Kevincm, Author at Economy Class & Beyond

Lufthansa opens a tender for new aircraft – 100 narrowbodies, 8 Widebodies…

19/02/2013 by Kevincm

... and it doesn't take a genius to work out both Boeing and Airbus will be in the picture for the order Lufthansa's supervisory board has given clearance for negotiations to begin with the aircraft manufactures for the 100 narrow-body aircraft (single isle) and 8 wide-body (twin isle) aircraft. Which way Lufthansa goes will be an interesting question - In terms of fleet … [Read more...]

British Airways to follow KLM – Charges for Hold Luggage on Gatwick Shorthaul Routes

19/02/2013 by Kevincm

Following on the heels of KLM, British Airways has launched "Hand Baggage Only Fares" Initially you'll be able to buy these fares on the following routes from today for travel from the 26th February: Amsterdam Dubrovnik Jersey Tunis Turin How do these fare stack up? I've done some screen grabs: London Gatwick to Amsterdam London Gatwick to Jersey … [Read more...]

Iberia strike continues

19/02/2013 by Kevincm

Well day 1 of the Iberia strike has passed, and we're now into day 2 of it. Firstly, today's listed cancellations are at here (from Iberia.com). Meanwhile protests by striking workers have been met with riot police at Madrid, adding extra chaos to the situation by blocking access roads to the airport. Iberia is faced with high costs, and is trying to cut them via the … [Read more...]

Accor Hotels offer double cashback via Quidco

18/02/2013 by Kevincm

For those of us who use Quidco*** for cashback purposes and for booking hotels, they have a good offer with Accor Hotels*** than can really slash the cost of hotel stays (especially if you're a member of Le Club which then gets you the lovely points). The magic numbers you're looking for are: 3% for Etap Hotel, HotelF1 and Formule 1 * 3% for Ibis Budget 7.5% for … [Read more...]

Iberia Strike: Commenced

18/02/2013 by Kevincm

If you're planning to fly Iberia over the next 5 days (18th to 22nd February), be aware that proposed strike by union members support Iberia staff has gone into effect. The updated lists from Iberia.com show the following cancellations: List of Iberia flights cancelled on February 18 List of Iberia flights cancelled on February 19 List of Iberia flights … [Read more...]

Airplane Art – United Express Dash-8 Q200

17/02/2013 by Kevincm

It's Sunday again, so it must be time for some more airplane art. This week, in the winter sun is a United Express Bombardier Dash-8 Q200 taking off from Newark International Airport The image is clickable if you want to see a larger version – and yes you can keep them for your desktops! More airplane art next week! … [Read more...]

Safety Video Saturday – United 747-400 – NEW VERSION.

16/02/2013 by Kevincm

It's time to stow your tray tables, put your seat in the upright position and fasten your safety belt as we go to this week's safety video. I spotted this on Matthews blog at Live and Let's fly... and thought this deserved a viewing here as... well - GhettoIFE seems to be the home of safety videos it seems ;) This week, it's United Airlines who have redone their safety … [Read more...]

Airbus to abandon Li-Ion Batteries for the A350

15/02/2013 by Kevincm

The fallout continues from the Boeing 787 battery incident, with the other major aviation player Airbus deciding to abandon the use of Lithium Ion batteries about its new A350, whilst going back to nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cad) batteries as a "risk reduction strategy" according to Flight This will apply to the production aircraft - however MSN1 (the first Airbus A350), as well as … [Read more...]

Iberia is planning a 39% service cut during the first wave of strike action

14/02/2013 by Kevincm

Well the numbers are now coming in and it's not going to be fun if you're planning to fly on Iberia during the upcoming strike - with 39% of all services cut The strike is due to take place from 18th February to 22nd February for four days, with 415 of the possible 1062 flights pulled. The break down looks a bit like this: 206 domestic sectors 190 medium-haul … [Read more...]

Aer Arran to operate more Aer Lingus services

14/02/2013 by Kevincm

If you're wondering why I'm not writing about the AA/US Merger, it's been well covered with a lot of different angles. I'll have my commentary on it as the merger/takeover/reverse takeover continues. Moving onto matters a bit closer to Ireland and the United Kingdom is the news that Aer Arran is reciving a new fleet of ATR 72-600's beginning in May, with major changes to … [Read more...]