Economy Class & Beyond

Hong Kong E-Channel… Darn useful

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PREFACE/CORRECTION: Some of this article (including a couple of images and a list of airlines) is based on the post from Australian Business Traveller at http://www.ausbt.com.au/fast-track-for-frequent-flyers-at-hong-kong-airport. Other bits of the post came from the Hong Kong Government Web Site and Wikipidea. Whilst some of this post came from my actual experience with … [Read more...]

Walsh vs Branson. No £1 million. How about a Kick in the Groin instead?

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Oh dear. The children are out in force today. Yesterday, Richard Branson wanted to bet Willie Walsh £1 million that the Virgin Atlantic brand would be around in 5 years time. Willie Walsh responded he'd prefer a knee in the groin. Well, the children get their wish, with Richard Branson accepting the bet of a Knee in the Groin. In a blog post, Richard Branson … [Read more...]

Holiday Inn £20.12 UK sale now on

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For those who like the ICHG rooms on the cheap, ICHG is throwing away hotel rooms at £20.12 a pop. The full list is at: http://www.priorityclub.com/hotels/us/en/global/offers/celebrate_2012/hotels, with a mixture of Holiday Inns, a few Crowne Plaza's and a singular Hotel Ingido. Booking is at http://www.priorityclub.com/hotels/us/en/global/offers/celebrate_2012 and is … [Read more...]

Reminder: BMI to BA Status Match and other BMI to BA bits

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A little - but important reminder for those of you who are BMI Gold/Silver and have yet to match to British Airways Executive Club. Time is now running out with the status match closing on the 31st December 2012, and if you haven't matched over yet - now is the time to do it. It does take a little while to do - so the sooner you do it, the sooner the status is in your … [Read more...]

Ryanair to add 2% surcharge for credit cards – ontop of the £6 admin fee

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Once again, the Ryanair comedians of the air are it again. All bookings made a credit card and flying with Ryanair after the 30th November will be subject to a 2% total surcharge on top of the £6 Administration fee that you are required to pay to book a ticket . This fee is per person. In addition, the £6 booking fee was avoidable by paying with a Ryanair Cash … [Read more...]

SAS steps away from the brink – for now…

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It seems that the final union that was holding out - the Danish Flight Attendants Union - has agreed to the savings plan which requires job cuts, longer hours and changes in operations to allow SAS to get extra funding. SAS have a long way to go even after they've secured extra money from creditors, with the sale of lots of bits of SAS: Aircraft … [Read more...]

Remembrance Day/Remembrance Sunday

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I’ll take a moment to stop yattering about airports, airplanes, odd seating configurations, points, and  all the normal stuff that I talk about about – to talk about something a bit more important today – Remembrance Day. If it was not for those people who have given their lives in conflicts around the world, it would simply be not possible to travel … [Read more...]

The last day: British Midland International

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For those of us who watch the skies, the sight of the White and Blue whale will soon disappear from the sky on bigger birds as British Midland Internationals Operating Certificate expires today. BMI Airbus A320 at London Heathrow A short potted history: The Early Years bmi began life in 1938 as Air Schools Ltd, specialising in RAF pilot training In 1949, … [Read more...]

So you *really* want to know what happens on a 747 D Check?

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Earlier this year, the BBC ran a great documentary on how British Airways performed a D Check on one of its Boeing 747 aircraft - -  G-CIVX - as it is sent for a full strip-down, test, repairs and rebuild of the plane. Alas - the documentary was restricted to BBC iPlayer and has long since expired off the catchup TV service. Thankfully, the power of Youtube is here to the … [Read more...]

What’s in…. the Hyatt Platinum Pack?

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I'm sure a lot of us took advantage of the MilePoint Premium upgrade - if for one thing: Hyatt Platinum status. Whilst I notch up a good number a nights in Hyatt properties over a year, I tend to either 1) Miss the number of nights and 2) Miss the night stay credit (no thanks to the Hyatt O'Hare sadly who seem to mess up my nights and stay postings every time recently) So … [Read more...]