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U.S. Airlines Expect Fewer Passengers This Summer - Azumano Travel @ 1:18 pm PDT
The Air Transport Association (ATA), which represents the 13 biggest U.S. passenger carriers, forecast 211.5 million passengers will fly on U.S. carriers June 1 through Aug. 31, a nearly 1.3% drop from last summer, according to USA TODAY.
Passenger traffic on flights within the USA will be down almost 2%, while the number of passengers on international flights will be up slightly, the ATA predicted. The forecast is based largely on summer flight schedules and trends in fares and passenger traffic.
ATA officials blame the trend this year on the U.S. economic slowdown as well as higher ticket prices that airlines are charging to try to recoup record fuel costs. Fuel is an airline's single-biggest expense, and the price of jet fuel has jumped 63% since last May.
Delta Closing A Number of Airport VIP Lounges - Azumano Travel @ 10:26 am PDT
Delta Air Lines is in the process of closing a number of its airport VIP lounges in the U.S. and Britain, according to USA TODAY. Citing the need to manage costs due to hefty fuel prices, Delta said the locations slated for closure by the end of May are at airports serving Boston, Cincinnati, Kansas City, Seattle, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Phoenix, Denver, Honolulu and London. Most of those airports had multiple Crown Room Clubs and will retain at least one location.
In a further streamlining move, the nation's third-largest carrier also said it would convert its BusinessElite lounges at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport into Crown Room Clubs.
New Program To Speed Travelers Through Customs - Azumano Travel @ 2:51 pm PDT
Starting Monday, air travelers can sign up to speed through Customs checkpoints at select U.S. airports when they return from trips abroad, according to USA TODAY. A government program called Global Entry will enable U.S. citizens and permanent residents to avoid the long lines that often greet them when they get off airplanes arriving from international destinations.
People who pass a background check and pay $100 to enroll will enter a separate Customs line at certain airports. They will swipe their passport at a kiosk instead of having it read by a Customs officer and electronically answer questions similar to those on a Customs declaration form. If no problems arise, they will be cleared through Customs.
The program will start operating June 10 at three airports — Washington Dulles, Houston Intercontinental and New York's Kennedy. Customs and Border Protection expects it will expand to 17 other major U.S. airports, program director John Wagner says. There is no timeline for expansion.
Wagner says Global Entry is aimed at people who take at least four international trips a year. Applicants will be barred if they have a criminal conviction, a penalty related to customs or immigration issues or are on a government watch list of people linked to terrorism, Wagner says. Applications can be submitted online at http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/
BWI Starts Using Whole-Body Scanner - Azumano Travel @ 9:15 am PDT
The Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) new system of "whole-body imaging" went into service at Baltimore/Washington International Airport (BWI)last week, according to a report by CNN’s Jim Spellman.
The scanner uses technology called "millimeter wave" which reportedly reveals each passenger in all of his or her glory. It may be small consolation that one’s face is blurred out, and that staff watching the monitors are located in a different room from where the passenger undergoes the scanning. The TSA offers further assurances that computers are not connected to the internet, and images are deleted as soon as officers determine the traveler is not a threat.
Delta-Northwest Merger Faces Challenges, Opportunities - Azumano Travel @ 11:47 am PDT
Delta Air Lines will start voting today on a contract that would give management more flexibility to complete a merger with Northwest Airlines. According to the Air Transport Association, the pilots would get pay raises and an equity stake under the contract. Meanwhile, BusinessWeek.com canvassed market analysts, branding experts, and innovation consultants to assess the potential headaches—and opportunities—the new company will face the day after its historic merger closes (assuming it's approved). By all accounts, a combined Delta-Northwest would probably be in for a turbulent flight. The industry at large is in crisis, a situation only likely to get more difficult. Since last December, six airlines have ceased operating or announced the cessation of operations, while bankruptcies and staffing cutbacks have forced carriers to shed some 7,000 jobs since the beginning of 2008. If Delta-Northwest eventually takes off, it will most certainly be in bad weather, so say the experts.
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