Edinburgh to Doha

ADDITIONAL flights between Edinburgh and Doha will see double daily flights introduced at Scotland’s busiest airport by Qatar Airways.

The airline will introduce an additional afternoon flight in April to cater for high Easter demand, meaning a double daily service on Mondays throughout the month.

It’s the first time a long-haul carrier has operated double daily routes to the Middle East from Edinburgh Airport, demonstrating the award-winning airline’s confidence in the busy route.


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Up in the air . . .

AIR Europa will launch new, three-times weekly flights to Colombia’s second city, Medellin, in June. The new route, operated by Air Europa’s state-of-the-art Dreamliner aircraft, will launch on the June 1st, with three flights per week between Madrid’s Barajas International Airport and José María Córdova International Airport, the international airport of Medellin.

British travellers are able to connect through Air Europa’s twice-daily flight from London Gatwick.

Visitor numbers to #Colombia have grown over recent years, with travellers enticed to Colombia by the South American country’s spectacular natural wonders, unspoiled Caribbean beaches, magnificent colonial architecture and lively local culture.

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On the runway . . .

easyJet, Europe’s leading airline, has today announced that it has reached a key milestone in its ambition to attract 20% of new pilots joining the airline to be women by 2020, having achieved a new high of 15% of new entrants to the airline being female, over the past financial year.

It comes at a time when only 5% of all pilots worldwide are female, according to the International Society of Women Airline Pilots. Of that, just over 450 of them have achieved the rank of captain – which means that almost every female commercial airline captain could fit onto an A380 aircraft.

In October 2015, women only made up 6% of easyJet’s new pilot intake. As a result of the campaign in 2016, easyJet had doubled the intake to 12% and has been increasing ever since towards its ambitious target of 20% by 2020. 

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Up in the Air . . .

BRISTOL Airport has become the first airport to launch a Trip Finder feature on their website. The innovative feature allows passengers to search for flights using the month or day they want to fly and to filter results by types of holidays – including winter sports and city breaks. This gives passengers the flexibility to plan a holiday around their busy schedule and is ideal for those searching for a weekend getaway.

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Welcome to Britain

BRITAIN is packed full of amazing experiences all year round and 2019 is going to be no exception. From sporting events to literary celebrations, from music festivals to new gallery openings, visitors to #Britain during 2019 are in for a cultural extravaganza.

There is reassurance from both the UK Government and the European Commission that flights will continue to operate between the UK and the EU after the 29 March 2019 regardless of the wider #Brexit negotiations.

EU nationals will be able to continue to travel on ID cards until at least 2021. The expectations is that visitors who are citizens of current EU Member States and who have a valid passport will still to be able to use e-gates to make entry quick and easy. Visitors who are citizens of current EU member states will continue to be able to travel without a visa. Please check the UK government website for the latest advice.


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Up in the Air . . .

AER Lingus has unveiled its new livery and brand as it seeks to further expand its transatlantic awareness.

The new logo retains but restyles the Irish shamrock, adding a tilt to symbolise dynamism and speed, with heart-shaped leaves reflecting the warmth and hospitality of the brand, according to Aer Lingus.

Guests will see four shamrocks on the new livery. The first is within the new logo, the second sits on the tailfin, a third welcomes guests at the door, and a final surprise on the wingtip is in prime position for capturing on social media.



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Picture Credit: Aer Lingus press release

Direct flights from Sydney to Fiji

QANTAS is making it easier for customers to holiday in #Fiji by launching new direct flights from Sydney, meeting a growing demand from customers wanting a premium travel option to the islands. 

From 31 March 2019, the direct service will operate four times per week to Nadi, the country’s main gateway, with a Boeing 737 aircraft, offering a checked baggage allowance, inflight entertainment and food and drinks all included as part of the fare, and the option to fly or upgrade to Business class. 

The flights add to Jetstar’s direct services which also operate four times per week and will see the Qantas Group offer customers more than 75,000 seats on the route annually and the choice to fly to the popular holiday destination six days a week.

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Busiest ever year for a Scottish airport

EDINBURGH Airport has recorded the busiest ever year for a Scottish airport with more than 14 million people passing through in 2018.

A total of 14,310,403 people passed through Scotland’s busiest airport last year, up 6.5% on the previous year.

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Ryanair partnership takes off

RYANAIR, Europe’s No.1 airline, and SiteMinder, the global hotel industry’s leading guest acquisition platform, today announce a partnership to provide European hotels direct access to sell their properties on Ryanair Rooms. 

Ryanair Rooms is the only hotel booking website that gives hotel guests 10% of the hotel booking price back in flight credit, to use against Ryanair flights. The website is now available as a distribution channel to SiteMinder’s 30,000 hotel customers across #Europe and around the world, which can now offer their guests a new incentive to ‘Go Direct’.

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Travel the New Year with Etihad

WITH the New Year comes resolutions. To eat better, relax more, challenge your body, indulge your mind, be more cultured, spend more time with family, settle into a good book, and travel far. Etihad Airways invites consumers to make choices about how they travel, and to journey on their own terms. 

Etihad Airways is offering all-inclusive fares from Singapore to a variety of destinations, including Barcelona, Milan, Moscow, Paris, Rome and more. The promotion will run from 12 to 25 January for travel until 30 June 2019.

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Oman Air Celebrates Two Wins

OMAN Air, the national carrier of the Sultanate of Oman, has won two prestigious design awards – best New First Class 2018 and Best New Lounge 2018 in TheDesignAir Awards 2018. 

TheDesignAir Awards have been running for six years and celebrate the very best in aviation design across the globe. The judging panel, made up of eight aviation and design experts, awarded Oman Air with the accolades following the unveiling of the new lounge at Muscat Airport and the launch of the three-class Dreamliner earlier this year. 

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Return to Islamabad

BRITISH Airways has today announced that it will fly from Heathrow to Islamabad, the capital city of Pakistan, from June 2nd next year.  

It is the first time the carrier has flown to #Pakistan in more than a decade.  The airline stopped flying to the country after the Marriott hotel in the capital, #Islamabad, was bombed in 2008, killing more than 50 people.

It is a hub for culture with a rich heritage and has an impressive collection of museums, markets, mosques and hiking trails, as well as restaurants which serve a variety of cuisines from local Pakistani dishes to food from around the world.

The airline has a long history of flying to the city and offered its first scheduled flights between London and the Pakistani capital in 1976.  Islamabad is one of four long-haul routes being launched by British Airways in 2019, its centenary year.


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Picture Credit: By Imrankhakwani -wikimedia.org 59418092

A cracker of a year

WITH 2018 drawing to a close, British Airways is celebrating flying high in the last 12 months with additional investment for customers now totalling £6.5bn. Here’s a recap of what’s changed at British Airways over the last year. 

In 2018 the airline offered its most extensive choice of flights in more than a decade, with more than a dozen new routes, including Marrakech, Durban, Nashville and the Seychelles. More new routes have been announced for 2019, including Charleston, Pittsburgh and Osaka. 

Customers travelling light were able to take advantage of the airline’s new long-haul basic fare on routes to the US and around the world, with fares from £143. They can reduce this cost even further by using their Avios. 

For 2018 British Airways introduced 18 new fuel-efficient aircraft to its fleet of almost 300 planes – including its 30th 787, plus A320 and 21neos, and Embraer for BA CityFlyer. The airline’s 767 fleet was retired to make way for more new aircraft, arriving next year. 

Work continued at pace to refresh existing long-haul cabins – with all seats being equipped with state-of-the-art entertainment systems and direct access to power. 

During 2018, British Airways began installing its industry-leading streaming WiFi on long-haul aircraft – all short-haul aircraft will be fitted with the system by next summer. This exciting development allows customers to use their own devices to live stream TV programmes and movies. 

The airline’s website, BA.com, received a refresh and achieved record sales. There were enhancements for the hugely popular BA app, including adding Apple’s Siri voice service on the iPhone. A new reward app was also released to help British Airways’ Executive Club members discover new ways to collect and spend Avios – including selecting seats on flights, as well as spending on flights, car hire, hotels, excursions, etc. 

The airline is focused on providing customers with a seamless and efficient journey through the airport. Throughout the year it continued to pioneer facial recognition airport technology. British Airways was the first airline to install biometric technology at Heathrow – enabling it to board domestic (UK) flights in half the usual time. It also began using the same technology to speedily board aircraft in Orlando, Los Angeles, New York and Miami.

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Worst US airports for flight cancellations

TO help travellers to make more informed decisions when it comes to holiday travel, researchers at InsureMyTrip reveal which airports to possibly avoid and how the latest data trends can aid travellers when comparing travel insurance benefits.

New York's LaGuardia (LGA) will be most stressful for travelers this Christmas, LGA reports the highest percentage of canceled flights (4.9%) so far this year.  Flights scheduled for departure between 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm are more susceptible to delays and cancellations.  If a flight is cancelled, most airlines will rebook travelers on the next available flight at no additional charge. However, airlines are not required to reimburse travelers for losses incurred as a result of a cancelled flight.

This is the list of the most stressful airports this Christmas, based on flight cancellation rates:

1.   LGA New York, NY:LaGuardia 

2.   ORF Norfolk, VA: Norfolk 

      International
3.   CHS Charleston, SC: Charleston 

      AFB/International
4.   ROC Rochester, NY: Greater       

      Rochester International
5.   PHL Philadelphia, PA: Philadelphia 

      International
6.   EWR Newark, NJ: Newark Liberty International
7.   PVD Providence, RI: Theodore Francis Green State
8.   DCA Washington, DC: Ronald Reagan Washington National
9.   BUF Buffalo, NY: Buffalo Niagara International
10. JFK New York, NY: John F. Kennedy International


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Lucky Thirteen: Paris to Fuzhou

XIAMEN Airlines, voted China's "Best Airlines" for its extraordinary aviation service for 6 consecutive years since 2012, is officially launching its new direct flight between Paris and Fuzhou on Dec. 11th, 2018. The opening of this new route will provide unique experiences for passengers.

The Paris – Fuzhou route operates three times a week every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, 13 hours and 25 minutes one way. It departs from Paris at 13:30 (GMT+8) and arrives at Fuzhou around 07:30 the next morning; the returning flight departs at 00:30 from Fuzhou Changle International Airport (FOC) and reaches Paris at 06:55.

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Get into the holiday spirit

GET in to a different type of holiday spirit and start plotting their summer escape now as British Airways launches new routes from Heathrow to Ljubljana in Slovenia and Montpellier in France.

Seats to Slovenia’s capital are available to book on ba.com from today with flights taking off on Mondays and Fridays from July 15 through to September 2, 2019. Fares start from £63.00 one-way* in Euro Traveller.

Situated on France’s southern coast, Montpellier will be served with a four-per-week schedule, departing on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from July 15 through to September 2 also. Fares start from £38.00 per person one-way.

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Up in the air . . .

LATAM Airlines, Latin America’s leading airline, has announced that it will commence a non-stop service to Munich (Germany) from São Paulo on 25 June 2019 with tickets now on sale. LATAM will operate four weekly flights using Boeing 767 aircraft with capacity for 191 passengers in Economy and 30 in Premium Business.

The Bavarian capital will become LATAM’s second destination in Germany after Frankfurt and its ninth European city. Located north of the Alps, Munich is a leading centre for business, art, education, sports and tourism. Home to leading multinational companies, an internationally renowned football team and the annual Oktoberfest beer festival, it attracts both tourists and business travellers from around the world.

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Up in the air . . .

HAWAIIAN Airlines and JetBlue today announced an expanded codeshare agreement that allows travelers from dozens of cities, most of them in the eastern U.S., to easily connect to the Hawaiian Islands via Boston's Logan International Airport (BOS) starting in April. 

A large number of Americans are using unsanctioned IDs to pass through airport security and board flights, according to survey of 1,000 Americans conducted by Wakefield Research for Acuant, a global provider of identity verification solutions.

Despite current security measures, 60 percent of Americans who have ever been to an airport report they have boarded a plane without proper identification. More than half (51 percent) passed through security using some form of ID that doesn't include a picture at all.

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10 Most Pet Friendly Airports in the US

FOR those who travel through airports with pets, finding terminals to accommodate these special travelers can be a stressful event. New federal regulations requires each airport that serves over 10,000 passengers a year must maintain pet relief stations, to provide for service animals of all types. The Upgraded Points study evaluated these larger airports and their current facilities.

1. John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)

2. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL)

3. Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)

4. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)

5. Minneapolis St.Paul International Airport (MSP)

6. Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS)

7. Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO)

8. Dallas Love Field Airport (DAL)

9. Denver International Airport (DEN)

10. Dallas/Ft. Worth International Airport (DFW)

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Farewell to Iconic Boeing 767

BRITISH Airways today bids farewell to one of the most iconic aircraft in its fleet, the Boeing 767. The airline’s final two 767s are being retired to St Athan in Wales after the last commercial flight – Larnaca in Cyprus to Heathrow – took place yesterday. 

Since British Airways operated its first 767 in February 1990 on a short hop to Paris, the fleet of aircraft have completed over 425,000 commercial flights. Frankfurt was the route where enthusiasts could spot the 767 most frequently, with the aircraft completing nearly 15,000 flights to and from the airport, but the aircraft has also been used to serve routes from Abu Dhabi, to Calgary and New York. While it was initially used for long-haul, in recent years it has been reconfigured for use on short-haul, including to Athens and Larnaca as well as on some domestic routes.

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