Air Travel/Airlines

All about airlines, airports, flying in general. How to navigate them, get the best airfares, maximize your experience in a sector that hasn't exactly been a joy in recent years...come fly with us!

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Ceneri I most recently flew just last week, and by the time I reached the airport — at 8:05 am, meaning I had to get up around four, thank you very much — I was already exhausted, and my flight wasn’t even delayed yet, which felt suspicious. At check-in, a cheerful sign announced: “ALL BAGS MUST WEIGH LESS THAN A SENSE OF OPTIMISM.” I wasn’t sure what that meant, but the desk agent sighed, slapped a sticker on my bag, and whispered, “Good luck out there.” read post

Started by José Balido

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5 (sometimes surprising) ways flying affects your body

Gus Ruballo You land. Your throat feels like sandpaper. Your head is heavy. Your eyes sting. You've been sitting still for eight hours… so why does your body feel like it just ran a marathon? Most travelers accept this as the price of flying. But there's nothing inevitable about it. These symptoms have specific, well-documented causes — and understanding them is the first step to actually doing something about them. Here are five things flying is doing to your body right now. Some I´ll bet…

Started by Tripatini

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Travel Budgeting: How to Budget for Your Trip

Traveling doesn’t have to be expensive, stressful, or unpredictable. With the right planning, you can enjoy your dream destination while staying comfortably within your budget. In this comprehensive guide, you’ll learn how to create a smart travel budget, estimate your costs correctly, save money, and make the most of deals on flights, hotels, car rentals, and last-minute flight bookings.Whether you're planning an international adventure or a weekend getaway, mastering travel budgeting allows…

Started by Liam Adamson

1 Reply · Reply by Mark Wood Sep 25

Getting the best possible airfare deals from the USA with Google Flights

If you’ve ever gone down the rabbit hole of searching for flights, you know how overwhelming it can get. Prices jump around, deals disappear, and it’s easy to spend hours refreshing tabs. That’s where Google Flights comes in—it’s one of the most powerful (and free) tools for finding cheap airfares. Here are a few strategies travelers swear by: read post

Started by Tripatini

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Northeast News October 7, 2010 at 5:04am

David, the airline cannot appear to be joking about safety.
David Lawrence October 7, 2010 at 12:27am

The crew on Cebu Pacific that performed a Lady Gaga safety dance is getting flamed by both management and the union. Fair or unfair?
Ed Wetschler October 3, 2010 at 6:37pm

Great explanations of an all-too-hazy situation; thank you both. Meanwhile, if I go to amazon.com to buy one of Charlie Leocha's ski guides, they tell me exactly what I'm paying before I complete the transaction. That sounds about right to me.
Charlie Leocha October 3, 2010 at 6:33pm

They know the day is coming. Ironically, the airlines are the ones who own ATPCO, the system that distributes airfares to the GDSs and that has been modified and tested to handle fees as well. If airlines want to have thousands of fees, fine. But they have to let consumers know how much these fees will cost.

Also, the airlines are not getting a tax break. Passengers are. The tax everyone is talking about is the transportation excise tax -- it is paid by consumers and only consumers.
Anil October 3, 2010 at 5:46pm

Ed: What Orbitz/ITA show is /11,User fees,airport taxes. However the farebasis - for example TKXSL94 for JFK-AMS-JFK, has a fare prices associated with it plus fees & taxes. Everyone wants the breakdown of this piece TKXSL94.

This fare has 21 pages of rules and restriction, but no where does it mention handling fees, baggage charges, beverage charges, reservation charges etc. Since the airlines do not pay taxes on baggage fees and reservations fees, they will be loath to disclose the exact breakdown.
Charlie Leocha October 3, 2010 at 5:22pm

The online sites are revealing taxes and government fees. They can not tell customers the baggage, reservation, and other fees, because the airlines will not release the fees to them. Hard to believe, but true.
Ed Wetschler October 3, 2010 at 5:18pm

Charlie, I haven't booked through Orbitz in several years. As I recall, they were revealing fees anyway, but are they doing so now? Put another way, which sites/airlines that are showing and adding up all the fees at present?
Charlie Leocha October 3, 2010 at 5:07pm

Ed,
We actually ended up with more than 61,000 signatures by the end of the day.
It was a great success. Thanks to the members of this list who passed on the information.
My prediction: Definitely all fees will be spelled out on airline sites in one place. But I think DOT will mandate that the airlines file fees at the same time they file airfares in a manner useable by the GDSs. That will change the way we buy airline tickets.
Ed Wetschler October 3, 2010 at 4:40pm

50,000 Fliers Petition Congress to Spell Out Fees

from AP: "A group of travel executives said it has stirred up plenty of support for a [U.S.] government rule that would require airlines to display extra fees prominently on their websites and in travel reservation systems.

"The Consumer Travel Alliance, Business Travel Coalition and American Society of Travel Agents on Thursday delivered a petition to the Transportation Department with 50,000 signatures from consumers who want airlines to spell out fees more clearly."

Any long-range predictions?
Anil October 2, 2010 at 4:48pm

"Alright, but will it affect prices?"

It is bound to happen. One has to look at route pairs where the two airline were dominant, and see if there is any change ?