Strike enters 4th day; Air India to operate 39 flights

Air India on Saturday further reduced its operations to 39 domestic flights out of its regular 320 as the strike by its pilots entered the fourth day inconveniencing passengers. “We have curtailed more than 52 per cent of our domestic flights and operating on only trunk routes that is too metro cities,” an AI spokesperson said.

“Under the contingency plan, we have reduced the number of flights as we do not have any pilots,” he said. While 21 flights will be operated from the national capital, Air India’s Mumbai operations have almost come to a standstill as the airline may operate just five flights between 9 and 11 30 am, an AI spokeswoman said in Mumbai. The national carrier did not undertake any operations from Mumbai before 9 am.

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Air India strike update April 28

Air India’s scheduled normal operations, on a daily basis, includes 320 flights. In view of the experience yesterday, the Operations Department drew a contingency schedule for 28th April 2011 wherein operations were reduced by 18% - which amounts to a total of 45 flights. Accordingly, the number of flights as per its contingency schedule will be 45 flights less than normal. Till 1200 hrs, the contingency plan has worked as scheduled and Air India has operated 58 flights. The number of flights cancelled since 0001 hrs today is 16.

Meanwhile Air India has strengthened its Call Centre operations with a view to keep its passengers informed and to ensure that minimum inconvenience is caused to them. The numbers of ‘floor walkers’ have also been increased at major airports to assist the passengers being accommodated on other airlines or in revalidation / refund of tickets, as desired by the passengers.

Southwest plane skids off runway

A Southwest Airlines plane slid off a runway Tuesday during heavy rain at Chicago Midway International Airport. Southwest Flight 1919 had just landed in route from Denver when the Boeing 737-700 ran off the runway, the airline said in a statement. There were no immediate reports of injuries, it said.

The report is the latest in a series of embarrassing incidents for Southwest Airlines, which came under scrutiny earlier this month when a ruptured fuselage ripped a hole in one of its B-737s at 34,000 feet and then again when reports surfaced that one of its planes came within 176 yards of a small aircraft. The National Transportation Safety Board said in a statement it was investigating Tuesday's incident. There were 134 passengers and five crew members on board at the time of the incident, the NTSB said.

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JetBlue to add fast-track security option

JetBlue plans to add a "fast-track" security option that will give top-fare customers access to elite security lanes at airports where such an option exists. To lure more travelers to buy the airline's "Even More Legroom" seats, JetBlue said Thursday it will offer a fast-track security option for those who buy the roomier seats. That benefit, which will let passengers jump to the front of the security line at certain airports, will begin in a few months. Other airlines including American and United Continental offer similar incentives for first and business class passengers and some coach passengers who pay extra. JetBlue doesn't have first or business class.

Southwest, the largest low-cost carrier in the U.S., also offer a similar options. Customers who by its most-expensive "Business Select" fares get access to priority security lanes at airports where they exist.As for JetBlue, its move comes as it -- like other airlines -- tries to increase the amount of revenue it extracts from each of its passengers. Such "ancillary" fees can add as much as $20 or more to the amount an airline collects from passengers above the fares they paid to board the flight.

Flybe reports passenger increase on sun routes

Flybe, Europe’s leading regional airline and the UK’s Number One Domestic carrier, gives a snapshot on the travel trends emerging within the UK as a result of the Easter break.

Family friendly destinations key for British holidaymakers

Flybe’s seven routes into Paris Charles de Gaulle are particularly busy with passenger numbers up by 19% over Easter 2010, with travellers using them for convenient access to Disneyland Paris and the rest of the world through Flybe’s codeshare with Air France.

Sun routes soaring

Across its extensive network, Flybe’s sun routes, including its service between Exeter and Alicante, are up by 9% over the Easter period last year. In particular, Flybe’s passenger numbers to regional France have also been boosted 72%, enhanced by new routes to Nantes from London Gatwick and Manchester.

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TAM reports domestic demand grows 25% in March

Brazilian National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) disclosed today the operational data for the month of March 2011.

Domestic market
In the domestic market, which includes Pantanal’s data, we achieved a demand growth (in RPK) of 25.2%, combined with an increase of 14.6% in the supply (in ASKs), compared with March 2010, which led to an increase in the load factor of 5.8 p.p. to 68.7%. Our market share in the domestic market was 41.8%. In March we had high concentration of leisure passengers mainly due to the carnival holiday that, this year, happened in March, which led to an increase in load factor and a consequent mid single digit reduction in yield, since those passengers buy their tickets in advance and use reward tickets from the loyalty program.

International market
In the international market, compared to the same month last year, we saw a rise of 26.7% in demand with a 12.1% increase in supply resulting in an increase of 9.3 p.p. in load factor reaching 80.3%. Our market share among Brazilian carriers in March was 86.1%. In the international market, the demand of passengers traveling between Brazil and abroad remained strong. The international yield in dollars remained stable compared with the previous month.

JetBlue to ease booking flights to Europe, Cape Cod

JetBlue will make it easier for customers trying to book flights on some of its partner airlines to Europe, Asia, and South America and places in the Northeast, like Cape Cod. The New York carrier, the largest at Logan, says that its website will now offer connections to flights run by American Airlines, Aer Lingus and Cape Air.

In the past couple of years, JetBlue has cut agreements with various airlines to offer customers the convenience of arranging for connecting flights to destinations the airline doesn't serve. For instance a pact with American lets JetBlue customers connect to American flights to Europe, Asia and South America; one with Aer Lingus gives travelers access through Boston or New York's JFK to Ireland; and a third with Cape Air links passengers to Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, Provincetown and Hyannis, Mass.