Continental will set you free

Here we are in the US, deep into winter and some good news on that front. If you get stuck on a plane because of weather, make sure its on a Continental flight. COO Jeff Smisek said people on stalled airplanes can deplane: "Finally, we are implementing a new internal policy for 2009, whereby we will give customers the opportunity to get off an airplane during tarmac delays in excess of three hours, subject of course to making sure we can do that safely."

Now there are those that say this is in reaction to pending legislation - Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., one of the sponsors, the proposed legislation would require:

"Airlines to offer passengers the option of safely deplaning once they have sat on the ground for three hours after the plane door has closed. This option would be provided every three hours the plane continues to sit on the ground.

"Airlines to provide passengers with food, potable water, comfortable cabin temperature and ventilation and adequate restrooms while a plane is delayed on the ground.

Department of Transportation (DOT) to create a consumer complaint hotline so that passengers can alert the agency about delays.

"Airports and airlines to develop contingency plans for delayed flights to be reviewed and approved by DOT. The bill also allows the DOT to fine air carriers and airports that do not submit or fail to comply with contingency plans."

No surprise, Kate Hanni also has a finger in this - Kate Hanni, FlyersRights.org president, said she was pleased to hear of Continental's new policy: "We applaud Continental for saying they will allow passengers off of planes after 3 hours on the tarmac. We hope they will stipulate to these rights in their contract of carriage and that the language is enforceable by the passenger."

But there's more - New Consumer Rights Group Focuses on Air Travel; Association for Airline Passenger Rights Aims to Improve Industry

WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 28, 2009) - Domestic airline passengers today took a giant step toward improving the airline industry in the United States. The Association for Airline Passenger Rights (AAPR) flew onto the national stage aiming to change the nature of domestic air travel by improving customer service and pursuing a federal "Passenger Bill of Rights" in the United States Congress. AAPR is a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt, nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote fairer customer service and accessibility standards in the airline industry and to improve passenger satisfaction.

"Air travelers in the United States are completely fed-up with almost every aspect of the airline industry today," summarized Brandon M. Macsata, Executive Director of the Association for Airline Passenger Rights.

"Passengers are tired of all the new surcharges; they are tired of sitting on the tarmac for hours without any explanation; they are tired of the canceled flights; and they are tired of the poor customer service."

Macsata further stated: "Only federal legislation, or an Airline Passenger Bill of Rights, can resolve these consumerrelated issues. Only the Association for Airline Passenger Rights can help make this remedy a reality."

Macsata is managing partner of the Macsata-Kornegay Group, which describes itself as a "national governmental and public affairs consulting firm specializing in grassroots campaigns and political fundraising." The firm announced Jan. 16 that it had been retained by this new group, the AAPR, to "manage and market" it.

Macsata is also CEO of the ADAP Advocacy Association, a group involved in the AIDS Drug Assistance Programs.

To visit the group's Web site, go to Flyfriendlyskies.com. The two-year-old Coalition for an Airline Passengers' Bill of Rights, which recently changed its name to FlyersRights.org, doesn't appear to have any connection to this new group.

Clearly this push for consumer rights is gathering momentum, with the Obama folks much more consumer friendly than the previous crowd.

In other news --

• WTO bad news for travel demand
• Spirit mimics Ryanair
• EU LCCS see drop off in traffic
• Iberia has loss, shares rise - go figure

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Another manned plane replaced by a UAV

After four years of testing and development, Israel is replacing manned maritime aircraft with UAVs. Currently Israel uses the unfortunate looking Westwind jet as seen below, which has a crew of 7. The manned plane is old and expensive - plus crews get tired and need to eat. Not the greatest when you consider the need to loiter for long periods. Plus that is a small plane. Every human means less mission payload.

The 1.1t Heron UAV, which enters service this year, can stay in the air for 30 hours or more compared to 6 hours for the manned plane. The Heron shown below. As you can see this is a huge vehicle. Clearly the future increasingly lies with UAVs. The USAF is focused on them and commercial use will surely follow. We see freighters going this way before too long.

In other news --

• Boeing's most reliable customer - Uncle Sam
• Boeing loses its first 787 customer - more to follow
• Boeing's results - blame the union
• AirTran stumbles - what a lousy record

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Open Skies thoughts

BA's crews were against the idea of creating OpenSkies (the airline) because they felt it was the thin edge of a wedge to drive down their contract. BA said it was not the intent. The new airline would not use BA crews and this is what got the BALPA people upset.

Moving along, we see that the Aer Lingus/United deal ends up creating exactly what the BALPA people said would come about. Aer Lingus provides planes, United provides marketing and the crews are simply employed in the US. Note the process treats crews like any other input - there is no "team" at work.

Its no wonder United pilot union reacted. Statement from Captain Steve Wallach, Chairman, United Master Executive Council, Air Line Pilots Association: “Aer Lingus has advised the Irish press that this joint venture will operate an Aer Lingus aircraft with neither United nor Aer Lingus employees, under a separate operating certificate and under newly established wages and working conditions. Obviously, this partnership will be accomplished at the expense of United’s and Aer Lingus’ own pilots and other employees. This development, where United attempts to establish an airline operation without the use of United aircraft or employees, is nothing less than the outsourcing of jobs to an international company, and clearly demonstrates that this management continues to make business decisions without regard to its pilots and other employees."

As travelers we think this is a storm in a teacup. But then ponder the value of a team. Ponder the value of a company with a heritage of safety. Think of how the Hudson river ditching might have turned out if there was no team.

In other news --

• USAF has a pilot shortage
• Lufthansa labor woes
• Delta's massive loss sized for a massive airline
• Virgin freezes

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AA MD80 damage

Apparently at LAX, but no back story provided.

In other news --

• France gets its UAV
• WW and BA again
• Flyglobepsan record profits
• SIA adds iPod/iPhone to A330

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France to support Airbus using French banks

Reuters reports that the French state plans to inject €5bn into banks with the aim of financing airplane purchases to help Airbus, a French government source said on Sunday Les Echos said "The aim is to prevent airlines from canceling orders citing difficulties in raising money".

Airbus and Boeing are locked in a trade row over subsidies at the WTO, with both accusing the other of taking illegal government handouts. It is not immediately clear whether the French plan is designed specifically to funnel money into protecting deals with Airbus, something that may open it to scrutiny from Boeing (and others), or ease credit across the aerospace sector.

In other news --

• ARC travel agent sales down big in 2008
• More BA news; Iberia and OpenSkies
• LAX and the A380
• Airlines ask Obama team to leave NYC airport slots

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Want a giggle?

The headline screamed - Aer Lingus and United Airlines Announce Transatlantic Partnership

CHICAGO, Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Aer Lingus and United Airlines (UAUA) today announce an innovative extension of their relationship on select long haul services between Europe and North America. This partnership will capitalize on the growth opportunities presented by the Open Skies agreement between the European Union (EU) and the United States (US) by opening new transatlantic non-stop services.

The partners will launch service between Washington Dulles and Madrid, which will be available for sale from April 2009, and will commence daily operations from March 2010. It is anticipated that additional routes may be made available for sale during 2010 to commence operation in Summer 2011.

It is intended that both carriers will equally share the commercial and operating benefits and risk, with Aer Lingus managing the operational aspects of the new partnership services and United Airlines taking responsibility for managing revenue generation. The Partnership route structure will be operated and sold under both Aer Lingus and United Airlines codes and will leverage both parties' network capabilities.

Aer Lingus and United Airlines launched code share services between Ireland and the US in October 2008 which are proving to be successful based on initial traffic performance. The new Partnership will build upon this relationship enabling the parties to take advantage of the new commercial opportunities made possible by the Open Skies Air Services Agreement between the European Union and the United States. Further expansion and development of the partnership's activities will be jointly assessed and agreed by the Partners and may develop into a broader and deeper joint venture.

Speaking at the launch of the Partnership Aer Lingus' Chief Executive Dermot Mannion commented: "Today's announcement is the culmination of extensive discussions between the Partners since 2007. Aer Lingus has been providing long haul services for over 50 years and was the first airline to commence new transatlantic services under Open Skies. This Partnership builds on this proud history and will enable Aer Lingus to maximize the opportunities provided by Open Skies. We are very excited by the potential of the Partnership and believe that the unique combination of two leading transatlantic airlines can drive significant value for the shareholders of both companies."

Glenn Tilton, United Airlines' Chairman, President and CEO said "Our expanded agreement takes advantage of new opportunities under the US-EU Open Skies Agreement, benefiting our customers with additional competition and capacity in these markets. This partnership provides for a deeper commercial relationship with Aer Lingus, and capitalizes on the unique strengths of both our companies."

Then, in its typical cutting fashion, MOL's gang responded with what must be the classic response for 2009!

Ryanair's headline on its press release: "RYANAIR CONGRATULATES AER LINGUS ON FINDING A PARTNER WHICH IS EVEN WEAKER AND IN WORSE SHAPE THAN AER LINGUS"

Ryanair, today, congratulated Aer Lingus on the announcement of its "partnership" with United Airlines to operate a route between Washington and Madrid - in 15 months time - from March 2010 onwards.

This partnership, which joins Aer Lingus to one of the weakest U.S. airlines doesn't add one job, one passenger, or one visitor to Ireland whatsoever. United Airlines in 2005 defaulted on pension obligations for 122,000 employees, when its $9.8 Billion pension default was one of the largest in U.S. history. Ryanair believes that United Airlines is in many ways similar to Aer Lingus. Both have recently announced losses (in United's case a $5.35 Billion - yes Billion - loss) for 2008, and both airlines have recently announced capacity cuts, route cuts, pay cuts and job cuts.

Responding to this "partnership" today, Ryanair's Michael O'Leary said:

"Aer Lingus and United Airways share many similar traits. They both used to be big in the 1950's and 1960's, but sadly today they are just shadows of their former glory. Both have recently announced losses, job cuts and pay cuts. After months of trawling around looking for partners, it is a sad reflection on Aer Lingus that the best they could come up with is one of the weakest and biggest loss makers in the U.S. airline industry. Given the scale of United's losses there is no guarantee that they will even be around in March 2010 to operate this "partnership".

"It is hard to think of any transatlantic airline losing any sleep at the thought of being faced with the combined weakness of Aer Lingus and United Airlines on the Madrid-Washington route. Today's announcement shows just how desperate Aer Lingus is to find a partner, any partner it can, even if the flights don't start until March 2010. This so called "partnership" with another "loser" like United shows that Aer Lingus has no independent strategy, and no prospect of remaining independent.

"Today's "partnership" comes on the back of a series of recent flip-flops by Aer Lingus on fuel surcharging, the Heathrow-Shannon route and Dermot Mannion's EUR2.8m failure fee and sadly shows that Aer Lingus has no credible strategy either for independence or for growing traffic, tourism and jobs in Ireland. Aer Lingus can't match Ryanair's prices, it can't match Ryanair's punctuality, and it can't match Ryanair's strong growth and vision for the future either". -------------------------- Is this not classic? Got to say we love this!

In other news --

• Singapore's new A330s
• American boosts the 757
• Southwest results
• easyJet benefits from customer budget cuts

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Japan breaks with tradition

Japan is buying military helicopters from a European manufacturer, rather than the United States. Japan has ordered two EC135 helicopters (for pilot training) from EADS, with the possibility of ordering 13 more if the first two perform satisfactorily.

The design is already 14 years old. So its not like the US makers don't have something as good - or do they? Even the Pentagon is now buying EADS helicopters.

In other news --

• Asians and in-flight phones - love at first word
• Jetstar shines
• AF/KLM numbers - how about that Alitalia investment?
• Fuel cost and hedges bite

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Kudos to US Airways

After the crash/accident, the airline really has been able to handle this event well. The crash was handled by its pilots in a perfect way - even a slightly different attitude could have stuck a wing in first, or even worse, a change in pitch would have led to a cartwheel. People would have died. But the pilots did their jobs perfectly. Then the cabin crew got everyone out quickly. Again, exemplary performance. Finally, the airline refunded every ticket and sent each passenger $5,000.

If we had heard to this accident as described but were never told the airline's name, would any of us said US Airways? We are certain that we would not have selected that airline. They did exceptionally well from the start to the finish. Well done!

In other news --

• New Boston route - closer beaches than Cancun or California
• CSeries news - is Bombardier brave enough?
• SAA crew held in drug bust
• More bad news from China

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Evidence that Singapore Airlines is well run

The typical reaction at most airlines when traffic declines is to cut fares. The accepted wisdom is that airlines "make it up on volume". Evidence is that this is plainly wrong - you only lose more money by flying more people at below cost fares. It took the US airlines a decade to learn this lesson. Nowadays, the US airlines operate like a rational oligopoly - realizing the cutting fares hurts everyone, you will have noticed that all those silly fees are staying. Fares may drift down, but those fees stay. Better yet, the US industry has severely cut its capacity.

Now, back to SQ - it is canceling 214 flights through the end of March as the global economic downturn takes an increasingly large toll on business and leisure travel. More here. Smart move. They have already asked their freighter pilots to fly for free and keep their jobs. Tough choice - but what would you do if you were a freighter pilot at SQ? The choice is stark.

Readers will remember how we were going on about the looming pilot shortage last year. That problem is seriously over, we now think. The shortage now is jobs - any jobs. The dynamic nature of this industry never ceases to amaze us. It changes come faster than the weather.

Reacting to these changes quickly is crucial - but equally crucial is how you react. Since the industry remains highly sensitive to skilled and organized labor, these people have to be treated especially well. It is the capital input with the greatest flexibility. One can park planes and lay off people. But parked planes still cost money. "Parked" people do not.

So while SQ parks planes and people, it would do well to look further out and realize that it will need to bring back these assets - hopefully by the summer.

In other news --

• Singapore trial balloon in Australia - Trojan Horse?
• Aeroflot eyes Czech
• New Alitalia - Old problems
• Airlines and sexy clothes - again

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Another one bites the dust

Lithuania's FlyLAL appears headed for bankruptcy after it suspended operations on Saturday. This follows the collapse of a potential buyout deal by Swiss investment firm SCH Swiss Capital Holdings. The airline, which employs some 360 people, said more than 29,400 passengers would have to change their travel plans because of its move.

Airline officials said it terminated a preliminary agreement with the Swiss company after it failed to pay $1m that would have cleared FlyLAL's debts and potentially saved it from bankruptcy. In a statement released Saturday morning, the airline said it was forced to make the move to stem its losses and not make things worse for its creditors after Swiss investment fund SCH Swiss Capital Holdings AG failed to meet the terms of a buyout agreement that would have allowed the airline to cover about $1m in debt.

FlyLAL CEO Vytautas Kaikaris said the suspension was one of the few options left to try to save his company. "We believe that the decision to suspend the operations is the most appropriate at this moment. We are doing this trying to stem further losses and prevent further deterioration in creditors' situation. FlyLAL - Lithuanian Airlines will file for bankruptcy if no proposals for future airline development are received in the nearest days. Unfair market conditions, record-high oil prices and low demand for winter season flights were the main reasons," for the airlines plight, the airline said in a statement. Since it was privatized in 2005, FlyLAL has run up large debts, which now total some $26m.

Some 30,000 FlyLAL tickets were still valid before Saturday's announcement.

In other news --

• Obama-Cuba thoughts
• India's new AWACS
• Gripen on the skids?
• Has the market bottomed?

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A380 vortex problems?

This is what is reported on a professional pilot site "An Armavia Airbus A320-200, flight U8-968 from Sochi (Russia) to Yerevan (Armenia), was enroute about 30nm north of Tiblisi (Georgia), when the airplane encountered severe clear air turbulence, which caused the autopilot to disconnect and threw the airplane into steep banks three times. The crew managed to regain control of the airplane and completed the flight without further incident. No injuries have been reported.

Armavia reported, that their aircraft was cruising 1000 feet below an Emirates Airbus A380-800 registration A6-EDB flight EK-201 enroute from Dubai (United Arab Emirates) to New York,NY (USA) and suspects, that the turbulence was caused by wake vortices created by the A380."

Now the word is that 4NM separation traffic behind a widebody and 6NM for traffic behind a 380 is the rule. After the quote above there are two more that are eye opening. "I've encountered this during the cruise too, 2000' below an A340 (we were in a 737-8), mod to severe turbulence, a/pilot kicked out, extreme banking, pretty scary stuff! A quick call to atc allowed us a change in direction out of the wake, problem solved!" and "I've flown at right angles 4000' beneath the course of an A380 on test so probably light, and had severe turbulence. There is definitely something different about the A380's wake."

Take a look at the plane - its wings are massive. REALLY massive. Look at that wing in the picture above. The wing is really much bigger (by comparison to a 747) than the plane seems to need. Surely that wing must be generating huge amounts of dirty air at cruise.

In other news --

• A plane order for a US airline!
• Trains in Spain
• United plays catch up
• RBI's other publication - Travolution

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UAVs triumphant?

You're going to find this an amazing story. This is, we believe, a watershed moment. You can only imagine the impact this decision is going to have on the USAF. Clearly there are piloted programs in the future. But it seems the USAF is quite open to unmanned planes. Considering that UAVs have shown themselves to be quite adept at precision ground attack, and with good intel, easily able to eliminate high value targets at low risk.

For an organization where promotions are frequently based on combat experience - the kind acquired by being shot at a lot - there will naturally be something of a culture shock. The USAF has a very strong "corporate culture" and the move towards UAVs is absolutely radical. Clearly we will now need to watch how the budget gets spent and how this change impacts the organization.

Its like Bill Gates says, don't mess with Geeks, one day you will end up working for one. The coming of the UAV certainly looks like, if not ending, certainly curtailing, the jock era.

In other news --

• Heathrow runway approved - now the fighting really starts
• AF/KLM moving on SAS?
• UK/BAA traffic falls even more - how about that runway?
• A380 debut at SFO

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Time flies - really

This may amaze you as it did us. Singapore Airlines is expecting to fly its one millionth A380 customer in February 2009, less than four months after it celebrated its first anniversary of A380 service.

The airline is expecting to welcome its first millionth customer onboard the A380 within the next six weeks, and is planning to surprise the customer and other customers on the flight with a series of goodies. The lucky millionth customer will be greeted with the news upon check-in and a special package. Beyond the enhanced inflight experience, the winner will get to enjoy a host of prizes at the destination, including a three-night stay at a luxury hotel and a chauffeur-driven limousine ride to the hotel, experiences at top-class restaurants as well as a series of other goodies to take away.

To commemorate this special occasion, customers in all three classes on the millionth customer flight will also be presented with champagne onboard and special Singapore Airlines giveaways.

“We are delighted to be flying our millionth customer less than one and a half years after our inaugural flight. This is a strong indication of Singapore Airlines A380’s popularity with customers,” commented Mr Huang Cheng Eng, Executive Vice President, Marketing & The Regions for Singapore Airlines.

There are six aircraft in fleet now, flying daily between Singapore and Sydney, Singapore and Tokyo, and twice daily between Singapore and London. Since its launch, the A380 has clocked over 20,000 flying hours on more than 2000 commercial flights. The A380, if we are not mistaken, has the best entry into service of any plane. Of course we expect you to challenge that. (We'll be digging for numbers)

In other news --

• A400M stumbles - will Antonov please step forward?
• Ryanair in the news again - US airport fantasies
• Eurostar rocks!
• The Great Slowdown

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Opposition mounts on Heathrow runway decision

Britain's Gordon Brown is facing rising internal opposition to a third Heathrow runway as rebel Labour MPs backed plans for a new London airport. With a decision over the additional Heathrow runway possible as early as this Wednesday, MPs have launched a cross-party parliamentary group to back the construction of an airport on the Thames estuary.

The new airport was originally proposed by London's mayor Boris Johnson, and is now being back by the rebel Labour MPs, along with Conservatives and environmental campaigners. Meanwhile, business interests reiterated its pro third runway stance today by taking out a series of newspaper adverts, under the umbrella of the Future Heathrow group. The adverts say that construction of a third runway is vital for jobs, economic prosperity and the UK’s long-term economic competitiveness.

Supporters of a third runway argue that only a major international hub airport like Heathrow provides the breadth of direct flights to long-haul destinations that the UK needs to stay competitive in the long-term.

Willie Walsh told The Telegraph: "A third runway would be fantastic news for jobs and investment in Britain. The rest of Europe has already built extra capacity at its hub airports and will be ready to benefit when the economic recovery comes. Britain cannot afford to slip further behind."

TUC deputy general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "Aviation is key to the UK economy and the unions are committed to supporting the sustainable development of Heathrow – not only leading to the creation of many more quality jobs but also meeting local noise and air quality standards and ensuring the CO2 emissions from aviation growth are consistent with the UK's new carbon budgets."

The Times newspaper reports a third runway is a certainty, and that Geoff (Buff) Hoon, the Transport Secretary, will approve the £13bn project this week.

A series of mass protests have been planned in the build up to the decision. Climate Rush is planning to block the departure gate at Terminal 1 on Monday evening. It intends to occupy the terminal until the government decision is made. The protest is being advertised on the Climate Rush website as a “peaceful picnic” starting at 7pm. The website states: “Our argument is not with those who must fly. To this end we shall do our utmost to allow airport users to go about their business.” The organizers, some of whom were involved in planning the runway invasion at Stansted airport, intend to block the departure gate and terminal entrances.

Let's see how BAA and the police respond. All this talk of the UK needing a new airport is being swamped by a bunch of hooligans holding the airport and its customers hostage on a regular basis. As if this is not enough bother, news out now says that Greenpeace says it has bought a piece of land on the proposed site of the Heathrow third runway in a bid to thwart the expansion plans.

In other news --

• India vs Pakistan - with outcomes for everyone
• Airbus and Boeing are in a mess
• AF/KLM takes a stake in Alitalia (2 stories)
• Jet Airways to offload more planes

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Virgin initiates premium class price war

Virgin Atlantic may spark a premium-class price war with a British Airways by slashing fares by up to 40%. In an attempt to maintain bookings as the downturn deepens, the London-based carrier is offering discounts to all 30 of its worldwide destinations. Prices include a return to New York dropping by 40%, Johannesburg 37%, Miami 34%, St Lucia 34% and Cape Town 34%.

These reductions come as the industry struggles to fill premium seats, as businesses cut back on travel expenditure. On Wednesday BA reported a 12.1% slump premium passengers in December, compared with the same month in 2007. Virgin is hoping that its price cut will encourage tourists and executives from small and medium-sized companies to upgrade.

Steve Ridgway, CEO Virgin Atlantic, said: "As a leading global airline, we have a responsibility to help pump-prime the economy. These lower Upper Class fares will enable small and medium-sized businesses in particular to do deals and meet contacts around the world and help get the global economy moving again."

Most carriers have reduced economy fares but have been more reluctant to cut premium rates. BA has been particularly insistent that it will not drop business-class fares because it wants to maintain the yield, or revenue. Virgin's price decisions will almost certainly force BA to respond.

Premium travelers are more resilient to price increases than economy, but the financial crisis is resulting in the airlines' most profitable customer base deserting. BA said that demand from banking industry passengers fell drastically in the weeks after the collapse of Lehman Brothers last year. Virgin, which does not give detailed passenger numbers, is also likely to have been badly hit.

Here we go - another fare war across the Atlantic.

In other news --

• American's IFE&C update - interesting data points
• Nigerian changes
• Fare wars come to EU
• Qatar wants compensation from Boeing

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BBC discovers in-flight Internet

Take look here. This is really great exposure for Row 44 - who could use this now. And what do you think the FIRST thing is that the BBC tried to do? Well of course make a call - a video call no less. So you see, dear readers, despite all the nonsense you read about in the press saying the in-flight calls will be obnoxious. Yet its the first thing the BBC tries to do. In-flight communications is irresistible. Of course you want it! Don't listen to all the flight attendant fears and so on. The industry really fears, in this day of Facebook, Twitter and instant messages that you will capture all those stupid moments in-flight and publish them. Since you already know that every traveler has a funny story to tell, why not simply capture the moment and store it forever?

Stelios eases on easyJet spat

Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou backed down from his demand to appoint two of his own nominees to the easyJet’s board of directors. The easyJet founder (and main shareholder) has been involved in a public feud with fellow directors over the growth strategy of the airline amid a deepening recession.

In November he increased his voting control from 15.6% to 26.9% by taking over the voting rights to his sister's stake in the company. This gave him the right to appoint at least one and possibly two more directors in addition to himself - although he is still in a legal dispute as to whether he can nominate a chairman and one director or a chairman and two directors.

He also set out his concerns over accounting policies adopted by the rest of the board, which he argued did not reflect the "current commercial realities and the macro-economic climate". He also voiced his disagreement with the management’s takeover of GB Airways and the valuation of aircraft and slots at Gatwick airport accompanying the deal.

But the notice for next month's annual shareholders meeting contains no nominations for new directors. Sir Stelios has removed this demand, after also quickly removing his initial threat to have himself reinstated as chairman replacing Sir Colin Chandler.

So now here's the big question - why? He cannot simply have changed his mind so fast. He must be up to something. Any suggestions?

In other news --

• Aussie dumps on F-35
• Aer Lingus vs. Ryanair - more
• Analyst pumps Canadian carriers
• Biofuels blowback?

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Can we get some humor in the business again?

For many of us who remember "Baghdad Bob", we are delighted to see that Iraq is getting on its feet again. Here's why - an Iraqi will be speaking for government without any American influence. Gotta love that.

The first commercial flight between Europe and Iraq in 17 years has landed at Baghdad. About 150 passengers, mainly Iraqis, arrived on a Nordic Leisure flight from Denmark. Commercial flights to Iraq stopped after Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990, but the landmark flight by the Swedish charter company is likely to mark the start of other airlines resuming service to Iraq.

Iraqi Transport Minister Amer Abduljabbar Ismail told AFP that other international arrivals are expected this week, including one from Hong Kong. Why Hong Kong? We don't know - but we are sure that Mr. Ismail may be good for some more great stuff in the Iraqi tradition.

Iraqi Airways says it hopes to start services to Europe in the next few months. Air France-KLM signed a preliminary accord with Iraq this week, setting out plans for Iraqi Airways to fly to European destinations. Are you surprised to see AF in front here? See, this all going to work out fine. We wish all the parties great success - and may they espouse on the industry often. We all need this.

In other news --

• Online travel shakeup
• Air France "wins" Alitalia - coming second is better
• Downturn hits BA - hard
• Ryanair "loses" Aer Lingus - will come back with lower offer next year for sure.

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Continental's bio-test tomorrow

Continental says it is carrying out a biofuel test flight using algae as a fuel source - the flight will occur at Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, at 11:15am tomorrow. The aircraft will be a 737-800 equipped with CFM International CFM56-7B engines, and the biofuel mix used will be sourced from feedstocks including jatropha and algae.

Previous biofuel trials used controversial "first-generation" feedstocks, seen as contributing to world hunger and deforestation. Last week Air New Zealand also ran a test using jatropha nuts. Continental says that the test will draw only on "sustainable, second-generation fuel sources that do not impact food crops or water resources, and do not contribute to deforestation".

First-generation biofuels made from feedstocks such as corn or palm oil have come in for sustained criticism. It is suggested that these fuels displace food production from farmland, driving up food prices and so causing hardship among the poor. The debate about corn based ethanol in the US is a prime example - driving up corn costs for poor people across Mexico. The resulting desire for more farmland is also seen as contributing to deforestation. Of course quite a few of the ethanol plants are now about to b mothballed as oil prices slump. More than a few people wonder if there is a correlation between the rise in biofuels and the drop in oil prices.

The interest in biofuels has led to the drive for "second-generation", ones not requiring the use of farmland for production. Oil from the jatropha nut can be cultivated in arid deserts not suitable for food production. If these test succeed, as they seem to be doing, we should see a great rush into Jatropha production in places that grow nothing useful now. Imagine, if you would, that people in Sudan put away their guns and go farming instead. Making money is so much more fun. We can hope, right?

In other news --

• More on Qantas' recent event - navy blinks
• Fare come down - just like we said
• China deep freezes Airbus and Boeing
• EU-LCCs shine

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Traveling while being Muslim

News of the recent decision by AirTran to remove a Muslim family will almost certainly have ramifications. TSA and JetBlue are paying $240,000 to settle a discrimination lawsuit against a District of Columbia man who, as a condition of boarding a domestic flight, was forced to cover his shirt that displayed Arabic writing. See image.

Meantime, just to give you some perspective on the man who won the money from the airline and TSA - take a look at his blog. Its pretty clear where he stands.

The whole issue of traveling while Muslim is fraught with difficulties. The TSA and airlines are in a no win situation. If a Muslim wears clothing that bears some message while traveling, particularly at an airport, other passengers are going to be wary. If passengers are uncomfortable with this fellow traveler, what does the airline do? For instance, say a Muslim wears a shirt with a message that makes people uncomfortable - people may ask not to travel on the same flight. Does the airline ask the Muslim person to remove the shirt? Or does the airline offer some passengers another flight? We do have precedence with smelly travelers, obese travelers and so on. Invariably the single person is delayed while the majority travel. And then come the lawsuits.

This becomes complicated. Traveling as a Muslim is no simple thing, as this site demonstrates. For a religious Muslim, travel can be fraught with challenges. But travel also mixes all sorts of people together for periods. Many people cannot disassociate Muslims from terrorism and especially not terrorism in the skies. This is a struggle the travel industry has to overcome. To overcome the issue requires sensitivity; but the industry will continue to run into challenges. At every airport, the public address system plays the "be aware" message repeatedly. So how does one expect travelers to quit paying attention to people around them? They are asked to do it all the time. Anyone that stands out will get attention - often not the kind of attention they want.

In other news --

• FAA sued over crew rest
• Qantas loses market share
• CO1404 pictures
• South African startup trips already

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Fat flight attendants

This is back in the news, thanks to Air India. It appears the ladies mentioned in the lawsuit do not look like these in the picture.

Which leads us to think what might be. Take a look at this story. As much as the subject getting the kind of attention it does - everyone thinks it sexist - but every human would rather interact with a more attractive human than a less attractive one. This is NORMAL.

Think of where it would not matter what somebody looks like serving you - yes, that's right over the Internet or telephone. At no other stage does it behoove a company providing customer service at the human level to keep unattractive people doing this job. It may smell sexist but really its practical. And the truth is, in a confined space like an airplane, the people responsible for safety must be lithe - read thin. Now while this is being completely practical and all, it also seriously helps if these lithe people look like this (Varig of course). These people do wonders for the brand you know. Really.

In other news --

• BA eyes GoAir
• Heathrow might get runway and rail hub
• No ANA A380 this year
• MOL excoriates Aer Lingus

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Novel airline concept in South Africa

No, really this is for real. Take a look. The website for this venture is here. Selling minutes is novel - of course if you get delayed, what happens then? The idea of using an SMS system to book is also novel. This looks like something to watch.

In other news --

• Qantas has another "event"
• UK government retreats on Heathrow
• Singapore's A330 plans
• Oil tumbles faster than OPEC can cut production

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Dubai Poo

This is not something you want to confuse with Hong Kong Flu. But it almost certainly can make you sick. Start off here. If you want a new perspective on those two Brits that did the hanky panky on the beach, this news provides a new perspective on what they were doing - it was rather more dangerous than we thought. Now what does it tell us about Dubai that they can focus so much on construction and no planning? One smallish sewage plant tries valiantly to care for the new growth. It is failing spectacularly. And its not the fault of the management either. We are talking here is serious mis-management at much higher levels. We suppose that for a culture where prominent structures are named after prominent people, a new and bigger sewage plant is not a really important investment. So if you're visiting Dubai, please behave on the beach and watch carefully where you walk. The place is going potty.