Topic: Commercial Aviation News

[GeNe]

Baggage Fees hiked at Delta

Now $25 for first bag, $35 for second bag, joining US Airways and Continental.

American and United charge $20 and $30, respectively.

Alaska and Airtran charge $15 and $25.

Jetblue:  first bag free, $30 for second bag

Southwest:  2 free bags.

Most of these carriers will give you a discount if you pay online before you travel.  Just watch out when buying tickets to factor these things into account.

http://blogs.wsj.com/middleseat/2010/01/12/baggage-fee-jump-delta-up-to-25-for-first-bag/

[GeNe]

United Airlines and Continental Airlines to announce merger.

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424052748704302304575214501554530976-lMyQjAxMTAwMDIwOTEyNDkyWj.html

This is big news - largest airline by passengers carried, and further consolidation in the US aviation industry to only 3 major international carriers - United, Delta and American.
Southwest, Jetblue, Airtran, Frontier, Alaska and Spirit are still in the domestic market.  There were also rumors that American would merge with either Alaska or Frontier...I guess we'll see!

[GeNe]

It's official:

http://www.unitedcontinentalmerger.com/

[Shyfty]

It's official:

http://www.unitedcontinentalmerger.com/

Continental has allways been a big Boeing supporter, while United has been playing both sides (united opted for 25 next gen models from each providers, with options for additional units) .  Hopefully the Continental folks will push their preference for big B when it comes to future purchases and we take more share.

[GeNe]

Yup.  CO has an all-Boeing fleet.

UA is set to announce its narrowbody order sometime in 2010.  Rumors are that it may even go for a C-Series jet instead of Airbus or Boeing.  We'll see if the CO merger makes a difference in their decision, since CO has a bunch of newer 737s, and with 41 more still to be delivered.  Good thing UA and CO both ordered the 787-8 though.

[GeNe]

United and Continental Merger Approved by Justice Department.

The last major hurdle to a merger between United Airlines and Continental has been passed, with the Justice Department signing off on the merger after Continental agreed to lease 18 take-off and landing slots at Newark Airport to Southwest Airlines.  Southwest has been seeking a foothold in the New York region for many years, and the lease of 18 spots to Southwest allayed Justice Department fears that the merger would create anti-trust concerns in the New York region.

The new United will be the largest airline in the world, with more than 178,000 scheduled passenger-miles flown per year, overtaking Delta and American.

The new company will retain the United name, but use the Continental logo.


As a frequent flier with United, I'm extremely excited about the news.  Hopefully the new outfit will generate enough money that they can bring back some comforts of flying.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/28/business/28air.html?_r=1&hp

[anomaly]

that sounds pretty cool... as long as they don't get all monopoly like.

quick question on flying. whats the thing with laptops now a days? i read a few horror stories of people laptop being confiscated for weeks at a time to be scanned for what ever reason they make up.

[GeNe]

that sounds pretty cool... as long as they don't get all monopoly like.

quick question on flying. whats the thing with laptops now a days? i read a few horror stories of people laptop being confiscated for weeks at a time to be scanned for what ever reason they make up.

If you cross an international border with a laptop, Customs may require that you power on your laptop, and may search the contents for things like kiddie porn.  There is a split in judicial authority as to whether this is constitutional...although the Supreme Court has recognized that there is a diminished expectation of privacy at the border, which allows Customs to search your bags, inside your briefcase, inside a box that is inside your suitcase, without probable cause, the Supreme Court has not tackled the issue of electronic privacy yet, and the different Circuit Courts are split on the issue, with the Ninth Circuit (CA, NV, AZ, OR, WA) taking the stand that Customs can search your computer.  But they cannot detain your or your belongings for an unreasonable amount of time unless they have probable cause to seize the computer.  So, they should do the search while you're waiting at the Border.  Note too that the Border includes airports where you fly directly into the United States.  So even if the airport is in Cleveland, if you flew direct from Canada, or Europe, the same Border rules apply.

TSA, however, is not the same as Customs.  I believe they can ask you to turn the laptop on to show that it is a real laptop, as opposed to a carefully engineered bomb, but I don't think they can search the content of the laptop because it has nothing to do with security.  And they certainly cannot seize the laptop to search it at a later date unless they have probable cause...and then I think the Police or FBI would need to be involved.

So...to sum up:

Can Customs Search Your Laptop At the Border (or flying into an airport from overseas) - YES
Is it Constitutional - UNCLEAR, but yes in certain Circuits
Can TSA Search Your Laptop - NO, but they can ask you to power it on.


This is all off the top of my head, so I might be off, but I'm pretty confident that's the status of the law.

[anomaly]

cool thx.

im not planing on going anywhere any time soon but i just like to keep up with the "its for your own protection" crap.

[GeNe]

Look like the 787's first flight will be pushed back until October now, though Boeing still thinks it may be able to deliver the first airplane by May 2008. That's a very compressed flight test schedule (only 8 months). To put this in perspective, the last new plane that Boeing made was the 777, and that flight schedule was more like 11 months.

linky

I started this thread way back when to talk about the new Boeing 787, which was originally supposed to be certified and delivered in 2008.  Well, there were many, many, hiccups along the way, but finally, almost three years late, the FAA and EAA certified the new Boeing 787, with first delivery scheduled for late September to launch customer ANA.

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/blogs/commercial_aviation/ThingsWithWings/index.jsp?plckController=Blog&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&newspaperUserId=7a78f54e-b3dd-4fa6-ae6e-dff2ffd7bdbb&plckPostId=Blog%3a7a78f54e-b3dd-4fa6-ae6e-dff2ffd7bdbbPost%3ae0dbdeb3-205a-4cc1-8c88-e6809d70dc58&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest

In the meantime, Airbus launched the A350, a replacement for the current A330 and A340 aircraft (and competitor to Boeing's 787 and 777 lines), and has scheduled delivery for the 2013 timeframe.  Airbus also delivered the A380, and announced the Airbus A320NEO (New Engine Option) which puts next-generation engines on the old frame (and secured over 1,000 orders for that aircraft since the beginning of this year).

Boeing hasn't been resting either, simultaneously developing and certifying the new 747-8, which is a stretch and upgrade of the venerable 747 aircraft family.  It is *the* choice for freighter companies around the world.  And while Boeing wanted to launch the 797, an all-new airplane designed to replace the 737, Airbus's re-engining decision forced Boeing to re-engine the 737, which will be known as the 737RE.  Boeing got Board Approval to launch that line today, with 496 commitments.

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story.jsp?id=news/awx/2011/08/30/awx_08_30_2011_p0-364595.xml&headline=Boeing%20Board%20Approves%20Re-Engined%20737&channel=comm