Economy Class & Beyond

UK Weather Warning Issued: Snow inbound

by

The blanket of snow which has been covering Europe is heading for the UK with some speed with the following warnings in effect from the Met Office: Outbreaks of sleet and snow will spread from the west on Saturday morning. Accumulations of 2 to 5cm are likely, mainly on ground above 150m, with perhaps 10cm on roads above 300m. Snow will turn increasingly to rain on lower … [Read more...]

Malev falls and halts operations

by

Well the inevtiatable has happened, and Malev has stopped operating due to liquidity issues. In other words, they haven't got the cash to continue. As of 05:00 GMT (06:00CET), all Malev flights have been grounded. The press release from Malev.com is below “Unfortunately, the event occurred which we had a greatest fear of and we wanted to avoid with might and main. … [Read more...]

Air Berlin confirms its ascent into OneWorld on 20th March 2012

by

Air Berlin has formally announced its date of ascent into the OneWorld alliance, and it's the 20th March 2012 according to the PR at http://www.airberlin.com/site/pressnews_dr.php?ID=3613&LANG=eng. After the 20th March, they will be a full members and NIKI will be joining OneWorld as an affiliate member. Already codesharing with some members of the alliance, joining … [Read more...]

BMI Baby saved? Possibly…

by

It seems that fortune is smiling on BMI Baby with the announcement that someone is actually interested in buying the little airline. The low cost carrier operating a fleeting Classic Boeing 737-300's and 737-500's, has been sold to a new potential owner who has not disclosed who they are. Financial terms have not been disclosed either. However, the talks are … [Read more...]

The UK Civil Aviation Authority does something useful… a constantly updated list of fees…

by

Now here is something useful from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (The CAA). A list of how airlines will get you. But more importantly, they will be keeping the list up to date. The list covered covers many of the major UK based airlines in a comparison table. It covers  the cost of taking hold luggage on board, having an in-flight meal and reserving specific seats is all … [Read more...]

ANA has Teething troubles with Long Haul 787 services…

by

All Nippon Airlines seems to have some growing pains with it's introductory long haul 787 service, with 2 of the 10 flights operating between Tokyo-Haneda and Frankfurt so far. Whilst ANA has five 787's so far, only one of them is equipped for long haul duties (JA805A),  with a failure with the aircraft flap system on the ground at Toyko-Haneda with one incident, and … [Read more...]

United Economy Plus on all ex Continental Boeing 757-200’s.

by

Good news if you're trapped in a long pencil plane that's going over the pond or going trans-continental. United Airlines have confirmed they have rolled out Economy Plus seating on all it's ex Continental Boeing 757-200's. For those new to United, Economy Plus gives you more legroom in the Economy cabin with varying degrees of space - from a derisory 3" extra on a 747 to … [Read more...]

Malev in more trouble

by

It appears that the Hungarian carrier Malev appears to be in a precarious state, with Hungary taking steps to restructure the company - by passing a decree to protect the Malev from bankruptcy proceedings. Malev - one of the bigger occupiers of Budapest International Airport - was ordered to repay the state aid lent to it by order of the European Commission. The decree … [Read more...]

Cebu Pacific to start long haul operation

by

It seems yet another low cost Asian carrier is going to have a go at trying to launch a Long Haul Low Cost Carrier. Cebu Pacific (most recently famous for their in-air safety demo to Lady GaGa's "Let's Dance") is to launch a service, operating up to eight Airbus A330-300's. They plan to operate to low-cost services to Australia, the Middle East, parts of Europe and the … [Read more...]

Rob Fyfe of Air New Zealand to go…

by

News from New Zealand and Air New Zealand with Rob Fyfe resigning from the carrier - to leave at the end of the year. Rob Fyfe joined the airline in 2005, and has done his best to keep the airline afloat in troubling times. He is resigning from Air New Zealand to allow the airline's s "talented and capable" executives the room to realise their full potential  according to … [Read more...]