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No-fly list among airlines has doubled following the attempted attack in December
Airport security news has been slow. Nothing major to report, which is a good thing. I did find out that the Transportation Security Administration has doubled the no-fly list since the arrest of Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmuttalab. The list has gone from about 3,400 people to about 6,000 people.
I wonder how accurate the list is, and does knowing this information give consumers a piece of mind when flying the friendly skies. You tell me.
FAA finds no humor in child tinkering with air-traffic control
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) learned that on February 17, an air-traffic controller brought his son to work and allowed him talk to pilots from John F. Kennedy International Airport’s tower. I guess what you do for one, you have to do for the other. The next day, he then brought his daughter to work and let her have a turn instructing pilots.
I’m all for kid-friendly work environments, but this is no laughing matter. There are thousands of lives at stake. Kudos to the FAA, they suspended the father and his supervisor for such child’s play.
I even have the audio of the little boy instructing the pilots. I must admit, it’s cute, and I’m sure this is an experience that the children will never forget.
AUDIO: Child directs pilots
USA Today in the Sky | Thomas Frank
WASHINGTON — An air-traffic controller who let his son talk to pilots at John F. Kennedy International Airport’s tower also brought his daughter to work the next day and let her instruct aircraft, the Federal Aviation Administration said on Wednesday.
The unnamed controller and his supervisor were suspended after audiotapes surfaced on the Internet of the boy speaking to departing flights on Feb. 16, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt said. The agency later discovered that the girl had come to the tower the next day, it said in a statement.
“This lapse in judgment not only violated FAA’s own policies, but common-sense standards for professional conduct,” Babbitt said. “These kind of distractions are totally unacceptable.” (READ MORE)
Worst case scenerios when traveling overseas and how to handle them
Spring is around the corner and that means family travel plans are in full gear for many of you.
Have you ever stopped to think about what you would do if your luggage got lost in Paris, or if for some reason, you couldn’t get through customs.
Today’s article is a good resource to tackle those trivial questions that may arise when traveling across the pond. If you have any tips that have worked for you, please share them with us.
In the meantime, here’s what to do if you lose your passport, break a leg or even get arrested overseas.
By Eric Lucas | Bing Travel
The Bucharest baggage carousel stopped twirling. All of the other passengers had plucked their luggage from it. Even my suitcase, checked through three flights from Seattle, had arrived. My wife’s bag, however, was a no-show. Now what?
School snow days may delay family vacation plans
Many families are whipping out their calendars in search of alternate dates to vacation this summer. The continued snowfall around the country has depleted the number of snow days in some school systems. Decatur County School Board in Decatur, Tenn., reports that they have run out of snow days and may have to extend the school year or use floating holidays to make up the difference.
This is a great opportunity for popular family destinations to offer a sort of “relief” program for families who may have booked with them and now have to change their dates due to a possible school year extension. What do you think? Would you change your summer plans just to complete the school year? Hmm, this one is sticky.
The Decatur County Chronicle | Jennifer Clendenion
Recent snow and ice accumulations combined with winding, tree-lined country back roads have resulted in the local school system exhausting its allotted snow days for the year.
Schools were closed for a week at the beginning of the month after several inches of snow left several roads in the south end of the county too treacherous for buses. At least three other bouts of winter weather since the start of the year has left officials no choice but to close schools. Between the inclement weather and closings for holidays, Decatur County students have not attended school for a full week of classes since early December.
Director of Schools Dr. Michael Price told School Board members Thursday that the system is out of snow days. But with any luck, additional school days won’t be tacked on to the calendar in May. “We have three more days in the calendar we can still float around,” said Dr. Price, including two vacation days and a staff development day. School board members expressed concern that family travel plans might be affected if school is extended in May. “We’re going to avoid that,” Dr. Price said. (READ MORE)
Airlines struggle to resume schedule after snow storm
American Airlines plane being deiced after snow storm hits the East Coast.
Happy Monday!
Wow! We’ve seen the pictures, and I think it’s safe to say that the weather forecast proved true. Two or more feet of snow landed on the East Coast over the weekend, and airports are slowly trying to get those flight schedules back on course as they clear ice off the runway.
Sad to say, but even today might not be a good time to take that flight out. Airports in that region are packed. You may want to go and see for yourself, just to be sure. The FTS team does not have anyone reporting directly to us from the East Coast about the latest. Just in case you decide to give it a shot only to find that you’d rather wait a day or two, ask the airline about waiving your change fee. Many of them are granting this option.
USA Today | Today in the Sky | Ben Mutzabaugh
UPDATED – 10:15 a.m. ET on Monday, Feb. 8: The three airports serving the Washington and Baltimore metro region are still struggling to return service. Flights remain grounded Washington Reagan National as work continues to clear snow and ice. The Associated Press writes the airport “is slated to reopen at 10 a.m. Monday, with flights operating on a limited basis. ”
At Washington Dulles, flights have resumed, but on a very limited schedule. Only about 100 flights out of normal schedule of roughly 700 are expected to operate today, according to NBC 4 of Washington. Adding to fliers’ woes: Washington’s Metro is not yet running to National Airport or to the station that offers Washington Flyer bus service to Dulles.
At Baltimore/Washington International, the airport says it opened one runway at 5 p.m. Sunday, though very few flights have resumed there. BWI says on its website that “airline delays and cancellations will likely continue in to Monday morning. Travelers are advised to check with their airlines to confirm flight status BEFORE heading to Airport. Passengers are encouraged to rebook travel by telephone or airline website, rather than coming to Airport.” (READ MORE)
Airlines ground flights in preparation for major snow storm on the East Coast
Hello FTS readers!
Source: flickr
If you are planning to take a flight out today or tomorrow, reschedule. The East Coast is expected to receive about two feet of snow today, which will affect several flight schedules. If you are optimistic about your travel plans, be sure to check with your airline before you head to the airport. You can even use the handy dandy Flight Stats map in the LEFT column of this blog.
Just follow the arrow!
If you must brave the winter storm in hopes of your flight taking off, be sure to pack an extra set of patience and fun stuff for the kids.
Have a great weekend everyone!
Get the latest about the snow dump here.
Parents say “packing light” is not the solution to hassle-free air travel
Source: US News.com
It seems parents who travel with their children are lashing out at family travel bloggers and Budget Travel online. According to the website, parents are tired of hearing the useless suggestion to “just pack light” in order to avoid baggage fees or lost luggage.
While I do agree that it is often best to pack light or ship your important items ahead of you, I think we, the family travel experts, should come up with a better, more effective solution for families who travel by air.
Budget Travel | Sean O’Neill
An interesting discussion broke out in the comments on our recent post about whether shipping your bags to your destination is smart.
It began with this comment from G:
“Every time there is a post like this, someone chimes in with the useless comment that I should travel lighter.
Well, I travel with two car seats, a stroller, two children, two adults and we travel internationally and stay for weeks.
We actually come with a few empty bags (to buy the great bargains in the US for my children’s feet, especially) but really—a DSLR, three compact cameras, a netbook, a Macbook, a large business required Dell laptop, two Nintendo DS, a bunch of coloring books, dolls and the Kindle (which has lightened my load) as well as chargers and adapters.
Do these folks have any idea what it’s like to travel as a family?…”
Family travelers urged to get to the airport extra early
Source: telegraph.co.uk
It’s really no surprise. Airlines have always overbooked their flights, just in case passengers don’t show up. It’s actually a great strategy, well, until now.
More airlines are bumping confirmed passengers today, due to low numbers in air travel. Airlines are under more pressure to fill the planes to the max. The minute it’s time to board and your family is nowhere to be found, you can expect to lose those seats. I’ve actually had this happen to me a few years ago. Luckily, I was flying solo, but it wasn’t pretty.
My advice to avoid being bumped, get to the airport extra early, two hours before the departure of a domestic flight and four hours before the departure of an international flight. I’ve found it just makes for a better prelude to a family trip when you arrive at the airport early enough to get your bags checked, get through security, let the kids play, grab a coffee, go to the restroom and be at peace, instead of stressed out about missing the flight or getting bumped.
Los Angeles Times | Hugo Martin
Based on the numbers, America’s major airlines are doing a better job of getting us to our destinations on time and with our luggage in tow — assuming we can get on the flights.
Not only is the rate of lost luggage lower than it has been in years, the on-time performance for the nation’s biggest airlines reached a record 88.6% in November, the best rate since the Bureau of Transportation Statistics began keeping track of the numbers in 1987.
But there is a growing trend that spells trouble for travelers: More passengers are getting bumped from flights.
In the first nine months of 2009, the rate of ticketed passengers who were denied boarding was 1.22 per 10,000 travelers, compared with 1.12 in the same period in 2008.
That equates to nearly 54,000 passengers involuntarily bumped in the first nine months of 2009, up from about 47,000 fliers in the same period in 2008.
The bumping increase is largely a result of the slumping economy, which has reduced airline demand and prompted carriers to eliminate flights and fill planes to the max — or beyond. Indeed, it is no secret that airlines routinely overbook planes because they expect that some passengers won’t show up for a flight.
“The carriers overbook to account for the no-show factor,” said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Assn., a trade organization of the nation’s largest airlines. “Airline seats are perishable, and once the seat has left the terminal the opportunity to sell it is gone.” (READ MORE)
Royal Caribbean resumes port of call close to Haiti
Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Sea
Royal Caribbean’s decision to go on with its sail dates has caused quite a stir, given their private island, Labadee, is only 100 miles from
Port-au-Prince.
What do you think?
I’m OK with this. As a travel industry professional, it’s important to give the travelers what they want. If it’s fine with the customers to carry on, then, it’s fine, especially in this economy.
MSNBC | Kelly Ranson
As humanitarian aid arrives and rescue workers continue their efforts to rebuild Haiti following the devastating earthquake last week, there’s been much talk about Royal Caribbean’s decision to resume calls on Labadee — the cruise line’s private “island” destination about 100 miles from capital city Port-au-Prince (it was not damaged in the quake).
Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas was the first to return, on Friday. And, despite rumors on Cruise Critic’s message boards that Royal Caribbean might reverse its decision, swapping Labadee for sea days, a cruise line spokeswoman tells us there are no plans to cancel calls. Both Navigator (which arrived today) and Liberty of the Seas (which calls on the port Friday) have been loaded with 80 pallets worth of supplies. On Friday, Celebrity Solstice will make its regularly scheduled stop — also bringing passengers and aid. (READ MORE)
Tourists in Haiti among many who are missing after the deadly earthquake
Hatian presidential palace (Lisandro Suero, AFP/Getty Images)
More than three million people are in need of emergency aid following the magnitute-7.0 earthquake that stunned Port-Au-Prince, Haiti on Tuesday. Hotels are among some of the buildings that collapsed, leaving several tourist missing.
As the poorest country in the western hemisphere, Haiti isn’t a major family travel destination, its neighboring region, the Dominican Republic is. The Dominican Republic shares the Espanola Island with Haiti. From what I understand, the Dominican Republic was not affected by the earthquake and is assisting in humanitarian aid.
WANT TO HELP?
USA Today | Hotel Check-In | Barbara De Lollis
As rescuers rush to save lives in the wake of the earthquake in impoverished Haiti, we’re starting to learn more about the extreme devastation to Haiti – including to its hotels and visitors.
I’m also seeing how Twitter is being used as a real-time tool by people trying to speed rescue efforts in these precious hours immediately following the 7.0 quake. My source? This real-time Twitter feed generated using the words, “Haiti” and “hotel.”
In the last hour, Twitter user @unasu sent out an urgent request for help to save a friend’s brother and his three daughters at the urban resort in Port-au-Prince, Karibe Hotel, where they are missing.
“OMG..friend’s brother and three girls are trapped in a collapsed hotel in Haiti. no machinery in the area. just chaos. (READ MORE)
