Travel Update-Weekly Edition

January 17th, 2008

Airline News

Alitalia - Beginning June 1, Italian carrier Alitalia will add nonstop service between Los Angeles and Rome. Through Oct. 24, the airline will fly five weekly round-trip flights. The service will not operate Tuesdays and Fridays. Alitalia will use Boeing 777 aircraft on the route.

Alaska Airlines - Alaska Airlines said it's increasing the number of flights from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to Los Angeles and is also "upgrading" service to several other California cities beginning in late April. Alaska said it will begin flying 15 flights between Seattle and L.A. on April 27, three more than previously. Alaska will also offer seven daily round trips to San Francisco from Seattle scheduled nearly every two hours on the hour or half-hour, as well as more "memorable flight times" to Orange County, San Jose, San Diego and Oakland. To increase the Sea-Tac to California frequency, Alaska recently announced it will cut service from Oakland to Orange County on April 26 and also eliminate its Seattle to Reno flight. Alaska's sister airline, Horizon Air, will continue to fly from Seattle to Reno.

American Airlines - American Airlines has announced it will begin new service between its Dallas/Fort Worth hub (DFW) and San Salvador, El Salvador (SAL), beginning April 7. American will fly the route four times a week with its 148-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft, which feature 16 seats in First Class and 132 seats in the Coach cabin. Southbound flights from DFW to San Salvador will operate on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Northbound flights will operate from San Salvador to DFW on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.

Midwest Airlines - Midwest Airlines has announced that it will transition the operation of all Midwest Connect flights from Skyway Airlines to SkyWest Airlines as part of its agreement with the St. George, Utah-based carrier to operate 50-seat Canadair regional jets for Midwest Connect. SkyWest will continue to serve regional markets now served by Skyway, using the 50-seat aircraft to fly routes currently served by 32-seat aircraft. As flight operations transition to SkyWest in March and April, Skyway Airlines will discontinue providing regional flight operations for Midwest Airlines. Skyway Airlines will continue in an airport services role -- providing Ramp and Dining Services operations for Midwest Airlines and Midwest Connect, and Customer Service operations in Midwest Connect field stations. Over time, Skyway's business will be expanded to offer these types of services to other airlines.

Northwest Airlines - Northwest Airlines today announced that it will begin daily nonstop service between its Detroit WorldGateway and Monterrey, Mexico on May 2, 2008. The airline also recently announced that it will offer three daily roundtrip flights between its Memphis hub and Savannah, Ga. starting April 8, 2008. The new Detroit-Monterrey service will be operated by Northwest Airlink partner Compass Airlines using 76-seat Embraer 175 aircraft. Beginning May 2, flight 1801 will depart Detroit at 9:10 a.m. and arrive at Monterrey at 12:00 p.m. local time. Flight 1800 will depart Monterrey at 1:00 p.m. and arrive at Detroit at 5:50 p.m. Northwest Airlines is expanding its roundtrip Memphis-Savannah service by offering three daily roundtrip flights beginning April 8, 2008. The new service will be operated by Northwest Airlink partner Pinnacle Airlines, using Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ) aircraft, which seats 50 passengers.

Airport/Destination News

Indianapolis International Airport - After weeks of debate, Indianapolis International has finally settled on its smoking policy. Smoking will be allowed temporarily in five designated areas of the airport. In mid-2007, the airport devised a rule — which went into effect Jan. 1 — to prohibit travelers and employees from smoking anywhere on airport grounds. But after complaints from travelers and airline tenants, which didn't want their employees straying far for cigarette breaks, the airport has decided to ease into its no-smoking-anywhere policy by letting people smoke in the designated areas until June 30. After that, the airport will revert to its policy of banning smoking anywhere on its property except inside privately owned vehicles.

Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport - Overnight parkers at Phoenix Sky Harbor terminal garages will now pay $25 a day, up from $20. With the price increase, the airport hopes to free up close-in space for short-term parkers, who will will pay $3 an hour while dropping off or picking up passengers. Travelers who think $25 is too steep can park in the airport's economy lots, where spots cost $8 a day for uncovered parking or $10 a day for covered parking.

Washington D.C. - Washington, D.C., area travelers will soon be able to speed more quickly through airport security if they are willing to pay a fee, provide personal information to the government and allow their fingerprints and eyes to be scanned at checkpoints. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which operates Reagan National and Dulles International airports, awarded a contract to a company that operates the Registered Traveler security program. The initiative should start in the spring, according to Verified Pass of New York. Participation cost is $128 per year.

Hotel News

Hyatt Hotels - Hyatt has expanded online check-in, previously available only to Gold Passport loyalty members, to all guests and introduced a check-out counterpart. Dubbed "Web-In" and "Web-Out," the amenity is available to all guests at more than 100 North American properties. Guests can check in through a link on Hyatt's homepage on the day of their arrival, then pick up room keys from hotel-lobby kiosks. Checking out is done through e-mail. On the morning of their scheduled departure, guests will receive an e-mail to review their account with an option to proceed with check-out. Upon completion of check-out, guests are e-mailed a copy of their folio. Later this year, guests will be able to pre-select the guest room of their choice online, or at check-in kiosks, through enhancements to the "Web-In" feature.

Miscellaneous

State Dept Travel Warnings and Public announcements - For the full announcements or further detail on Travel Warnings and Public Announcements, please see http://travel.state.gov/travel

Philippines - On January 15, the U.S. Embassy in Manila, the Philippine capital, issued a statement on behalf of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA statement downgraded Philippine airline operations and heightened scrutiny of operations due to their inadequate safety standards. This decision placed the Philippines at a Category 2 rating, aligning it with other countries such as Bangladesh, the Ivory Coast, Ghana and Indonesia. Philippine airlines are still allowed to fly to the U.S.; however, the level of FAA surveillance would be much higher. Currently, Philippine Airlines is the only Filipino air carrier flying in the U.S. The FAA stated that it has serious concerns regarding a number of oversights with Philippine air operations, going so far as to say they are not in compliance with the International Civil Aviation Organization safety standards. The Filipino Congress recently passed a law to create a national Civil Aviation Authority; however, President Gloria Arroyo has yet to sign it. A Category 2 rating means that, "a country lacks laws or regulations necessary to support certification and oversight of air carriers in accordance with minimum international standards."

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Previous Updates

January 10, 2008
January 3, 2008
December 27, 2007
December 20, 2007
December 13, 2007
December 5, 2007
November 29, 2007
November 21, 2007
November 15, 2007
November 8, 2007
November 1, 2007
October 25, 2007
October 18, 2007
October 11, 2007
October 4, 2007
September 27, 2007
September 20, 2007
September 13, 2007
September 6, 2007
August 30, 2007
August 23, 2007
August 16, 2007
August 9, 2007
August 2, 2007
July 26, 2007
July 20, 2007
July 12, 2007

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