NEW YORK. NEW YORK. NEW YORK

26 JAN 2012: Air Canada is adding flights to New York City, just as WestJet prepares to enter the market.  Canada’s largest carrier said it will begin flying daily from Toronto into John F. Kennedy International Airport in May, and at the same time will offer hourly flights to LaGuardia to appeal to business travellers. Read more...

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

26 JAN 2012: Thomas Cook chief Sam Weihagen told critics it was time “to get off the company’s back,” said a report in UK tabloid The Sun. According to the Sun’s City pages, the beleaguered interim boss of Thomas Cook launched a ‘blistering attack on his rivals’ after leaked figures revealed a large decline in UK bookings. Read more...

DOWNS AND UPS

27 JAN 2012: Delta and US Airways are learning to stay profitable. Both airlines reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings on Wednesday, capping two straight years of annual profits. By avoiding deep discounts on fares and unprofitable routes, the two carriers have done well even as fuel costs soar and the economic recovery remains fragile. Read more...

CATO OPENS MEMBERSHIP

26 JAN 2011: The Canadian Association of Tour Operators is introducing two new membership categories, in response to demand from formerly non-qualifying organizations.  “We have had many queries over the years from companies and organizations wishing to join CATO, and until now, we did not have the membership categories to accommodate these requests,” said Stephanie Bishop, CATO’s Chair.  “Our members have agreed we would like to welcome new members in all categories.” Read more...

YVR HIKES FEES

26 JAN 2012: Passengers flying out of Vancouver International Airport for destinations beyond BC are going to have to pay more for the privilege starting May 1. Read more...

SEE YOU SOON

26 JAN 2012: The Disney Cruise Line is returning to Vancouver. The company has announced its itineraries for the 2013 season and says the Disney Wonder will depart Vancouver 15 times, starting May 27. Read more...

SKAL

26 JAN 2012: Toronto Skal International announced the appointment of the new 2012 Board at its Annual General Meeting held at Lambton Golf and Country Club on January 24. President is Susan Webb; vice president, Wolf Paunic; treasurer, Diane Jackson; secretary, Katrina Sagan; SICAN representatives, Tim Booth and Stuart Morcombe; auditors Susan Edwards and David McClung and executive secretary, Mike Hannah.   Read more...

ONLY A MIRACLE

27 JAN 2012: The official overseeing the search effort of the capsized Costa Concordia has acknowledged it would take a miracle to find any survivors from the Jan. 13 cruise ship grounding. Read more...

CAUSING RIPPLES

26 JAN 2012:  Here’s another weapon for the ‘keep pets out of the cabin’ crowd. An Air Canada flight was grounded for several hours Wednesday morning after Ripples the cat escaped from its carrier and ran into the cockpit. Once there it promptly disappeared. Read more...

A CORPORATE CAPSIZE

27 JAN 2012: Okay I won’t mince words: In all my time in this industry I cannot recall any incident that can compete with the PR catastrophe that has been Carnival’s handling of the tragic Costa Concordia capsizing. Read more...

FLASH BOOM BANG

25 JAN 2012: Radiation from a massive solar blast hit the Earth Tuesday - forcing Delta Air Lines to redirect at least half a dozen airplanes that had been routed over the North Pole. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Centre issued a geomagnetic storm warning Monday after a satellite observed an ultraviolet flash from the huge solar eruption. Read more...

BC JUDGE DISMISSES AC CLAIM

25 JAN 2012:   A BC Supreme Court judge has dismissed Air Canada’s claim that provincial consumer law is inapplicable to Air Canada as a federally regulated undertaking. Other airlines are also affected by the decision in the fuel surcharge class action. Read more...

WILL THEY

25 JAN 2012:  The rumours are heating up.  Reports that US Airways Group is considering a merger with bankrupt AMR’s American Airlines are not going away. But there’s more to the story than just the consolidation of two airlines. The move would shrink the US industry to just three major full-service airlines, increasing their power to control (read that as ‘raise’) ticket prices. Read more...

STAY HUNGRY. STAY FOOLISH

25 JAN 2012: Virgin America, the high-tech budget airline based in Silicon Valley, is paying tribute to Steve Jobs by naming an airplane after him – well, sort of. Read more...

NO JOKE

25 JAN 2012: For the second year in a row, St. John’s International Airport broke a record for the number of passengers travelling through it. In 2011, approximately 1.4 million people passed through the airport, representing a 4% increase over the record set in 2010. Read more...

FACIAL HAIR FOR DISNEY WORKERS

25 JAN 2012: What next? A moustachioed Mickey? Goofy with a goatee? Workers at Disney's US theme parks will be allowed to grow beards and goatees for the first time ever, Disney officials said this week. Read more...

FERRY STORY

25 JAN 2012: Port officials in Cleveland say they're talking with their counterparts in Port Stanley, Ontario, about the idea of passenger ferry service across Lake Erie, possibly next year. Read more...

BOOZE AT THE BACK

25 JAN 2012: American Airlines hasn’t let Chapter 11 interfere with its generosity to passengers in coach.  The airline is offering a free glass of beer or wine to economy class passengers on flights between the US and Europe, Asia and some South American countries. Read more...

WHAT A DOPE

25 JAN 2012:  Why is ‘no smoking on board’ such a difficult concept for some people. When  43-year-old Adam Blumenkranz opened the lavatory door on the plane and emerged smelling of marijuana, well it was game over. Read more...

HONG KONG

25 JAN 2012: From fishing village to British Colony, Hong Kong became a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China with the handover in 1997. Fret not. It’s lost none of its cosmopolitan glamour and glitter. There’s a hustle, bustle and buzz here like nowhere else on the planet. Read more...