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Southwest Airlines Co (LUV.N) said on Tuesday it plans to cut its capacity growth in 2008 on concerns that a weakening U.S. economy will stifle travel demand.

The largest U.S. low-cost carrier said in a statement that it plans to increase its fleet by five to 10 aircraft in 2008. The capacity growth will amount to 4 percent to 5 percent year over year, the airline said.

Southwest said it is concerned about the surge in energy prices.

“‘We are concerned about growing evidence of slowing economic growth that would inevitably affect passenger demand, coupled with a surge in energy prices,'” Southwest Chief Executive Gary Kelly said.

source: Washington Post

The airport Rostock-Laage has been successful in winning a new airline partner for the summer timetable. From 1st May 2008 the low cost carrier Germanwings will operate the route Rostock-Laage – Cologne-Bonn three times weekly (Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays).

source: Boarding.co

More than 3,000 cabin crew working for Virgin Atlantic have started balloting on industrial action in a wages dispute.

The result of the ballot, being conducted by Unite – the union formed following the merger of the TGWU and Amicus – will be announced on Dec 20.

If the Virgin crew vote for industrial action, a stoppage would be most likely to take place in January and could coincide with another proposed walkout by the 5,000 Unite members working for airport operators BAA.

They have threatened industrial action in protest at plans to axe the company’s final salary pension scheme for new staff.

source: Telegraph.co.uk

A new low-cost airline was launched in the Arab world, Bahrain Air. The first private carrier of the small kingdom of Bahrain, in the Persian Gulf, accepts reservations as of December 16. The first flight is scheduled for January 17 next year. For the moment the destinations are four, Dubai, Mashad, Beirut and Alexandria, but the company aims at expanding to 25 by 2010.

source: Avionews

The low-cost carrier has added seven more flights per week from Logan International Airport to the Caribbean through April 30, bringing the weekly total up to 24 from last winter.

JetBlue has introduced three weekly winter flights to Aruba, a route it didn’t offer a year ago. And it has six weekly flights to Cancun, Mexico, up from three last winter, and eight weekly flights to Nassau in the Bahamas, up from seven.

Additionally, the airline is temporarily offering flights for the holidays, from Dec. 12 to Jan. 15, between Boston and Santiago, Dominican Republic.

And it plans to add “‘a handful of extra flights on those ‘super-peak’ February and April vacation weekends'” so travelers headed for Cancun or Nassau can choose between two flights a day, said spokesman Sebastian White.

source: boston.com

Early this morning, Frontier Airlines launched its newservice between its Denver International Airport (DEN) hub and San Jose, CostaRica (SJO). The non-stop flights — Denver’s only non-stop service to CostaRica — will utilize Frontier’s new fleet of Airbus A319 aircraft withabove-average legroom, service and pay-per-view movies in everyseat back.

The airline will operate the flight four times per week until Jan. 5,2008, when Frontier will grow the service to include a fifth flight onSaturdays. The new service will also allow convenient connecting service fromseveral Frontier cities across the West via Denver International Airport,recently named best airport in North America by Business Traveler.Costa Rica is Frontier’s fourth country served and its 10th non-U.S.destination, with seven cities served in Mexico and two in Canada. Also, onDec. 15, 2007, Frontier will begin flying non-stop between Albuquerque, N.M.

source: Reuters

As Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher Airlines readies to fly to the US from August 2008, it has decided on Terminal Four of the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York to cater to growing business from the nation’s east coast.

The decision follows Kingfisher chairman Vijay Mallya’s visit to New York last week when he inspected two contenders for his flights — the JFK International Airport and the Newark Airport in adjacent New Jersey, officials said.

source: Sify

A Ryanair flight from Rome to Milan was delayed because a metre-long plush crocodile was blocking an emergency exit, and the passenger to which it belonged refused to relocate it.

After an exchange of words between the passenger and the cabin crew, the passenger and her crocodile were removed from the flight.

source: ShortNews.com

easyJet, the UK’s largest airline, announced today it would introduce a new route from Newcastle to the Spanish city of Murcia this spring. The new three times weekly service will commence on 17 May 2008.

This new destination will be particularly popular as a family hotspot and a mini break destination and easyJet expects to carry 41,000 passengers on this new route in the first 12 months of operation.

source: Easier

Low-cost airline Zoom has upped its North American flights servicing ski resorts this winter to cope with increased demand for ski holidays.

The company has added a third weekly flight from London Gatwick to Vancouver in British Colombia, and a second weekly flight from the UK airport to Montreal.

There is also a new route from the Northern Irish capital Belfast to Vancouver “‘to tap into the localised and thriving snow sports market'” the airline said.

One flight per week from Glasgow and Manchester airports to Vancouver will be continuing over the winter schedule, which runs from November to the end of April 2008.

source: travelbite.co.uk