(Maybe I should just turn this site into an African aviation news thingy…)
South African carrier Nationwide Airlines has been shut down by government authorities after it ignored warnings to improve its maintenance processes. Nationwide offers low fares to a bunch of cities in South Africa and Livingstone, Zambia, (gateway to Victoria Falls). If (somehow) you [...]
I’ve heard stories before about Zimbabwe President taking an Air Zimbabwe plane for personal trips (while passengers waiting for the plane were left stranded). Those stories are apparently true:
Mugabe commandeered an Air Zimbabwe flight from Harare that was supposed to go to Victoria Falls and took it to Mozambique instead, leaving passengers in Harare waiting [...]
If you’re concerned about flight delays, be glad you aren’t flying Air India. The Indian flag carrier has reported an official 33% on-time rate for the past six months, a showing that is all the more pathetic as some observers actually think it’s worse. Subsidiary Air India Express boasts a 12% on-time rate. Competitors report [...]
Read the Rest of the Story: Air India: We Have a 33% On-time Rate(via Travelzoo)…
USA 3000 is offering a $49 fare from New York and Philadelphia to Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Myers, and St. Petersburg for travel the first two weeks of December and January 6 through February 10. Check out the link for details on how to book.
The WSJ has an interesting article about being a flight attendant on Air Force One. Short version? It’s a giant pain in the ass (you do all the cooking, cleaning, etc).
Read the Rest of the Story: Want to Be an Air Force One Flight Attendant?(Thanks to reader Pierre for the heads up)
A Southwest Airlines pilot noticed a vibration coming from one of his 737’s engines on a November 17th flight from Dallas Love and decided to return to the airport. Upon landing he noticed a large-ish hole in the engine (see here for photo). Investigators are looking into the [...]
Virgin America is offering a buy one get one ticket free deal for flights through March 19 (holidays are blacked out). Transcon flights work out to less then $200 per person. (Use the link for details).
Read the Rest of the Story: Buy One Get One Free on Virgin AmericaJetBlue has a pretty good sale to St. Maarten and Puerto Plata for travel in the new year. Seats are available for just $99 when you fly between January 8th and February 13th.
Read the Rest of the Story: Cheap Flights to the CaribbeanAn odd one: British Airways canceled a flight from Manchester to New York on Friday because the airline received an anonymous call saying that the cabin crew was "partying" in their hotel bar until 2 o’clock in the morning. The pilots were allegedly not involved.
Read the Rest of the Story: British Airways Cancels Flight Because of Drunk CrewThe LA Times has an interesting article about China Southern Airlines’ search for 100 new flight attendants. You must be under 24, pretty, and tall. The airline has created a reality show to help with the process and, unlike, say, The Apprentice, (yet like Survivor: China) the competition features a swimsuit competition. It’s a good [...]
Read the Rest of the Story: Tall? Beautiful? Chinese? China Southern Wants You to Be a Flight Attendant