Airlines
Malev shuts down, oneworld offers help
Late last week, Malev Hungarian Airlines shut down all of its services. At that time, the carrier issued a statement advising that: "According to the government regulation which entered into force on Jan. 31, 2012, assistance can be provided to those passengers who purchased their valid tickets before Malev ceased and whose travel dates are on the suspension day or on the following three calendar days. In addition, to those who already travelled to their destination on the suspension day or before and possess valid return tickets on Malev flights on a date not later than Feb. 29. Those who...
AC reports January numbers
Air Canada has reported a record load factor of 79.1% for January 2012, compared to 78% for January 2011 -- an increase of 1.1%. AC notes that system traffic increased 3.3% on a system-wide capacity increase of 1.9%. Air Canada reports traffic results on a system-wide basis, including regional airlines from which Air Canada purchases capacity. Calin Rovinescu, president and CEO of Air Canada, said: "I am pleased to report a record load factor of 79.1% for the month of January. Air Canada generated greater traffic in all markets with system wide growth of 3.3% on a capacity increase of 1.9%...
CX advises of res system upgrade
Cathay Pacific Airways is advising that it will be changing over to a new passenger reservations system during the weekend of Feb. 11 and Feb. 12, 2012. During the transition the carrier indicated that it will be necessary to temporarily suspend certain customer facing technology. This includes Cathay Pacific's web site -- www.cathaypacific.com -- and its mobile sites. The carrier's North America Reservations Centre will also be closed on Sat., Feb. 11 February, resuming its operations from 6 am PST on Mon., Feb. 13. Agents should not, however, that Cathay Pacific's flight schedule over the...
Emirates appoints new western sales manager
Emirates Airlines has announced the appointment of Savio Pires to the position of sales manager for Western Canada. In his new role, Pires will be responsible for Emirates' sales operations in Western Canada and for facilitating local partnerships and initiatives. Pires is the airline's first sales manager in Western Canada and has a background of experience in the airline, cruise, tour and online consumer travel industries. His appointment comes shortly after the airline announced an interline agreement with WestJet, and before the launch of a new daily service from Seattle, starting March...
Malev Airlines shuts down
The Hungarian flag carrier ceased operations today (Feb. 3) after 66 years of virtually continuous operations. In a statement on its web site, Malev said that its board of directors made the decision to shut down in order to minimize its losses. The carrier advised passengers to call +36-1-802-11-11 or e-mail [email protected]...
Lufthansa, Austrian resume Tripoli flights
Both Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines have resumed their flights to Tripoli. Lufthansa began its service on Feb. 2 and Austrian will recommence its operations to Tripoli on March 25, 2012. The Libyan capital will be served by Lufthansa three times a week from Frankfurt. When it resumes its service, Austrian will operate to Tripoli five times a week from Vienna. Go to http://www.lufthansa.com or visit http://www.austrian.com for additional...
3 Events, 1 Objective — MORE MONEY!
Kind of like a math problem, isn't it? So what's the answer, well it's pretty simple. Register for the Hotel Association of Canada (HAC) conference, the Canadian Tourism Marketing Summit (CTMS) and Online Revealed Canada (ORC) event -- which take place March 5, 6 & 7 at the Sheraton Centre Toronto -- before Feb. 6, 2012 (that's Monday -- so be quick, quick, quick) and you can save some money. Choose your conference, choose your breakout sessions and you're good to go. Need more information? Well if you're into tourism marketing, check out the Canadian Tourism Marketing Summit which in one of...
Air France warns of possible strike action
Following a call for strike action from Feb. 6-9 by several unions in the airline sector, Air France is doing all it can to limit the impact of this strike on its operations and to inform its customers in advance. In a statement, Air France said it "apologizes to its passengers for the disruption and inconvenience that this strike may cause, which will affect the whole French air transport industry."In case of cancellations, delays or postponed flights, Air France will directly inform its customers of the disruption affecting their flight by telephone, text message or e-mail. In order to be...