news about cheap fares and airlines from travel search engine Trabber

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Now the ministry of industry and AENA, the state-run company that controls the nation’s airports, are considering plans to reduce operating hours at three quarters of the airports to include only those when flights are due or with a skeleton staff to operate in an emergency.

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In all, there are 20 airports that handle fewer than 100,000 passengers a year, well below the estimated half a million they need to be profitable.

The nation’s two private airports are faring no better. Ciudad Real, which opened in 2008 with the expectation of becoming the capital’s second airport to rival Barajas to the north, was cut from scheduled routes in October last year due to a lack of demand from passengers.

source: Telegraph.co.uk

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Business travellers want a more “‘stress-free’” experience when moving through airports while the majority also criticised airports’ current security processes.

A global study by technology firm Amadeus found that 72 per cent of travellers thought that the current journey from check-in to boarding was inefficient and 69 per cent said security procedures needed to be improved.

It also found that more travellers were now seeing technology as a crucial part of the airport experience with many wanting to control the entire process through their smartphones.

source: abtn.co.uk

China is expected to become the biggest market for business travel within three years according to research by the GBTA.

The association’s Business Travel Index (BTI) is forecasting that corporate travel spending in China will rise by 17 per cent to $202 billion this year and by another 21 per cent to $245 billion next year.

China is currently ranked second behind the US in terms of business travel spending with a total of $182 billion in 2011 compared to $250 billion in the US. The UK is ranked fourth globally for travel spending at $38 billion with Japan in third position at $65 billion.

source: abtn.co.uk

Heathrow Airport will cope with the huge surge in passengers and baggage during the Olympics, despite concerns over queues and security, BAA has reassured the public.

The airport, which will experience its busiest ever day on August 13 – the day after the Olympics closing ceremony – has pumped more than £20 million into the 2012 Games to make sure athletes and tourists can arrive and leave without a hitch.

At a briefing in central London, authorities insisted people will not suffer because of problems with the UK’s borders.

source: dailymail.co.uk

Low-cost airline easyJet has extended its relationship with Sabre Travel Network to distribute its fares and services to travel agencies.

The agreement has been expanded to provide further distribution to Sabre-connected travel agencies with access to easyJet fares through the global distribution system (GDS).

Agents will soon be able to take advantage of easyJet’s allocated seating trial, which is currently running on selected routes across the network.

source: breakingtravelnews.com

Budget airline Ryanair reported record profits Monday as its recession-resistant business model continued to attract passengers from higher-fare carriers amid Europe’s debt crisis.

The Dublin-based airline said its net profit for the fiscal year ending March 31 rose nearly 50 percent to €560.4 million ($715 million), the highest figure ever for the 27-year-old airline.

Ryanair ” known for its brash boss and its in-your-face advertising style ” did offer a typically cautious outlook. It forecast that passenger numbers in the current fiscal year would rise a further 5 percent to 79 million, chiefly in the peak April-September period, but rising fuel costs were likely to weaken profits to an annual net figure of between €400 million and €440 million.

source: Associated Press

Rio de Janeiro has overtaken Sydney as the world’s most expensive major city for a hotel stay.

The average cost of a night in the Brazilian city during the first three months of 2012 was £192.88, nearly 50 per cent more expensive than during the same period last year.

The research attributes the sharp rise to Brazil’s strong economy and improved infrastructure ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games. It added that this year’s Rio Carnival also attracted a record number of visitors.

source: Telegraph.co.uk

Starting today, Air Berlin will connect the German capital Berlin with the American city of Los Angeles on the west coast of the United States. The summer schedule features 3 weekly flights with an Airbus 330-200 from Berlin towards Hollywood. The inaugural flight was celebrated this morning in Terminal B at Berlin-Tegel.

source: rustourismnews.com

The opening of Berlin’s new airport will be delayed by up to three months due to fire safety problems, dealing an embarrassing blow to the German capital’s flagship project less than a month before its planned launch.

Nearly a quarter of a century after the Berlin Wall came down and 13 years after the government moved back to Berlin as the unified capital, Germany is still struggling to open an international airport to replace two from its Cold War past.

Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, which will also be known as Willy Brandt Airport after West Germany’s Cold War chancellor, had been scheduled to open on June 3. But the airport’s operator said the move from the city’s Tegel airport was suspended with immediate effect.

source: Reuters.com

Virgin Atlantic has become the first airline in Britain to offer in-flight mobile phone calls, texts and web access in the air.

The service will initially be available on Virgin’s new Airbus A330 planes flying from London to New York but will be available on 17 planes on at least 10 routes by the end of the year.

In-flight mobile access will be provided by AeroMobile, which is part-owned by Panasonic. Virgin will charge passengers approximately the same as normal roaming charges.

source: Telegraph.co.uk