news about cheap fares and airlines from travel search engine Trabber

Tech-savvy travellers can now check flight statuses via Twitter with the new “tweet bot” service launched by Virgin Atlantic.

The “tweet bot” @VAAInfo, a first for any airline takes a customer query about a flight status and tweets back within seconds giving real-time flight departure and arrival information.

This new tool is perfect for passengers looking to check their flight status on the go as a quick, single line tweet will generate an immediate reply.

source: breakingtravelnews.com

AirAsia chief Tony Fernandes revealed Monday his plans to start a new super-premium regional airline in partnership with national carrier Malaysia Airlines.

Fernandes said the proposed short-haul carrier would cater largely to business travellers, among others, who need to travel across the region quickly.

Malaysia-based AirAsia has become one of the airline industry’s biggest success stories after Fernandes acquired the then-failing company a decade ago.

Its 2010 full-year net profit nearly doubled to 1.07 billion ringgit ($340 million) compared to 2009.

source: The Economic Times

German airline Lufthansa plans to boost passenger services to and from Berlin when the city’s new international airport opens next year.

The plans include expanding its fleet and passenger facilities, flying new routes and knocking down ticket prices amid fierce competition from no-frills airlines. The new airport, Berlin Brandenburg International, will be Germany’s third-largest once it opens its doors next year.

The move is likely to increase pressure on Lufthansa’s budget rivals. In addition to domestic player Air Berlin, the German capital is serviced by a number of no-frills carriers including Easyjet, Norwegian and Ryanair.

source: dw-world.de

French cabin crews have no right to tell Muslim women to remove their burqa aboard Air France flights – despite a nationwide ban on full face veils, the airline has ruled.

Islamic passengers can be ordered to remove the garment while waiting in French airports to board the plane at the gate. But once on board, they are free to put their burqa back on, according to an internal memo to staff from Air France’s legal department.

France’s controversial burqa ban which came into force in April makes it a criminal offence for for anyone to hide their face in public.

source: dailymail.co.uk

Embattled Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has become the butt of a joke used by low-cost carrier Ryanair to advertise one of its flight offers.

”Dear Berlusconi, another opportunity to escape with Ryanair,” the ad posted on the Irish carrier’s website said.

The ad was accompanied by a cartoon-like figure of the Italian premier, holding the latest edition of ”The Girls of Ryanair” – a calendar depicting several Ryanair female staff clad in bikinis.

source: skynews.com.au

Beset by high fuel costs and the uncertainty of European regulatory hurdles, the global profit forecast for the airline industry looks particularly grim next year, the head of the international airline trade association said Wednesday in Washington.

The world’s airlines will make less than a 1 percent profit in 2012, down from a projected 1.2 percent margin this year and 2.9 percent in 2010.

“‘The high price of oil and an anemic economic outlook are the biggest issues,’” Tyler said. “‘If we are right about 2012, it will mean that airlines, since 2001, lost $25 billion on $5.5 trillion in revenues.’”

source: washingtonpost.com

Fares are due to be released next week for a new all premium class service between Gatwick and Hong Kong.

Hong Kong Airlines plans daily flights with a dedicated fleet of three new Airbus A330-200s with an all business class seating configuration in two classes – ‘Club Premier’ and ‘Club Classic’.

The arrival of Hong Kong Airlines next year follows Air Asia X switching its Kuala Lumpur service from Stansted to Gatwick and Vietnam Airlines launching a direct service to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City on December 9.

source: travelweekly.co.uk

Vueling, Europe’s fourth biggest LCC, and the biggest airline at Barcelona’s main El Prat Airport, has announced plans to start 13 new routes next summer from Spain’s second busiest airport. Last year, the Spanish LCC that is part-owned by Iberia carried over seven million passengers at the airport, accounting for one in four passengers.

In the first nine months of this year, it has carried 5.9 million passengers at the airport, representing 22.2% of the total.

source: anna.aero

The owners of the Ballymascanlon House Hotel in Co Louth have taken a legal action for damages against internet giant Google, alleging defamation of the hotel’s business and reputation via Google’s web search service.

It is alleged that Google had permitted, since about March 14th 2011, the term “‘receivership’” to automatically appear after the hotel’s trading name when a search is carried out in the autocomplete suggestions in the search bar.

This suggested the hotel was in receivership or financial difficulty when it was not, the plaintiffs claim.

source: irishtimes.com

BA will fly the Olympic Torch to the UK in May next year as a supporting partner of the Olympic Torch Relay.

The Olympic Flame will be lit in Olympia, Greece before travelling to the UK on 18 May.

Its 70-day journey around the UK starts on 19 May in Land’s End, Cornwall. From there it will travel an estimated 8,000 miles around the country.

The Torch Relay is presented by Coca-Cola, Lloyds TSB and Samsung. BA is a tier one sponsor of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

source: marketingmagazine.co.uk