Trabber News

news about cheap fares and airlines from travel search engine Trabber


News of April 2008


US: Airlines to charge for second bag

22 April 2008

Five of the six major airlines in the United States plan to start charging coach passengers as much as $25 next month to check a second bag, the latest move in their quest to offset high fuel prices.

The new fee of $25 for a second bag is being levied by Continental, Delta, Northwest, United and US Airways. The low-fare carrier AirTran has announced that it will charge $10 for a second checked bag. Airlines have long levied fees for checking a third bag. Some carriers have recently increased those as well, and the fees on the major carriers now run as high as $100.

source: New York Times


Air Europa pilots strike against low-cost plans

22 April 2008

Air Europa pilots have called a strike from May 5 to 9 and could walk out again in June to protest against the airline’s plan to launch a low-cost airline, they said on Tuesday.The pilots worry that the launch of a second, low-cost airline will endanger jobs at Air Europa, one of Iberia’s main rivals on short-haul routes from Spain.

source: Reuters


Flybe grows fastest in Germany

22 April 2008

Flybe has been named as the fastest growing low cost airline flying to and from Germany.

Budget airline Flybe now offers 128 flights a week to Germany, compared to just 26 flights in 2006/7, an increase of 392%. The statistics are published in the latest ‘Low Cost Monitor’ survey from the German Centre for Aero- and Spacetravel, which tracks the development of low fares airlines operating to and from Germany.

source: holidayextras.co.uk


Russia poised for Alitalia talks

21 April 2008

Italy’s failing flag-carrier, Alitalia, faces a crucial week when its future looks likely to be decided at least as much by politics as economics.

Having made the salvation of the group’s “‘Italianness'” central to his successful election campaign, Silvio Berlusconi has to deliver on the promise of an alternative solution to the bid tabled and then withdrawn by Air France-KLM. The group has only enough cash to stay airborne until about the end of May.

Representatives of the incoming and outgoing governments agreed to find a way to keep Alitalia going while its fate was decided. Sources close to the talks said it could include a line of credit worth €100m (£80m) to €150m.

source: Guardian.co.uk


United to raise ticket change fee as fuel prices soar

21 April 2008

UAL Corp.’s United Airlines said on Sunday it was hiking the fee it charges passengers to change tickets from $100 to $150 in an effort to combat high fuel costs.

A spokeswoman for the airline said in an e-mailed statement that the company this weekend made the change to its ticketing policy.

It also added a Saturday night stay requirement on all tickets where it competes head-to-head with other legacy carriers, which she said will affect 65 percent of all the markets it serves. That will have the most impact on business travelers, who typically don’t want to spend a Saturday night in their destination.

source: Reuters


Heathrow Terminal 5 song is web hit

18 April 2008

Two disgruntled British Airways passengers have heaped more embarrassment on the airline by a posting a musical video mocking Terminal 5 on the internet.

Tim Soong turned to satire after BA managed to wreck his wedding plans by losing his luggage, leaving he and his best man, Andy Baynes, without their suits. His fiancée, Sokha Nhim, was also left minus her dress.

The video they made about the airline has become a runaway success on the video-sharing website YouTube and the song, which is likely to be released as a single, is getting repeated plays on London radio stations.

source: Telegraph.co.uk


Irish airline seeks to cancel bargain business flights to US

18 April 2008

Irish airline Aer Lingus is refusing to honour an online offer which mistakenly sold business class transatlantic flights for five euros (eight dollars, four pounds), a spokesman said Thursday.

The flights would normally sell for 1,775 euros one way, said Enda Corneille, Aer Lingus director of corporate affairs who apologised to the customers concerned.

It is a genuine mistake, a fundamental mistake on our part. We rectified it as quickly as we could. We have contacted the customers and given them the opportunity to re-book,” he told RTE state radio.

source: Yahoo!


Airline discount hides fares rise

17 April 2008

Low cost airline easyJet broke advertising rules by raising fares after promising a 25 per cent discount on all its routes, a watchdog said today.

Some passengers taking advantage of the Easter deal would have paid more for a seat than before it was introduced, the Advertising Standards Authority ruled.

It told easyJet not to use the claim again unless it made clear that prices, although discounted, could rise during the promotion.

source: scotsman.com


Several low-cost airlines grounded for good

17 April 2008

Oasis Airlines, a low-cost carrier based in Hong Kong, grounded its planes for good this week — the fourth in a recent string of bargain airlines to call it quits.

Launched in 2006, Oasis ended its run on Wednesday, citing the high price of jet fuel. It operated flights between Hong Kong and destinations including Vancouver and London, charging as little as $300 per flight.

Thousands of Oasis passengers have been left with useless tickets. The company continued to sell tickets until the end of March despite knowing much earlier in the month that it would be going out of business.

source: CTV.ca


New Egypt resort for airline

16 April 2008

A weekly service between Glasgow and the popular resort of Hurghada in Egypt is being launched by FlyGlobespan.

The service, which starts on November 5, is in addition to the airline’s weekly service to Egypt which flies to from Edinburgh to Sharm El Sheikh.

source: dailyrecord.co.uk