No one said that merging two of the biggest U.S. carriers was going to be easy; it isn’t. Frequent travelers who live near Northwest and Delta hubs might be excused for smiling as United and Continental travelers deal with some of the issues they dealt with a couple years ago.
The biggest issue right now is which airline’s equipment and crew is actually operating any given flight. The two airlines have been code-sharing for some time. Last year United began putting an asterisk on Continental-operated flights with United flight numbers. Anyone booking such a flight should have in theory seen a line underneath saying “operated by Continental.”
This year, many more flights have United flight numbers, but no asterisk. These flight displays say “Operated by United Airlines,” but still say in fine print, “check in with Continental.”
[click to continue…]
SFO Opens First of Its Kind “Yoga Room” in T2
Going through airport security can be stressful, especially if you have been picked for secondary screening. If you are at San Francisco International’s terminal 2, you can unwind before your flight by stopping in the new Yoga Room,
“When we began to remodel Terminal 2, one of our goals was not just to bring the glamour back to air travel, but to also make the entire experience less stressful and more enjoyable,” said Airport Director John L. Martin. “With the opening of the Yoga Room, SFO has taken another giant leap forward in providing our travelers the opportunity and space to relax and decompress on their own terms.”
[click to continue…]
We’ve all seen that “great deal” airline ad, only to discover that with surcharges, taxes and fees, the great deal is not-so-great. Starting today, when airline consumers see an advertised price of $500 that will be the price they pay. (Of course, there will still be some additional irritating “optional” fees like baggage charges, seat reservations, etc.)
Here is a synopsis of new rule changes that came into effect in phases this Tuesday and today affecting airfares and airline fees.
[click to continue…]
Airliner Automation
Airline pilot Daniel Fahl is often asked about the autopilot and whether it can fly the aircraft. In his column, he gives us the answer.
The automation used is extremely accurate, even more so in many cases than the pilots hands themselves. However, an autopilot can do an incredibly precise job of maintaining an undesired state. Thorough interfacing by the flight crew and knowing when manual intervention is necessary is crucial.
[click to continue…]
