought the 18-hour notice was generous. But with flights of 12 hours or longer scheduled from as far away as Tokyo, the decision forced the airline to act quickly to notify passengers before they left for the airport, he said.

Susan Baer, the Port Authority's aviation director, said the shutdown of New York's public transit system — which most employees use to get to work — affected its decision to close the airports.

Despite the sooner-than-expected shutdown, some airlines praised the efficiency of the airports' reopening.

"The coordination was really extraordinary," JetBlue CEO Dave Barger told CNBC on Monday. "I really don't think we could have had a more effective startup."

Reopening airports means much more than just switching on the lights. In New York, for example, it involved doing everything from clearing cots used by stranded travelers to making sure airport staff could show up to work. With the city's public transportation system limping back into service, Baer said security agents were picked up by their managers in vans to ensure that they'd make it to work on time.

Amtrak resumed service between New York and Boston on Tuesday. Trains are still canceled between Philadelphia and New York because of flooding. Amtrak also canceled trains from the Northeast to cities like Miami and New Orleans.

Travelers who couldn't fly or take the train turned to the bus. BoltBus was fully booked Monday and Tuesday, according to Timothy Stokes, a spokesman for its parent company Greyhound. The only cancellation for Greyhound was its route between Albany and Syracuse.

Megabus also saw an increase in passengers who had tried to get around by other means, according to Dale Moser, president and COO of Megabus parent company Coach USA.

All buses were running again, but some kept their speeds down on roads other than interstate highways as a precaution.

Article originally appeared in Travel News on MSNBC.com
By SAMANTHA BOMKAMP and SCOTT MAYEROWITZ
AP Airlines Writer Joshua Freed in Minneapolis contributed to this report.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44325892/ns/travel-news/

Image uploaded from: http://www.ctpost.com/news/slideshow/Hurricane-Irene-30520.php#photo-83

Airline Considers Banning Children From First Class

First-class passengers aboard some Malaysia Airlines flights won't have to worry about being woken up by a crying baby anymore.

The airline has banned infants in first class of its Boeing 747-400 jets, and has plans to do the same in their new Airbus A380 superjumbo jets, the Australian Business Traveller reported.

The ban comes after the many complaints from first-class passengers who couldn't sleep on their pricey flight due to wailing infants, MAS CEO and Managing Director Tengku Azmil told the Australia Business Traveller.

Amidst the controversial move, Azmil took to his Twitter account to defend the company's decision not to install bassinets in its Boeing 747-400 first class cabin. In response to a post about the ban, Azmil tweeted: "Also hv many complaints from 1st class pax dat dey spend money on 1st class & can't sleep due to crying infants."

Travelers with babies will now have to book seats in business or economy class, which are equipped with bassinets.

Routes affected by the ban include long-haul flights from Kuala Lumpur to Amsterdam, London and Sydney.

In February, several airlines including British Airways and Virgin Atlantic were considering creating children-free flights.

Rats on a plane!

FDA finds rodent feces near galley on Delta jet!

In an inspection of a Delta plane in Atlanta earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration found rodent feces throughout the aircraft, according to an April 13 warning letter sent to Delta CEO Richard Anderson.

The FDA said it inspected the plane from Jan. 26 to Feb. 2 and found rodent pellets "too numerous to count in three areas in ceiling panels located in the middle cross over galley G2, which is directly over places where food and drinks are stored in the aircraft."

Inspectors also found eight to 11 rodent pellets above the right door panel in the forward galley and 10 to 20 pellets above the left door panel in the forward galley. Plus, nine to 15 rodent feces were found on the right aisle of the plane.

"Please notify this office in writing within 15 working days from the date you receive this letter of the specific steps you have taken to correct the noted violations, including an explanation of how you plan to prevent these violations, or similar violations, from occurring again," the FDA letter said.

Delta said it was an isolated incident, and that the plane was pulled from service and cleaned, reported the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Frontier cuts change fee in half

FINALLY, some good news!

Frontier Airlines reduced several fees charged to passengers, effective for tickets purchased on or after April 13.

Passengers who fly economy and want to make itinerary changes now are charged $50, down from $100, provided the changes are made before the day of travel.

Economy passengers get a $5 discount for checking bags online, bringing the fee to $15 per checked bag.

Two bags will continue to be included in the fare for passengers who buy Frontier’s Classic and Classic Plus fares.

The carrier also dumped the flat fee for checked bicycles and will treat bikes as standard baggage.

Name changes, which let another traveler use a ticket, now are allowed for $50 for passenger with Classic and economy tickets. A name change is free on Classic Plus fares.

Lufthansa to introduce first-ever A380 service to Miami

Lufthansa announced that it will be the first airline to offer scheduled Airbus A380 service to Miami with daily flights between Frankfurt and Miami beginning June 10, 2011. Flight LH463 will leave Miami at 4:10 p.m. and arrive in Frankfurt at 7:15 a.m. the following day; the return flight LH462 will depart Frankfurt at 9:55 a.m. and arrive back into Miami International Airport at 1:50 p.m.

FAA orders emergency Boeing 737 inspections

The Federal Aviation Administration plans to issue an emergency directive on Tuesday that "will require operators of specific early Boeing 737 models to conduct initial and repetitive electromagnetic inspections for fatigue damage."

FAA noted the directive would "initially" impact about 175 aircraft, 80 of them operating in the United States.

"Most of the aircraft in the U.S. are operated by Southwest Airlines and a few by Alaska," according to an FAA statement.

Southwest canceled hundreds of flights on Saturday, Sunday and Monday to inspect Boeing 737 aircraft after an incident on Friday in which a hole ripped open in a plane's fuselage, forcing an emergency landing.

After the Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency directive that mandates operators of specific Boeing 737 aircraft to conduct repetitive electromagnetic inspections for fatigue damage, Southwest has grounded two more planes because of cracks, bringing the total to five.