Good Airline Fees? Some Are Worth the Money
Christopher Elliott

This isn't another story about airlines and their misguided fees. It's about the surcharges that are worth paying -- and why you should consider saying, 'yes' to them. That's right, I said 'worth it.' While many fees are outrageous, some aren't entirely out of line.

Improved DOT 'Air Consumer' Website
Ed Perkins

The U.S. Department of Transportation's recently updated 'Aviation Consumer Protection and Enforcement' Website provides easy access to information available on your 'rights' as an air passenger. And although the content is generally the same as before, it's more accessible. Of the six main options in the opening menu, three are of greatest use to most travelers.

Airfare Deals: Look for the 'Secret' Code
Ed Perkins

In an ongoing effort to keep you tied to their own booking sites, some of the big airlines give out special promotional codes for fare deals they don't advertise openly. These deals aren't available at all to the general public, and especially not to those 'aggregator' sites that are supposed to search everywhere for the lowest fares.

Hotel Fees That Must Die and How to Kill Them
Christopher Elliott

Resort fees. Mandatory tips. Concierge surcharges. If you've stayed at a hotel in the last few years, you've become accustomed -- if not anesthetized -- to these annoying extras. You expect them. You're indifferent to them when they appear on your bill. You shouldn't be.

Should Airlines Honor Fares That Are Obvious Mistakes
Christopher Elliott

I've run across travelers who feel that a company should honor any fare error, no matter how outrageous, and who don't think twice about booking blocks of rooms or several tickets at a wrong price. Not only do I find that ethically problematic, but it also makes matters more difficult for passengers

'People Movers' Ease Airport Hassles
Ed Perkins

Dulles inaugurated its new billion-dollar 'people mover,' and it should make life a lot easier for you whether you live in the area, visit the area, or have to change planes there. Dulles joins a number of other airports around the United States -- and the world -- that offer an easier and more convenient alternative to trekking through endless corridors or schlepping on and off buses

'Couches' in Economy Class -- For Real
Ed Perkins

Air New Zealand generated a lot of ink (and pixels) with the announcement that it was installing 'Skycouches' in a few rows of seats in the economy cabins of its long-haul 777s. Couches -- really? Yes, starting later this year, the line really will be offering a sort of flat seating option, but it will be a far cry from what most of us would consider lie-down seating.

Canceled Flight ... So Where's My Refund
Christopher Elliott

I recently booked a flight through Expedia from Orlando to Hyderabad, India. The flights were on Continental Airlines and Jet Airways. After I made the reservation and received a confirmation, I got an e-mail from Expedia that one leg of my flight had been canceled. I have been trying to get a refund for that canceled flight since then

5 Easy Ways to Avoid a la Carte Anarchy When You Fly
Christopher Elliott

It used to be so simple: The price you were quoted for an airline ticket, rental car or cruise used to be the price you actually paid. Ah, the good old days. Today, the rate you're given is almost never the final price. It's considerably more.

Transportation Department Steps Up Efforts in Aviation Consumer Protection
Christopher Elliott

Aviation consumer protection is a top priority for Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. And air travelers are impressed with the 'new' Department of Transportation, which, if you listen to the buzz, appears to be protecting consumers for the first time in years.

Flying Under the Influence of the TSA
Christopher Elliott

I won't insult you by repeating the obvious advice being dispensed by the so-called experts, such as arriving at the airport early or packing light. Instead, I'd like to take a longer view on traveling while under the influence of the TSA. Assuming that only half of the awful things people are saying about the agency are true, how do you fly?

Poof! There Go My SkyMiles
Christopher Elliott

Kenneth Miller's Delta SkyMiles are gone -- all 101,000 of them, and without so much as a warning. They were never supposed to expire, but the airline changed its rules without telling him. Does he have any chance of getting them back?

Flying in the Snow: 6 Lessons for Coping With Winter-Weather Delays
Christopher Elliott

Winter is only starting, and when bad weather moves in, your flight schedule isn't worth the paper it's printed on. What to do when your flight is delayed or cancelled due to winter weather

Gifts From Above: 7 Presents We Wish Airlines Would Give Us
Christopher Elliott

The airline industry is a popular target. The University of Michigan's authoritative American Customer Satisfaction Index gives the overall industry a failing grade of 64. Here's seven ways airlines can improve service and their image

TSA to Conduct Full Review After Sensitive Information Leak
Alex Kingsbury

TSA officials say that a full review is underway to determine how a 2008 copy of its standard operating procedures for all airport security checkpoints was released in its entirety on the Internet.

Washington Trade Groups Want Their Piece of Pie in the Sky
Christopher Elliott

No one would claim that any of the new travel-related laws scheduled to take effect in 2010 are game-changers for travelers. They're relatively minor. An overwhelming majority of the organizations I spoke with said that reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration would be in our best interests.

Frequent Flyer Miles: Currency, not Loyalty
Ed Perkins

Frequent flyer miles no longer have much if anything to do with loyalty: Instead, they've become a strange sort of currency that you don't really own and has value that is at the whim of the airline. Unless you fly a lot, it's time to re-think your frequent flyer plans.

New Airline Ideas, Good and Bad
Ed Perkins

Not all airline ideas are bad -- every once in a while, an airline comes up with something that actually helps consumers. On the other hand, the bad ones keep coming, as well, and, as I've noted before about the airline business, nothing gets copied faster then a bad idea.

Buying Airline Tickets Offshore
Ed Perkins

Can I still cut airfare costs by buying a return ticket overseas? The quick answer is, Not as much as last year. Here are three basic rules apply to buying airline tickets anywhere in the world

Air France Adds Premium Economy
Ed Perkins

Add Air France to the small list of airlines that offer a class between regular economy and business. The upside is that you'll be able to buy a relatively comfortable seat for a lot less than you'd pay for opulent but exorbitant business class. The downside is that Air France is apparently downgrading its regular economy

Allowing Cellphones In-Flight Would Make Air Travel Even Worse
Peter DeFazio

With airline customer satisfaction at an all-time low, this is not the moment to consider making airplane travel even more torturous by allowing in-flight cellphone conversations. After arriving hours early at the airport and often after waiting for a delayed, or even canceled, flight, what could make air travel worse?

If Europe Can Handle In-Flight Cellphone Use, So Can America
Carl Biersack

Despite predictions that in-flight cellphone usage would lead to Armageddon, the global rollout has been just the opposite. In 20 months of global usage, there has not been one reported incident or problem. In fact, 93 percent of passengers who flew on an in-flight communication-equipped aircraft want all jets so equipped. So why not U.S. carriers?

Airfares via Twitter

United, JetBlue Offer Twitter Airfare Deals
Ed Perkins

Airfares by Twitter - the latest gimmick. As if you didn't already have enough different places to look for airfare deals, United and Jet Blue have added yet another base to touch. And their new Twitter products - United's 'Tware' and JetBlue's 'Cheeps' airfares - offer another way to find good deals.

Pet Airways

Pet Airways - Flying with Fido and Fifi
Ed Perkins

All the recent publicity about the start of Pet Airways raises the question of exactly how to transport pets when you're flying. My basic advice -- as a dog owner for nearly 40 years -- is, 'Unless you can't avoid it, don't.' But you sometimes can't avoid it, so here are your options.

WiFi - The 'Next Big Thing' in Air Travel
Ed Perkins

Onboard WiFi is the new 'hot' feature. Settle into your seat, open your laptop, notebook computer or high-tech phone, and spend the remaining flight hours sorting your email, keeping up with the news and most of the other things you do online. That's an increasingly likely scenario as the domestic airlines scramble to find 'value added' features for their dreary and uncomfortable coach product -- especially features that bring in more revenue

What's Going on with the Airlines
Ed Perkins on Travel

The combination of a lousy economy, increasing fuel prices, and intense competition is creating unprecedented turmoil in the airline marketplace. Although no single event warrants a full column, several are important enough to cover.

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American's flight attendants union ask for "release" from talks
Star-Telegram Mar 17 2010 2:07AM GMT

American's flight attendants union ask for "release" from talks
TradingMarkets Mar 17 2010 2:04AM GMT

American's flight attendants ask to be released from mediation; eye strike
TradingMarkets Mar 17 2010 2:04AM GMT

American's flight attendants union ask for "release" from talks
TradingMarkets Mar 17 2010 2:04AM GMT

American's flight attendants ask to be released from mediation; eye strike
TradingMarkets Mar 17 2010 2:04AM GMT

BA suffers World Cup snub as Virgin named official airline
Daily Express Mar 17 2010 2:03AM GMT

BA strike union's £11m gift to Brown
Daily Express Mar 17 2010 2:03AM GMT

Boeing (BA) Targets 20.95% Return
Market Intelligence Center Mar 17 2010 2:03AM GMT

Who cares if BA goes on strike, or disappears?
Crikey Media Mar 17 2010 2:03AM GMT

American Muslim groups protest use of full body scanners at airports
Security Dealer Mar 17 2010 2:01AM GMT

Australian consumer group slams Sydney airport
Malaysia Sun Mar 17 2010 1:55AM GMT

FTSE closes comfortably higher with BA the leading light
Business Financial Newswire Mar 17 2010 1:52AM GMT

Airport inks deal with Hiltachk marketing
Biz Journals Mar 17 2010 1:52AM GMT

Federa airport gets wings with govt nod
Business Standard India Mar 17 2010 1:51AM GMT

BA strike could go global: Foreign unions enlisted for international militancy campaign
Mail Online UK Mar 17 2010 1:51AM GMT

Tough norms for aviation FDI?
Economictimes Mar 17 2010 1:51AM GMT

David Prosser: Strike one for BA in battle with unions
The Independent Mar 17 2010 1:47AM GMT

Flyers Rights Rally to Support Boxer/Snowe Call to Pass Airline Passenger Bill of Rights
Sys-Con Canada Mar 17 2010 1:44AM GMT

David Prosser: Strike one for BA in battle with unions
The Independent Mar 17 2010 1:42AM GMT

Flyers Rights Rally to Support Boxer/Snowe Call to Pass Airline Passenger Bill of Rights
Los Angeles Business Mar 17 2010 1:42AM GMT

Korein Tillery's Ongoing Investigation of the January 25, 2010 Crash Involving Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 from Beirut to Addis Ababa
Los Angeles Business Mar 17 2010 1:41AM GMT

US Teamsters union vows to support striking BA cabin crew
The Scotsman Mar 17 2010 1:39AM GMT

Cathay eyes better capacity management
International Freighting Weekly Mar 17 2010 1:38AM GMT

Montreal cabbies protest new airport shuttle
CBC Mar 17 2010 1:36AM GMT

Flyers Rights Rally to Support Boxer/Snowe Call to Pass Airline Passenger Bill of Rights
Memphis Business Journal Mar 17 2010 1:34AM GMT

American Way Names Winners of Annual 'Road Warrior' Contest
Wichita Business Journal Mar 17 2010 1:33AM GMT

Korein Tillery's Ongoing Investigation of the January 25, 2010 Crash Involving Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 from Beirut to Addis Ababa
Memphis Business Journal Mar 17 2010 1:33AM GMT

Flyers Rights Rally to Support Boxer/Snowe Call to Pass Airline Passenger Bill of Rights
Birmingham Business Journal Mar 17 2010 1:32AM GMT

Korein Tillery's Ongoing Investigation of the January 25, 2010 Crash Involving Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 from Beirut to Addis Ababa
Birmingham Business Journal Mar 17 2010 1:31AM GMT

Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK) PRESIDENT & CEO, HORIZON AIR Jeffrey D Pinneo sells 6,000 Shares
Guru Focus Mar 17 2010 1:31AM GMT