Southwest Airlines to Begin Flights To Newark Liberty
Southwest Airlines Co. said Friday it will boost its New York-area flying next year as part of a deal that also seeks to ease concerns from regulators about the proposed merger of UAL Corp.’s United Airlines and Continental Airlines Inc.
Dallas-based Southwest plans to lease take-off and landing slots at Newark Liberty International Airport from Continental, adding to its existing services in the region from New York LaGuardia and Islip on Long Island.
Southwest would lease slots to operate 18 daily round-trip flights at peak and off-peak times, which analysts said would likely be enough for high-frequency service to three yet-to-be-disclosed destinations. It would start some flights in March 2011, with a full schedule by next June.
Continental and United said in a joint statement that the plan was a fair solution to concerns raised by the Department of Justice about their proposed merger. The airlines have responded to a second request for information from regulators, and had previously said they were confident of closing a deal by year end. The Southwest plan is contingent on sealing a deal by Nov. 30.
Newark is the New York area’s largest hub and a stronghold of Continental, but rivals including Delta Air Lines Inc., AMR Corp.’s American Airlines and JetBlue Airways Corp. are seeking to buttress their presence in the country’s largest travel market.
Southwest has a limited presence at slot-restricted LaGuardia and successfully campaigned to block a planned transfer of slots at the airport involving Delta and US Airways Group Inc. Delta aimed to strengthen its position at LaGuardia while US Airways would have secured more access to Reagan National in Washington, D.C.
For Southwest, an enhanced New York presence fits its strategy of winning more premium business travelers. The country’s largest carrier of domestic passengers is revamping its frequent-flier program to secure more high-paying corporate accounts, as well as providing in-flight wireless service and credit card tie-ins, a key revenue source for the industry.
The airline, like other low-cost carriers, had reeled in growth plans over the past 18 months but continues to add back limited capacity to balance supply with recovering demand. Southwest had previously announced plans to add two new cities next year to expand its network to 71 destinations. It will also decide in December whether to order larger versions of the Boeing 737 that would suit more congested airports like Newark.
Source : WJS
Major Air Crashes on Chinese Record since 1980
The crash of a passenger aircraft in northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province Tuesday ended an unbroken record of civil air safety stretching back almost six years.
The following are major air crashes on the Chinese mainland since 1980:
August 24, 2010: A ERJ-190 jet manufactured by Brazilian aerospace conglomerate Embraer crashes near the runway of Lindu airport, Yichun, Heilongjiang Province at 9:36 p.m., killing 42 people and injuring 54.
November 21, 2004: A Bombardier CRJ200 passenger jet crashes in Baotou City, northern Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, killing all 53 on board and two on the ground.
May 7, 2002: A McDonnell Douglas MD-82 operated by China Northern Airlines crashes off the coast of the northeastern Dalian City, killing all 112 aboard.
June 22, 2000: A Yun-7 passenger aircraft crashes on the outskirts of the central Wuhan City, killing 44 on board and seven on a ship.
February 24, 1999: All 61 people on board are killed when a China Southwest Airlines Tupolev-154-2622 jet crashes en route from Chengdu, capital of the southwestern Sichuan Province, to Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province.
May 8, 1997: A China Southern Airlines Boeing 737-300 crashes on landing at an airport in the southern Shenzhen City, killing 35 of the 74 passegers and crew.
June 6, 1994: A China Northwest Airlines Tupolev-154 crashes in Mingdu Township in northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, killing all 160 people on board.
July 23, 1993: A China Northwest Airlines BAe146 crashes into a pond while taking off from an airport in northwestern Yinchuan City, killing 55 people.
November 24, 1992: A total of 141 people are killed when a Boeing 737 passenger aircraft operated by China Southern Airlines crashes in mountains in Yangshuo County in southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
July 31, 1992: A China General Airlines passenger aircraft crashes off the runway when taking off in Nanjing, killing 107 people and injuring 19.
October 2, 1990: A hijacked Boeing 737 plane belonging to Xiamen Airlines collides with a China Southern Airlines B757 passenger jet at Baiyun Airport in the southern Guangzhou City, killing 82 on the Boeing 737 and 46 on the Boeing 757.
August 15, 1989: A China Eastern Airlines An-24 on a flight from Shanghai to Nanchang crashes during taking-off because of engine failure, killing 34 people.
January 18, 1988: A total of 108 people on board are killed when an IL-14P aircraft operated by China Southwest Airlines crashes near an airport in the southwestern Chongqing city.
January 18, 1985: A CAAC An-24 on a flight from Nanjing to Jinan crashes in Jinan, capital of the eastern Shandong Province, killing 38 people.
December 24, 1982: An IL-18B aircraft on a flight from Changsha to Guangzhou crashes at Baiyun Airport in Guangzhou, killing 25 passengers.
April 26, 1982: A CAAC Trident2E passenger aircraft en route from Guangzhou to Guilin in Guangxi crashes in Gongcheng County, Guangxi, killing all 112 people on board.
Airlines Begin New Wave of Discounted Flights
This week Britain’s major airlines have launched a series of seat sales in a bid to keep Britons travelling, with flights available from as little as 1p, including tax.
Bmibaby (www.bmibaby.com) is offering up to 50 per cent off all of its flights from Birmingham, Manchester and East Midlands. Passengers wishing to take advantage of the offer must book by and travel before October 24. The cheapest fares start from as little as £1, excluding tax. However the offer does not apply for the periods: February 12 to 24, April 2 to 22, April 30 to May 7, May 20 to June 3 and July 16 to September 9.
British Airways (www.ba.com) has launched the second part of its January seat sale with an extra £20 cut from many those routes that have already been discounted. For example, return fares to New York available from £239, including tax.
EasyJet (www.easyjet.co.uk) is offering over 16 million fares being reduced by 25 per cent between March 1 and June 30. Bookings must be made by January 13 for travel between March 1 and June 30.
Flybe (www.flybe.com) has launched a sale where passengers only pay the taxes and charges on selected flights, until January 12.
Flyglobespan (www.flyglobespan.com), the Scottish carrier has reduced many of its fares by 25 per cent for both its domestic and interanational routes. Fares for destinations such as Faro and Palma now start from £29.99 one-way, including taxes. The period of travel for winter flights runs until April 30, 2009, while the summer flights operate from May 1 to October 31, 2009.
Monarch (www.fly-monarch.co.uk) is offering up to £40 off many of its flights, for bookings made before January 13. The low-cost carrier has reduced return fares to places such as Malaga, Barcelona and Alicante to as little as £22 one-way, including tax.
Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) is offering up to a million one-way fares from as little as 1p, including tax. For example, a return flight from Birmingham to Cuneo, Italy cost just 2p. Book before the end of Monday.
Virgin Atlantic (www.virgin-atlantic.com) has offering up to 40 per cent of seats, with return flights to Dubai from £297, including tax, premium economy from £719 return to Nairobi and upper-class from £1099 return. Book before January 27.
47 Passengers Spend Night On Airplane
For passenger Link Christin, Rochester International Airport was an unexpected nine-hour pitstop Friday night — and six of those hours were spent stuck on a plane.
“To make a long story short, we stayed the entire night on the runway in this plane until about 6:30 in the morning,” Christin said.
His Continental Airlines flight, which was operated by ExpressJet Airlines, was supposed to fly from Houston to the Twin Cities, but severe weather forced the small plane to land in Rochester around midnight to refuel.
ExpressJet says the flight crew had reached its maximum work hours in the air, so another flight crew had to be flown into Rochester.
In the meantime, the airline wouldn’t let passengers off the plane because T.S.A. screeners had gone home and passengers legally couldn’t get back on the plane, ExpressJet spokeswoman Kristy Nicholas said Sunday.
Plus, Nicholas says the airport did not have enough personnel to let passengers sleep in the terminal. So 47 passengers and three crew members spent the night on the plane.
“Everybody in the plane was kind-of moving, trying to find positions to sleep in,” Christin said. “There wasn’t any room, the plane was getting warmer.”
Christin says at least two babies were on board and they cried throuhgout the night.
“The smells were getting worse, the bathroom was getting worse,” he says. “The babies had obviously started going to the bathroom.”
After the plane landed in Rochester, Christin says passengers were never offered any food. They received a bag of pretzels before the plane landed in Rochester.
Passengers were finally allowed off the plane around 6:30 a.m., Christin said, after T.S.A. screeners arrived.
“To me, the one thing that’s unacceptable is letting people stay on a little airplane like that for an entire night,” Christin says.
Three hours later, around 9:30 a.m., the passengers left Rochester and flew back to the Twin Cities on that same plane. Christin says the bathroom was out of order during the flight home.
ExpressJet says it tried to charter a bus to transport customers to the Twin Cities, but the airline couldn’t find a bus.
“We do sincerely apologize,” Nicholas says. “It’s not the way we like to have people travel.”
The airline says its priorities were ensuring safety and following federal regulations, but it will investigate to see if anything could’ve been done differently.
Christin thinks the airline should have called the airport manager to see if the terminal could be reopened.
He hopes this incident prompts lawmakers to pass legislation that will prevent airlines from keeping passengers on airplanes for such a long time. Congress is considering such a measure.
Airlines Promotion “Free Seat” : Airasia Offers a Million Free Tickets
Low-cost carrier AirAsia is giving travellers a reason to cheer – the airline is giving away a million free seats starting today.
The booking period for the “Free Seats” promotion begins today until Sunday, for travel between Jan 3 and May 8 next year.
Customers can choose from 130 destinations to 20 countries including India, Thailand, Indonesia, Laos, Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam and China.
The promotion offers various “all-in fares” which are applicable for one-way travel inclusive of airport tax, with certain terms and conditions.
AirAsia’s regional commercial head Kathleen Tan said many enquiries had been made on the airline’s social platform about the promotion.
“This is the best chance for our guests to plan and book their flights for their travel plans next year and take advantage of Kuala Lumpur’s status as a gateway to Asia, Australia and Europe to connect globally,” she said in a statement yesterday.
To complement the free flights, Tan added that AirAsia’s one-stop travel portal was also offering online hotel deals from 70,000 hotels worldwide, tour packages and free tours and transfers to selected destinations via AirAsiaGo at www.airasiago.com.
