Finnair is providing passengers with iPads for long-haul flights
In an effort to keep passengers busy on long across Siberia flights, Finnair is now issuing its top passengers iPads for use during its flights.
In a bid to encourage more passengers to transit via Helsinki airport to Asia, Finnair is introducing free iPads for them to use at its Via Lounge.
Passengers flying business class with Finnair, and senior members of the airline’s frequent flyer programme can access the lounge.
The iPads, which will also be on a number of flights to Hong Kong in November, have been loaded with content from newspapers and magazines, as well as films, television series and games.
Americans are the least adventurous on vacation
A survey by an adventure travel website notes that Americans are the least adventurous group of travelers. We seem to love the comforts of home rather than the breezes and smells of the wild while sleeping in a tent.
The US is the least adventurous, while the Kiwis come in first
In the US, Californians were the most adventurous overall
People from Washington DC were least likely to want to sleep under the stars in a desert camp (26.5%); San Diegans were the most likely (68.4%)
Texans are a varied bunch: Dallas respondents were most likely to want to stay with a local family in a village (44.2%), while Austin respondents were least likely (17.6%)
New Englanders are most likely to haggle at local markets (60.5%) compared to the genteel Southerners (37.9%)
Next Southwest ad campaign — no change fees
Southwest will follow up its successful “bags fly free” ad campaign with a “no change fees” campaign. The airline is alone among carriers in the U.S. to not charge passengers a change fee. The money that would have been spent on Southwest stays with the airline in a customer kitty that can be spent on a future flight.
“We don’t think the win here is to try to pickpocket someone for 150 bucks. The win here is to get loyal customers,’’ he said.
Mr. Krone said Southwest’s research shows there’s a lot of anxiety for people when they buy airline tickets because they can be so inflexible and prone to penalties when plans have to change.
U.S. airlines collected $1.7 billion in baggage fees in the first half of this year and $1.1 billion in reservation change fees, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. That’s a huge amount of money for airlines, and while that revenue has dramatically boosted airlines’ profitability, Southwest Chief Executive Gary Kelly thinks other airlines are, at the same time, losing customers who are opting for his airline. In the end, he still thinks the baggage fees and change fees are hurting other airlines.
“You lose one customer and it wipes out the benefit of 10-15 bags. Customers hate it. How can you argue that something customers hate is good for your brand?’’ Mr. Kelly said.
National Geographic Great Migrations starts tonight, November 7th
National Geographics is launching a new series on the great animal migrations across the vastness of planet Earth.
Every day, millions of creatures are born into a life on the march, on the wing, on the run. They are migrants. Born to move. From the tiniest butterflies to the largest wildebeest, life itself hinges on these travelers ability to get up and go. Born to Move spans the globe, revealing four of the most remarkable animal movements: Sperm Whales travelling over a million miles in a lifetime; Red Crabs overcoming horrific obstacles on a daily basis; Monarch Butterflies taking four generations to cross a continent; and Wildebeest, every year rising above the gaping jaws of ravenous crocodiles. National Geographics GREAT MIGRATIONS reveals these spectacular, surprising and inspiring stories in unprecedented fashion. This 3 year production, filmed around the globe with cutting-edge technology delivers gripping stories of birth, death, struggle and renewal. Truly the most moving stories on earth.
Charlie Leocha is the President of Travelers United. He has been working in Washington, DC, for the past 14 years with Congress, the Department of Transportation, and industry stakeholders on travel issues. He was the first consumer representative to the Advisory Committee for Aviation Consumer Protections appointed by the Secretary of Transportation from 2012 through 2018.
