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Airline British Midlands (BMI) is trialling a mobile phone-based ticket system which could replace its print-at-home scheme if successful.

The text messages will display a barcode on the handset screen and will work only once to prevent unauthorised access to the boarding gate.

BMI’s goal is to speed up boarding times for customers travelling without luggage.

The airline is using the paperless system on routes connecting London to Edinburgh, Manchester and Belfast City.

source: vnunet.com

Airline bmi is to terminate its daily return service between Inverness and London Heathrow because of a lack of bookings.

The company said flights on the route, which was launched in March 2004, would end on 29 March.

Lib Dem MP Danny Alexander said it was a “disgraceful decision” to close the city’s only link to Heathrow.

Scottish Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson is seeking a meeting with the airline to urge a rethink on the move.

fuente: BBC

BMI, the UK’s third-largest airline, will start daily non-stop flights from London Heathrow to Tel Aviv’s Ben-Gurion Airport in March, becoming the second British carrier to fly that route. British Airways Plc had been the only UK airline allowed to operate between London and Tel Aviv.

The UK and Israeli governments agreed in September to allow another British carrier to operate the route.

source: The Jerusalem Post

Britain and Israel reached an agreement Tuesday for each country to allow a second airline to fly the London-Tel Aviv route.

Currently only British Airways and El Al make such commercial flights.

The Israeli Transportation Ministry called the agreement “a significant step toward opening the skies to competition.”

Britain’s Department for Transport said bmi is the only British airline that has expressed interest in competing with BA on the route, and bmi announced that it plans to start daily, nonstop service next spring.

source: International Herald Tribune

BMI is more than doubling its fleet of long-haul aircraft as it prepares to launch its first services between London and the US.

The move into the lucrative transatlantic market from Heathrow will start in next spring, as BMI takes advantage of the “open skies” agreement that was signed between the US and European Union (EU) earlier this year. The deal will allow European airlines for the first time to run transatlantic flights to any American city from any EU country, and not just their home country. In return, American carriers will have free access to European airports.

source: flightmapping.com

Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic said it remains interested in snapping up rival bmi, but a bmi spokeswoman reiterated on Friday that the carrier was not interested.

“We have always said we are interested in bmi and we will continue to look at it,” Virgin Atlantic spokesman Paul Charles was quoted as saying in the Daily Telegraph. A spokeswoman for the airline confirmed the remark late on Thursday.

She said Virgin Atlantic — 51-percent-owned by Branson and 49-percent by Singapore Airlines — had repeatedly acknowledged an interest in bmi.

source: Reuters

British airline BMI is considering taking legal action if Britain blocks an open skies deal between the European Union and the US. EU transport ministers will vote on the treaty on March 22 and the transport secretary, Douglas Alexander, has already signalled government opposition to the draft agreement. He said last week that in its current form it favoured Washington and “there remains work to be done“.

source: Guardian.co.uk

British air carrier bmi has begun twice daily service from London�??s Heathrow Airport to Moscow -Domodedovo International Airport. The flights are operated as a code-share deal between bmi and Transaero (Russia). Bmi will be responsible for one flight a day operating A-320 aircraft and the second flight will be under Transaero colours, using B737 aircraft.

source: Mice BTN