Soon you might be able to take your shampoo and booze on the plane once again without trouble. The head of the TSA told WSJ’s The Middle Seat Terminal blog, “I think realistically in one year we, the TSA and foreign colleagues, will be a position to relax liquids restrictions…We are within a year of having the ability to differentiate threat liquids through the screening process.” The rule relaxation is thanks to airports deploying new x-ray machines and scanners that should be able to tell the difference between a bottle of water and a bomb. Just don’t expect it to happen any time before 2009.
airlines
Southwest's "Credit Cards Only" Policy Increases Sales By 8%
By 10.1.08
Here’s the real reason for an airline to switch to credit-card-only sales on board its flights: people spend more. Southwest Airlines’ customer service veep, Daryl Krause, told the Dallas Morning News that “since Southwest began accept credit cards (and no longer taking cash) on Sept. 9, its drink sales are up about 8 percent.” Since in general “the goal was one more drink sale per flight,” we wonder whether that wasn’t the real reason for going cashless all along.
3 Rules Travelers Need To Know For 2009
By 9.29.08
Three rule changes for travelers come into effect in 2009:
- Crossing any border by land or sea, unless you’re on a cruise, will require a passport
- Visas for people coming to America will be completely electronic
- Tickets prices for flights to and within Europe will have to be disclosed in-full and up-front, taxes, fuel surcharges and all.
[via MSNBC] (Photo: Ryan McFarland)
Do The Math, Southwest: 25-Minute Layover, 20-Minute Security Screening
By 9.25.08
…I flew from Sacramento to the connection hub in San Diego, where I had a 25 minute layover. While I would not have chosen a 25-minute layover,
Southwest doesn’t give you your flight times until you’ve booked….the two gates were in separate parts of the building, separated by security…
Southwest Never Meant To Apologize To Doctor They Had Arrested
By 9.25.08
In our post earlier today about the 65-year-old doctor who tried to use the bathroom on a recent Southwest flight and was subsequently arrested, we noted that the airline sent him an apology letter and a $100 voucher. That seemed kind of inappropriate for the situation, right? It turns out the letter was never meant for Dr. Madduri and was sent to him by mistake. According to our reader RedwoodFlyer (Sockatume also picked up on it), the letter was actually about him and was sent to all the other passengers on the flight; he was never meant to see it.
Doctor Flying Southwest Tries To Go To Bathroom, Ends Up In Jail
By 9.24.08
A 65-year-old urologist, born in India but living in the United States for 38 years now, was flying from his home in Missouri to a medical convention in Las Vegas on June 26th, 2008. Did you notice that “born in India” detail? Apparently his attempts to go to the bathroom angered and frightened a flight attendant, who wouldn’t tell Dr. Sivaprasad Madduri why he couldn’t use the lavatory (the pilot was using it) and who wouldn’t listen to Dr. Madduri’s explanation that he was taking a medicine that acts as a diuretic. When the plane landed he was arrested, spent the night in jail, and was told the next day to plead guilty and pay $2500 if he wanted a quick resolution.
American Airlines Says Some Customers Are More Equal Than Others
By 9.23.08
It’s true, you’re all going to the same place, but American Airlines has decided to debut new dedicated lanes available only to the “elite” members of the AAdvantage program, full-fare coach customers, AAirpass holders and passengers in business and first class. The lanes will direct these desirable individuals swiftly through the airport from check-in to boarding — including security.
Spirit: Now With Mind-Numbing In-Cabin Advertising
By 9.20.08
Kick open the exit doors and release the inflatable slides, Spirit is outfitting their entire fleet with cabin-saturating ads. Billed as Spirit’s “latest innovation,” the ads will litter “seat backs, window shades, overhead bins, tray tables, drink carts, napkins, cups, menus (what menus?) boarding passes, trash bags, soap dispensers,” and probably even barf bags.
US Airways Saving Money Because Nobody Is Buying Their Drinks?
By 9.19.08
US Airways says that their decision to start charging for water, coffee and soft drinks is working — because no one is buying them.
Oil Prices Down But Airline Fees Remain
By 9.18.08
Airlines have added all sorts of fees to compensate for their increased oil costs recently. Now that oil has dropped, the fees are gone, right? Nope. Now that we’re all acclimated to a la carte pricing, which airlines have lusted to implement for ages, don’t expect it to be going away anytime soon. $2 fee to have the window open, $4 to have it shut.
Follow Virgin America's Twitter For Fare Drop Alerts
By 9.16.08
Follow twitter.com/VirginAmerica for a super-duper fast way to get fare-drop info. [via Xeni Jardin]
United: Did We Say $25 For The Second Bag? How About $50.
By 9.15.08
United Airlines has decided that $25 was too generous a price to check your second bag with their airline, and have announced that they’ll be bumping the fee up to $50.
By 9.13.08
../../../..//2008/09/13/if-youre-planning-to-fly/
If you’re planning to fly with Alitalia, better call ahead before leaving for the airport. “Up to tomorrow (Sunday) we have guaranteed flights,” said special administrator Augusto Fantozzi, “but not on Monday because no-one will supply us with kerosene.” [AFP]
Continental Confuses California With NYC?
By 9.12.08
[Update: Several commenters have pointed out that “Ontario, CA” actually refers to Ontario, California, which is near L.A. And to be fair to the OP, we’re the ones who misinterpreted Ontario, not her. We’ve updated the post. Also, check out Fly Girl’s insider explanation as to what likely happened.]
Continental canceled one leg of Lesley’s flight from NYC to California without notice—she only discovered it when she went online to check that everything was okay this morning. What’s worse, however, is the alternative flight plan they proposed, which would have her going from NYC to Houston to California and immediately back to Houston to NYC again, depositing her 20+ hours later in Newark, New Jersey—where we presume a gang of Continental employees will be waiting for Lesley at the gate to beat the crap out of her with confiscated water bottles. East Coast hates West Coast, Lesley!
Continental's CEO Fixes Your Frequent Flyer Miles
By 9.12.08
The CEO of Continental Airlines called up reader Ben personally and fixed his frequent flyer miles for him…
Orbitz Supervisor Plays Hardball With USAir, Gets Them To Rebook Tickets
By 9.11.08
Nicholas had a business trip go bad quickly when USAir canceled a flight and wouldn’t make things right again. His tickets were through Orbitz, and although he had a terrible experience with Orbitz’s first line of CSRs, he eventually managed to find a supervisor who made sure USAir helped solve the problem—even going so far as to let Nicholas secretly listen in on a call with a USAir agent.
Analyst Misinterprets Date On UAL Story, Stock Nosedive Ensues
By 9.11.08
Here’s what really happened with United Airlines’ stock losing 99% of its value on that bankruptcy story from 2002 that people though was new. This is what happens when you let the robots do your thinking for you…
Morning Deals
By 9.11.08
- Apple: Refurbished iPod touches on sale, 8GB for $180, 16GB for $240, 32GB for $320
- Amazon: Rewards points upgrade for existing Amazon.com Visa holders
- Apple: Free Select iTunes TV Shows in HD (requires iTunes 8
Highlights From Dealnews
- Travelocity: United Airlines Sale: Round-trip flights from $108
- Amazon.com: Amazon.com Men’s Watch Deals: Timex, Marc Ecko, more from $40 + free shipping
- Sears: Seven7 Women’s Jeans for $18 + $6 s&h, more
Highlights From Buxr
- Budget Truck Rental: $50 Gift card when paying w/American Express
- Reverie: T-Shirt Sale: Buy 1 TEE get 1 free TEE
- BestBuy: Westinghouse 42″ 1080p LCD HDTV and portable DVD Player for $749.99 + shipping
Highlights From Dealhack
- Drugstore.com: New Customers: Save $5 or $10 off First Order
- Vann’s: Panasonic FZ28 10.2MP Digital Camera $340 Shipped
- Amazon: Get Savings of up to 75% off Bargain Books
