Low Cost Airlines Fly South

http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/09/16/travel/budget-airlines-fly-south.html?ref=travel&http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/09/16/travel/budget-airlines-fly-south.html?ref=travel&_r=0_r=0  Low Cost US Carriers are Heading South.  The Spirit model with its multiple means of "mugging" passengers for luggage, seat choices and itinerary changes will probably not be well-received south of the border.   Latin Americans, although increasingly web-connected, demand the availability of customer service through travel agencies and city ticket offices.  They also will not tolerate the bait and switch and shell games of the Spirit Model.  In Brazil, for example Azul Linhas Aereas, a LCC offers customer service comparable to Jet Blue.  That is not a coincidence, JetBlue founder David Neeleman also founded Azul (which means "blue" in Portuguese.)  Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes has expanded its presence in customer service kiosks in the Sao Paulo subway system and in other off airport locations.  LAN, Aerolineas Argentinas, TAM and Panama's COPA all offer customer service superior to what you might find on US network carriers. In Argentina, Aerolineas Argentinas and its affiliate Austral has undergone a renaissance of sorts with new airplanes, better maintenance, improved reliability and better customer service since it was renationalized in 2009.  Competitor on some routes LAN Argentina, part of the LATAM Airline Group also offers excellent service and deals.  Both offer great deals for those flying long hauls from the US to Argentina.  Aerolineas is part of the Skyteam Alliance and LAN is part of the Oneworld Alliance.  Both offer excellent reservations call center assistance either in English or in Spanish.  On a recent trip to Argentina I had to make several changes to my Aerolineas itinerary and the call center did its best to help me avoid change charges. 

Stormy Skies in the Middle East - and Beyond

     The Arab Spring is turning into the Arab Summer with storm clouds and sand storms across the region from the Maghreb to the Levant.  What has become a civil war in Syria has been joined by strife in Libya and Anti-Western unrest in Egypt.  Americans need to get one thing straight:  The attack on the consulate in Benghazi and the murder of the Ambassador and other three Americans does not represent any swell of Libyan government or indeed popular hatred of the US.  The attack was a classic insurgent tactic to seek to discredit the moderate elected government and to drive a knife into the evolving relationship between Libyans and the US.  There were a lot of nasty people left in Libya after Qaddafi.  Similarly, the extremist demonstrations against the US Embassy in Egypt are in essence Egyptian civil strife with extremists having the same aims as those in Libya.  Despite the goal of extremists of restoring the Caliphate, the unrest in the region does not represent any unified Islamic attack on the West or the United States.  That being said, now is not the time to plan a vacation to see the Pyramids in Egypt or Roman ruins or beaches in Tunisia. 
     The events of the past week are another game changer at least for the region - and also beyond. Travel safety and awareness for airlines and their customers now requires a new set of threat assessment paradigms for airline security professionals.  The immediate, indeed long range, threat to civil aviation is changing.  US flag carriers especially will need to be more vigilant, not only in flights to the region when service normalizes but also in flights originating elsewhere such as Europe, Southeast Asia, and Subsaharan Africa.  The excellent Mideast carriers noted for their outstanding customer service such as Etihad, Emirates and Qatar will need to demonstrate to potentially timid US travellers that they are serious and vigilant about security.  (Note to travellers:They are.)  Security professionals are aware of that, but the average traveller might not be.   Airlines need to review their Safety Management Systems (SMS) and associated Security Management Systems (SeMS) to incorporate current threat assessments and awareness.  This is especially true as airlines automate more and more customer service (on some US airlines that will remain unnamed here almost an oxymoron) functions and avoid personal contact with passengers.  Sure, using online check-in and that kiosk might be convenient, but does it make you any safer or secure?
     Those contemplating or needing to travel to the Arab World should pay close attention to the State Department's web site www.state.gov  for travel advisories for the region.  Operators of business, air charter, and other corporate aircraft into and around the region need to pay close attention to their security support staff , and if they don't have security threat assessment support that is familiar with the region they need to obtain it quickly. There are some travellers - academics, journalists, and business travellers, for example, who will have to travel to the region - again they should check the State web site but also call the State Department directly...and confer with the embassy of the country they plan to visit.  Airlines need to be forthright and honest on their web sites about security issues.
     As stated above, the current situation represents "game change" in the region as long as there is civil strife - that is what this is, not a burst of Anti-Americanism.

    

Charlotte,North Carolina Leads Way with Freight Intermodal Facility at Airport. Will We See a Similar One for Passengers?

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/norfolk-southerns-new-charlotte-regional-intermodal-facility-will-support-growing-rail-traffic-and-less-crowded-highways-149840725.html

Charlotte is leading the way in an intermodal freight facility at Charlotte Douglas Airport (CLT).  The facility will enable transfers of freight containers between ocean-going, rail, and highway modes.  It isn't clear how the facility will interface with the airport and airlines and what security measures such as known shippers and TSA requirements will be dealt with.   Additionally, little has been said about CLT's dependence on highway transportation access for passengers.  As of yet there is no integrated light rail, regional North Carolina Rail norAmtrak facility at the airport.  Charlotte is only served with four Amtrak trains north-south per day, and two of them, the South and North bound Crescent Limited  - and the only rail passenger link to Atlanta pass through Charlotte in the wee hours of the morning.   CLT is also burdened by a near monopoly on the part of US Airways and its outsourced "regional" subsidiaries with astronomical fares - this extends to regional flights such as from Raleigh to Atlanta or Chattanooga via the CLT hub.

I'm Shocked! Shocked! 30 Years after De-regulation the US Airline Industry is getting less competitive and becoming monopolistic?

http://atwonline.com/international-aviation-regulation/news/white-paper-lists-aa-us-merger-competition-concerns-0807

White paper lists AA-US merger competition concerns:

According To Air Transport World's, Karen Walker, a merger of American Airlines (AA) and US Airways (US) could substantially reduce competition, leaving four majors controlling over 70% of the US domestic market, according to a white paper released Wednesday.

US has made clear its interest in pursuing a merger with AA, which is restructuring under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and AA CEO Tom Horton in July said it made sense to evaluate the possibility, but no formal process has begun (ATW Daily News, July 11).

In a jointly produced paper, the American Antitrust Institute (AAI) and Business Travel Coalition (BTC) say the merger could lead to the creation of a four powerful, closed airline systems that would be virtually impermeable to competition and could create a hostile environment for low-cost carriers (LCC) and regional airlines.

Is anybody really surprised at this.  As some observers prophesized de-regulation has resulted in less competition; loss of service to many communities; and travelers complain about shoddy customer service.  Most airlines have made lack of communication and contact with their customers an art form...and business travelers pay thousands of dollars to fly business class to avoid being stuffed like sardines into three by three 31 inch pitch seats, the risk of deep veinb thrombosis, and being bracketed by whining children. 

Is the air travel "bubble" about to burst in the USA?  Can A4A get its members to adopt better business practices?

Empire State's Capital loses more air service. Opportunities for Air Taxis, Charters, and Amtrak!

http://www.aviationpros.com/news/10755971/new-airline-for-albany-newark-flights?goback=%2Egde_2274517_member_143172623

Empire State's Capital loses more air service.

Colgan Air is ending service from Albany on Sept. 5, but United Airlines apparently has found a replacement. ExpressJet Airlines will take over Colgan's United Express flights between Albany International Airport and Newark...Colgan Air is not much of a loss...they have been plagued with safety issues. The replacement carrier, is not really United...it is an out-sourced so-called regional carrier that isn't really "regional" and some will argue has lower safety standards than the large carriers it contracts with. Travelers from the Albany area are now faced with a quandary if they need to fly to Europe out of JFK....although there are many flights on United out of EWR, links to JFK might be problematic. Upstate New York has been severely hampered since airline deregulation with the loss of Mohawk Airlines into the Allegheny and US Airways conglomerate. Apparently, for example, if a business person wishes to fly from Albany to Buffalo one must fly out to Chicago and connect back. The loss of local point-to-point routes on American, Eastern, and the like has made air travel extremely expensive and inconvenient for most centers in Upstate New York. So-called "regional airlines" such as ExpressJet are not in any way similar to the pre-1975 local service airlines such as Mohawk that actually served a region. In the absence of a successor to Mohawk, which ExpressJet is not, the Capital Region might be best served by expanded Amtrak Service to and from New York, Boston, and even Montreal to provide links to those international hubs. Air taxis can offer fares for business groups that are much more competitive than the fares airlines such as United, US Airways and even Southwest on sectors such as Albany-Elmira, and other destinations in the Northeast. Such operators are job generators and lend much to the economy.

Business Jet Sales Growth

http://www.flyingmag.com/news/jetnet-report-shows-slow-growth-bizjet-market

With the legacy airlines offering fewer point to point flights; and with connections through hubs that can cost thousands of dollars; and with itineraries that can be slower than the days of the DC-3, the future is looking brighter for bizjet operators, especially air taxis.  When it costs up to $2,000 to fly from Pittsburgh to Scranton via Charlotte (!!) on a small cramped aircraft for each leg hiring an air taxi could be pretty attractive!

Flying Lessons: Mayday on Air France Flight to Israel

Flying Lessons: Mayday on Air France Flight to Israel: It is easy to imagine the terror of the 130 people on board Air France Flight 2240 on Wednesday when flying at 28,000 feet, some passengers...