People Express Airlines (1986) (Photo credit: Hunter-Desportes)

PEOPLExpress is back…well, the name is, at least.

The new PEOPLExpress is a low-cost carrier with a mission statement to serve markets currently underserved by major carriers. Despite the fact it has not even filed with the DOT to become a scheduled airline, they made this announcement and hope to have service up by this summer, operating a fleet of 737-400s with 158 seats.

The airline wants to make flying fun again, and will offer fares that includes the first two bags and seat assignments.

The announcement was made at Patrick Henry Field in Newsport News, Virginia, which will be the future headquarters of the airline. More on this as it develops.

Related articles

• An airline is born: PEOPLExpress to begin service out of Virginia (gadling.com)

PEOPLExpress is Back is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

On Friday, Malev ceased operation. Late that night and into Saturday morning, fourteen Boeing 737 aircraft, leased from the International Lease Finance Corporation, were flown to Shannon, Ireland. Malev operated eighteen 737s, seventeen of which were leased from ILFC.

The first of the aircraft to leave Budapest flew a solemn lap around the airport and a fly-past over the runway. The operation attracted more than 300 listeners to the Shannon air traffic control feed on LiveATC.net, making it the most listened to live feed in the world at the time. Almost 200 people listened to the Budapest feed as the aircraft departed.

It is not known how long the planes will remain in Shannon, but they are expected to be repainted and leased to another airline.

Accompanying the 737s was a DeHavilland Dash-8 turboprop, which flew the crews back to Budapest.

It is always a sad day in aviation when a long-standing airline fails. At least there was this final moment of remembrance, as Malev departed Budapest for the last time.

Related articles

• RIP Malev and Spanair (flightwisdom.com)
• Hungarian carrier Malév parks its airplanes (aviationblog.dallasnews.com)
• R.I.P. Malev – by Szafi (airlineworld.wordpress.com)
• R.I.P. Malév – by balint01 (airlineworld.wordpress.com)
• Ryanair moves into Budapest following Malev demise (abtn.co.uk)
• Malev Grounds All Flights, Ending 66 Years as Hungary’s Flag Carrier (nycaviation.com)

Hundreds Tune In to Malev Funeral Procession is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

Today, after 65 years, state-owned Malev Hungarian Airlines ceased operations as the government withdrew financing. The government had renationalized Malev in 2010, after 3 years of private ownership. Flights ceased at 6AM local time, and police are likely still guarding the ticket desk at the airport in Budapest as hundreds of passengers are trying to rebook or get a refund.

The withdrawing of government funding for carriers is an issue in many European countries right now, due to the European debt crisis. The Hungarian government is seeking to aid in setting up a replacement, but only with private equity.

We remember watching passengers queue for Malev flights in Terminal 3 at JFK. Their service to the United States terminated in 2008, after over a decade. It is always sad to see another airline go. Malev was actually supposed to receive deliveries of the Sukhoi Superjet 100, beginning last year, as part of a fleet revitalization. Now, that, like many things, will never happen.

Related articles

• Hungarian airline Malev collapses (bbc.co.uk)
• Hundreds stranded after Malev grounds flights (telegraph.co.uk)
• Hungary’s Malev airline ceases operations (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
• Hungarian National Airline Halts Flights (nytimes.com)

RIP Malev and Spanair is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

LaGuardia Airport - Queens, New York (Photo credit: Dougtone)

When they knocked down the former National Airlines terminal at New York’s Kennedy Airport, we bemoaned the fact nothing could be done to save part of this unique structure. When they knocked down the back of the old TWA terminal, and fortunately saved the front part of it, we were equally sad. And when they announced the loss of the Worldport, we bemoaned the loss of another icon.

But, when it comes to the Central Terminal at LaGuardia Airport, there is nothing interesting or distinctive about it. It consists of narrow concourses. They’ve made some improvements, but it is inadequate for the needs of the airport and should be replaced.And the Port Authority announced that it was received 15 proposals from private investors to the project.

We’re not sure what their plans are, but there are architectural features we hope they would keep in a new building. The terminal contains a food court and shopping area with a large glass window area. We tend to be saddened by the fact that modern airports seem to lack observation areas, outdoor or enclosed. The one at Laguardia used to be a tourist attraction. Too many of these have been closed for security reasons.

In the end, any decision will be an improvement. The tentative plan was to knock down the old hangers in between the Central and US Airways terminal, begin building a new concourse there, and then gradually knock down each concourse and replace it.with a new one, until the entire building is demolished. This is certainly a more difficult feat than finding some other room and constructing the new terminal space there.

But with Delta connecting its Terminal with the USAirways terminal, and this new construction going up next to the US Airways terminal, it is very possible that all three terminals will be more easily connected in some way. Either way, LaGuardia deserves this improvement. Stay tuned.

Related articles

• Port Authority plans to replace main terminal at LaGuardia Airport (nj.com)
• Improvements Considered For LaGuardia, Kennedy Airports (newyork.cbslocal.com)

LaGuardia’s Central Terminal Plan Requests Proposals is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

for hours, detained, placed in a cell with violent criminals who stole their food, and finally sent back to England.

All because Mr. Bryan joked on Twitter that he was going to “destroy America” during his trip — an apparent reference to partying — as well as dig up the grave of Marylin Monroe — a joke.

“The Homeland Security agents were treating me like some kind of terrorist,” Mr. Bryan, a 26-year-old Irish citizen, said in an interview published in the British tabloid The Daily Mail.

“‘You’ve really messed up with that tweet, boy,’” Mr. Bryan remembered one agent saying, using a more profane expression for messed up.

He was questioned under oath about his postings to Twitter, according to images of a document said to be from the agency. The document, posted by The Daily Mail and quoted by The Sun, appeared to demonstrate a less-than-full understanding of social media by agents explaining the reason for the questioning:

Mr. Bryan confirmed that he had posted on his Tweeter Web site account that he was coming to the United States to dig up the grave of Marilyn Monroe. Also on his tweeter account Mr. Bryan posted that he was coming to destroy America.

The authenticity of the document could not be independently verified. It was photographed by Small World News Service, an independent British news agency that frequently pays its sources for stories. Mr. Bryan and Ms. Bunting posed together for portraits by the SWNS news agency that appeared in tabloids on Monday, including the Daily Mail and the Sun.

The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A call to Donald Triner, acting director of the agency office overseeing an initiative on “Publicly Available Social Media Monitoring and Situational Awareness,” was directed to the press office.

We hope desperately there is more to this story, but the DHS has not yet commented. Based on the statements of the two British nationals that have appeared in the press, there is cause for alarm.

The reports indicate that DHS is monitoring Twitter(and other sites) and curtailing free speech: According to the reports, DHS was aware of the tourists’ tweets and singled them out for questioning as a result. These tweets should seem harmless to anyone familiar with Twitter. DHS refused to accept the explanations of the pair and deported them.  This potentially chilling effect on the free speech of any American citizen or any person interested in visiting the United States.  So much for President Obama’s recent initiative to promote and streamline international tourism.  In this case, the statements were jokes. It is a short step for the DHS to begin flagging people for legitimate dissent. We hope the DHS will soon issue a statement detailing what really happened, as we believe that this report, sweeping the internet, must be false.  It just doesn’t make sense. If what is being reported is in fact the whole story, then we have lost our liberty, and didn’t even know it.

Related articles

• Twitter users beware: Homeland Security isn’t laughing (gigaom.com)
• British Tourists Arrested in the U.S. for Tweeting (schneier.com)
• Tourists deported from U.S. for Twitter jokes (boingboing.net)
• British Couple Ejected From U.S. For Tweeting About Wanting To Dig Up Marilyn Monroe and Destroy America On Vacation (jonathanturley.org)
• British tourists detained, barred from U.S. after tweet about “destroying America” (venturebeat.com)

What You Say On Twitter May Keep You Out Of The United States is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

ITA was purchased by Google last year, amid much fear that Google would use the acquisition to dominate this market.  Google has, in fact, launched its own flight search tool, but Kayak is not standing still. Kayak spent six months on a new, simplified interface which it will be launching today. We aren’t seeing it yet on their website, but based on the screenshots, it looks to have removed much of the clutter that has crept into Kayak’s interface in the past few years.  We welcome simplicity and will be looking to see whether Kayak can once again become our first stop for flight search.

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• Google Makes Flight Search Results Better Looking, More Useful (searchengineland.com)
• Bing’s Travel Search & Kayak Favoritism Angers No One, While Google’s Gets Headline Attention From WSJ (searchengineland.com)
• Orbitz, Kayak think Google is abusing its power with travel search (venturebeat.com)
• Google excludes online travel agents from “Flight Search” (consumertraveler.com)
• With IPO On Hold, Kayak Reports Q3 Revenue Up 28 Percent To $61M; Net Income Up 44 Percent (techcrunch.com)
• Practical Traveler: Fine-Tuning Your Flight Search (travel.nytimes.com)
• Who Has the Fairest Fare of All? (blogs.wsj.com)

Kayak Stares Into The Face Of New Competition From Google, Fights Back With New Design is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

Interior of Virgin America A320

A few weeks ago, we commented on the ban on portable electronics. The truth is, in terms of the FAA’s stated rationale, there is little evidence presented that indicates the majority of electronics have any effect on aircraft systems.

But, the other reason, the one not covered by the regulation, is the one that is more of a concern to us, after doing some passenger watching on a recent flight. Flight attendants, who deal with these issues every day, are concerned with the attention of the passengers on safety during takeoff and landing, when the majority of flight related issues seem to arise.

That would explain why, perhaps, to follow that line of reasoning, headphones should be forbidden during takeoff and landing, as they would interfere with hearing inflight instructions.  It may also explain forbidding gaming and mobile devices, to ensure one’s attention is on the situation at hand. However, people read, close their eyes and nap, and on many airlines, engage the built-in IFE.

We knew all this before, however, it became very evident while thinking about it on recent flights. There were three passengers across from us who kept asking, “They want us to turn off our cell phones?”, despite multiple announcements on the PA about this. Then one of them with an iPhone discovered the airplane mode setting in wonder and thought activating that was acceptable.

A particular pet peeve of ours, which we believe has potential to be truly dangerous, passengers getting up when the fasten seatbelt sign is on, indicating it is unsafe to get up. The flight attendants on this, and many flights we have been on, have largely ignored this. We were impressed when on a European flight not long ago, the flight attendant came onto the PA to gently remind people the Fasten Seatbelt sign was on.

So, maybe to rethink these situation. The problem is that we cannot enforce the current rules, be it with Alec Baldwin or with other passengers. Maybe we have to address it from that perspective.

Is the cell phone ban in place not because it is necessary, but because people can’t be trusted to act responsibly? Should the Flight Attendant be policing our behavior onboard and to what degree? If people cannot follow the simple instructions of seat back up, stay in seat when light is on, and turn off your electronics, what hope do we have?

Related articles

• Why I Won’t Turn My Cell Phone Off on Airplanes (ideas.time.com)
• @ Airline passengers still required to turn off electronic devices at takeoff and landing…but why? (bits.blogs.nytimes.com)
• It’s Called ‘Airplane Mode’ for a Reason (bits.blogs.nytimes.com)
• @ FAA lets pilots use iPads at takeoff and landing; passengers must still turn theirs off (bits.blogs.nytimes.com)
• Many fliers refuse to turn off electronic gadgets (travel.usatoday.com)
• Alec Baldwin vs the Flight Attendant (flightwisdom.com)

Rethinking Electronics in Flight or What’s Airplane Mode? is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

one, as the airline announced that it will stop distributing the cards as of February 1.  The airline introduced the cards as a marketing gimmick, copying them form a rival airline. Perhaps they were particularly necessary in Alaska, the state with the highest rate of airplane accidents in the nation.

An airline spokesperson said changes in customer feedback about the cards led to their retirement

Airline spokeswoman Bobbie Egan said the decision was made after hearing from customers who preferred not to mix religion with transportation. The decision reflects respect for the diverse religious beliefs and cultural attitudes of Alaska Airlines’ customers and employees, the company said in announcing the change.

“Some customers were comforted by the cards and some didn’t feel religion was appropriate on the plane and preferred not to receive one,” she said.

…

For a long time, Alaska Airlines got more positive comments than negatives ones. But lately, opinion has shifted.

Egan said the decision was made out of respect for all of their customers.

“After carefully considering all sides, it was agreed that eliminating the cards was the right thing to do,” Egan said.

The airline sent an email to its frequent flyers on Wednesday explaining the change that will take effect Feb. 1.

“Religious beliefs are deeply personal and sharing them with others is an individual choice,” said the email signed by both airline CEO Bill Ayer and President Brad Tilden.

The email said some of its customers enjoyed the cards but others were offended by them.

“It is important that everyone know that this decision does not change our core values nor our care for our customers,” the email said.

And, like that, another quirky airline tradition ends.  What other quirky airline handouts are out there that we don’t know about?

God No Longer On Board Alaska Airlines is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

expansion project.  A princely sum, indeed, but the project which will lengthen an existing secondary runway from 5,276 to 8,000 feet, will allow the facility, which served 22 million passengers last year, to handle 27% more flights. The expansion will be technically challenging, rising 65 feet into the air at a slope near the FAA limit, to pass over U.S. 1 and neighboring railroad tracks.

This is a huge price tag, amounting to $36 in cost for each passenger who departs from or arrives at this airport each year. Proponents of the project claim that it will create 11,000 jobs

Using the Regional Input-Output Modeling System (RIMS II) as a basis, the construction is anticipated to generate more than 11,000 jobs over the life of the project. RIMS II multipliers estimate how much a one-time or sustained increase in economic activity in a particular region will be supplied by industries located in the region and used by private and governmental agencies. Additionally, the airport has commenced wetland restoration/mitigation activity at West Lake Park, in Hollywood, Florida, and recently completed the pilot phase of a $170 million noise mitigation program. Beyond the direct economic impact, there are countless additional economic benefits that will be derived by the on-going activity during the construction period.

We have to say, this claim is dubious at best. With Miami International Airport very close by, and other nearby airports such as Palm Beach, it’s not clear how much new traffic this will bring to South Florida. If the project’s return is dependent on 11,000 jobs being created, this is likely a poor use of government funds.  Particularly disturbing is the $170 million to be spent on “noise mitigation”. We’re constantly amazed at how people who own property surrounding an airport seem surprised and angered when planes fly over their heads.

It’s par for the course that this huge subsidy for airlines is welcomed by all.  We don’t see Governor Rick Scott, who famously refused High-Speed Rail funding, turning away this wasteful spending.  For some reason, subsidizing air travel or car travel is acceptable, but trains are a boondoggle and Amtrak ought to make money without subsidies.  This will probably make our travels into Fort Lauderdale more pleasant, but only if we don’t think about the extreme cost for a small benefit.

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• FAA Breaks Ground for Runway Expansion in Fort Lauderdale (athingforcars.com)
• Ground Broken On Runway Project At Ft. Lauderdale’s Airport (miami.cbslocal.com)
• California Man Changes Flight 510 to Flight 420 (flightwisdom.com)
• We’re Expanding in Fort Lauderdale With More Service to San Juan! (jetblue.com)

Construction Begins on Overpriced $791 Million 65 Foot High Fort Lauderdale Runway Expansion is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.

near the poles where the ozone layer is thinnest.  The additional radiation poses little risk to passengers. As a result, Delta has begun running its transpolar routes further south to minimize risk, adding approximately 15 minutes to flight time. Maybe Milli Vanilli had it wrong- if your plane is late, blame it on the sun.

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• Delta reroutes planes after solar eruption (travel.usatoday.com)
• Scientists Delight -Current Solar Storm and Radiation is Not New to US (chennaifocus.wordpress.com)
• Solar Storm Hits Earth! (weeklyworldnews.com)

Angry Sun Erupts, Sending Planes South is a post from Flight Wisdom - News, Thoughts, and Advice on Air Travel and the Travel Experience. All Rights Reserved.