Sleepy? The best, and worst, airports for shut-eye
July 20, 2009 ·
On a shoe-string, stuck or just need some shut-eye? Avoid Paris‘ Charles de Gaulle at all costs, but embrace Singapore’s Changi, according to a survey that rated the world’s 10 worst, and best, airports to sleep in. Dirty floors, filthy, overcrowded bathrooms, bird poo and biting insects were among the biggest complaints of the 6,200 [...]
AMR posts loss, but beat forecasts
July 15, 2009 ·
American Airlines parent AMR Corp (AMR.N) on Wednesday posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss as capacity cuts and new revenue streams helped offset weak travel demand. The No. 2 U.S. carrier was the first major U.S. airline to report its second quarter earnings, and its results easily beat expectations, sending its shares higher. Airlines are struggling [...]
Still traveling for business, but carefully
July 13, 2009 ·
Airfare wars and room-rate promotions are usually aimed at vacationers, but airlines and hotels are resorting to similar tactics to regain their traditional cash cow — the business traveler. Corporate travelers, who pay higher airfares when they sit in the front cabins of planes or book close to the date of travel, are flying coach [...]
New materials taking the `lug’ out of luggage
July 1, 2009 ·
Travelers have no interest in lugging their luggage anymore. They don’t have to, according to experts. A combination of consumer demand, design modifications and innovative materials has allowed manufacturers to switch gears to produce smaller, lighter and ergonomically friendly products, says Alan Krantzler, vice president of Tumi luggage brand’s product management. “The No. 1 trend [...]
Premium travel dropped 22 percent in April
June 16, 2009 ·
More evidence Tuesday that a bad economy pushes passengers to the back of the plane, as a trade group reported that traffic in the high-end airline seats fell 22 percent in April. Revenue from those passengers fell even faster, down an estimated 44 percent from April 2008, the International Air Transport Association reported. The number [...]
Continental CEO says business travelers hold key
June 11, 2009 ·
Continental Airlines Inc. is pressing its corporate customers to step up their travel because business traffic holds the key to recovery in the slumping airline industry, Chief Executive Larry Kellner said Thursday. Business travel slumped several months ago as turbulence rocked the financial industry, and that led to cascading problems for airlines. For starters, business [...]
Southwest CEO says June looking worse than May
June 11, 2009 ·
The chief executive of Southwest Airlines said Thursday that June looks weaker than May, judging by a key measure of revenue, and he doesn’t yet see signs of a turnaround. “It’s a very, very difficult time, and earnings are going to be very stressed until the economy changes,” CEO Gary Kelly said. Kelly said that [...]
