AirTran Ticket counter at BWI 3minutes ago.
I am currently at BWI waiting for my big AirTran special flight where they will announce what the big news is. I had to wake up at about 12AM PST (which was 3AM local time) to be here right now. I will go to all lengths to report airline news!
Southwest Boeing 737
It has been about a year since all these wonderous bag fees have started. Southwest (which I have called the “new frills airline” a few times already) has resisted any of these fees and keep all their prices pretty straight forward. Now they are saying they feel they have earned more money with having no fees, since customers are choosing Southwest over airlines that do charge fees.
However, other airlines are sticking to their fees with bringing millions more in in revenue. In fact more airlines are increasing and adding new fees.
Alaksa Airlines just announced they will start charging fees and US Airways will charge $5 extra if a passenger doesn’t pre-pay for baggage fees.
Personally, I understand the fees. I mean the airlines are hurting and people are willing to pay for them. However, it has become nearly impossible to do a true cost comparison for tickets, not knowing what your final price will be.
Source: Dallas Morning News Image: MayorGreg
Cabin of an airline -- keep it clean!
I know I have been on certain airlines (I will keep them nameless) where there seems to be a constant dirty feel to them. Seats are stained, garbage in the seatback, and don’t even get me started with the bathrooms…
After United Airlines tied for last place in a JD Power and Associates survey for aircraft interiors they took a second look at their cleaning schedules.
It is not as simple as breaking out the 409 or some other cleaner, since many passengers will have allergies or some chemicals might interact negatively with the plane’s frame (and no one wants that).
Where United would only do deep cleans (shampooing and scrubbing) once every 6 to 18 months (kind of gross thinking of the number of people on the planes), now it is more about 30-days for domestic and about 15 days for international aircraft.
Gulf Air - Alcohol Free?
No, you make not have a drink.
If you are a frequent flyer of Gulf Air and like to have a drink or two on your flight, you might have to resort to going back to biting your nails for a little bit of nerve comfort.
Parliament in Bahrain unanimously voted to ban the serving of alcohol on the Gulf Air flights, since they claim it Islam bans then from serving alcohol.
Although it is sometimes hard to argue with forcing people to do something against their religions, Mona Almoayyed, who is president of Bahraini Businesswomen Society, points out that it might, “start with this and it will end up with restrictions on women.” That,” it is a matter of personal freedom,” and , “it is not a matter of alcohol.”
Of course in this world economy and market for almost all airlines, they can’t really afford to lose much more profit. No matter what happens with this situation, I just hope it doesn’t spread to many other airlines.
We can do silly things to get that internet!
On the ground we live in a world of easy communication. Access to the internet is pretty much everywhere, from Wi-Fi, to phones, to city-wide free wireless access. However, the technology has seemed to take a while to find a foot hold in the sky.
It would seem to make sense. People are willing to pay to use the internet at hotspots on the ground (even at the airports) why hasn’t the technology taken off (heh) in the air?
Connexion by Boeing used to be the beacon of hope. Here was a big name (you probably have heard of Boeing if you are reading this blog) that was to provide internet access to passengers on planes. It went online on May 17, 2004 and only lasted until December 31, 2006. Boeing stated, “the market for this service has not materialized as had been expected.”
Prices varied from $9.95 per hour to $29.95 for unlimited access. Even though this might be a little too pricey for some, it would seem cheap enough to provide enough entertainment, communication, and business productivity for those who are dropping at least a few hundred on a ticket.
So, where is the beacon of hope now? One of the brightest beacons is Row 44. It was also created in 2004 around the same time as Connexion, but unlike Boeing it is still around and with a hopeful future.
Row 44 currently has plans to set up trial runs on Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Unfortunately there was been a little delay due to competition for FCC approval. However they are on track now for testing to start in early 2009. The beauty for those of us in North America, is we might have a chance to use the system (Connexion was not in N. America).
One way or another, I have faith that sometime in the near future we will have seamless internet connection from the ground into the air. Many people have already made it clear they don’t want to be sitting next to someone for a few hours talking on their cell phone (including myself), but I know I would love to be entertained (and gosh maybe even write an airline blog) at 30,000 feet in the air.
Image: Juicyrai