Southwest, in an effort to speed their boarding process, is testing a “family only” section of the plane. As you’re probably aware, Southwest does not issue seating assignments, and as a result have to spend time asking single people to move so xyz family can all sit together.
travel
Airline Passengers Bill Of Rights Gutted In Congress
By 7.27.07
They’ve made a cute little propaganda video in the hopes of encouraging you to contact your representatives.
Gas Prices May Remain Stable Through The End Of The Year
By 7.25.07
Take out the keys, throw open the garage, gas prices may soon end their wallet-busting ascent. Analysts armed with charts and calculators think gas prices may camp for the rest of the year around the $3 mark. Of course, hurricanes or explosions can wreak havoc on estimates and refineries, but barring interference from terrorists, careless workers, or Mother Nature, the worst may be over. From the L.A. Times:
Northwest Airlines Loves Canceling Flights
By 7.24.07
Northwest Airlines is experiencing some serious problems with canceled flights. What is the reason? Is it the weather? Martians? Roving gangs of flying zebras? Nope. They have a pilot shortage. This could probably be solved by hiring more pilots, but well, who are we to judge?
Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport: Secured for Only 19.5 Hours Per Day
By 7.23.07
Investigative reporters, using hidden camera footage, found that security at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport essentially shuts down for four and half hours a day. During that time, the TSA goes home, and airport security guards take over. Anyone with an employee badge walks through to the secure side of the airport. They could be carrying backpacks, duffel bags, or maybe even a shopping cart. It doesn’t get inspected.
What Good Is A Carbon Offset Program If British Airways Doesn't Tell You About It?
By 7.23.07
British Airways has come under fire for not informing customers of its carbon-offsetting program, possibly for fear that people will fly less if they knew the real environmental impact, according to the Times of London.
Save On Airline Tickets, Shop On Saturday Morning
By 7.21.07
Saturday morning is the best time to find a deal on airline tickets, according to CNN Money. Most airfare sales are released to the Airline Traffic Publishing Company on Friday evening, and then forwarded to travel sites and agencies. With 200 million fares in circulation at any given moment, CNN has a novel solution for ferreting out the best deal:
Canceled Flights Up 133%
By 7.20.07
Why? Number of flights are up 14%. Essentially, we’re looking at a traffic jam in the air, and on the tarmac.
You're Less Likely To Die In A Plane Crash If You Sit In The Back
By 7.20.07
In a plane crash, the seats in the back are the safest, Popular Mechanics statistical analysis of three decades of airplane crackups finds:
For several weeks, we poured [sic] over reports filed by NTSB crash investigators, as well as seating charts that showed where each passenger sat and whether they lived or died. We then calculated the average fore-and-aft seating position of both survivors and fatalities for each crash. We also compared survival rates in four sections of the aircraft.
Populists may harvest some pleasure from the fact that First Class passengers are paying a premium for an increased 20% likelihood that they will die when the airplane plummets to the earth.
Cigarette Lighters To Be Allowed Back On Airplanes
By 7.20.07
Starting August 4, cigarette lighters will no longer be banned from airplanes, according to the New York Times. The two-year-old rule was enacted after authorities claimed that the shoe bomber (Richard Reid) might have managed to detonate his feet if he’d had a lighter instead of matches.
TSA: Where Do All The Little Scissors And Knives Go?
By 7.18.07
Last year, according to Transportation Security Administration figures, airport agents collected 12,295 “clubs, bats and bludgeons”; 1.6 million “knives and blades”; and 74,665 other objects classified as “deadly/dangerous.”
9 Airline's CEO Email Addresses, And Other Useful Complaint Resolution Contact Info
By 7.18.07
Travler’s friend site Elliot.org has these great customer service “cheat sheets” to help you if you have a dispute with your airline. CEO contact info, how to hack their phone trees, email addresses, phone numbers, mailing addresses, it’s all there.
Mood In Airport Security Line Found Tense
By 7.17.07
The Today Show’s report on TSA procedures is mainly a bunch of crap everyone knows already, but we decided to edit together all the passenger interviews from the story to give a little dose of the current passenger mood regarding security lines. Takeaway: they hate them and would like to be able to bring on baby formula to feed their children.
Woman Sues Spirit Airlines In Small Claims Court And Wins
By 7.17.07
Jane Waun sued Spirit Airlines in the small claims division of 54B District Court in East Lansing, Mich., as a last resort this spring after trying unsuccessfully to resolve her beef with the airline directly.
By 7.17.07
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Now this is what you call a “higher” level of customer service… [Pizdas]
World's Longest Non-Stop Flights
By 7.16.07
If you’re traveling from Newark, NJ to Singapore… bring a book. You’ll be in the air for almost 19 hours on the longest flight in the world, according to Forbes magazine. Long-haul flights have become more common in the last 6 years, Forbes says, “There were 866 scheduled flights between Hong Kong International Airport and the U.S. or Canada in July 2001 vs. 1,000 scheduled for July 2007.”
Greyhound Bites Family
By 7.15.07
“My wife and kids left last night (an hour late, but that happens) at 12:40am for Albuquerque. We paid for 3 seats, but were only given 2. We checked two bags and a car-seat and were asked if we needed assistance in moving them from bus to bus in the layover at Dallas. We said yes and they tagged them with special tags. The trip was supposed to comprise 3 legs: Austin-Dallas with a 90 minute layover, Dallas-Amarillo with a 20 minute layover, and Amarillo to Albuquerque…”
Online Travel Sites Waive Booking Fees To Compete With Airlines
By 7.15.07
Several travel sites are scrapping booking fees to keep customers away from individual airline sites. Savvy customers currently research fares with travel sites, and then buy directly from airlines to avoid booking fees.
“Hotwire.com announced this week that it would drop its $6-a-ticket charge for airline reservations on both its “opaque” reservations (the bargain-priced fares that don’t let you know exactly what flight you’ve booked until after you’ve paid) and regular bookings through summer. Last week, Priceline.com announced it was suspending booking charges on regular airfares through Labor Day. (The deal excludes its opaque, name-your-own-price fares.) Fees range from $5 a domestic ticket to up to $9.95 for an international reservation.
