Archive for the ‘Airline News’ Category

Thanks to TICKET reader JK for sharing an image of his very special new Diamond Medallion bag tags sent to him by Delta this month. (If you’ve got a better image, please send it along to us and we’ll get it posted here!)

Diamond Medallion status is Delta’s new super-elite tier. Members must earn at least 125,000 MQMs with Delta to get  one of these cards. With it comes free membership to Delta’s Sky Clubs, 125% mileage bonuses, confirmed day-of-travel upgrades, and baggage fee waivers. Apparently Delta bag handlers have been told to look for these super special Diamond tags and get them off the plane and to baggage claim first.

But for some the BEST part about having a DIAMOND medallion tag is to have it dangle from your bag in the overhead bin to the awe of other, more lowly metallic medallions. “Brag tags” is the current lingo for this phenomenon.

While JK is pleased with his new Diamond status, he says that he preferred the more discreet look of his black platinum medallion credentials from ‘08. (see below) What to you think?

P.S.: Mar 3: Delta emailed us to add: “Actually, our employees have been (and continue to be) trained to watch for bags checked with our yellow priority bag flag that is affixed to their baggage claim tag at the time of check-in. This is a SkyTeam benefit (described here) and something that we have put a renewed focus on since January 2010. It is really starting to be noticed by our most frequent travelers.”

Can anyone out there send us an image of a yellow priority bag flag? We’ll post it here!

Do you think about recycling when you toss your Coke can or newspaper into the garbage bag at the end of a flight?

Delta ranked numero uno when it comes to airline recycling efforts according to the recent “What Goes Up Must Come Down: The Sorry State Of Recycling in the Airline Industry” report by Green America Today.  (Here’s a PDF of the the full report on recycling in the aviation industry.)

Here are some highlights from the report. (Too bad the report misspelled Delta’s name. It’s Delta Air Lines, folks. Never “Delta Airlines.” C’mon!)

Read the rest of this entry »

DELTA’S NYC STRATEGY IN JEOPARDY? Delta has stated repeatedly that it’s “playing to win“  and dominate the air travel market in metro New York. A key part of that plan was a complex gate swap with US Airways at La Guardia, which would have allowed Delta to expand into the US Airways terminal there. However, that plan has recently fallen afoul of regulators. In addition, Delta has made no announcements about what it plans to do with its unpopular 60’s-era terminal at JFK. Until Delta can offer world-class (or just competitive) facilities at these airports, it’s unlikely it will be dominating NYC’s richly competitive market any time soon. Thoughts? Please leave your comments below!

2009 ON-TIME PERFORMANCE: GOOD AND BAD. Good first: Overall airline on-time performance in the U.S. improved dramatically in 2009, showing the best results since 2003, with 80 percent of flights arriving on-time. But it seems like TICKET readers might have been getting to their destinations on time, but when they turned around to come back to Atlanta, there were some problems. Now the bad news: ATL ranked 29th out of 31 major airports for on-time performance for full year 2009. That’s pretty bad. Among airlines, both Delta and AirTran ranked in the bottom half of the pack. AirTran ranked 17th of 19 carriers for the year with 76 percent of flights on time. Delta ranked 12th with an average 79 percent of flights on time. Our take: ATL is one of the few airports that has actually enjoyed a net INCREASE in the number of flights it handles recently, so congestion is still a big issue. Airports that have lost flights are enjoying congestion relief and more on-time flying.

MORE AVOD ON DELTA. Delta recently announced that it would complete the addition of audio-video on demand (AVOD) entertainment systems to each seat in coach cabins on its B747 and B767ER aircraft— which means personal start-and-stop entertainment on all wide-body aircraft between now and 2013. Also, Delta says that it will have in-flight Wi-Fi on nearly 530 aircraft by this summer.

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MORE FIRST CLASS ON DELTA REGIONALS. One of the biggest problems with the growth of regional jet usage for frequent flyers has been the inability to upgrade on the mostly all-coach “barbie jets” flown by partners such as ASA, Comair and SkyWest.  To help fix that, Delta says it will add first class seats on an additional 66 CRJ-700 regional jets over the next three years, for an eventual total of 219 CRJ’s with big seats up front.

BAGGAGE FEES RISE AGAIN. Delta and other carriers raised fees for non-Medallion travelers to $25 for the first checked bag and $35 for the second checked bag. That’s an extra $120 round trip for those who check two bags. AirTran’s fees remain at $15 for the first bag and $25 for the second (an extra $80 for two round trip).

AIRTRAN GETTING CREATIVE. As airlines search for new revenue streams anywhere they can get them, AirTran is a recent standout. We’ve written in the past about its new in-flight, seat back ads. More recently, it’s been eagerly wrapping its planes in new skins that promote its sports marketing partnerships. Now, it’s teamed up with none other than Little Debbie in a promotion. Isn’t that sweet…. visit www.littledebbie.com for promotion details.

NEW FLIGHTS AirTran has resumed flights between ATL and Gulfport/Biloxi and will add new flights between ATL and Tunica, Miss. on May 6^th. (Gamblers will be pleased to note that AirTran is offering a special fare of $49 each way if you book by Mar 31.)

SAVANNAH POST-SCRIPT: Folks in Savannah who raised their voices to the powers-that-be at Delta have finally won! In a previous post, I wrote about how Delta’s ATL-SAV advance purchase fares soared to nearly $500 after AirTran abandoned the market last year. After several public volleys in the local newspaper, Delta has instituted a new $278 round trip advance purchase fare in the market, which seems to have cooled the rhetoric.

REASON FOR MORE AIRLINE FEES? It’s TAXES, silly! One of the main reasons airlines are slapping fees on nearly everything, but generally leaving fares alone, is taxes. It seems that airline revenue from luggage fees, food sales, headsets, standby changes, mileage purchases, airport lounge passes and anything else that is not a mandatory part of the purchase is not subject to the 7.5% tax on the price of airline tickets.

WIN TWO FREE ROUND TRIP BUSINESS CLASS TICKET FROM AIRTRAN! Details in a post below or right here! Get social and win a free trip! Here’s how to do it.

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

SkyTeam Premium Check in Area, London Heathrow, Term 4. Photo: SkyTeam Alliance

DELTA DIGS AT LONDON HEATHROW. Delta and its SkyTeam partners have completed their move into the recently renovated Terminal 4 at London Heathrow. I was there late last summer during construction, which was a mess, but this Flickr photostream from SkyTeam shows a really nice, fresh new look to the place…Especially the SkyTeam lounge. (BA used to house most of its operations here, but has moved over to its spiffy, spectacular new digs at Terminal 5.) In a related note, Delta says that ALL its flights to/from London Heathrow now have lie-flat business elite seats.

WORTH REPEATING: SINGAPORE-DELTA NO MORE. We mentioned this in a previous post, but it bears repeating: Delta and Singapore Air will dissolve their frequent flyer partnership on May 15. After that program members will not be able to earn or redeem miles in each other’s programs. However, if you BOOK your trip by May 15, you can still travel on Singapore Air using your Delta miles through May 15, 2011.

Wanna hear what I’m saying on Twitter? Follow me! http://twitter.com/cjmcginnis

LESS BIZ CLASS INTRA-EUROPE. Have you ever flown short-haul business class in Europe? Most of the time, business class simply means you get to sit in a 3-abreast coach seat near the front of the plane with the middle seat empty and get better food. Seemed like a high price to pay for a minimal service differential. Well, it seems the recession is taking care of that. Recently, British Airways said that the market for short haul business class in Europe has declined precipitously as companies cut back on premium class travel. The carrier is looking at cutting out the service altogether at all airports except Heathrow, according to the Times of London.

TICKET READER TRIP REPORT: DELTA JFK-LHR-ATL. In the past two weeks I flew Delta from JFK to Heathrow, and then back from LHR to ATL, both of the flights in economy. Going over was mostly sleep, so it didn’t make much of an impact on me. But coming back I have to say that it was the best international flight I’ve ever experienced. It started out as usual at boarding, walking through the new lie flat seats, jealous that I didn’t get an upgrade. But it turned out there were only about 50 of us in economy, meaning I got my own three seats in the middle section, so I was able to spread everything out. Then came meal service (it was fine), and the announcement that all beer and wine was free throughout the flight. We were fed snacks three more times, and drinks throughout. I had a 120-volt electrical outlet at my seat, and an on-demand TV with about 40 first-run movies to choose from. I worked, watched three movies, slept a little, but never found myself saying, “Oh man, three more hours!” Instead, I was almost sorry when we were about to land. I’m sorry there weren’t more people on the flight (obviously a negative for Delta), but I have to commend them for making international travel more than just a bearable experience. Other than a larger TV and a lie-flat seat, I’m not sure what could have improved things “up front”. Thanks Delta–don’t backtrack! –G.M., Atlanta

photo: Churl/Flickr Creative Commons

Please Talk Up The TICKET!

How would you like a free round trip BUSINESS CLASS ticket anywhere AirTran Airways flies? (Cancun? San Francisco? Denver? San Juan? LA?)

Would you like it even more if a friend or colleague won one, too? (Depending on destination, a business class ticket could be worth well over $1000!)

Here’s what we’ve got going on:

AirTran has generously donated FOUR roundtrip business class tickets to The TICKET for our new subscriber campaign. (see AirTran route map here)

We are going to give these tickets away to four lucky TICKET readers in a contest using word-of-mouth and social media to help increase the number of TICKET readers.

Here’s all you need to do to be entered into the contest:

Via email:

>Between now and March 30, send an email to a list of at least FIVE of your friends or colleagues and encourage them to sign up for The TICKET.

>When they sign up for THE TICKET, there will be a field on the sign-up page asking for the name or e-mail of the person who referred them. They MUST enter your name or email in this field for you to be entered to win. (See below for a suggested e-mail you can use to cut and paste into your email.)

this is a sample view of the sign up page for The TICKET. Please see box in upper right margin to sign up!

Via Social Media:

>Using Twitter or Facebook, suggest The TICKET via a tweet or a wall posting. Again, the new subscriber MUST enter your name or email address in the “Who referred you” field for you to be entered to win.   (See below for suggested tweet)

The more of your friends that sign up, the more likely you are to win.

At the end of March, The TICKET will hold a drawing. TWO current subscribers will win a free round trip business class ticket on AirTran as will TWO of their friends or colleagues who signed up. (Note: free tickets do NOT have to be used together. Winners will be contacted via the email provided on sign up page. Winners will be announced on the blog. )

Suggested email:

Dear ____________:

Have you ever heard about The TICKET? It’s a free online travel blog that I subscribe to. It’s full of helpful news and advice for frequent travelers that I read every month. I think it’s definitely something you could use, and get this: If I can convince you to sign up, we’ll both be eligible to win a free round trip business class ticket ANYWHERE AirTran flies. (see AirTran route map here)

So please check out The TICKET at the URL below by MARCH 30.  If you like it, SIGN UP (See “Subscribe” in the upper right margin of the blog) and BE SURE to include my name or email address as the person who referred you.

IMPORTANT: On the sign up page, please be sure to enter my email address where it asks: “Name or Email of who REFERRED you.” That’s the only way we can both win the tickets.

Here’s where to go: http://www.theticket-atlanta.com

Suggested Twitter Tweet or Facebook Wall posting:

Subscribe to The Ticket travel blog, use my name/email as reference, and we could both win free biz class tix http://bit.ly/8FO9vE

Delta announced this week that it will spend $1 billion over the next three years to improve the experience for premium class flyers. First on the agenda: get more lie-flat business class seats on international flights.

That’s a noble goal, but unfortunately the international business class product is not going to be consistent across the fleet. Right now there are FOUR different types of business elite seats on Delta’s international fleet. When the overhaul is completed (Delta says 2013), it will still have three different types of lie-flat seats, and possibly four.

Here’s a rundown:

First are the old school “cradle” style recliners that have been around for the last decade and are being phased out (but beware, there are still a lot of them out there). Our take: Please get rid of them, and fast! (By 2013, the cradles should only be on Delta’s transcons between New York and California.)

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Second, are the “angled” lie-flat seats on the 747’s and A330’s that Delta inherited from Northwest. Our take: Due to slippage, the angled lie-flat seat is not as comfortable as the truly lie-flat seat found on competitors or Delta’s 767’s and 777’s. Delta’s not saying what type of lie-flat seat it will install on it’s 747’s—so there could be a new seat in the mix by 2013.

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Third are the squarish lie-flat seats that Delta has begun installing on its fleet of 767’s. Currently, all flights into and out of London Heathrow sport these seats. On the 767, the new seats are 4 across, with one along each window side, and two in the middle, so everyone gets an aisle seat. Our take: While these seats are a distinct improvement over the old cradles, several readers have complained that they are narrow, confining and uncomfortable.

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Fourth are the lie-flat seats arranged in a “herringbone” pattern on Delta’s 777-LR’s. Our take: This is one of the best lie-flat seats in the sky. TICKET readers have sent us positive reviews and we really liked what we saw at the National Business Travel Association meeting last summer. Currently, if you are flying from Atlanta, you’ll only find these seats on flights to Dubai, Johannesburg, and Sydney (via LAX). Our hope is that Delta goes with this type of seat for it’s 16 747’s, but for now Delta’s mum on that subject.

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

Since the attempted bombing of Delta/Northwest flight 253 over Detroit on Christmas Day, airport security has been turned on its head (once again).

While we expect changes, here’s what you need to know right now:

1>Most increased security is on inbound-to-U.S flights. As far as we can tell, the only changes you may notice for domestic U.S. flying are more frequent pat-downs at airport security and the possibility of a random screening of your carry-on bags at the gate. (If you were traveling post 9/11 you may remember this procedure where a handful of passengers, usually those near the front of the boarding line, were chosen “randomly” to have the contents of their carry-ons displayed to everyone boarding the plane…)

2>Canadian authorities have  lifted the onerous complete ban on carry-on luggage (except for personal items like purses or laptops) for flights departing Canada for the U.S. Updates here. British Airways tells The TICKET that travelers inbound to the U.S. from the U.K. are currently restricted to a SINGLE carry on that must conform to normal size standards (one bag only…which means you need to put your purse or briefcase INSIDE your carry on suitcase)

3>When returning from another country to the U.S., you will go through at least TWO security checks: First, when checking in for your flight at the airline counter, you will face possible frisking, baggage inspection and questioning BY THE AIRLINE. Second, local authorities at airport security checkpoints will screen you as you make your way to the departure gate. There is also the possibility of random checks at the departure gate.

4>REMEMBER: We are entering the “dead weeks” or the SLOWEST travel period of the year, so don’t expect ongoing huge delays or long lines. Despite media reports, you should not expect chaos at the airport. As a matter of fact, you could probably roll a bowling ball through airport concourses this week and not hit anyone!

5>Expect to see more frequent use of the full-body scanners at the 19 U.S. airports where they are in operation.  More international airports are said to be fast- tracking installation of these devices. Check out the 6 month stock price chart below that shows the jump of OSI Systems, which owns Rapiscan, the manufacturer of such devices.

6>Restrictions on on-board activities (such as getting out of your seat or using electronics during the last hour of the flight) that were mandated last week are now left up to cabin crew—and from what we’ve heard, are essentially no longer in effect. In his speech yesterday, President Obama did not announce any new rules or procedures that will affect travelers.

Bottom line: Terrorist incidents, like airplane crashes, happen. No matter how hard we try to prevent them, they are going to happen. No airplane is 100% safe. No airport is 100% secure. We should do our best to be vigilant, but not make long term decisions based on reactive fear.

DID YOU FIND THIS POST HELPFUL? If so, please forward this link to your frequent traveling friends and colleagues and urge them to sign up for THE TICKET. Copy and paste this link into your email:

www.theticket-atlanta.com

THANKS!

Traveling this week or next? NOTE! PLEASE leave comments below based on your experiences at airport security over the next few weeks! By doing so, you will help The TICKET and fellow frequent travelers know EXACTLY what to expect. THANKS!

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

SO LONG DC-9s. One of the scariest things about Delta’s merger with Northwest is that it inherited a fleet of nearly 60 ancient Northwest DC-9s, (average age, according to Delta’s own web site it 36.2 years!) At a recent investors conference, Delta president Ed Bastian that that Delta would start phasing out those creaky old DC-9’s over the next year. (Delta retired its original fleet of DC-9’s back in 1993.)

DELTA WI-FI UPDATE: According to the latest from Delta, it’s got Wi-Fi on 325 planes now: ALL MD88 and MD90 aircraft. It’s on 116 of 180 B-757’s. And you can log-on on 66 of its 80 B737’s. It’s still a toss up on all other aircraft.

PAY UP OR LOSE MILES. Starting this month, if you pay your Delta SkyMiles credit card late, you will forfeit your bonus SkyMiles and must pay a $29 fee to recover them. (American Express has long applied this rule to its standard issue cards earning Membership Rewards points, and is now applying it to its co-brand cards.)

UNITED ORDERS NEW PLANES. While they won’t be touching down at an airport near you until at least 2016, United recently announced that it’s placed orders for 50 new wide-body aircraft. It split the order 50/50 between the Boeing 787 “Dreamliner” and the Airbus A350. Both are about the size of current Boeing 767 or 777 aircraft and will eventually replace them.

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

NOT SO DREAMY. We’ve got an issue with the whole “Dreamliner” name… and get irritated when we see reporters get all wistful and dreamy-eyed thinking that everyone’s going to get a massage and a flat bed for sleeping (and dreaming) on every flight. Sorry folks—the plane is a dream to the airline, because it purportedly uses about 20% less fuel. But it’s not so dreamy for passengers sitting in coach– it’s just another twin-aisle, wide-body plane…okay, with bigger windows, but still….

BEST ON TIME PERFORMANCE IN THREE YEARS. Yep, it’s true. Flightstats.com reports that US airlines achieved their best on-time performance in three years in November delivering just over 87% of their flights to the gate within 15 minutes of schedule. This compares with 77.4% in October and 85.53% in September and 82.1% in November ‘08.According to the DOT, United was on time 91% of the time this past November, its best performance since the government starting tracking it in 1987. How did this happen? It’s all about the money according to gadling.com. Since last winter, United has offered all employees a $100 bonus each month the airline tops the DOT on-time ranking. They get $65 for second place.

FLOWN LOW COST LATELY? Did you know that just 10 years ago, 90% of all air travel in the U.S. was on so-called “legacy carriers” like United, Continental, Delta, etc. Only 10% was on low cost carriers such as Southwest, AirTran or JetBlue. Well, what a difference a decade makes. Legacy dominance has declined to just 74% of the market this year…low-cost carriers have 26% of the market and low-cost giant Southwest owns 64% of that market.

Delta’s now offering a schwanky new transcon Business Elite service for flights between New York and the West Coast. Fares run in the $1000 to $3000 range. Service is top notch. Too bad Delta does not offer this from ATL! (The reason they offer it from NYC is because they must compete with similar upgraded offerings from United and American.)

Anyway, the TICKET recently went along for a test ride— here’s our 2.5 min video review. Enjoy! Take a look and let us know what you think. LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS BELOW!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khIytDRus58

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

Having been inundated with emails from readers about some harebrained story about 11 “Muslim-looking” people boarding an AirTran flight in Houston, we reached out to our friend Tad Hutcheson, VP of marketing for AirTran, and he confirmed that the viral email  is a hoax.

The story appeared in a blog on the web site for Project 9.12, a group started by Fox News commentator Glenn Beck, and the fake story was picked up and distributed by the media and blogs, and of course, viral e-mailers.

Here’s the lead into the post refuting the story on AirTran’s internal site:

“After conducting additional research into this situation, we have verified, according to flight manifests (legally binding documents) that the individual that allegedly created a first-hand account of events on-board AirTran Airways flight 297, a Theodore Petruna, was never actually on-board the flight.”

Here’s the full post from AirTran:

http://www.insideairtran.com/?p=2200

Here’s the most recent story in the AJC about it:

http://www.ajc.com/business/airtran-hero-wasn-t-226517.html

SEAT BACK ADS ON AIRTRAN. This month, AirTran will add seatback advertising on all its 138 jets. The ads will run in a clear plastic 2.5”x9” panel affixed to the underside of each tray table (visible only when the tray is upright). Don’t think for a minute that the seatback is going to be the only place you’ll see onboard advertising in the future— soon the inside of the airplane (of any airline) could look like the inside of a MARTA train— ads could appear on overhead bins, wall panels, bulkhead walls, and even in lavatories according to illustrations on the website of the Atlanta-based company producing the ads.

NO CASH ONBOARD DELTA MAINLINE JETS. Following in the footsteps of archrival AirTran, Delta has eliminated the unwieldy task of accepting cash (and making change) for onboard purchases. Flight attendants will use wireless handheld devices to ring up bills for food, booze or other items. While it might be slightly inconvenient to a few folks, we think that this is a very smart move that helps streamline serving and relieves overtaxed flight crews with the hassle of making change. And who doesn’t travel without a charge card these days anyway? Important note: As of now, this only applies to Delta mainline jets and NOT on flights operated by regional Delta connection partners, which still accept only cash. And you can still use either cash or credit on Delta international flights.

GOT QUESTIONS ABOUT SKYMILES MEDALLION CHANGES FOR 2010? Delta’s got answers. It recently posted a very helpful FAQ page on the SkyMiles website covering new benefits such as Rollover Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs), the new Diamond Medallion status, new “select benefits” for Platinums and Diamonds, no award ticketing fees for Gold, Platinum and Diamond members.

GOOD COFFEE ON THE ROAD. Tired of the brown water? AirTran just added a new canned premium coffee to its inflight drink menu: illy issimo Latte Macchiato. It’s free for business class passengers and $4 for those in coach. Speaking of coffee: Starbuck’s has made the world a better place by introducing a new line of instant coffee called VIA Ready Brew. (It’s packed in handy travel size packs about the size of a pack of sugar.) The taste test at my neighborhood Starbucks convinced me to change my ways. So now, whether I’m on a plane or at a roadside diner, I just order a cup of hot water, add a pack of VIA and voila – real coffee!

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

AIRTRAN: BUH BYE LOW COUNTRY. AirTran’s flights between ATL and Charleston end this week (Dec 3). This comes on the heels of AirTran’s vamoose from Savannah, leaving flights to/from entire low country region in the hands of Delta, so expect fares to rise. AirTran still flies between ATL and Jacksonville, so fares on that route should remain in check.

MORE CINCY SHRINKAGE. Delta is still downsizing at Cincinnati—announcing that in February, it will terminate flights to five cities: Des Moines, Oklahoma City, Providence, Tri-Cities and Montreal.

DELTA TO USE AIRBUS A330 ON ATL-EUROPE/JAPAN FLIGHTS. Delta is swapping out its 767’s for Northwest A330’s on several international routes out of ATL starting next spring and summer. Routes affected: ATL-London Gatwick, ATL-Paris CDG, ATL-Rome, ATL-Tokyo.

ANOTHER ROUTE TO HAWAII. Delta is set to launch new flights between San Diego and Honolulu using a B757 starting next June. (Good news for those hoping to redeem miles for those hard-to-find award seats on Hawaii-bound flights!) Downside: Delta is switching out service between Salt Lake City and Maui in March but simultaneously adding a second daily LAX-Maui flight.

Can we ask a favor? Will you please forward this email to 5-10 of your friends and colleagues and encourage them to sign up for The TICKET? Word-of-mouth is the best way to grow The TICKET and we need your help. If you like what you are reading, please share it…and forward it. THANKS! To read the current issue of THE TICKET newsletter for frequent travelers, see http://www.theticket-atlanta.com

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

By now most travelers have heard about Twitter, a social networking tool now used by millions. While you may think that Twitter is only something used by high schoolers staying in touch with each other, you may want to think again.

Journalists and bloggers, especially those who write about travel, have glommed onto the service like crazy to help keep track of the ever-changing travel beat. (You can follow TICKET editor Chris McGinnis here: http://twitter.com/cjmcginnis) See also the “t” icon at the upper right margin of this blog…

Travel companies are experimenting with ways to feed the media with helpful news and info. And they are also experimenting with ways to offer up some good deals to the “twitterati” or regular users of twitter. A recent effort to track and post last minute airfare bargains by airfare search sites fly.com and farecompare.com should appeal to ATL-based bargain hunters.

>From Fly.com (fewer deals posted, but easy to understand and book) http://twitter.com/atlfares

>From FareCompare.com (does a good job monitoring overall prices, but gets a bit too granular for the average bargain hunter) http://twitter.com/flyfromATL

The answer?….well, it depends who you talk to.

The Dallas Morning News’ always excellent aviation blog offers up a lengthy explanation of the Northwest Airlines flight that overshot Minneapolis last month based on an AP story citing flight transcripts as well as an email from a friend of one of the pilots. (This posted on Friday, Nov 27)

In a nutshell, it sounds like the pilots are saying that the overshot was due to a miscommunication between pilot and co-pilot. They say that one pilot left the cockpit for a break and during that time, the pilot flying the plane switched radio frequencies. When the pilot returned to the cockpit, the flying pilot neglected to tell him about the frequency change. Then they got into a discussion about Delta’s new flight bidding process. One pilot fired up his laptop to show the other how to bid for certain flights, and all of a sudden, they realized they were past Minneapolis. Oh, and there was a 100 mph tail wind which got them to Minneapolis earlier than expected.

I’m not a pilot, so it’s not my place to comment, but I think it is interesting to read the comments from other pilots on this blog post….sounds to me like most of them are still skeptical of this story.

In any case, for now the pilots have had their licenses revoked by the FAA, so they won’t be in the cockpit of any plane you’ll be flying any time soon…if ever…

Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!

airtran.com | delta.com |  Hotwire

I almost called this post “Business Class Exotica.” Here’s a sampling of nine different business class seats from nine different airlines from around the world. Which one do you think looks cushiest? I’m leaning toward Virgin Atlantic and Jet Airways.

You’ll also see those big recliners from: American, Delta, Korean Air, Japan Airlines, Qatar Airways, V Australia and QANTAS.

I taped this at the recent National Business Travel Association trade show in San Diego where corporate travel buyers mix and mingle with travel suppliers showing off their wares….like these business class seats. Enjoy!

Business Class Exotica