news about cheap fares and airlines from travel search engine Trabber

The UK will be increasingly reliant on travel and tourism in 2012 as jobs and economic growth in the sector outstrip the wider economy.

According to a report released today by the World Travel&Tourism Council (WTTC), the industry will grow by 1.3 percent in 2012 – over double the rate of growth in the wider economy, predicted to be 0.6 percent by the International Monetary Fund.

This rate of growth means that the travel and tourism industry is expected to directly contribute £35.6 billion and almost 950,000 jobs to the British economy.

source: travel-news.co.uk

Beleaguered Kingfisher Airlines was today suspended for non-payment of dues for the second time in just over a month by the IATA from participating in a system which enables the airlines to settle their interline billings globally.

“‘IATA has suspended Kingfisher Airlines’ participation in the IATA Clearing House (ICH). This is because the airline did not settle their ICH account within the stipulated deadline,'” IATA’s assistant director (corporate communications) Albert Tjoeng said in a statement from Singapore.

source: The Times of India

Airlines have imposed two broad fare increases so far this year. But low-fare airlines are hesitating to match last week’s increase of up to $10 per round trip, led by United/Continental.

Fare trackers said Monday that United and others that raised prices were scaling back their increases, at least on routes where they compete with discount airlines such as Southwest.

But with jet fuel prices rising, they figure it’s only a matter of time before airlines try again to raise fares.

source: Sun Times

The U.S. government proposed increasing the required amount of experience and training for airline pilots to address issues that arose in a fatal crash three years ago. Co-pilots would need close to the same qualifications as captains, with at least three times more flight hours than under current rules.

All pilots would have to undergo revamped training designed to prepare them for hazards that have led to accidents, such as bad weather or high-altitude maneuvering. The public has 60 days to comment on the proposal.

Congress in 2010 ordered the FAA to update its requirements for airline pilots to better prepare them for flying in difficult conditions, such as icing or an unforeseen emergency. The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates accidents, issued similar recommendations.

source: Business Week

Travellers are being tricked into paying a wide range of ”rip-off charges” by travel organisations, according to a new study of nearly 200 tour operators, hotels, airlines and car hire firms.

Expensive telephone contact numbers, ”hidden” extras and ”free” offers that include payments are just some of the things inflicted on travellers, says the new report from Which? Travel.

The research found that nearly 30 per cent of companies were using the two most expensive premium rate telephone lines, starting 0871 or 090, while 43 per cent were adding surcharges or unavoidable bookings fees to card payments.

source: dailymail.co.uk

Pilots fear that changes to working hours proposed by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) could lead to more flying accidents.

The British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) told the Transport Select Committee that when it polled 500 members, 43 per cent said that they had fallen asleep during a flight.

The alarming admission came as union leaders warned MPs that even more passengers’ lives will be put at risk due to new European rules that could allow pilots to fly aircraft after 22 hours without sleep.

The Agency wants to ”harmonise” workload limits across all 27 member states, a move which Balpa says would increase the risk of fatigue, and should not be adopted by the UK.

source: dailymail.co.uk

A group of 29 nations Wednesday intensified pressure on the European Union to abandon a law that forces airlines to pay for carbon emissions, seeking retaliation against the EU and raising the risk of a trade war.

The nations, which include the U.S., Russia, China and India, agreed to adopt a “‘basket of measures,'” permitting each participating state to choose the actions that it finds most effective to counteract the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme, or ETS, said Valery Okulov, Russia’s deputy transportation minister, following a two-day meeting in Moscow.

A top European court said in December the charges are legal.

source: wsj.com

At $425 a pop, what may be the nation’s only ‘Mile High Club’ has been quietly operating for more than 20 years at Cincinnati Municipal Lunken Airport.

Flamingo Air offers couples a little afternoon delight in the largest single-engine plane Piper built, a Cherokee 6, circling the Cincinnati skyline.

They provide passengers with champagne, chocolates — and privacy behind a curtain separating the pilot’s chair from the rest of the aircraft. Center seats have been replaced with fluffy cushions.

source: USA Today

The recent announcement that Alitalia plans to absorb fellow Italian carriers Blue Panorama and Wind Jet will help the national carrier to gain market share, while at the same time removing two domestic competitors. Last year saw Alitalia’s fleet of 144 aircraft transport almost 25 million passengers, while Blue Panorama carried around two million on its fleet of 12 Boeing aircraft. Wind Jet flew almost three million passengers on its 12 Airbus A320-series aircraft.

Aircraft maker Airbus has been ordered to check all A380 superjumbo planes currently in service after cracks were found in wing components.

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has ordered all 68 Airbus A380 superjumbo planes currently in operation to be checked.

The superjumbo’s maker said it had already started implementing a temporary fix  to the problem and a permanent fix would be rolled out shortly.

The move came as Qantas Airways, Australia’s largest carrier, suspended the use of one of its Airbus A380 passenger jets after discovering 36 small cracks in key wing components.

source: BBC.co.uk