The Stop for Cheap Airline Tickets

On Tuesday, a US Airways flight that was on its way from Paris to North Caroline had to be diverted to Maine when a passenger told a flight attendant that she had a surgically-implanted device.  Officials have said that there is no evidence the flight was ever in danger, but the FBI and the Homeland Security Department have given warnings about the possibility of terrorists using surgically-implanted bombs so they could bypass airport security.

According to U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, there were two doctors on board the flight who examined the woman, but found no signs of surgical procedures.  The woman is a French citizen who was born in Cameroon.  The Boeing Flight 787 was escorted to Bangor International Airport by two F-15 fighters.  The flight had 179 passengers and nine crew members on board.  One passenger, Stuart Frankel of Baltimore, said that they saw a lot of police and federal customs officials escort the handcuffed woman off the plane.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

One of the major revenue boosts for airlines in the US is the added fee passengers are paying to reserve window and aisle seats.  This is nice for these passengers, but for those travelling together, such as families, it is becoming increasingly difficult to sit with each other without paying the same fee, especially during the peak of the summer travel season.  With base fares on the rise, this is making it a lot more expensive for families who want to go on vacation.

Khampha Bouaphanh, a photographer from Fort Worth, Texas, said that it gets more ridiculous every year.  In order to reserve three seats together for him, his wife, and his daughter for their trip to Disney World this summer, he had to pay an extra $114 round-trip.  He is hoping that when they check in at the counter, the airline will be able to find them seats together for free.  The airlines say that their gate agents try to help families with children sit together, particularly those flying with small children.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

The ongoing Air India pilot strike that hit last week has had an unpleasant effect on those who have return tickets and are already in a foreign destination.  During the strike, Air India made last-minute flight cancellations to and from the US, UK, and Europe, which left many passengers stranded, passengers who then had to then reschedule their return bookings at a much higher fare, says D Sudhakara Reddy, national president, Air Passenger Association of India (APAI).

International air fares have increased by 10% in wake of the Air India Strikes.  Fortunately, Air India has inter-line agreements with a few foreign carriers so that they can accommodate some of the Air India passengers who need to return home.  Reddy says that if Air India endorses their tickets, these passengers will be able to travel back to India for free, but it will all depend on the availability of seats.    He also adds that despite the troubles, Air India is accepting new bookings, something they shouldn’t be doing at this time.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

Despite the fact that the government of the UAE has issued a travel warning for Lebanon, flights are operating according to schedule.  The UAE was not alone in issuing the travel warning, which was also issued by Bahrain and Qatar.  The concerns center on security as they fear that the violence in the neighboring country of Syria has spilled into Lebanon.  However, a spokesperson from Etihad Airways said that there have been no changes to the flight schedule.

A spokesperson with Air Arabia echoed the statement made by Etihad Airways, adding that they are monitoring the situation closely and that if the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority were to issue a directive, then they would obey the rules.  In addition, Air Arabia is ready to help any UAE citizens that wish to fly out of Lebanon due to the increasing level of violence.  Tripoli, Lebanon has seen some heavy fighting this past week, which has resulted in the death of ten people.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

Sunwing is offering some really cheap flights from Portugal to Toronto, which means that, if you time it right, you can get to Europe, see more than one city, and get back for as little as $357, taxes and fees included!  The key is to find some relatively cheap flights from Toronto to a European city and then catch the cheap flight back from Portugal.  The Portugal flights are as follows: June 19 from Porto for $104 and June 21 from Lisbon for $94.

What about finding the cheap one-way flights to Europe?  There are a number of great AirTransat flights that will take you to various cities in Europe and that will give you enough time to be a tourist and get to Portugal in time for the flight home.  These include Toronto to Glasgow on June 5, or 6 for $263; Toronto to Manchester on June 2, 4, 6 for $283; Toronto to London on May 29, June 11, 12, 13 for $303; Toronto to Amsterdam on June 6 for $353; and Toronto to Frankfurt on June 2 for $353.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

Air India has entered into it ninth day of pilot strikes and, as the pilots ask the government to step in an initiate talks between the two parties, the airline has resumed international flights to Europe and the US, flights that had been cut due to the unavailability of the pilots.  An Air India official has said that they hope as they resume international flights international operations will stabalize.  Early Wednesday morning the airline operated flights on the following routes: Delhi-Paris-New York (JFK) and Delhi-Frankfurt-Chicago.

The official went on to say that to accommodate the flights they have merged their Mumbai-London and Mumbai-Shanghai flights with the Delhi-London and Delhi-Shanghai flights and will be operating them on Boeing 777 ER aircraft so that all the passengers can be accommodated.  This will also bring relief to the airline’s customers, many of whom bought tickets for their flight months ago.  As for the pilots, Jitendra Awhad, chief of Indian Pilots Guild, said that they are ready for talks and are waiting for the government to issue a formal invitation.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

On Monday the Department of Transportation released statistics that showed that airlines in the US had fewer on-time flights in the month of March than they did in the previous month.  On-time arrivals were 82.2% in March, while the figure in February was 86.2%.  One of the primary reasons for this dip in on-time arrivals is a hail storm in March that resulted in planes sitting on the tarmac for more than three hours.

Last year at this time, the average for on-time arrivals was only 79.2%, which shows a marked improvement.  Hawaiian Airlines had the most on-time arrivals, with AirTran coming in second and US Airways third.  At the other end of the list, with the worst on-time arrivals, were United Airlines, Virgin America, and ExpressJet.  The criteria for an on-time flight is a flight that arrives within 15 minutes of its scheduled arrival time.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

As more than 300 Air India pilots continue their strike action into Monday morning, the airlines has been forced to cancel 24 flights for the day, mostly those heading overseas.  This is the eighth day that pilots have been boycotting work and an airline spokesperson has said that the airline and the union have come to a stalemate.  The aviation minister has said that he will only negotiate with the pilots if they return to work, something they are not willing to do.

The airline has been struggling to rebound from five years of incurring losses due to paying high wages, operating on routes that were not popular, ordering multi-billion dollar planes, and a dip in demand.  The airline also has a history of problems with its 31,000 employees, mostly unrest over wages and issues surrounding career progression.  The airline has a total of 1500 pilots, 450 of which operated flights to international destinations.  This past week has seen flight cancellations to Chicago, New York, Toronto, and Hong Kong.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

Air India pilots are not budging from their position and their strike has now entered its sixth day, causing the cancellation of 20 international flights.  This has, in turn, inconvenienced hundreds of passengers, who have been stranded and who allege that the airline has not issued any refunds for those whose flights were cancelled.  More than 200 IPG pilots have been on strike since Tuesday and the airline has now suspended bookings for international flights through May 15.

So far the airline has fired 71 pilots and is seeking the cancellation of the flying licenses of 11 others who are office-bearers of the Indian Pilots’ Guild (IPG), which is the organization that is at the root of the strikes.  Union civil aviation minister Ajit Singh has asked the pilots to consider the passengers.  He also said they are ready to negotiate if the pilots call off the strike.  However, the first priority is ensuring the passengers are being taken care of.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.

Kingfisher Airlines pilots based in Delhi have gone on strike and by this evening those in Mumbai plan to join them.  The airline has struggled in recent months and this will throw a wrench in their plans to stay afloat.  Currently, the airline has called in their management pilots, but this will only work for for a few days before those pilots cannot work due to the potential for extra-duty violations.  An airline source said the pilots are calling in sick, with the excuse that the stress from not receiving their salary is the cause of it.

Air India is suffering a similar predicament with their pilots, although for a different reason.  Nearly 300 Air India pilots have gone on strike and none have reported to work by the Thursday morning deadline.  In response the airline has stopped booking all long-haul flights for the time being.  The pilots have been calling in sick and a number of them have been fired.  Management at Air India is trying to determine whether they can suspend the pilots involved temporarily or even permanently.

The above article is a summary.  Please see the source article at Google News.