Jun 13th, 2011 at 3:30PM:
Outside the travel world, everyone's marveling at the prospect of a Facebook IPO, which could be valued at as much as $100 billion. So, what are we missing while we fawn over Mark Zuckerberg's creation? How about the slow, stodgy, ugly airline industry. Known for a painful user experience and a steady decline of free features, the likes of Delta and American Airlines are outdoing the hottest ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
airline posts
Airline fees are worth more than Facebook
Jun 13th, 2011 at 3:30PM:
Outside the travel world, everyone's marveling at the prospect of a Facebook IPO, which could be valued at as much as $100 billion. So, what are we missing while we fawn over Mark Zuckerberg's creation? How about the slow, stodgy, ugly airline industry. Known for a painful user experience and a steady decline of free features, the likes of Delta and American Airlines are outdoing the hottest ...Airline tarmac delays: the first full year of results is in!
Jun 7th, 2011 at 1:30PM: We're now looking back on a full year of limited tarmac delays. In April 2010, the airline industry seemed like it was begging and pleading with the American public not to accept the insanity that the government was forcing upon them. Mayhem would rule, the industry claimed, as standards for performance would prevent everyone from getting anywhere. It would be ugly ... far uglier than the service ...Iceland volcano cancels flights
May 24th, 2011 at 7:00AM:
Here we go again.
After last year's misery from the Eyjafjallajökull eruption, now another Icelandic volcano, Grimsvötn, is causing a new round of worries.
More than 250 flights have already been canceled as a cloud of volcanic ash blows over Scotland. Most of Ireland, northern Wales, and northern England will see the ash later today.
Several Scottish airports have been ...The weather delay blues
May 15th, 2011 at 8:00AM:
Ahh... travel. It can be such a magnificent, wonderful thing. Exploring other cultures, visiting beautiful destinations, and sampling local cuisines are all magically sublime experiences. But when things don't quite go as planned, it can be an extremely frustrating affair. One that makes us wonder why we ever left home in the first place.
I received a sobering reminder of this little fact ...Virgin Blue rebrands as Virgin Australia; launches sexy new commerical
May 10th, 2011 at 2:30PM:
Our friends at AOL Travel speculated on Virgin Blue's new name last week and the airline's new commercial confirms the decision to dub the airline "Virgin Australia." We're not sure what the flying experience will be like, but, judging by the commercial ... we're thinking that people will fly the airline if only for the modelesque flight attendants. Wowza. ...
Watch out, obnoxious passengers! Kung fu lessons for Hong Kong Airlines cabin crew
Apr 21st, 2011 at 3:00PM: Working as part of an airline cabin crew can be a tough job, just ask Gadling's very own Heather Poole. Passengers get drunk, passengers get rude, sometimes even passengers go on strike. Now the cabin crew of one airline are getting trained to strike back.
Hong Kong Airlines staff are taking kung fu lessons, the Guardian reports. The cabin crew is learning Wing Chun kung fu in order to deal ...America's Meanest Airlines
Apr 10th, 2011 at 4:00PM: 2011's Airline Quality Report came out this month, which means that it's time to distill out the industry leaders in a variety of categories, from on-time departures to lost bags to general happiness among passengers. Reporting on the best of the best is only half as fun as vilifying the worst though, so Yahoo and US News took the liberty of sorting out the worst performers in each category and ...Cockpit Chronicles: Flying with my brother (Part II)
Apr 8th, 2011 at 4:30PM: Continued from Part I
We were both tired after arriving at the airport hotel in LA, so we didn't meet up for dinner, as it was too late anyway. Instead we parted to our separate hotel rooms on the same floor and vowed to meet up at 7 a.m. the next morning.
After picking up breakfast in the airport employee cafeteria downstairs, we proceeded up to the luxurious operations in LA.
The fact ...2011 Airline Quality Ratings - AirTran at number one
Apr 5th, 2011 at 10:00AM: The 2011 Airline Quality Ratings (AQR) were just released, and AirTran topped the list at number one. The Atlanta based air line got top marks in the study that accounts for on time arrivals, mishandled baggage, complaints, and other metrics. The study only includes airlines in the United States and provides interesting statistics about the overall quality of domestic air travel.
The main form ...Cockpit Chronicles: Is it time for pilots to ditch the hat?
Mar 22nd, 2011 at 9:00AM: Call it civil disobedience. Or, for some, it's a way to express displeasure at management. Maybe the hat just doesn't work well with their haircut. Whatever the reason, pilots have been ditching their hats lately at airlines across the country.
Some companies have heard enough complaints that they've changed their policy, making the hat optional for their pilots.
In fact, effective March ...Vegetarian passenger tosses meat at flight attendant
Mar 21st, 2011 at 2:30PM:
One of the simple truths about air travel is that the food is usually somewhere between sub-par and awful. Sure, there are exceptions, but these are unlikely oases in a desert of damp sodium-rich indelicacies. Unless you are posted up in first class on Singapore Air eating pan-seared Chilean bass in bouillabaisse broth with capsicum confit and zucchini pasta or one of their many other haute ...Knocked up abroad: pregnant travel in the first trimester
Mar 16th, 2011 at 11:30AM: For more on pregnant travel, see parts 1 and 2 of Knocked up abroad: pregnancy in a foreign country here and here.
There's no question that having a baby changes you: your body, your lifestyle, even your shoe size. One thing I hoped not to change altogether was traveling, as long as it was reasonably safe and comfortable for me and the baby. From the beginning of my pregnancy in Istanbul, my ...Cockpit Chronicles: Six surreal sights seen by pilots
Mar 11th, 2011 at 12:00PM: I've said it before; the office view from the pointy-end of an airliner is something that can only be matched by an astronaut's view.
But that's not to say we don't get to see a few celestial sights of our own. No, I'm not going to touch on the rumored UFO sightings by pilots, although I promise I'll keep my camera ready, just in case. I'm talking about the stunning sights, both man-made and ...Lufthansa coupon: Take 40EUR off your next flight
Mar 9th, 2011 at 3:00PM: Lufthansa has been issuing a wave of coupon codes geared at American travelers over the last six months, perhaps as a way of driving marketshare straight to their site rather than having users go to an online travel agency. Their most recent coupon is for 40 Euros ($55.64 at time of publication) off of an international flight. The voucher can be redeemed until May 1st and travel must be be before ...Airline ticketing: Before computers, agents used stickers?
Mar 1st, 2011 at 1:00PM: While cleaning out my basement the other day, I ran across something that never fails to make me smile.
A Wien Air Alaska 737 seating chart.
Before computers made their way to the airline world, seat dupes (accidental duplicate seat assignments) were prevented with a sheet of stickers that included every seat on the airplane.
Agents would place these stickers on a passenger's ticket ...Cockpit Chronicles: Airline de-icing
Feb 23rd, 2011 at 9:00AM: Not only does the frosty precipitation add weight to an aircraft, but it also disrupts the flow of air over the wings and tail and can cause an accident if the circumstances are just right. The FAA and NASA have gone through great lengths to teach pilots about the adverse effects that snow and ice can have on an airplane.
But the most important lesson pilots learned from was from the infamous ...The top six gangster style first and business class flights from the US -- without chartering a G6
Feb 20th, 2011 at 2:30PM:
We all like to treat ourselves once in a while, whether its with luxury fur coats, $300 gastrogasm dinners at Noma or Momofuku or the Presidential Suite at the DC Mandarin Oriental. For the brass over at Gadling Labs, we like to fly in international First or Business class. And there are a few, very special routes that rank among our favorites ever taken. Curious? Ever taken one yourself? ...Five business travel challenges for small companies to overcome
Feb 17th, 2011 at 11:00AM: Regardless of economic conditions, owning and running a small business isn't easy. It's always tough to find clients, allocate your funds effectively and maximize your bang for the buck. And, business travel is a big part of this. When you go out on the road, you know you're committing some serious cash to the endeavor, and you want to make sure you get as much value out of it as possible.
Part ...Five ways to join the mile-high club: it's not all in the lav!
Feb 14th, 2011 at 9:00AM: Let's face it: airline lavatories are not the sexiest places. They are small, cramped and smelly – like the rest of the plane, strangely. They are unpleasant places, but they do afford the only privacy you're going to find. So, it's a usual favorite for daring couples looking to join the prestigious "mile-high club." Yes, that club. For those of you not in the know, mile-high club membership ...Mixed Bag: Six stats about airline performance in 2010
Feb 11th, 2011 at 9:00AM: Last year was a good one for the airline industry in the United States. In addition to posting record profits, carriers also showed some improvement in other areas, such as on-time arrivals. The latest data from the U.S. Department of Transportation shows a slight improvement in getting from Point A to Point B on time, edging from 79.5 percent in 2009 to 79.8 percent in 2010.
December was a ...
