The same time last year saw the company post a loss of $317 million. The blame? It's pretty much all down to that marvelous sticking point of late - fuel costs. Last year the company was paying $2.09 per gallon of jet fuel. The same quarter this year and it's paying $3.19.

Could American be the first to fall victim and offer proof to that floppy haired buffoon Branson's claim that "one of the big American carriers will almost definitely go?" Well in order to give Branson the finger on this one they'll be able to give him one with the other hand too if their merger with British Airways is approved.

The Financial Times has given out quotes from some unnamed insiders to state that the two airlines are close to signing papers. This will benefit both of those airlines and also bring in Spain's Iberia and really upset Branson. Virgin Atlantic will "oppose this attempt to create an anti-competitive alliance."

Come on, Dicky; alls fair in love and aviation, no?

Branson recently suggested that BAA had an unfair monopoly on London's aiports, including Heathrow with it's BA-only Terminal 5. Yet Old Money Bags Branson is happy enough to cast his wallet toward bmi to get his hands on their Heathrow slots. Bmi, as mentioned yesterday, are desperately trying to keep their slots by flying ghost flights, and have 11% of the slots at the hub. Wouldn't getting their hands on those slots give Virgin close to a monopoly? Thus creating another hypocrisy in their organisation.

It seems that, despite of the news of yesterdays report, many independent travel agents seem undaunted by the looming "R Word." Agents are already focusing on specific niches and nailing down the hatches with branch closures to weather the upcoming storm. Nice metaphor if I do say so myself.

Let's have a look at Bailey's Travel. This year they dropped from three to four branches and ditched mass-market brochures. Chris Bailey says "we are shifting our focus on to high-value bookings and bookings have doubled... we are not chasing every customer, just those with money to spend."

And so the travel industry continues, this weekend, for example, will see more than 2 million travellers clear off to foreign shores. The biggest getaway weekend, thanks to the commencement of those summer holidays at school, will see a huge amount of us Brits getting on a plane for sunnier climes.

Spain, as I've hinted at so many times, is still the top destination regardless of the strength of the Euro. To be honest, I've been purchasing and changing Euro's a fair bit this year on my travels and the difference that so many analysts and reporters are harping on about really isn't that great.

So with Wednesday out of the way and being downhill to the weekend - where so many are heading off - let's put our chin up and try and remain positive. Oh, and if you see Branson.....

Howard Mills foi flagrado por câmeras instaladas pela segurança do aeroporto de Heathrow para identificar o responsável por causar danos aos azulejos de poliestireno que recobriam o teto da sala. Mills chegou a ser preso devido aos danos provocados.

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I originally started packing an old army duffle bag I had since high school, but after seeing the baggage allowance on British Airways for the general traveler (1 bag 23kg, or approx 50lbs), one carry-on, and one laptop bag. So that kind of ruled out me bringing my already packed army duffle, because it meant that we could only bring our 60L Rucksacs.

I would've been perfectly fine with this, except the fact that our generous supporter and Stage 2 Driver Steve was kind enough to get us sleeping bags....thick...huge sleeping bags. While I'm thankful for the free stuff, small packs+huge sleeping bags= no room for clothing and other things. I guess it made me concentrate on what I really need and don't. Everyone tends to overpack when they go traveling anyway.

I just hope we find a decent amount of laundry mats along the way.

The food was absolutley dull.  I must say the seat was comfortable and I slept through the whole flight.  The hostesses were also extremely nice - so over all the experience was okay.

I am not in Heathrow waiting to complete my journey home - last segment will be with American Airlines - let's hope the monitors are working this time.

Should we nationalize the airlines? Now you've probably heard all the news on CNN or in the New York Times about how airlines are losing hundreds of millions of dollars a year. The only reason they're staying afloat is because of the fact that the U.S. government, using your tax dollars is making sure these companies don't go bankrupt.

Meanwhile the CEO makes $6,500,000.00 in a failing business. Now talk about overpaid and under performing. A-rod, you're off the hook. When your company is losing $328,000,000.00 do you really think you deserve making six figures?

You're probably thinking, lets nationalize already! This is such a joke. However, think about that, do you really want to have a big airline, another bureaucracy and say goodbye to customer service as you know it? You already know what flying is like, now add a visit to the DMV right before you fly. Sounds like fun doesn't it?

Whoa whoa whoa, slow down there Chris. What about the European Airlines?

Good point, lets look at them. They're very successful. Heck some of them have posted record profits. British Airways made £694 million ($1.35 billion) last year. German airline Lufthansa made 1.578 billion Euros (2.2468 billion dollars) You have to remember that British Airways and Lufthansa don't necessarily have to compete with discount airlines. Sure Easyjet is a low cost competitor but they mostly fly tourists to vacation spots.

BA can respond by adding flights to commercial cities which higher paying business class passengers use. The U.S. has to deal with rising fuel prices (valued in US Dollars) so they're taking another hit there. There is also the fact that the U.S. is just now breaking into growing markets in Asia and Africa whereas European carriers have long been established there.

Don't forget that if we nationalize you're going to look at a lot of jobs being cut from the industry, which will further drag down our economy. At first I was one of the people arguing for nationalizing the airline inudstry but when you really look at it. It might not make that much sense. It seems that the U.S. Airline industry is going to have to do what a lot of other companies are doing to survive.

They have to leave the U.S. and find new markets for their goods and services. As the Romans once said, "expand or die".

What do you think? Should we nationalize our airlines?

I cannot explain my intial reaction, but I can confirm my last feeling was "I want one".

Unfortunately after some research I found it was hand built.  However, I can imagine some fun filming where you could almost imagine it was real.

Even the sound as she flies past is amazing.

Take a look

I am sure, if you are a fan, you would want one too.

Andy
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After an eight-hour police raid, during which her underwear drawer was searched, she was charged by police over the alleged theft of alcohol miniatures found on display in a cabinet in her home.

Her reasonable explanation that she collects miniatures from different airlines and that family and friends often return from trips with additions to the collection was not accepted.

Her bosses at British Airways were told and she was suspended pending an inquiry.

It has taken a considerable time for Gail to clear her name. Now, after five long months - during which the initial police charge was dropped - she has been formally reinstated.

She can return to the job she loves and has excelled in for 23 years.

Popular with colleagues and passengers alike, Gail will soon be flying again in her role as senior purser.

She is understandably relieved but Gail is also angry.

She has suffered stress and felt shame as well as worry after being on the receiving end of the muck that was flung in her direction.

There are some who may say her reputation has been tarnished as a result of the investigation.

Nothing could be further from the truth. She has been proven innocent and her reputation remains intact.

The same cannot be said, however, for the reputations of those who sanctioned such a reprehensible search operation in the first place.

Well, it was meant to be to Heathrow: it actually went from Milan to Bournemouth to Gatwick to Heathrow due to "bad weather at Heathrow". I have to say, I was fairly surprised that the reality of bad weather at Heathrow wasn't something that everyone was a little more prepared for: it's hardly an anomaly...

So, we were delayed in arriving by four hours - the final announcement, once we had arrived at Heathrow, that there had been "a serious security breach" and that we were therefore barred from disembarking, was something of a pisser - and I witnessed some pretty hilarious "customer management" of the Victoria Wood school.

It will come as little surprise that "things going wrong" and "Italians" is not a combination that is likely to lead to a calm response and steady outcome. This was like the Chorus in "Medea": wailing, blaspheming, head shaking histrionics and swearing, as they all sought to get in the way and weigh in with their own expert opinion on how to fly the plane, flying (literally) in the face of British Aerospace rulings and common sense.

Over the wailing histrionics, rose another Italian voice - that of my neighbour who cried out "I am VERY hungry. I want a scone, I want a FUGGING SCONE!". He was rewarded with three fugging scones, and clearly the smuggling of the contraband wasn't subtle enough, as soon the Cabin Services crew were responded to the pinging of call buttons all over the cabin, as the cry for scones went up. It was in this context, that the delightful phrase "I'm terribly sorry, but scones are like gold dust, Madam" was uttered by a hostess who looked a fraction less pissed off than she might have been had she discovered that the Captain had shat in her handbag "as a joke".

Anyway, we got out alive, some of us (though not me) buoyed up by scones...

BA flight arriving in Grand Cayman

With my documents all in order, I was ready to get to board my flight from South Africa to George Town, Cayman Islands. The whole journey is about 22 hours of flight time, so I carried a whole lot of reading material to keep myself occupied during the journey. I chose to fly through Heathrow, London on British Airways and since I was in transit, I spent about 3 hours in Heathrow before boarding another BA flight to Grand Cayman.

As a word of advice to those of you that may be coming to the Cayman Islands as an expatriate, these are some of the things that you should have before you land on the island:

• Get a bank letter from your existing bank confirming that you have run your bank account in a decent manner, this helps tremendously when trying to open a bank account here.
• If you have a no-claim status quo on your current car insurance, you can use that to reduce your insurance rate in the Cayman Islands.
• Accommodation in Cayman Islands is pretty expensive, part of your package should include free accommodation for at least one month. This will allow you time to search for suitable, affordable lodging at your own pace, rather than being under pressure from day one to find accommodation.
• There are so many web sites that can provide you with information on just about anything relating to Cayman Islands. Take the time to check them out, it will be worth your while.
• In terms of clothing, buy a lot of light clothes, golf type shirts, casual shoes etc. Having been on the island for a while now, I have never had to wear a jersey or a jacket. Clothing and shoe stores are very limited in Cayman Islands in terms of choice and cost, so it is always best to buy decent clothing before you come onto the island.

There are very few direct flights to George Town, Grand Cayman. The most popular direct flights originate from New York, Miami and London, so if you can get to those three cities you will be able to fly directly to Grand Cayman. You can also fly to Grand Cayman from Kingston and Montego Bay (Jamaica), Havanna (Cuba) and Toronto (Canada). I came through Heathrow, London on British Airways, which is an 11 hour journey and the plane does stop in Nassau, Bahamas for about an hour picking up and dropping off passengers.

If all your papers are in order, arriving at Grand Cayman airport (officially known as Owen Roberts International) you will be greeted by very friendly customs and immigration officials. It took me about 20 minutes to go through the whole arrival procedure and a representative from our company was waiting for me outside the airport building.

For more useful info on Cayman Islands please visit our website - myislandbeauty.com

For more our photo collection please visit Life in Cayman Islands

Wir vergleichen Flugrouten ab NRW nach London.

1. Ryanair ab Weeze nach Stansted
2. Germanwings ab Köln/Bonn nach Stansted
3. Air Berlin ab Düsseldorf nach Stansted
4. Air Berlin ab Münster/Osnabrück nach Stansted
5. Easyjet ab Dortmund nach Luton
6. British Airways ab Düsseldorf nach Heathrow
7. Lufthansa ab Düsseldorf nach Heathrow/City

Des weiteren nehmen wir 3 zufällig ausgewählte Tage.

1. in drei Tagen: 09.07.2008
2. in einem Monat: 06.08.2008
3. in drei Monaten: 06.10.2008

Beginnen wir mit dem Tripp in 3 Tagen, am 09.07.2008.

1. Ryanair: Weeze-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt in London: 14:25 Stunden, Preis: 176,44€
2. Germanwings: Köln-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 12:35 Stunden, Preis: 382,41€
3. Air Berlin: Düsseldorf-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 13:25 Stunden, Preis: 444€
4. Air Berlin: Münster-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 10:50 Stunden, Preis: 454€
5. Easyjet: Dortmund-Luton <->, Aufenthalt: 12:05 Stunden, Preis: 257,11€
6. British Airways: Düsseldorf-Heathrow <->, Aufenthalt: 12:15 Stunden, Preis: 626,93€
7. Lufthansa: Düsseldorf-Heathrow/City <->, Aufenthalt: 12:00 Stunden, Preis: 700,87€

Weiter geht es mit unserem Tripp in einem Monat, am 06.08.2008

1. Ryanair: Weeze-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 14:25 Stunden, Preis: 60,50€
2. Germanwings: Köln-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 12:35 Stunden, Preis: 96,41€
3. Air Berlin: Düsseldorf-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 13:25 Stunden, Preis: 138 €
4. Air Berlin: Münster-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 10:50 Stunden, Preis: 208€
5. Easyjet: Dortmund-Luton <->, Aufenthalt: 12:05 Stunden, Preis: 80,61€
6. British Airways: Düsseldorf-Heathrow <->, Aufenthalt: 12:15 Stunden, Preis: 158,93€
7. Lufthansa: Düsseldorf-Heathrow/City <->, Aufenthalt: 12:00 Stunden, Preis: 293,87€

Und auch in 3 Monaten wollen wir nach London, am 06.10.2008.

1. Ryanair: Weeze-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 14:25 Stunden, Preis: 60,46€
2. Germanwings: Köln-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 12:35 Stunden, Preis: 131,41€
3. Air Berlin: Düsseldorf-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 13:25 Stunden, Preis: 178,00€
4. Air Berlin: Münster-Stansted <->, Aufenthalt: 10:50 Stunden, Preis: 208,00€
5. Easyjet: Dortmund-Luton <->, Aufenthalt: 12:05 Stunden, Preis: 76,61€
6. British Airways: Düsseldorf-Heathrow <->, Aufenthalt: 12:15 Stunden, Preis: 158,93€
7. Lufthansa: Düsseldorf-Heathrow/City <->, Aufenthalt: 12:00 Stunden, Preis: 457,87€

Fazit: Bei allen drei Testreihen ist Ryanair der günstigste Flieger, wobei gerade für diejenigen welche sich kurzfristig entscheiden, der Preisunterschied am Höchsten ist. Interessant ist, dass Easyjet immer auf Platz 2 folgt, British Airways bei zumindest 2 von 3 Testreihen mit den Air Berlin-Preisen gut mithalten kann, während die Lufthansa immer die teuerste Airline ist.

Wichtig zu wissen ist auch, dass Ryanair zum Zeitpunkt des Testes keine seiner 10€, 5€ oder 0,01€ Angebote ausgeschrieben hatte, die den Preis - gerade bei längerfristigen Buchungen von einem oder 3 Monaten - durchaus noch drücken könnten.

Als weiterer Kostenpunkt kommt der Transfer nach London hinzu. Von Stansted und Luton fallen noch etwa £13 per Bus oder Bahn an (je nachdem welches Ticket man sich kauft), von Heatrow aus fallen £2 Mehrpreis für die erweiterte U-Bahn-Fahrkarte an, was British Airways im Vergleich zu Air Berlin noch attraktiver macht.

Abschließend muss man sich noch anschauen, dass Ryanair bei diesem Test auch die Airline ist, die die längste Aufenthaltsdauer am Zielort bietet, was bei einem Tagestripp sicher auch nicht ganz unwichtig ist.

Es bleibt festzustellen: In diesem Test ist Ryanair preislich die klare Nummer 1.

Через 2 дня ей приходит письмо, состоящее из одного единственного слова: Nescafe.
Мама сначала ничего не поняла, но потом случайно наткнулась в газете на рекламу Nescafe:
- Удовлетворение до последней капли, - и очень обрадовалась за дочь.

Потом замуж вышла средняя дочь, и мама попросила ее о том же. Через неделю от дочери приходит письмо: Benson & Hedges.
Мама начала искать в газете рекламу соответствующих сигарет. Вскоре она нашла ее текст: "Extra Long, King size",- и снова обрадовалась.

Hаконец настала очередь младшей дочери. Та только через месяц присылает письмо, состоящее из одной фразы: British Airways.
Мать находит рекламу авиакомпании в газете и падает в обморок, прочитав ее текст:
Три раза в день, семь дней в неделю, во всех направлениях.

Today's news? Well holiday accommodation in the UK is expected to sell out completely over the coming couple of weeks (something I'll be sure to keep check on) with areas such as Dorset, Somerset, the Isle of Wight and parts of Wales selling out fast according to Hoseasons. Not forgetting the old favourites Devon and Cornwall. Well, they have got some amazing beaches.

Remember Hoseasons? The company with the infuriating adverts: "We're all going on a Hoseasons Holiday" to the tune of Cliff 'I've got too many teeth for my mouth' Richard's hit. Well, they're seeing a bit of a boom at the moment inline with Thomas Cook, as previously reported, with more people staying closer to home. Their chief exec Richard Carrick states: "We have found that more customers than ever before want to jump in a car with the family and avoid the hassle and increased costs of an overseas break." Well, who can blame them, honestly?

Speaking from memories of childhood family holidays in the above mentioned areas, and a few taken as an adult, I can happily state that you'll have a great time. This really is a beautiful country with a lot to offer, looks wise, and perhaps the change in travel for a while will allow more people to discover that. I know my colleague over on the Globetrotter Blog recently looked at the matter too.

Unfortunately for some, the same reasons that keep Brits at home are keeping airlines away. Iceland Express has postponed the start of its services from Gatwick to Reykjavik until next year. The airline was due to kick off a five times a week service in September but is now waiting until Spring of 2009. Why? Well, their marketing manager Birna Guðmundsdóttir stated: "Iceland Express is remaining cautious in the current uncertain economic climate, while continuing to deliver the best possible service at the best possible price. Iceland Express is a budget airline and we want to ensure it stays that way." Good for them, even though it means putting off services they don't want to pass the increase in fuel costs on to their customers. I just hope that it doesn't mean continual delays or the demise of another budget airline.

It's not just the smaller airlines suffering now though. British Airways, with a drop of up to 3.8% in traffic. Doesn't sound a lot but when you consider how many thousands of people fly with these guys a day then the scale starts to seem a bit more worrying. BA had to increase their fuel surcharges recently and it seems that managed only to put people off flying with them.

"The UK consumer environment is difficult leading to reduced traffic volumes." Well, the award for "Obvious Comment of the Week" goes to BA on this one. So why not get together with other big airlines and do something about it? Price fixing is illegal yet petrol companies get away with it. Why not push more into looking for alternative fuels, if all the Big Boys worked together they could get something done, right? No, seems BA are, instead, rumoured to be in talks with American Airlines and Iberia for a link-up. Great idea! Further monoplise the market, force smaller airlines out of business by taking all the take off and landing slots and then force up ticket prices.

Good business idea, just plain terrible morality.

I didn't sleep well on the plane (for some reason, I lost this ability while at Berkeley – I used to fall asleep as soon as I sat on a plane, even getting some deep sleep on a 1-hour flight to LA), but the flights went off without a hitch.

Or so it did until I got down in Barcelona.

After clearing the passport check, I made my way to the baggage claim in Terminal A, which is where we landed. After looking around for a while, I realized that there was no listing for my British Airways flight and asked around. One of the airport workers told me it had come out in Terminal B instead.

This posed a problem, as having entered the baggage claim area, I could no longer return to the post-security gate area and make my way to Terminal B. But there was no other way into the Terminal B baggage claim area. Thus, I took my boarding pass from London to Barcelona and went through the security line again! I then went to Terminal B, but while most of the bags did make it from London, mine did not. I filed my claim and then overheard another agent telling a passenger that his bag on this flight had been found in Terminal A.

I then went back with him to Terminal A, again using the invalid boarding pass to get through security. However, my bag was not there, so I was now out of my only checked bag. I decided to go to my hotel and wait for my bag to be delivered to me the following day.

The next morning, I called the British Airways office in Madrid to ask about my lost bag. They informed me that the bag had been found in London and had just arrived in Barcelona. They assured me the bag would be delivered in the afternoon or early evening. As was made clear on my claim form and on that call, they understood I was leaving on Wednesday for Benasque, and so I needed that bag pretty quickly.

I went about my normal business that day, and after dinner at Bembi Restaurant, I returned to the hotel around 10 PM. But my bag was still nowhere to be found.

I immediately called the Madrid office again and the first person I called tried to transfer me to the “Lost Baggage” Department at the Barcelona airport. But the phone kept ringing and finally I hung up and re-dialed the Madrid office. I got another person again, and this guy told me that the bag would not be delivered today and that it would probably get delivered the following day at some time before noon.

Of course that didn't do me any favors, as my bus to Benasque was at 7 AM on Wednesday. I asked why the bag had not been delivered today, but he had no clue, even throwing out a lame excuse of maybe it took 12 hours for it to clear customs. Really now, last I checked, pants and shirts are not exactly dangerous materials. I asked him, “How is this fair to me?” and his reply was the amsuing “What do you mean by fair?” And I thought Clinton was sly for asking what the definition of “is” is.

Anyways, with that delivery date, I had to go to the airport to get the bag myself. I caught a taxi to the airport, and once again, had to pull my trick with the US Airways boarding pass to get through security. This time, however, the security guy did notice that the ticket was not correct, but then I explained I needed to get to the “Lost Baggage” area and claim my bag. Why they don't have this area outside the secured area is beyond me.

Tellingly, the shutters had been pulled down over the department's desk, but my bag was lying outside so I grabbed it and left. The customs people gave me a bit of trouble, deciding they had to check my bag thoroughly. I had an amusing conversation with a customs official about peanut butter (he said it was not allowed through because no animal products could be let through), but I tried to explain that it literally is “mantequilla de cacahuete.” Finally, his superior came by and let him know that it was ok to let that through.

Moral #1: Don't fly British Airways. This is the second time I flew British Airways, and the second time I got screwed. The first was when I made a tour of Europe in 2006, and flew into London but because of a mysterious 5 hour delay in SFO, missed my connection to Bologna and so had to spend the night in London. Go overseas and get overseized indeed. Sealing the deal, it looks like British Airways is the worst baggage handler of any European airline (see: http://www.flyingabroad.co.uk/News/April-2007/British-Airways-baggage-handlers-lose-most-luggage.aspx).

Moral #2: Barcelona security is pretty lax. I didn't have anything troublesome in my bag, but I hope they would have caught that if I did. Letting people through who don't have valid boarding passes (or even a good story) is not all that reassuring. Maybe the most troubling thing is that a family from LA decided they could just bypass security, lifted the boundary-setting ropes and just waltzed on through with nary a word from security. Odd, very odd.

Iberia, British Airways y American Airlines ultiman la firma de un acuerdo destinado a la constitución de una alianza transatlántica que estrechará los lazos entre las tres compañías aéreas, según explican fuentes conocedoras del proyecto.

Las aerolíneas, que pretenden tener cerrado este mes el acuerdo, solicitarán la inmunidad antimonopolio contemplada en la legislación estadounidense. Sin esta inmunidad, las tres compañías ven restringidas sus posibilidades de coordinar horarios y tarifas, compartir ingresos y establecer cuentas conjuntas de explotación.

American, British Airways e Iberia forman parte de Oneworld, una de las tres grandes alianzas aéreas que permiten a los pasajeros sumar puntos en sus tarjetas de fidelización en trayectos operados por compañías socias. Sin embargo, el acuerdo bilateral vigente entre American Airlines y British Airways excluye las rutas transatlánticas, donde un fortalecimiento de las relaciones podría ofrecer mayores ventajas a las dos compañías y a sus pasajeros.

Ventana a Latinoamérica
Los elevados precios del petróleo y el acuerdo de cielos abiertos entre Europa y Estados Unidos, con la consiguiente mitigación de las restricciones en los aeropuertos europeos y norteamericanos, han llevado a muchas de las principales aerolíneas a estrechar sus viejas alianzas o crear otras nuevas. Delta Air Lines y Northwest Airlines consiguieron a principios de año la inmunidad antimonopolio con su socio intercontinental, Air France-KLM, sólo para anunciar posteriormente su proyecto de fusión.

En el caso de la alianza triangular en ciernes, la entrada de Iberia proporcionaría tanto a la aerolínea americana como a la británica unos vínculos vitales entre Europa Continental y Sudamérica. La aerolínea estadounidense ya había dado pasos previos para pedir la inmunidad antimonopolio junto con la compañía española. Esta petición no ha llegado hasta el mes de junio, mientras mantenía negociaciones con British Airways y otras compañías. Tanto American como su socia británica, que controla un 13,5% en el capital de Iberia, trataron de atraer a su rival Continental Airlines a su alianza. Sin embargo, Continental optó finalmente por estrechar sus lazos con United Airlines, Lufthansa y Air Canada, aerolíneas pertenecientes a la alianza Star Alliance.

La legislación antimonopolio estadounidense ha bloqueado históricamente los esfuerzos de American Airlines de estrechar lazos con su socia British Airways. Los dos grupos buscaron inmunidad en 1997 y 2001, peticiones rechazada por las autoridades norteamericanas. Los reguladores condicionaron su aprobación a que ambas se desprendieran de derechos horarios de vuelo (slots) en el aeropuerto londinense de Heatrow, un precio considerado entonces demasiado alto, pero que ahora ambas creen que no será necesario pagar, gracias a la entrada en vigor del acuerdo de cielos abiertos.

Otra consecuencia de este tratado de cielos abiertos es la adquisición de la aerolínea francesa L’Avion por parte de British Airways, anunciada ayer por la británica.

El líder en los vuelos hacia América Latina
Iberia es el líder de los vuelos entre Europa y América Latina con una cuota de mercado del 20%. La aerolínea presidida por Fernando Conte ha estado apostando en los últimos años por aumentar su oferta hacia Sudamérica y reducir su peso en el mercado doméstico y europeo, donde sufre el acoso de las aerolíneas de bajo coste. La empresa registró el año pasado un beneficio de 327 millones de euros y unos ingresos de 5.304 millones.

La británica se enroca en Heathrow
British Airways domina con mano de hierro las conexiones entre Europa y Estados Unidos gracias a su posición preeminente en el aeropuerto londinense de Heathrow, que concentra el 40% de los pasajeros entre ambas orillas del Atlántico. El acuerdo de cielos abiertos ha puesto en peligro este dominio. British ganó en su último ejercicio fiscal 680 millones de libras (859 millones de euros) e ingresó más de 8.753 millones de libras.

La americana quiere recuperar su trono
American Airlines perdió hace unos meses su condición de mayor aerolínea del mundo por pasajeros, tras la fusión de Delta con Northwest. American transporta 119 millones de viajeros por los 160 millones de sus dos rivales, que han iniciado el baile de fusiones aéreas en Estados Unidos. El socio de Iberia y British facturó el año pasado 22.833 millones de dólares (14. 481 millones de euros) y registró un beneficio neto de 356 millones de dólares

Via: Expansion

Más de 1000 vuelos de bajo coste (los más baratos) en más de 50 líneas aéreas disponibles desde España

1. Vuelos de Bajo Coste Clasificados por Ciudad de Origen en España - Vueling, Ryanair, etc...
(aconsejado si quieres ver que vuelos baratos hay disponibles deste tu ciudad en España)

2. Lista de Compañías Aéreas de Bajo Coste que operan en España

Y además:

3. Buscadores de Ofertas de Vuelos de las mejores agencias de viajes online en España

4. Ofertas de Líneas Regulares desde Todos los Aeropuertos Españoles a todos los destinos internacionales y nacionales, es decir los mejores precios de Iberia, Spanair, Air Europa, etc.
(estas ofertas no incluyen vuelos de bajo coste, se recomienda ver ambas opciones y comparar precio)

5. Lista de las principales Compañías Aéreas de Vuelos Regulares operando en España (Iberia, Spanair, Air Europa, Air France, British Airways, etc.) , sus destinos y reservas de billetes

Y muchas otras ofertas de hoteles, viajes y alquiler de coches

¿Qué es Reservar-Vuelo.com?

Guía 100% gratuita de todas las aerolíneas de bajo coste con las que se puede volar y viajar en España, con sus vuelos y billetes de avión clasificados por ciudad de origen y por compañía aerea

Más de 50 líneas ofrecen más de 1.000 Vuelos de Bajo Coste, llamados "vuelos baratos" o de bajo precio

¿Qué PRECIOS y BILLETES se pueden encontrar en Reservar-Vuelo.com?

Los precios de las compañías de bajo coste suelen ser las tarifas más baratas que se puede encontrar para un vuelo determinado (hasta 1 euro e incluso gratis en promociones), siempre que se eviten los billetes de avión más solicitados, que en estas líneas baratas son los de fines de semana y días festivos.

Estos precios no son una oferta puntual o el "ofertas desde X euros" con el que las compañías aéreas publicitan sus billetes de avión pero que muchas veces son un precio no disponible o con restricciones.

Lista de Compañías Aéreas de Bajo Coste (Low Cost) Operando en España (También Disponibles Tablas Muy Detalladas por Vuelo y Ciudad de Origen ) Aerolínea Ciudades de España donde Opera Destinos Internacionales desde España Rutas Internas en España Vueling Barcelona, Madrid, Palma, Ibiza, Menorca, Sevilla, Valencia, Málaga, Bilbao, Alicante, Granada y Santiago de Compostela Desde Barcelona y Madrid: París, Milán, Buselas, Roma, Lisboa y Amsterdam Sólo desde Barcelona: Venecia (nuevo) Desde Valencia: París, Milán, Buselas y Amsterdam Ahora también reserva de hoteles y alquiler de coches en sus ciudades de destino Barcelona-Madrid, Barcelona-Ibiza, Barcelona-Palma, Barcelona-Sevilla, Barcelona-Bilbao, Barcelona-Menorca, Barcelona-Málaga, Barcelona-Santiago, Barcelona-Alicante, Barcelona-Granada, Bilbao-Málaga, Valencia-Ibiza, Valencia-Sevilla, Valencia-Bilbao Aer Lingus Barcelona, Madrid, Sevilla, Valencia, Alicante, Bilbao, Las Palmas, Tenerife, Lanzarote, Almería, Fuerteventura, Palma de Mallorca, Málaga Para viajar a Dublín y Cork en Irlanda No Aerolíneas Argentinas Madrid Argentina (Buenos Aires), París y Londres No Air Baltic Barcelona Vuelo barato a Riga (Letonia) No Air Berlin Palma, Ibiza, Menorca, Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, Valencia, Sevilla, Alicante, Murcia, Jerez, Almeria, Málaga, Santiago de Compostela, Tenerife, Las Palmas, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura y La Palma Vuelos baratos desde todos los destinos en España a Alemania (varios destinos), Austria (Viena y Linz), Suiza (Zurich) y Londres (excepto Canarias) más rutas sólo desde Palma a Manchester (UK), Hungría (Budapest), Polonia, Portugal (Oporto, Lisboa y Faro) , Roma, Milán - Bergamo, París, Amsterdam y Copenague Vuelos desde todos los destinos donde opera en España (excepto Canarias) a Palma de Mallorca, además Tenerife-Lanzarote Air Finland Barcelona, Alicante, Málaga, Las Palmas, Tenerife Ofertas de viajes a Finlandia (Helsinki) desde todos los destinos en España No Air Madrid Madrid, Tenerife, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Barcelona, Málaga, Palma de Mallorca, Menorca e Ibiza Destinos en Sudamérica: Desde Madrid y Barcelona: Buenos Aires, Santiago de Chile, Bogotá, Cartagena de Indias, Guayaquil, Quito y Fortaleza en Brasil. Sólo desde Madrid: vuelos a Lima, México DF, San José de Costa Rica y Panamá. Tenerife / Las Palmas a Buenos Aires. Tenerife: también Bogotá y Chile (el vuelo a Venezuela-Caracas ya no existe). Destinos en Europa: Desde Madrid: Roma, Milán, París, Bucarest (Rumania) y Tel Aviv (Israel) Desde Barcelona: Bucarest (Rumania) De Madrid a: Barcelona Palma de Mallorca Málaga Tenerife Ibiza Menorca-Mahón De Barcelona a: Tenerife Las Palmas Madrid De Mallorca a: Ibiza Menorca Madrid Air Plus Comet Madrid Desde Madrid a Milán y Roma en Europa, Bogotá, Lima y Santo Domingo (República Dominicana) en Sudamérica y vuelos a Nueva York (Estados Unidos) Nota: No es línea de bajo coste estricta, es una charter con las líneas regulares mencionadas No Air Scotland Alicante, Barcelona, Málaga, Gerona, Palma de Mallorca Manchester y Glasgow (desde todos los destinos españoles, excepto Barcelona que sólo Manchester) y desde Girona también a Newcastle y Birmingham No Alpieagles Barcelona Para viajar a Nápoles y Venecia No Baboo Valencia, Ibiza Ginebra (Suiza) No Blue Air Reus Ofertas a Bucarest (Rumania) No BMI Baby Alicante, Málaga, Palma Vuelos bajo coste a Birmingham, Manchester, Londres, Cardiff, Durham Tees Valley y Nottingham (desde Málaga no vuela a Londres) No British European (flybe) Alicante, Palma de Mallorca, Málaga, Murcia Birmingham, Norwich, Exeter y Southampton, ciudades del Reino Unido (desde Palma no vuela a Norwich) y además desde Murcia a Guernsey No Central Wings Girona, Tenerife Ofertas a Polonia (Varsovia) No Condor Palma, Ibiza, Menorca,Valencia, Almeria, Jerez, Málaga, Tenerife, Las Palmas, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura y La Palma Desde todos los destinos en España a Alemania (Hamburgo, Munich y Frankfurt) Desde Palma a Valencia, Almería, Jerez, y Málaga EasyJet Palma, Ibiza, Madrid, Menorca, Barcelona, Bilbao, Valencia, Alicante, Málaga, Murcia, Almería y Oviedo (Asturias) Easy Jet tiene vuelos baratos a Londres (Gatwick, Luton y/o Stanstead) desde todos los destinos españoles y a otras ciudades británicas, (Bristol, Belfast, Newcastle, Birmingham, Liverpool) . Vuelos a Alemania (Berlin y Dortmund) desde Madrid, Barcelona, Palma y Alicante. Vuelos a Paris, Ginebra y Basilea (Madrid, Málaga, Barcelona y otros), Milán (Madrid, Málaga e Ibiza) Recomendado ver tabla por aeropuerto de origen No EU Jet Barcelona, Valencia, Alicante, Gerona, Málaga, Murcia, Palma e Ibiza Desde todos los destinos en España a Inglaterra (Kent) y a Irlanda (Shannon) desde sólo Murcia, Málaga, Ibiza y Palma No Evolavia Barcelona Billetes de avión a Ancona (Italia) No Excel Airways Palma, Menorca,Alicante, Almeria, Málaga, Tenerife, Las Palmas, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura Londres y otras ciudades británicas (Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle y Glasgow) No Fly Dba Ibiza Alemania (Munich y Hamburgo) No Fly Nordic Barcelona, Alicante, Málaga Estocolmo (Suecia) No First Choice Flights Alicante, Almería, Girona, Málaga, Reus, Palma, Mahón, Ibiza, Lanzarote, Las Palmas, Fuerteventura, Tenerife Ofertas de vuelos muy baratos a Londres, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Nottingham, Manchester, Exeter y Glasgow No German Wings Madrid, Barcelona, Málaga, Alicante y Palma Stuttgart (Alemania) desde todos sus destinos españoles, salvo Ibiza, y desde Madrid, Ibiza y Barcelona también a Colonia No Germania Express Barcelona Berlín, Hanover, Franfurt, Colonia, Munich, Hamburgo, Dusseldorf (Alemania) No Globespan Madrid, Barcelona, Alicante, Málaga, Palma, Las Palmas, Tenerife y Lanzarote Glasgow y Edimburgo desde todos los destinos, salvo Madrid (sólo Edimburgo) y los destinos en Canarias (sólo Glasgow) No Hapag Lloyd / Hapag Lloyd Express Barcelona, Madrid, Palma, Ibiza, Menorca, Bilbao, Valencia, Sevilla, Alicante, Murcia, Almería, Jerez, Málaga, Tenerife, Las Palmas, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, La Palma Vuelos a Alemania (Berlín, Frankfurt, Hambuergo, Munich, Colonia, Stuttgart y Dortmund) y a Suiza (Basilea) . Mayoría de rutas operadas por compañia matriz pero otras desde Bilbao, Palma y Valencia, también disponibles en Hapag Lloyd Express, que es en general más barata Alicante-Palma, Almería-Palma, Málaga-Palma, Jerez-Palma Helvetic Airways Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia, Málaga, Alicante y Palma Suiza (Zurich) No Jet2 Barcelona, Málaga, Ibiza, Valencia, Alicante y Murcia Viajes a Leeds (Reino Unido) desde todos sus destinos españoles, más Manchester y Belfast desde algunos de ellos No Jet Only Almería, Alicante, Jerez, Reus, Girona, Málaga, Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, Menorca, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, Las Palmas, Tenerife y La Palma Bélgica (Bruselas desde todos los destinos españoles y también Ostende / Brujas y Lieja desde algunos destinos). También Holanda (Eindhoven y Maastricht) desde Las Palmas y Tenerife. Vuelos a Lille (Francia) desde Palma de Mallorca. No Loco Flights Alicante, Málaga, Lanzarote y Tenerife Manchester y Newcastle (Inglaterra) desde todos los destinos. Desde Lanzarote y Tenerife también a Glasgow (Escocia). Y además, sólo desde Tenerife, a Londres, Bristol y Birmingham No LTU Palma, Ibiza, Alicante, Almerñia, Málaga, Tenerife, Las Palmas, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura y La Palma Vuelos económicos a distintos destinos en Alemania (Frankfurt, Hamburgo, Munich, Colonia, Stuttgart, Berlin y Dusseldorf) No Maersk Air   Esta compañia aérea se fusionó con Sterling a finales de 2005 No Meridiana Madrid, Barcelona Billetes de avión a Florencia (Italia) y desde Madrid también a Palermo No Monarch Airlines Madrid, Barcelona, Alicante, Málaga, Almería, Palma, Menorca, Tenerife, Las Palmas, Lanzarote Londres, Manchester y Birmingham (Reino Unido) Recomendado ver tabla por aeropuerto de origen ya que los tres destinos no están disponibles desde todas las ciudaddes No My Air Barcelona, Madrid, Palma de Mallorca e Ibiza Destinos en Italia. Desde Madrid e Ibiza a Bergamo (Milán) y Venecia. Desde Barcelona a Venecia. Desde Palma a Milán. No My Travel Lite Barcelona, Alicante, Almería, Málaga, Murcia, Palma, Menorca, Ibiza, Las Palmas, Tenerife, Lanzarote Birmingham (Reino Unido) - Línea aérea con cada vez mas frecuencias de conexiones entre Bormingham y España No Norwegian Air Shuttle Alicante, Málaga, Murcia Oslo (Noruega) desde los tres destinos españoles. También a Stavanger y Bergen (Noruega) desde Murcia y Málaga. Y sólo desde Murcia a Trondheim (Noruega) No Ryanair Gerona, Santander, Valladolid, Zaragoza, Reus, Valencia, Murcia, Almería, Málaga, Jerez, Santiago de Compostela, Granada y Sevilla Grandes ofertas de vuelos a varias ciudades europeas (Londres, Frankfurt, Roma, Bruselas, Milán, Roma, Dublín, etc.) - Para saber con exactitud, ver tablas detalladas por aeropuerto de salida No Sky Europe Barcelona Hungría (Budapest), Polonia (Cracovia), Eslovaquia (Bratislava y Kosice) y Austria (Viena) No Smart Wings Madrid, Palma de Mallorca Praga (Chequia) No SnowFlake Madrid, Alicante, Bilbao, Málaga y Palma Suecia (Estocolmo) No Southern Winds Madrid Argentina (Buenos Aires) No Sterling Barcelona, Alicante, Málaga, Murcia, Palma de Mallorca, Las Palmas, Tenerife, Lanzarote Suecia (Estocolmo y Goteborg), Noruega (Oslo, Stavanger y Bergen) y Dinamarca (Copenhague y Billund) e Islas Faroe Recomendado ver tabla por aeropuerto de origen ya que todos los destinos no están disponibles desde todas las ciudaddes No Tarleton Flights Almería y Menorca-Mahón Vuelos baratos a ambas ciudades desde Londres (Gatwick y Stansted) y desde Manchester, Birmingham y Nottingham (East Midlans). También desde Dublín (Irlanda). No Thomsonfly Brcelona, Valencia, Alicante, Málaga, Palma e Ibiza Thomson Fly vuela a Coventry y Sheffield (Reino Unido) desde todos sus destinos españoles, salvo Barcelona (sólo Coventry). Además desde Málaga y Palma de Mallorca, también Bournemouth No Transavia ex Basiq Air Madrid, Barcelona, Gerona, Alicante, Málaga, Almería, Sevilla, Palma, Fuerteventura, Tenerife, Las Palmas, Lanzarote , La Palma Amsterdam (Holanda) desde todos los destinos españoles menos Girona Desde sólo Girona, Alicante y Málaga también Rotterdam (Holanda) No Virgin Express Barcelona, Madrid, Málaga, Valencia y Palma Bruselas (Bélgica) No Volare Web Barcelona Bilbao, Valencia y Madrid Ofertas de vuelos a Italia (Venecia desde Madrid y Barcelona, Roma y Milán desde Barcelona, Bilbao y Valencia, Catania sólo desde Barcelona) No Wizz Air Gerona, Palma de Mallorca Budapest (Hungría) y Polonia (Cracovia). Sólo desde Girona también Varsovia (Polonia) No

Todos los pasajeros desembarcaron sin problemas y el vuelo fue cancelado. El avión realizó al día siguiente un vuelo ferry a Londres para someterse a una inspección.

Las autoridades de Belgrado comentaron que algunos pasajeros sufrieron pánico al pensar en si se trataría de un ataque terrorista con algún tipo de gas mortal.

Las autoridades aeroportuarias asumieron inicialmente que algún bote con contenido químico podría haber explotado en el compartimento de carga pero, para su sorpresa y la de todos nosotros, pronto detectaron que el fuerte olor se debía a un contenedor lleno de curry. Sí, ese tipo de especia con ese olor tan característico probocó la cancelación de un vuelo y el pánico de sus pasajeros.

Fuente: AVHerald.

Facts about L'Avion -

• Founded by - 31 year old French entrepreneur Frantz Yvelin
• First flight - January 3rd 2007 (Orly Airport, Paris to New York's Newark Airport)
• Fleet - Two Boeing 757-200 with 90 business class seats in 2x2 configuration
• Interesting Fact - Fares are generally much lower than other major airlines flying the route
• Fun Fact - Initially named Elysair but changed after a market research
• For virtual tour - CLICK HERE

The family were not deported today as the home office had planned. Though they were taken to the airport at 6am this morning and actually boarded the plane bound for Nigeria. On board the plane Kemi said she overheard British Airways staff talking about 'all the phone calls' before informing the family that they were unable to fly them as they had been advised she was not fit to travel. Kemi was admitted to hospital Monday afternoon and though discharged late Monday night she is still suffering with serve back pain. None of the family has had their malaria immunization, which the Home Office has a duty to provide when travelling to Nigeria. The malaria immunization process requires a period of two and half weeks for a pregnant woman.

Tuesday morning we contacted the British Airways Pre-Medical Clearance Unit about the family’s case to alert them of our concerns about their health should they be deported. We passed the contact details on to our email list and asked people also raise their concerns. We believe it was this direct pressure from the local community on the airline to refuse to comply with the immoral wishes of the Home office that stopped this deportation.

Of course the family’s case is not over; they are currently imprisoned in Yarlswood detention centre (pictured), without legal representation and still with the threat of immanent deportation hanging over them. No Borders South Wales have been in regular contact over the phone and along with members of the local Nigerian community in Cardiff are in the process of getting proper legal representation for the family. As of yet Kemi and Taiwo haven't been given any further details about what the Home Office is going to do with them. Detainees are required to be given their removal details at least 72 hours before there is an attempt to deport.

Thank-you to everyone who got in contact, especially with the airline, it can get results. If anyone would like to get more involved with deportation campaigns either with No Borders or just learn what they can be effective with over the phone/internet please get in contact, and if you can, come along to the No Borders Public meeting this Thursday.

There is now a page at the National Coalition of Anti-Deportation Campaigns about this case. check it out here.

Kemi Ayinde is a 24 year old woman from Nigeria who was trafficked to the UK seven years ago and forced to work in London as a prostitute.

Taiwo Salami is her partner, also from Nigeria with whom she has an 18 month old daughter Yasmin Salami. The family’s claim for asylum has been refused and they were snatched from their home in Cardiff on 17th June 2008 are are currently being detained in Yarlswood Detention Centre. Their removal is scheduled for Tuesday 1st July on a British Airways flight.

Kemi is 5 months pregnant and is experiencing complications, not able to stand up without holding onto something. Her 18 month daughter is suffering a painful skin complaint. The family have not received appropriate medical care whilst in detention. They also haven't received the anti-malaria immunisation they are entitled to in order to go this region.

Please use this model letter to fax or e-mail the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith: Fax: 020 8760 3132 E-mail: jacqui.smith@homeoffice.gov.uk

and use this model letter to fax or e-mail the British Airways chief executive, Willie Walsh: Fax: 020 8759 4314 Email: willie.walsh@ba.com

Please take a few minutes to help this family. Thank you.

Anyway. As I wound my way through the BA pages I found they are now kindly offering me the option of offsetting the carbon footprint of our flight!! This is one of those "firsts" moments in life, when something completely weird slaps you round the chops and makes you say "What the f***?", or something less unsavoury depending on your vocabulary.

Yes, offsetting your footprint is now an option and something you can, no doubt, brag about while in the BA lounge or during the flight:

"Jolly good, this idea of offsetting one's footprint, don't you think?"

"Snort, snort! Jeremy! You are so awfully funny!"

So, if you were contemplating offsetting your footprint, as I'm sure you were, below are some details from the BA site. For the three of us, the cost of offsetting is 73.50 PLN. This will be given to the kind gentlemen at Morgan Stanley who will invest it in "green" things, like dollar bills in their account, one assumes.

Offset the carbon emissions for these flights

You can help minimise the impact of your flying by offsetting your carbon emissions. The total carbon emissions from your itinerary are 1.14 tonnes and the cost of offsetting your emissions is PLN73.50.

Your money will go towards UN certified emission reduction projects.

* Please be aware that once your carbon offset contribution is paid, it cannot be refunded.

There are two key elements to our calculation of the suggested carbon offset contribution for your flights:

* The amount of CO2 produced from your flying
* The cost of certified emission reduction

Calculation of the CO2 produced from your flying

We calculate the CO2 of your flying using UK Government data for the carbon emissions for air travel. This tells us how much CO2 is produced for each kilometre travelled. This amount reduces the further you travel, as flying longer distances is more fuel-efficient.
From To Distance in km Kg of CO2 per km Number of passengers Tonnes
Warsaw Gatwick (London) 1458 x 0.13 x 3 = 0.57
Gatwick (London) Warsaw 1458 x 0.13 x 3 = 0.57
The carbon footprint for your journey is 1.14
Cost of certified emission reduction

The cost of the certified emission reduction price of the offset is based on the market price, which may change from time to time due to supply and demand and also currency exchange rates.

Morgan Stanley, who are experts in sourcing certified emission reductions, will use your payment to fund a portfolio of projects selected for our customers to support. The cost of these projects is PLN64.46 per tonne. The cost of offsetting your carbon emissions is 1.14 tonnes x PLN 64.46 = PLN 73.50.