5 DECEMBER 2016
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- ON THE SOAPBOX: Champa Magesh, Amadeus
- "Sully"
- Air BP biofuel deal
- Celebration for Air France
- Date for Grayling
- Edinburgh Indigo
- Ethiopian heads to Oslo
- First CS300 for Baltic
- Fuel clue in Medellin crash
- Heathrow’s magic mirror
- Liverpool gets £4m revamp
- Luton Airport progress
- More choice from SWISS
- New steps in scanning
- Norwegian to America
- Oxford link sets date
- Party at the Peninsula
- Southend's new help scheme
- Strike hiatus at Lufthansa
- Ukraine's Boeing boost
- United’s LAX 'jewel'
- Yotelair takes a bow
- ON TOUR: Runaway success for Eilat
- CRUISING DECEMBER 2016
- AND FINALLY: The secret of happiness
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Celebration for Air France
Special flights organised by Air France are taking place next month to celebrate the arrival of the airline’s new B787-9 Dreamliner, which is due to be delivered on Thursday (8 December).
Heathrow’s magic mirror
A new Personal Shopping Lounge featuring “the World’s Most Connected Mirror” has bowed in at Heathrow’s Terminal 5 in response to the growing appetite for sharing and feedback via social-media networks.
More choice from SWISS
Economy Class passengers are being given the option of obtaining access to business lounges operated by SWISS in advance of their flights in a further expansion of the airline’s SWISS Choice programme.
ON THE SOAPBOX: Champa Magesh, Amadeus
Champa Magesh, managing director Amadeus UK and Ireland, is responsible for overseeing business strategies across all channels in corporate and leisure travel. She joined in June 2015 from American Express Global Business Travel, where she was vice-president and general manager UK & Switzerland. She has held leadership roles in high-tech travel-orientated organisations, including WorldPay and Cisco Systems.
"Sully"
“An imperfect film not to be missed”. That is BTN’s view on what might have been called “Miracle on the Hudson” if someone had not come up with that title first.
The flm is out now on general release. Readers will know the story.
Date for Grayling
Fresh from his appearance at last month’s annual AOA conference (BTN last week), transport secretary Chris Grayling will be facing another industry audience next month when he delivers the keynote speech at the Airlines UK annual dinner.
First CS300 for Baltic
Bombardier Commercial Aircraft on Monday 28 November announced the delivery of the first CS300 aircraft to launch operator airBaltic, the flag carrier of Latvia. The CS300, the larger variant of Bombardier’s all-new C-Series, is designed to carry 130-150 passengers.
Fuel clue in Medellin crash
Evidence was mounting at the weekend that the 28 November plane crash at Medellin was caused by the aircraft running out of fuel after the pilot was ordered to circle to allow an incoming flight to land.
Liverpool gets £4m revamp
The latest phase of development work aimed at improving the customer experience for departing passengers is now under way at Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LPL).
Luton Airport progress
With a £110m investment programme well under way Luton Airport is making real progress.
New steps in scanning
Makers of scanners used in airports are testing new technology that could soon make taking liquids and laptops out of carry-on bags unnecessary, speeding up security lines for passengers.
Norwegian to America
The United States Department of Transportation has approved Norwegian Air's application for a foreign carrier permit, allowing it to launch flights to the US from EU countries. De facto, this will not make much difference, short-term the airline already operating across the North Atlantic from Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
Strike hiatus at Lufthansa
Management at Lufthansa were in talks at the weekend to try to resolve a dispute which led to some 4,450 flights being cancelled over six days of action by the Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) pilots’ union. More than 500,000 passengers were affected.
ON TOUR: Runaway success for Eilat
Following the Business Travel News report on the new Eilat airport named Ramon (ETM), editor-in-chief Malcolm Ginsberg joined Monarch Airlines for this season’s inaugural flight to Ovda (VDA), the current international aviation entry point for the city.
CRUISING DECEMBER 2016
As is traditional with BTN, the December cruising issue will appear in the last issue of the year, 19 December, and hopefully feature an important cruise ship that would have just completed a three-week major remastering. Readers might also be interested in “Building the World’s Most Luxurious Cruise Ship” part 2 next Friday, 9 December, on Channel 5. You can of course go to ‘catch-up’ to view part 1, shown last Friday (2 December).
AND FINALLY: The secret of happiness
The statistics-mongers have been at it again, this time on the subject of travel, but their findings are more than usually interesting. Almost half (49%) of people say a holiday brings them more happiness than their wedding day, while more than half (51%) prefer travelling over going on a date with their partner.
Air BP biofuel deal
A new partnership has put Air BP in a leading position as a supplier of low-carbon jet fuel for aircraft at key hubs across North America.
Edinburgh Indigo
The InterContinental Hotels Group has expanded its boutique offering in Scotland with the opening of the 64-room Hotel Indigo Edinburgh – Princes Street, its second in the city, using Scottish heritage design to reflect the country’s culture and history.
Ethiopian heads to Oslo
A new service of five scheduled weekly flights to Oslo via Stockholm from 26 March next year was announced last week by Ethiopian Airlines, probably the fastest-growing carrier in Africa, using the B787 Dreamliner.
Oxford link sets date
The long-awaited Chiltern Railways service between Oxford city centre and Marylebone station in London opens next Monday (12 December) following completion of a £320m programme transforming a former branch line into a 100mph main line.
Party at the Peninsula
Giant balloons tethered to a Hong Kong top hotel marked the 150th anniversary last month of one of the region’s leading companies, the Hongkong and Shanghai Hotel group (HSH).
Southend's new help scheme
Passengers with hidden disabilities who may require additional support are benefiting from a new help scheme introduced at the weekend by Southend airport.
Ukraine's Boeing boost
An ambitious fleet-renewal and expansion programme by Ukraine International Airlines has reached a milestone with the arrival of a ninth Boeing B737-800. The aircraft entered commercial service on Monday with a flight to Kharkiv.
United’s LAX 'jewel'
The newest United Club has been unveiled by United Airlines at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The airline described it as the jewel in its $573m project to refresh nearly all its customer-facing spaces in Terminal 7 and Concourse 8.
Yotelair takes a bow
Paris Charles de Gaulle has become the latest location for the “new-concept” hotel chain Yotel following the company’s decision to rebrand its airport properties as Yotelair to differentiate them from its city hotels.