Airlines

In a season of crowded planes, long security lines and numerous delays, there are only two kinds of travelers: those who dislike the airlines, and those who loathe and abominate the entire industry with every fiber of their being. So the Department of Transportation is not risking a mass revolt when it entertains the idea of making carriers pay large sums to passengers who, after buying a ticket, find it doesn't come with a seat. Airlines overbook to ensure full flights, but when everyone shows up, not everyone gets to go. Involuntary "bumping" of passengers is an old custom that has gotten more onerous, since it's not as easy to get on the next flight as it used to be. So groups claiming to represent consumers have been demanding that the government force airlines to boost their compensation.

Icelandair became the latest international carrier yesterday to pull its service at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, another blow to the airport's efforts to bolster its international service. When Icelandair stops its Baltimore flights Jan. 13, six international carriers would remain at BWI. Icelandair will keep its North American headquarters in Columbia. The airline said the departure of thousands of Americans from a NATO military base in Iceland, coupled with escalating costs and decreasing revenues, prompted its decision.

Travelers had another bad year of flying in 2006, according to two university professors who have been ranking airlines for the last 17 years. The nation's top 18 carriers lost more baggage, bumped more passengers and were late more often last year than the year before, according to the Airline Quality Rating, released yesterday. And while that was no surprise to travelers in and out of Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport yesterday, few felt like they could complain after listening to recent news reports of passengers stuck on planes all day with little access to food or bathrooms.

DALLAS -- Every major airline except Southwest Airlines Co. gives customers the ability to book flights directly from the home page of its Web site. So, with Southwest's first major redesign of its Internet presence in nearly five years, you might think that home-page booking would be the first thing Southwest's Web designers would add. But they didn't. As on the old site, Southwest's new home page still makes customers tap a link to get to booking, flight schedules and other travel functions.

For eight Girl Scouts from Howard County who sold hundreds of boxes of cookies to travel to Hawaii, the dream trip never got off the ground yesterday. US Airways canceled the first leg of the teenagers' trip, a 7:30 a.m. flight to Phoenix, and then added another dose of bad news: No other flights - even on other airlines - would be available to fly them to their final destination until a day before the Scouts were scheduled to return to Maryland. "It was crushing news," Troop 251 leader Patty Salazar said.

WASHINGTON -- Responding to growing complaints about poor airline service, President Bush told his transportation secretary yesterday to find solutions by the year's end. "Endless hours sitting in a airplane on a runway, and there's no communication between the pilot and the airport, is just not right," he said. In an Oval Office meeting, Bush told Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters and acting Federal Aviation Administrator Bobby Sturgell to report back to him this year about what steps are being taken to reduce delays and ensure fair treatment of delayed passengers.

A new accord between the United States and the European Union could help bolster BWI's fledgling international business, with low-cost carriers providing much of the service, a panel of government and industry officials and consultants said yesterday. The officials were commenting on the latest "open skies" agreement at a symposium yesterday in Annapolis sponsored by Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. As evidence, they pointed to Ryanair, Europe's largest discount carrier, which announced it would launch service to U.S. cities including Baltimore around the time the latest open skies accord was signed.

US Airways said yesterday that it will give raises to 9,500 passenger service workers who have gone seven years without a pay increase.The result will be 13.7 percent raises for every employee, meaning a 15-year employee will earn an hourly salary of $20.33, effective immediately. In all its union negotiations, US Airways is offering workers parity plus 1 percent of salaries at the nation's four largest airlines.The carrier's move came four days after a federal appeals court overturned the 1997 election giving the Communications Workers of America the right to represent the workers -- and two weeks after an emotional annual meeting at which workers protested long stretches without raises as executives were awarded incentive plans potentially worth millions.

WASHINGTON -- Boeing Co. and four airlines are seeking an exemption from government rules so the company's 777 jet can fly farther from land. The purpose is to allow the plane, which has two engines, to fly across the Pacific even when emergency airfields along the route are closed by bad weather.The effort has created a dispute with Airbus, Boeing's only major competitor and a proponent of four-engine planes, as well as a re-evaluation by safety experts of whether it is still appropriate to set safety rules governing oceanic flights based on how many engines a plane has."

THE recent physical confrontation between a Continental Airlines gate agent and a passenger at the Newark, N.J., airport indicates that the airlines have added knuckle sandwich to their menu of rubber chicken, cardboard beef and plastic noodles.The airline's version of the incident is that a male passenger, who was not allowed to get on the plane because he lacked a boarding pass, hurled the agent headfirst to the floor. The passenger says it is he who was attacked first.While doubtless some court of law will sort out who's at fault, most people who fly will have no trouble believing the passenger.

Talk about fireworks. In a burst of post-Fourth of July sales, Southwest Airlines turned the clock back with 1990s fares, a major hotel group extended a free-nights deal and luxury cruise lines pitched high prices overboard. With many bargains good through autumn and into 2010, now is the time to take a break from the beach and book a trip ahead - far ahead. You might save hundreds. The latest price-slashing began just days after the U.S. government said unemployment edged up in June, adding to worries that the recession could extend into 2010 and beyond.

Are you using Twitter to get the best twavel deals? While it sounds like a tongue-twister, this social networking craze has tongues wagging about discounts and offers available only to those who follow airlines, hotels or other travel providers on Twitter. If you're serious about saving money on travel, this is the place to be - for the moment. For example, last week JetBlue began "tweeting" flights as low as $9 each way to its followers. United Airlines offers sale "twares" to its followers.

Question: : In February, I booked a flight from Los Angeles International Airport to Istanbul, Turkey, with a return from Athens, Greece. The flight includes legs on American and its flight partner, Iberia Airlines. The cost was $1,122. Friends who booked the same trip later paid $822. I called American and asked for a refund but was told that doing so would incur a $250 change fee, thereby wiping out the savings. But I am not changing anything. The itinerary remains the same in every way. Why can't I take advantage of the lower fare instead of being penalized for booking early?

AirTran Airways will become the first major airline to add high-speed Internet service to all of its planes, in a move that could pressure other airlines to speed up plans to offer the service. The Florida-based airline said Tuesday that it will offer Wi-Fi service on its 136 jets by midsummer. It's the most aggressive move to date by a large airline to allow passengers to browse the Web using their laptops, smart phones or PDAs. AirTran will charge $9.95 for flights under three hours and $12.95 for longer flights.

I am flying United Airlines from Los Angeles to Honolulu. United is charging me an additional $98 to sit in "economy plus." So rather than $364 for my flight, with taxes, luggage fees and this "economy plus," I'm paying $498. Are all airlines squeezing customers like this? Yes. Welcome to a brave new world of aviation economics that has spawned new pricing structures that airlines think will help them battle the dual Godzillas: fuel prices and economic downturn. In a discussion last fall about fees with Richard Gritta, professor of finance and transportation at the University of Portland, Ore., he asked me, with a hint of laughter in his voice, "What's next?

The economic tailspin ensures that 2009 will be a travel year like no other. We're already seeing hefty discounts, but beyond that, who knows? So, rather than deliver dubious prognostications about prices and trends, I offer five New Year's resolutions for the savvy vacationer. I will beware of bankruptcies. Not a personal financial collapse, although few dare to discount that risk these days. I'm talking about airlines, cruise lines, tour companies and travel agencies that suddenly go out of business, stranding customers and collectively devouring thousands, or even millions, in trip deposits.

Wow, the year flew faster than a jetliner at 40,000 feet. For travelers, 2008 was a year when it was best to keep your seat belt buckled for most of the ride. Here's my take on some of the top travel stories of 2008. Fees, please. Air passengers got a rude awakening about midway through the year when airlines, feeling the financial pinch, decided to charge travelers for stuff that used to be free. Like checking our luggage. Or getting a pillow or blanket. Or a can of Coke. Suddenly, there was this "a la carte" pricing where the only thing included in your ticket price was the seat.

Oil, gasoline prices continue to fall COLUMBUS, Ohio : Retail gasoline prices fell to a new three-year low yesterday and in an unprecedented decline, crude oil costs $100 less per barrel than it did four months ago with a U.S. recession eating away at energy demand. Analysts believe prices at the pump may finally be bottoming out after a precipitous decline from record highs this summer. Yet demand could fall even further in January with job losses reducing the number of people who drive to work.

You recently took my daughter to the airport for an 8:50 a.m. flight. Although you did a good job of getting her there - she was an hour early - she missed the flight. Her ticket said US Airways (which is in Terminal 1 at Los Angeles International Airport), but she actually was on a United flight (which is in Terminal 7). It was a code share. How were we supposed to know? Why didn't you know this? What kind of aunt-sister are you? Judith Ramsey, Arnold, Md. Wait a minute. You think just because you're my older sister you can yell at me and boss me around?

As airports go, BWI Marshall is pretty nice. And apparently, nice guys finish fifth. In a recent survey of travelers' favorite and least favorite airports by SmarterTravel.com, BWI was ranked No. 5 on the favorites list. The top ranked airport was Las Vegas' McCarran International, followed by Denver (a really nice, expensive airport), Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson (so nice they recently opened a bird sanctuary - to meet federal requirements after adding a fifth runway), Reagan National (nice views of Washington)