Airlines
Feds enact all-inclusive airfare advertising laws
Denis Lebel, minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, has announced that all-inclusive airfare advertising is now mandated under amendments to the Air Transportation Regulations. This will ensure consumers can clearly see the total price of an airline ticket, with no hidden fees. "We are protecting Canadian air travellers by helping them see, clearly and up front, the full cost of air tickets, so they can make informed travel choices,"said Lebel. "In addition to benefiting consumers by ensuring transparent advertising, these regulations will promote fair competition between all...
Etihad acquires majority stake in topbonus program
Etihad Airways has announced the purchase of a majority stake in a new entity incorporated to own airberlin's topbonus frequent flyer program, the first step in the establishment of a global loyalty management platform. The new entity will seek to offer new opportunities for topbonus members to collect and redeem topbonus miles around the world, including the ability to use PointsPay to convert miles into cash payments at more than 30 million outlets worldwide. Etihad has taken a 70% holding in the new company, with airberlin taking the remaining 30%. The total transaction value is...
Record-breaking five new aircraft join Emirates fleet
The current Emirates fleet will expand by five aircraft this month as the carrier adds three new A380s and two new Boeing 777s. Maintaining its edge as one of the world's fastest growing airlines, one A380 and one Boeing 777 joined the network in the first weekend of December and the remaining three will join throughout the month. The new additions mark the arrival of Emirates 118th and 119th Boeing aircraft and its 28th to 31st A380s. Ever growing, the list of cities Emirates' serves expands with two new destinations this month as well - Lyon, France and Phuket, Thailand. In addition,...
Finnair adding service to Hanoi
Finnair will begin flying to Hanoi in Vietnam in summer 2013, continuing the airline's strategic focus on traffic between Asia and Europe. Subject to regulatory approvals, Finnair will become the only European airline to offer a direct connection from Europe to the capital of Vietnam. Starting on June 14, Finnair will begin service to Hanoi from its hub in Helsinki with three frequencies per week. From Helsinki, Finnair offers connections to more than 60 European destinations. The Hanoi route will be operated during the summer schedule season, which lasts until Oct 27. Finnair is represented...
Austrian expands red|cab service
Austrian red|cab, a personal service designed to transport Austrian Airlines passengers from their homes or hotels to the airport and back, will soon not just be offering the red|cab service in Vienna, but also in more than 30 other of its destinations, including Dubai, New York, Bangkok, Paris, Moscow and many others. Austrian passengers need to order the transfer service online, up to two days before their departure. The cost of the red|cab service varies, depending on the flight destination....
NDC: IATA’s new vision of distribution
Finance, safety, security, taxes, regulation and more were on the agenda during IATA's global media day in Geneva, Switzerland. Yet the focus of attention was on the airline industry association's New Distribution Capability (NDC) plan. In his opening remarks at the event, IATA's director general and CEO, Tony Tyler observed, "In October we reviewed our Simplifying the Business (StB) program. In the beginning StB was focused on improving service and cutting costs. With that we delivered e-ticketing, bar-coded boarding passes and self-service kiosks. Those enabled a wave of Self-Service...
Report charts a changing landscape
IATA has released a new study that identifies some of the major trends that are transforming the travel distribution landscaped. "The Future of Airline Distribution -- A Look Ahead to 2017" was commissioned by IATA and written by Henry H. Harteveldt, co-founder of Atmosphere Research Group. The study reports that: !!! Travel is the largest e-commerce category, led by airline ticket sales. In the US, it's estimated that business and leisure travellers will spend $85.7 billion online for airline in 2012. !!! The typical travel shopper visits 22 web sites in "multiple shopping sessions" before...
Heathrow Terminal 2 new home of Star Alliance
Star Alliance has given the thumbs up to yesterday's announcement by Heathrow Airport to designate Terminal 2 as the new home for its member carriers serving one of the world's most important international airports. "We are delighted by [the] decision, which gives the green light for creating a new travel experience for our customers and allows our members airlines to operate an efficient hub in London,"said Mark Schwab, CEO Star Alliance. "After many years of intensive planning for a world leading alliance terminal together with Colin Matthew's team at Heathrow, we can now shift into...