The chief executive officer of Virgin Atlantic, Mr. Steve Ridgway said in an interview with the Newsweek magazine that increased ticket prices are unavoidable.

Mr. Ridgway also said that his company might make use of its financial strength to expand and to buy struggling carriers in this tough situation in the sector.

He said: "We're all going to have to re-price. The world needs a viable air travel industry; global trade demands it. In terms of fares and fuel prices, none of us are at a place we could have recognised clearly two years ago.

In a benign and innovative move, a new tunnel has been made to help reptiles pass under the road at Robinhood Airport. This is to ensure their safety. Notably, the tunnel has been created taking into account the biology of the reptiles, featuring the biology of reptiles in mind, offering a warm and welcoming space employing LED lighting and heating coils.

The idea of creating tunnels for wild life is not a new idea. But these are generally constructed for mammals and remain dark. They are even subjected to flooding. The new concept of a tunnel for cold-blooded creatures had to be evolved separately because the internal temperature of their body clearly reflects the external temperature of the surroundings.

As the reptiles are poikilothermic, they require warmth to be active and the new arrangement can dissuade them from using the uncomfortable wild life tunnel available for them. The new tunnel is adequately heated and lit to ensure a comfortable stay during the seasons when reptiles normally remain active and has been incorporated using energy efficient materials.

On Friday Sterling, Nordic low fares carrier, said that it would cut about twenty per cent of its 1,000 staff, both pilots and cabin crew, to combat the impact of a difficult aviation market.

The Icelandic-owned carrier said that it would no longer run its bases permanently at Malmo and Gothenburg in Sweden and Billund and Aalborg in Denmark from the first day of the coming year, strengthening its work force at its bases in Scandinavian capital cities of Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo.

Mr. Reza Taleghani, the chief executive of Sterling, said that he expected to reach the staff cuts mostly through voluntary retirements and would seek to keep some flexibility to spread out again in the coming year if the market allow.

Most nervous flyers have the bothering question of which is the safest place to sit while aboard an aircraft. Having made a study of over 105 accidents and personal accounts from more than 2000 survivors, a report published in The Times makes some interesting observations.  

The study was conducted by the Civil Aviation Authority and was carried out by the Greenwich University. The study discovered that those seats near the emergency exit and those rows just in front or behind it prove to be the safest with the best survival rate. Between 2 and 5 rows from the exit, passengers have a better chance to escape from a fire.

On the other hand, the most dangerous seats are those between six or more rows from an exit. The study says that in these seats, the chances for perishing greatly outweigh that of surviving. Those passengers sitting more towards the front side of the aircraft had around 65% of escaping the fire. However, the survival rate for those at the rear seats was not more than 53%. Similarly, the survival rate for the passengers sitting in aisle seats was 64% while the same for the other passengers was 58%.

Announcing its new policy, Continental Airlines has come forward to allow its customers make any changes to flights within 24 hours of the original schedule for departure. This will be carried out on request by the airline for a discounted change fee. Permitted within the 24-hour period on the same day, customers having restricted tickets can change to any other flight scheduled to depart within 12 hours, making a discounted change fee. Earlier, the airline allowed its customers to choose from those flights departing within 3 hours of the scheduled departure.

The announcement also offers an attractive discount over the change fee for same-day flight changes that are normally applicable to restricted tickets. For instance, the fee will be $50, or $25 for OnePass Platinum and Gold Elite members of the airline. Notably, this fee is applicable to all itineraries that are solely operated by Continental like Continental Express, Continental Connection and Continental Micronesia. Over and above, passengers who have unrestricted tickets or fares without any penalties for changes can make changes totally free of charge, provided the seats are available. If the seats are not available, the customers may still opt to standby. Later, the fee will be charged if the seat is cleared in the earlier flight.

Passengers can confirm same-day flight changes by checking in at continental.com by intimating the Continental Airlines reservations office either through an airport kiosk or through a Continental airport representative. Further details can be had from www.continental.com

Under serious threats from several sides challenging the survival of airlines, a leading analyst has claimed that only the most competitive players in the airline industry can hope to survive the present turmoil threatening the airlines.

According to Davy Stockbrokers, a few airlines that are very well placed to comfortably withstand the slowdown haunting the sector include Air France, Lufthansa, easyJet and Ryanair. The core issue among several others is the alarmingly increasing fuel costs.

Addressing a group of investors, Davy analyst Stephen Furlong noted, "The current oil-price-driven crisis could well be the worst to hit the airline industry. We view the long-term winners as the stronger airlines."
 
Stephen Furlong argued that the airlines in this list are in a comfortable position as they are partly protected by their ready cash flow besides low operating costs. However, he too stressed that carriers like Air Berlin and Clickair were more vulnerable to the present threats. Furlong was highly positive that stronger airlines could always capitalize on any sort of bankruptcies arising in course of the present turmoil.

As a result of a deal between the two countries, direct flights between Kenya and the United States have been allowed now. This move is expected to enhance the tourism industry and exports to the US to a significant extent. Earlier last week, the transport ministers from both the countries signed an open skies deal in the United States.

Addressing a news conference, US Ambassador Michael Ranneberger said, "Direct flights could facilitate the greater export of Kenyan flowers to the US market where there is a high demand."

Kenya is the largest exporter of flowers to Europe. Most notably, the horticulture sector of Kenya has earned the country 70.3 billion Kenya shillings (USD$1.09 billion) during last year alone. However, Kenyan flower exports to the US is in a negligible quantity. According to an official at the Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya, the direct flights between these two countries are likely to account for 2-5 percent of exports to US from Kenya.

In a move to cope up with the impending challenges to survive, Malaysia Airlines has raised the fuel surcharges on its international flights by up to 80 percent. The airline has also warned that across the globe, a fare increase is an unavoidable exercise to prevent the industry from collapsing.

According to the airline, it has decided to increase the surcharge by about 25 percent on its short-haul regional flights, and by up to 80 percent on its long-haul flights, with immediate effect. However, on domestic flights, the fuel surcharges remain the same.

For instance, the surcharge for a one-way Kuala Lumpur-London flight goes up to MYR736 ringgit (USD$225.70) from MYR600. Similarly, for a one-way Kuala Lumpur-Sydney trip, it has gone up to MYR608 from MYR422.

Recently concluding an agreement, the United States and Brazil have arranged to increase the in passenger flights between the two countries up by nearly 50 percent. In addition, the agreement also eliminates the existing restrictions on the number of airlines permitted to provide air services between the two countries. The agreement was made by Mary E. Peters, U.S. Secretary of Transportation.

Secretary Peters noted, "This agreement will help air carriers meet the growing demand for passenger and cargo services between the United States and Brazil. Now more than ever, it is crucial that we give U.S. carriers every possible opportunity to compete and succeed wherever passengers want to fly."

Enabled by the agreement, there is no limit to the number of flights that can be operated between the two countries; whereas, earlier only four carriers were allowed from either side. The agreement will be effected in four gradual phases between July 2008 and October 2010. According to secretary peters, the agreement will succeed in increasing the total number of carriers operated between the two countries from 105 to 154, for both the countries.

In a significant attempt to cope with the increasing oil prices, American Airlines has announced earlier this month that it has decided to axe several flights later during this year at several US airports including some of its main hubs namely Chicago and Dallas. 

Following the announcement made earlier, the largest carrier of the U.S. offered more details during this week pertaining to the reductions in capacity elaborating over the previous announcement.

American has decided to bring down the number of departures from Chicago O'Hare Airport, axing about 28 flights. Also in addition to this, its sister airlines American Eagle has decided to cut 34 flights with effect from September.

According to a statement made by the chief executive of Scandinavian carrier SAS, the airline industry is compelled to face a tough and challenging time during this year and the next year due to the issues of alarming rise of oil prices and overcapacity.

Telling about the airline industry as a whole, SAS chief executive Mats Jansson told Norwegian daily Dagens Naeringsliv, "There will be short-term rescue actions, drastic measures."

According to him, a "deadly cocktail" of factors are combining during these times threatening to weaken the airline industry. He noted, "This is worse than after 9/11, worse than during the oil crisis of the 1970s. There is no direct bankruptcy threat to SAS anymore, but measures must be taken."

In an announcement released on Friday, Ryanair confirmed that its director Sean Coyle had left its services to become the chief financial officer at Aer Lingus, one of its main rivals. Notably, Ryanair holds a 29 percent stake with Aer Lingus following a takeover bid that did not come through.

Releasing a separate statement, Aer Lingus, the former Irish State Carrier noted that Coyle, Ryanair's director of scheduled revenue, had consented to join the group on August 11.

Aer Lingus Chairman John Sharman observed, "Challenging times bring unique opportunities and we are delighted that Sean is joining us."

Recently, the US Justice Department said that Air France-KLM and three other airlines have consented to pay fines amounting USD$504 million for settling US price-fixing charges involving huge shipments of consumer goods from electronics to medicines. Notably, the plea deal occurs as the latest among a number of cargo price-fixing settlements that has highly boosted the total fines from the US antitrust investigation to a record value of USD$1.27 billion.

As per the new agreement, Air France-KLM is required to pay USD$350 million. Interestingly, this is the second-largest criminal fine ever charged by the Justice Department's antitrust division. This was confirmed by the statement made by the government. Until the start of the price fixing investigation in May 2004, Air France and KLM functioned as separate companies after which they combined into a single company when they combined under a single holding company.

According to the Department of Justice, Cathay Pacific is to pay a USD$60 million fine while Scandinavian airline SAS is required to pay USD$52 million and Martinair USD$42 million.

Several car rental companies have started offering fuel-efficient cars in great numbers these days. This is to ensure a steady flow of customers to sustain their rental operations by maintaining their prices despite the increase in fuel costs and airfares.

Most travelers going on vacation find the high prices of oil highly bothering their vacation plans. However, this summer has got several options with respect to fuel efficient imports as the travelers frequent the car rental companies for booking either at the counters or online. When compared to a large number of domestic cars and SUVs, Toyota, Mazda, Hyundai, Kia, and other imports offer a better mileage for gas.

In addition, an increasing number of hybrid vehicles are also available at some select airport locations to benefit those customers who would like to take the benefit of gasoline electric option in addition to offering a greater saving on gas.

In a recent strategic move, bmi has announced its concrete plans to further increase the frequency of many of its flight services to Saudi Arabia. Notably, bmi is the second largest carrier operating out of London Heathrow. The airline has recently confirmed that it will add extra new services from the UK hub to Jeddah, Dammam and the capital city of Riyadh.

It is interesting to note that the expansion plans of the airline follows a series of bilateral talks held between the British and Saudi governments. The outcome of the talk has resulted in the increase of weekly flights between the two countries to 35. Talking about the recent developments and the outcome of the bilateral talks between the two countries, Nigel Turner, the chief executive of bmi said that the airline has considerably increased its presence in the said region. However, the significant development followed after the cessation of BA's flights in 2005.

Nigel Turner remarked, "Bmi has amassed a considerable amount of experience and expertise since we took over services from Heathrow to the Kingdom. Our route network to the region was further enhanced last October when we commenced services from Heathrow to a wide range of destinations throughout the Middle East and beyond. Bmi now has a major presence in this part of the world with considerable experience and knowledge of serving these markets."

In a recent statement, British Airways has totally denied the accusations that the airline is scaling back its operations in Scotland. Earlier, some business groups have claimed that British Airlines is gradually dropping its links between Heathrow and some major Scottish airports for freeing up the slots for accommodating some long-haul services that shall prove to be lucrative then these links.

By way of proving its claim, the British Chamber of Commerce points out to the recent roll back of the "red-eye" 6am flight from Glasgow to the London hub. Most notably, this service had been highly popular among the business travelers as the time schedule proved to be highly convenient for a range of business activities at the capital.

On the other hand, the airline has totally denied the above said accusation and has said that even after the above said service was rolled back for several other important reasons, the airline is still operating not less than 100 flights in the route connecting the Scottish and the London airports every single day. 

In a highly significant move, the Kuoni Group has decided to acquire a 60% shareholding in Direkt Reisen AG. This shall come into effect on July 1. Notably, the remaining 40% of the company domiciled near Zurich, Switzerland, will rest with the founding family, who is a further shareholder. It is interesting to note that Direkt Reisen AG is a leading Switzerland based direct sellers of inclusive-tour products focusing on the Mediterranean, the Caribbean and African and Asian destinations. Most notably, the acquisition further enhances the position of Kuoni in the Swiss direct-sales travel market.

Direkt Reisen AG was founded in 1999 and with a work force of some 25 employees; amazingly the company generated a turnover of CHF 53 million during last year alone. After the acquisition of the shares, all the company's personnel will be retained in addition to the Direkt Reisen brand and further partner brands. During talks, the parties have agreed strictly not to divulge the sale price involved. After the acquisition, Direkt Reisen and all its activities will be integrated into the Kuoni Switzerland unit of Strategic Business Division Smart forming part of the Kuoni Group.

Stefan Leser, Head of Strategic Business Division Smart and CEO of Kuoni Switzerland said, "We expect to generate sizeable synergies between Direkt Reisen and our present Kuoni Switzerland brands, in terms of both existing customer relationships and increased procurement volumes. And we intend to exploit these to the full."

In a highly welcomed move, Embassy Suites Hotels announced the opening of the Embassy Suites Anchorage in The Last Frontier - Alaska. Most notably, this is the brand's debut in the region. The magnificent property is ideally located in the midtown Anchorage. The 169-suite hotel is also incidentally the brand's first ever property developed and owned by Stonebridge Companies based in Colorodo. On its opening, the property proudly joins the other Hilton Family hotels in Anchorage like the Hilton Garden Inn - Anchorage, Homewood Suites by Hilton - Anchorage and the Hampton Inn Anchorage.

The brand new property clearly demonstrates the domestic growth plans of the brand in addition to the continued integration into untouched U.S. markets. Sited at about two miles from Ted Stevens International Airport and downtown Anchorage, the property is ideally positioned itself as the most luxurious, all-suite hotel in the state of Alaska. Being located in the Anchorage's epicenter, the property is ideal for travelers visiting on leisure and business needs.

Jim Holthouser, senior vice president, brand management, Embassy Suites Hotels remarked, "We are thrilled to bring the Embassy Suites brand and upscale all-suite concept to Alaska, offering our unique value proposition to an emerging U.S. market. Expansion into new markets like Anchorage is imperative to our continued growth and success, as well as our goal of 300 hotels built, under construction or in the pipeline by 2010. It is also essential to the brand's growth to broaden our developer base, which we are accomplishing by working with Stonebridge Companies."

Having conducted a study of 2008 Current and Future Technology Use in the Hospitality Industry, the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) has recently announced its findings. The study was funded by the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation (AH&LEF), which is the not-for-profit affiliate of AH&LA. Analysing the top areas of information technology (IT) popularly implemented at hotels, the study also quantifies increased customer demand thereby motivating hoteliers to improve their product with new and innovative range of amenities and programs.  
 
Most responding properties clearly agreed that IT is highly important for enhancing customer satisfaction (82.4 percent). In addition, enhancing employee efficiency was rated 79.9 percent) and generating revenue was rated 71.3 percent. Over 82 percent of respondents noted that Wi-Fi services were among the IT system that guests highly care about. Notably, eighty-six percent of responding hotels already provided Wi-Fi services, while the rest had concrete plans to offer the same within the next five years. Following Wi-Fi, the other important amenities preferred by customers were in-room entertainment systems and airline check-in kiosks, with 48 percent and 38 percent of respondents respectively.

AH&LA President/CEO Joseph A. McInerney, CHA observed, "Results of this study indicate hoteliers are critically monitoring and taking action to fulfill their guests' wants and needs as the average consumer gets more and more tech-savvy. During the past decade, advancements in IT have significantly shaped the way the lodging industry plans, controls, and manages operations in all segments of the hospitality community."

It is popularly known that Scotland is highly renowned for some of the best golf courses in the world. Most notably, Aberdeen located on the North Sea, assures a thrilling and most satisfying golfing experience for everyone.

At Aberdeen, there are several new golf developments being planned to make this region truly a world-class golfing destination. In addition, during the forth-coming years, this region shall also become the ideally suitable location for delegates to enjoy free time golfing. Donald Trump and The Trump Organization have decided to build a magnificent golf development in the 14,000 acres of the Menie Estate in Aberdeenshire, sited just within minutes from the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Center. The $2 billion program shall include two 18-hole golf courses, a five-star hotel, 36 golf villas, 950 holiday homes, 500 houses, a state-of-the-art golf academy and a turf grass research center.

Brian Horsburgh, Deputy Managing Director, Aberdeen Exhibition & Conference Centre noted, "We are very excited about all of the new golfing developments in the Aberdeen area. Not only will Aberdeen be put on the map as a world-class golfing destination, the new golf courses will also attract business travelers from around the world, who come to Aberdeen for it's the state-of-the-art meeting facilities and outstanding golf courses."

In a strategic move, Camair Freight, based at Newcastle Airport Freight Village, has merged with BS Freight, the Durham Tees Valley Airport Cargo Terminal based company. The merger has lead to the formation of Camair Freight Solutions, the freight division of Casper Shipping Limited.

Notably, the parent group Casper Shipping, based in Middlesbrough bought both these firms last year as the 136-year-old raw materials carrier contemplated on bringing these two companies in order to break new markets.

It is expected that within the next five years the new air freight company shall be able to grow its turnover from £1.5m to £20m within the next five years as it embarks on tapping into the fast expanding Middle East oil and gas market. Notably, the two firms shall enhance the amount of equipment exported by them to foreign-based oil companies by way of helping them speed up the process of launching freight operations at other airports like Heathrow.

In a highly significant move, the planning committee of the Doncaster Council has given a green signal to the Robin Hood Airport for getting a new rail station at the complex. However, the station scheme still requires to clear several hurdles associated with planning. The present proposals say that the station would be located on the Doncaster to Lincoln line at about a few hundred metres from the airport terminal.

According to the present proposals, the station will feature two platforms. This was an alteration of the initial proposal with a single platform. This proposal proved highly expensive with respect to signalling costs. The initial design also featured a 250- space park and ride with a shuttle service connecting the station with the terminal building.

The airport's environment manager, Clare Wilson noted, "We are delighted with the news that this important new facility is nearer to reality. Seven percent of our passengers already use public transport, which is really positive when you consider that the airport has only been open for three years."

According to Thomas Cook, the UK tour specialist, the price that British travelers need to pay for their holidays is likely to increase by 7% during next summer. This is largely due to the shooting up of oil prices and the weakening of the position of pound when compared to euro.

Manny Fontenla-Novoa, the chief executive of the group said that the summer holiday packages for 2009 released already clearly reflect the oil price rises. Over and above, he is expecting that on an average, the prices of oil shall remain 7% above last year.

According to Fontenla-Novoa, the rise of jet fuel costs accounts for increase in the airfares. Over and above, he too indicates that the hike of costs of accommodation in the Eurozone is also due to a weakened pound. Notably, Thomas Cook accommodation costs generally amount to four times their fuel costs.

Recently, United Airlines, the major US carrier has indicated that it will ground around 100 of its aircraft thereby axing around 17% of its network. The entire operation is to be completed by the end of 2008. The move is in response to the mounting fuel cost that is causing a tremendous loss to the carrier.

It is noted that a major part of the axing operation will take place within the US However, the airline has confirmed that it will also considerably reduce its international network in the year 2009, working out to around 5% reduction. However, services operated from Heathrow are not to be disturbed as part of this exercise. In addition to the redundancies announced in the month of April, not less than 1,100 jobs will be lost during the exercise.

President and chief executive of United Airlines, Glenn Tilton, noted, "We are taking aggressive steps that reflect the current market reality. This environment demands the industry act decisively."

Reflecting the significant milestone achieved in the progress and development of both regional and international aviation at the capital of Kazakhstan, Air Astana presented a brand new Airbus A 320. Carrying the registered number of Р4-WAS, Airbus A-320 was delivered from the premises of the Airbus located at the Toulouse city. Most interestingly, the event marked the 6th anniversary of the airline in addition to the 10th anniversary of the city of Astana.

The most attractive features that distinguish the aircraft from the earlier makes are its highly enhanced design component and renewed symbols, in addition to the modern system of management entertainment. Over and above, the SATCOM integral system, enables supporting the seamless telephonic connection between the crew and the office. Most notably, Air Astana is planning to replace all of its Fokker-50 aircrafts from the fleet.

Increasing the quantity of aircrafts in the International Airport of Astana city shall support the plan launched by the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Kazakhstan to establish the airport as the largest and leading Aviation Technical Center in the whole of Central Asia and West Siberia.

In an interesting move, American Airlines has announced that on two of its designated flights, its customers can test a new in-flight Internet service this week. Following this phase, the facility will be made available broadly in about two weeks after the tests.

The airline is seriously considering the entertainment and information options to increase per passenger revenue amidst the conditions of the record-high prices of jet fuel. For this internet service, the airline will charge an additional fee ranging between $9.95 to $12.95 depending on the length of the flight.

The test of the new facility is launched by the airline in association with Aircell LLC, the carrier's technology partner. Initially, the test will be launched in two flights of the airline operated between JFK to LAX, in addition to one return flight in the same route. According to the statement made by Doug Backelin, the in-flight technology manager of the airline, passengers will not incur any additional charges during these trial runs.

According to a report published in Travel Weekly, a senior minister appears to have hinted that the Treasury has concrete plans to replace Air Passenger Duty with a tax on aircraft. According to this report, addressing a conference, Jim Fitzpatrick, the Parliamentary under-secretary for transport Parliamentary under-secretary for transport said, "Difficulties surround the decision. There are strong arguments that we should not proceed with the transition."

Expected to be implemented from November 2009, the move is expected to levy an aircraft tax in order to replace APD from 2009 November. The treasury is working on the above said proposal and the final details are expected to be unveiled in October enabling the tour operators to include the price of the tax while preparing the brochures. However, the provisional details are to be released as early as the end of July. On the contrary, the travel magazine states that the
Treasury is far behind the schedule and has actually taken no decisions. Quoting the industry sources, it says that it is already too late and it is rather very difficult to expect an announcement in the month of October.

It is said that any retreat in this regard will certainly dismay tour operators and airlines, which struggled hard for a switch from APD to a tax that reflects the relative carbon dioxide emissions of aircraft. However, while addressing the Sustainable Future for Aviation Conference in London, Mr. Fitzpatrick said that the government is under pressure from major airlines.

In an important move to cut fuel costs and carbon dioxide emissions from increasing number of aircrafts, the European commission has introduced a plan to straighten the aviation routes on Wednesday.

Notably, the EU has set a goal of bringing down carbon emissions by fifth by the year 2020, when compared with that of the year 1990. This move is aimed at enhancing the profile of the EU as a global leader in leading by example at the global climate talks scheduled for next year involving other major emitters like China, India and the US. 

Statistics reveal that airlines alone account for more than 3% of the total CO2 emission in Europe and the traffic is expected to double by the year 2020. Over and above, aircrafts waste millions of tonne of fuel since they zig-zag their sky route between national airspaces in the 27-nation bloc.

In a significant move, easyJet has launched a facility to enable passengers purchase extra weight allowance for holding their baggage ahead of their flight. According to the new facility, passengers can pay for their excess weight charges online, at a highly attractive rate.  This move is also a measure to save them time at the airport check-in.

The facility will be made available in 3 kg denominations. The scheme also enables that passengers save £3 when compared to the rate of £15 per 3kgs charged at the check-in desk charged on the day of travel.

According to the earlier scheme, if a customer wants to pre-pay for excess luggage carried while travel after the booking has been made, this can be done only through the contact center. On the launch of the new scheme, the customers can pre-pay for the excess baggage right at the time of booking, either online or over the telephone according to their convenience. Even as the new scheme comes into force, the earlier scheme of paying the extra charges at the airport still continues, however at a higher rate. 

Celebrating the arrival of the eleventh aircraft based at the Milan Malpensa Airport, easyJet announced that it has concrete plans to expand further at this most important airport in the Northern Italy.

In the month of October, the airline is to base two additional aircrafts at Malpensa, taking up the total number of aircrafts of easyJet based in this airport to 13 as the winter schedule commences. Notably, this progress has been achieved within two and a half years of launching its services from this important base.

These new aircrafts shall be employed on five new routes to the European capitals of Copenhagen, Stockholm and Sofia besides offering domestic links to destinations like Brindisi and Lamezia Terme. Over and above, the airline has also plans to increase frequencies on some of the key routes operated to Barcelona, Naples, Amsterdam and Paris in the month of October.

Recently, bmi regional has announced that the airline will add a third extra return flight to the route between Edinburgh to Copenhagen. Offering this additional service from 21st July, the airline will offer 18 return flights per week in total between these cities. Most notably, the return flights are priced from just £145 return, with the charges inclusive of all additional charges and taxes. The services can be booked online by logging into www.flybmi.com

It is interesting to note that the extra service operated daily between the two capitals will enable passengers connect to several destinations offered by the star alliance partners of bmi regional including destinations like Oslo, Tokyo, Helsinki and Stockholm. Over and above, the extra service will benefit the passengers flying from destinations like Oslo and Istanbul enabling them easily connect to Edinburgh via Copenhagen.

bmi regional has the credit of being named as the most punctual airline in the UK as observed by an official statistics published by the CAA. Notably, the airline has won this title for the third consecutive year. The airline is to employ modern Embraer jet aircraft on the new route, offering the passengers highly attractive business and economy fares in addition to complimentary in-flight refreshments and renowned service.

A recent report observes that there is a strong likelihood that bmi, the British airline is taken over next year. However, since a good number of rivals are eyeing up the portfolio of the airline's London Heathrow slots, analysts observe that the airline can make a loss in 2008.

50 percent (plus one share) owned by Sir Michael Bishop is expected to change ownership in 2009 as the result of a private agreement entered into between Bishop and the co-owner Lufthansa, which owns 30 percent minus one share.

Interestingly, Bishop certainly has the option of placing the majority of his share of the airline with Lufthansa. However, a source familiar with the situation says that the German carrier can also 'call in' the stake. If the second deal comes through, the deal will be carried out for a pre-set price agreed upon nearly a decade ago.

As part of Italy's plan to salvage Alitalia, a fresh capital injection has been launched before hunting for the partner is resumed. According to its Chairman, this is one of the strategic ways in which the government is planning to settle the fate of the airline.

Following the bankruptcy of the carrier, earlier two attempts to sell its controlling stake failed. Following this, the government has taken up the present exercise to settle the fate of the airline. However, the government has not revealed the shape of the plan launched.

Addressing a parliamentary hearing, Giulio Tremonti, the Economy Minister of Italy said that Air France-KLM had already commenced the "actions" connected to Alitalia. In fact, an Italian Treasury source acknowledged the move as part of legal actions after the takeover of the carrier fell apart. Later, Tremonti said that he was certainly not aware of any legal actions by Air France-KLM against Alitalia and that the French airline was only evaluating industrial future of the Italian carrier.

In a strategic move, British billionaire Richard Branson is holding talks with Brazilian partners to start an independent airline in the largest country of Latin America. Notably, the new airline will be that of "Virgin Brazil" kind and will give a start offering domestic flights. Further, the later additions will include some notable international destinations.

Branson, the controller of Virgin Atlantic Airways observed, "Brazil is a very dynamic market and we haven't paid enough attention to it in the past. We know there is a lot of room to grow given the country's size and the need to develop the air transportation system for Brazil's own growth."

According to Branson, the talks are on progress and an announcement following the talks can be expected very soon. In addition, it is interesting to note that the civil aviation laws of Brazil cap the foreign ownership of the domestic airlines at 20 percent.

The new PCI Compliance Primer released by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) ensures that the hotels located across the nation implement strict security procedures in compliance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS). The primer has been designed as a guide to help the hoteliers in terms of processes that are both technical and business related in order to prevent the misuse and abuse of the security card data.

Most significantly, it is noted that the hospitality industry alone reports more than 55 percent of the total credit card fraud instances. In this regard, the above said move by the Association comes as a measure to minimize the same across the industry. The primer has been ably prepared by Dan Connolly, PhD., of the University of Denver, and Mark G. Haley, CHTP of the Prism Partnership, LLC being funded by the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation (AH&LEF).

AH&LA President/CEO Joseph A. McInerney, CHA observes, "Though much of PCI compliance is IT-related, this primer clarifies the issue as a greater one that affects all aspects of business operations. While often seen as difficult and costly, PCI compliance is not optional for any hotel that accepts credit cards, and this document provides tangible strategies for hoteliers to create a safe and secure environment for their guests."

According to the bankers involved with the deal, BAA appears close to obtaining loans amounting to £7.15 billion to refinance debt. The loans are to mature somewhere between 2010 and 2013, with six other lenders underwriting the transaction along with Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC, Citigroup, Calyon.

Though BAA was consistently trying to put off getting into new debt, the UK regulators reviewed the fees charged at its three London airports and now the airport operator is under pressure to replace its loans amidst the rise of interest rates as the refinancing process is delayed. Earlier last year, while Moody's were threatening to follow suit. 

The report says that the Airport Authority will pay annual interest of 100 to 225 basis points more than the rate offered by London interbank offered rate, or Libor, on the new loans. In addition, the interest margin is expected to go up over the life of the debt. While BAA is paying a margin of 212 basis points than the London interbank offered rate on existing senior loans that are due in 2011, it is expected that this might rise further up to 267.5 basis points by July next year.