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Building on requirements imposed after the 2001 terrorist attacks, the Federal Aviation Administration last week proposed new rules to make it even harder for potential hijackers to force their way into the cockpits of commercial jets.The plan would require jet makers to design aircraft with stronger floors, bulkheads and ceilings to better protect the crew, as well as install a reinforced bomb closet where a bomb could be placed if one is found during flight.

Bristol international airport is enduring a third day of disruption, with over 100 flights due to be cancelled or diverted over safety fears.

Ten airlines are now planning to cancel flights or divert them to Cardiff and Birmingham airports after concerns that the newly resurfaced runway is too slippery for aircraft in wet weather.

The disruption has caused a row between airport bosses and airline chiefs, with Bristol airport insisting that the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has given the runway a “‘clean bill of health'”.

Paul Davies, the airport’s operations director, said: “‘Safety is paramount, and if Bristol international or the CAA believed there were issues with our runway we would of course take suitable action.'”

source: inthenews.co.uk

U.S. experts arrived in Indonesia’s Sulawesi island Saturday to help investigate the apparent crash of a jetliner that disappeared with 102 people on board after battling fierce winds and storms.

By nightfall Saturday, there was still no trace of the Adam Air Flight KI-574.

The pilot did not issue a mayday before the Boeing 737 dropped off the radar Monday near the coastal town of Majene, and there has been no emergency location signal to guide thousands of searchers in the island’s dense jungles and surrounding seas.

source: CantonRep.com

Alaska Airlines will open two nonstop transcontinental markets from Portland beginning Sept. 9, the airline announced Friday.

Seattle-based Alaska began selling seats Friday for Portland’s only daily nonstop flights to Boston and Orlando.

To start the new service, Alaska is offering introductory one-way fares of $99, plus fees, for Portland-Boston and Portland-Orlando flights. Customers must purchase their tickets by Feb. 8 and travel by Dec. 14.

source: Oregon Live

Many flights from Bristol international airport have been cancelled, causing disruption for travellers.

Three airlines have cancelled flights or have diverted passengers to Cardiff over concerns that the newly resurfaced runway is too slippery for aircraft in wet weather. British Airways, XL Airways and easyJet are worried that their vehicles may not be able to brake upon landing on the runway.

For a second consecutive day, budget airline easyJet has cancelled a number of flights from the airport.

The airline, headed by Stelios Haji-Ioannou, released a statement saying: “The safety of our passengers, crew and aircraft is the top priority at easyJet and these decisions have been taken following extensive discussions with Bristol international airport and the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).”

source: Manchester.com

Russia and the United States have agreed in principle to share data on airline passengers travelling to and from the two countries starting this year, Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin said in an interview broadcast here Saturday.

“We made this step, aware of the United States’ air traffic security concerns, and we reached an agreement under which the US aviation authorities will inform us about passengers flying to Moscow or other places in Russia,” Levitin told Russia’s local television news network.

Under current Russian legislation, airline passenger data is confidential and may not be disseminated outside Russia. Levitin said however that a bill to modify that legislation would be submitted to the Russian parliament later this month.

source: The News

It’s now known that Air Madrid tripled the number of its passengers in 2006, despite the fact that it remained with the same 9 planes in its fleet. Passenger numbers jumped from 395,155 to 1.2 million. A statement from the company which has suspended trading, has promised to continue to pay the wages of its workers.

It’s now thought that as many as 60,000 immigrants have not been able to return to Spain because of the airline’s collapse.

source: Tipically Spanish

Alaska Airlines’ on-time performance fell to 71.2 percent in November, down from 79.5 percent a month earlier, according to U.S. government statistics.

The airline, a subsidiary of Seattle-based Alaska Air Group Inc. (NYSE: ALK), fell to No. 16 in the government’s on-time ranking of 20 airlines in November, the latest month tracked by the Department of Transportation’s Air Travel Consumer Report. In October, Alaska Airlines ranked No. 5.

source: Business Journal

Malaysia’s low-cost airline AirAsia today launched a new long-haul budget airline named AirAsia X which will begin flying to destinations in China, India and Europe in July.AirAsia X will be a collaboration between AirAsia, owned by Tony Fernandes, and Fly Asian Express, or FAX, a small airline serving rural routes in Malaysia.

“‘The launch of AirAsia X will bring independence to the long haul low-cost traveller, by providing a choice of service for their long haul travel requirements,'” Fernandes said at the launch of the newairline.

The airline has received approval to fly to several destinations in Europe, China, India and Australia, he said.

source: Sun2surf

Several major US airlines said on Wednesday they had at least partially matched a limited fare increase last week by low-cost carrier Southwest Airlines.

The increase, which comes on the heels of a broader fare increase by carriers earlier in December, points to airlines’ expectations of healthy demand and supports analysts’ generally upbeat outlook for the industry this year.

Southwest said high fuel prices necessitated the December 29 fare increase, which affects about 25 percent of the carrier’s passengers. “‘We are still very much in a high fuel environment,'” said Southwest spokeswoman Beth Harbin.

source: Airwise