Jan 19, 2018  -  As airlines in Europe and the United States cut seat pitch, in-seat television screens and free food on short-haul flights — sometimes even in business class — airline executives often defend themselves by saying passengers may want more perks but few will pay for them.

Jan 18, 2018  - Hawaiian Airlines and Jetstar Group have launched a new interline partnership offering travellers from cities in New Zealand convenient flight connections to Hawai'i and the USA mainland.

Jan 16, 2018  - New Zealand travellers’ connections to Istanbul will improve from June 8 when Emirates resumes flights between Dubai and Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport.  The resumption of services on the route will allow customers two airport options when travelling Emirates to Istanbul.

Jan 16, 2018  -  OAG, the global authority on airline and airport data, selected  an airline that even travel agents may not be familiar with as No 1 in their  top 10 list of the world's most   punctual “mainline” airlines in the world (meaning reasonably major), each with the percentage of flights that arrive within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival time.

Jan 11, 2018  -  With the holiday season in full swing and tourists pouring in through the country's gateways if your thoughts have turned toward getting into the motel business and fancy yourself as a minehost then the Motel Operators Handbook 2017 published by Hospitality New Zealand should be on your reading list.

The guides contents include:

Buying a Motel   Looking for a MotelAn Introduction to Purchasing or Leasing a MotelRepairs and MaintenanceResponsibilities in the lawLand Transfer RegistrationThe Accounts and Financial PlanningValuationsFinancing and Due DiligenceFinancial SecuritySetting up your motelRunning your motel

Continue here to order your copy

| An MSCNewsWire  info item ||  January 11, 2018   |||

Jan 9, 2018  -  Thats right  IATA CEO Alexandre de Juniac has come out swinging with accusations that the global aviation industry is in a crisis writes Hannah Edensor for TravelWeekly.  The major player in aviation claimed, in his latest IATA blog post, that “we are headed for an infrastructure crisis”, in which airports are over-committed and under-resourced.

“Many of the world’s airports are operating at or beyond their design capacity,” he wrote.

“The provision of air navigation services in major markets like the United States, Europe and China is struggling to keep pace with the technical capabilities to manage demand at optimum efficiency.”

According to de Juniac, the world’s airports need to undergo reform, despite it seeming like a bit of a long shot.

“We don’t see governments preparing to make the investments today that will be needed to cope with future growth—especially as major infrastructure planning cycles are now measured in decades,” de Juniac claimed.

“THERE IS ALSO A CRISIS IN THE COST OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND EUROPE, UNFORTUNATELY, PROVIDES THE EXAMPLE.

“Over the last decade, passenger charges on the average one-way ticket have more than doubled—from €16 ($19) to €33 ($39). Over the same period the airfare portion of the average ticket price fell.

“Why these divergent courses? The bluntest explanation rests on pure market forces,” de Juniac asserted.

“Airlines are subjected to intense competition. So they are in a constant search for the efficiencies needed to make a more compelling price offering to their customers.

“Airports, on the other hand, are not subjected to the same competitive pressures. With very few exceptions, there is no choice of airports.

“If you want to fly to Amsterdam, for example, Schiphol is your only choice. And when it looks like there might be competition as in Paris, you find that Orly and Charles de Gaulle have the same owner.

“AIRPORTS ARE CRITICAL PARTNERS FOR AIRLINES. WITHOUT THEM, AIRLINES WOULD LITERALLY HAVE NO PLACE TO TAKE THEIR PASSENGERS.

“And we are working in partnership with airports to make improvements in key areas such as security, the environment, and the passenger experience.

“But when it comes to charges, the market power of airports is dominant. And that is reflected by European airports, which, despite a light-handed airport charges directive trying to promote efficiency, still managed to double their passenger charges.

“The good news is that the European Union (EU) is set to consider reviewing its airport charges directive. And airlines (the main customer of the airports) are asking, in no uncertain terms, that it be substantially strengthened.

“STRENGTHENED REGULATION WILL, IN THE FIRST INSTANCE, PROTECT PASSENGERS. HAD EUROPEAN CHARGES REMAINED AT 2006 LEVELS WE ESTIMATE THAT 50 MILLION MORE PEOPLE WOULD BE FLYING IN EUROPE TODAY.

“And that would pay big dividends by creating some 238,000 jobs and adding €50 billion to the continent’s GDP.

“Those are figures that EU regulators should find hard to ignore. Our goal is to find a regulatory regime that fairly balances the interests of airports, passengers, airlines, citizens and the economy.

“If we can achieve that, it will be a hot export commodity. Other regions would have to take note.

“Because the challenges of high airport charges are in no way limited to what we see in Europe!”

Source:  TravelWeekly  ||  January 9, 2018   |||

Jan 9, 2018  -  Supersonic passenger flight at reasonable cost has come a step closer with the news that Japan Airlines (JAL) has joined US aerospace developer Boom Supersonic to bring commercial supersonic travel to passengers at fares about the same as today’s business class tickets.

Jan 9, 2018  -  Airbnb has been moving beyond homesharing for awhile now. After venturing into experiences and dining, what part of travel will the company tackle next asks Skift's Hannah Sampson.

Nathan Blecharczyk, an Airbnb co-founder and chief strategy officer, shared his thoughts about the homesharing company branching out into restaurant reservations, trying to become a go-to site for a diverse set of travel needs, and the importance of attracting business travelers with the team from travel media company Skift. 

Business travelers made up about 10 percent of Airbnb’s business in the early days, a number that has increased to 15 percent, Blecharczyk said.

“If you’re on that business trip for a week or more, you really do value the feeling of home,” he said. “We also see a lot of people combining business and leisure, we see a lot of people adding on the weekend, staying the weekend and exploring a little bit.”

He said the company’s expansion into experiences and, in September, restaurants, are indicative of Airbnb’s ambitions to play a bigger role in travel.

“This vision of becoming a platform for the entire trip is a really huge one,” he said. “And we’ve only just started, with homes, experiences, and now restaurants. But everything else that you need when you travel we think belongs in the Airbnb app. We want to be that one-stop shop.”

Source:  Skift by Hannah Sampson  ||  January 8, 2018   |||

Dec 19, 2017  -  The world’s steepest funicular line - which can climb a 110% gradient - has opened to the public at the Alpine resort of Stoos in central Switzerland.  Swiss President Doris Leuthard officially opened CHF52 million ($53 million) project running from Schywz to the mountain village of Stoosexternal link, which lies 1,300 meters above sea level, on Friday evening. The public got their first taste on Sunday. Saturday was reserved for the locals.

Continue here for a look at what can be seen when in the funicular.

The funicular opened two years later than planned due to engineering and money problems. But this was forgotten as Leuthard cut the red ribbon. In her speech, she praised the project’s organisers for their courage. Many funiculars are not profitable. “But the board, canton and the region believe in the future. I am convinced that this will pay off,” she said.

Leuthard, who also head the transport ministry, said that the funicular would also serve locals as well as tourists. “This is what characterises Switzerland, that we offer a service that everyone can use.”

Flexible carriages

The barrel-shaped carriages adjust their floors so passengers can still stand upright while they climb towards the Alpine plateau at inclines of up to 110%.

The train follows a 1,720-metre track, climbing or descending 743 metres. It reaches speeds of up to ten metres per second. The whole trip lasts around four minutes. 

The railway replaces an older one that has been in operation since 1933. “After 14 years of planning and building, everyone is very proud of this train,” said Ivan Steiner, spokesman for the railway.

+ Find out more about the different types of mountain railways in Switzerland here 

| A SwissInfo release  ||  December 19, 2017   |||

Dec 19, 2017  - In the world of aerospace engineering the race to build the first new civilian supersonic aircraft is certainly heating up. With several major players currently working on supersonic passenger jets, Aerion and Lockheed Martin are targeting those for whom even first class commercial air travel is substandard. The pair has just announced a partnership to develop the world's first supersonic business jet.

Aerion has been chugging away developing its AS2 supersonic business jet for several years now, first collaborating with Airbus on the aerodynamics and structural design before working with GE Aviation on the development of a supersonic engine. This latest announcement is a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Lockheed Martin to work together on all the future phases of development on the supersonic business jet from engineering to production.

"Following our initial review of Aerion's aerodynamic technology, our conclusion is that the Aerion AS2 concept warrants the further investment of our time and resources," says Orlando Carvalho, Executive Vice President for Lockheed Martin. "We are committed to remaining on the cutting edge of aerospace technology and are excited to examine the contribution we might make to working with Aerion on making aviation history."

Aerion has been subtly improving its supersonic jet engine design over the years after announcing a new three-engine configuration back in 2014. The latest design pulls the two outboard engines forward, under the wings, while leaving the third engine in the tail.

Aerion currently estimates the AS2 will be ready for its first flight by 2023 but several other companies are racing to be the first supersonic player in the new millennium. Earlier this year, Spike Aerospace took to the skies with a flight test of an unmanned SX-1.2 prototype demonstrator that is a subscale version of its planned S-512 supersonic passenger plane. The successful tests come ahead of a projected flight date for a full-scale S-512 in 2021.The new three-engine configuration

NASA is also working on its own designs for a a supersonic passenger plane, which is also aiming for first flight tests in 2021, with Lockheed Martin again helping with the engineering and design challenges.

Lockheed Martin's skill and experience with supersonic engineering seems to be a strong validation of Aerion's designs. The company is known for its supersonic combat aircraft so if any company has the know-how to move the technology into a civil or commercial application then it is Lockheed Martin.

The next few years promise to be exciting for fans of supersonic aviation.

Source:  Lockheed Martin and New Atlas  ||  December 19, 2017   |||