Travel News Snippets from Australian Frequent Flyer

Fare Stampede for Jetstar

Jetstar's launch of its international service has caused a fare stampede by offering $249 one way flights to Honolulu between February and May 2007. The website was allegedly down shortly after the announcement and when it finally came back online most of the tickets were sold.

Pilots Dig in their Heels

A Qantas Pilot was suspended last month for allegedly refusing to undergo a shoe search as part of the Philippines anti-terrorism measures. Pilots on the Australia bound flight refused to remove their shoes in compliance with the new safety regulations. The two men argued that as pilots they could not possibly be a terrorist threat. Philippines authorities claimed they were merely seeking to maintain consistency in the implementation of the new regulations.

False Alarm for "Bom" on Plane

The "Melbourne victory" soccer team caused a major security scare on board a flight from Sydney to Tamworth. The troubles began when the airhostess asked the team's latest Brazilian recruit Alessandro if he understood emergency procedures. He answered in his native language, "Yes Good": or rather in Portuguese, "Si, bom, bom". And with that the flight was grounded and the Federal Police were called in.

Pilot Locked out of Cockpit

Air Canada was left red faced last month when a pilot who visited a washroom mid-flight found himself locked out of the cockpit. The crew had to resort to taking the door off its hinges to let the embarrassed pilot back in. The airline are blaming the incident on a malfunctioning door and claim the crews actions were in line with company policy.

Virgin Blue to Offer Travel Insurance with Tickets

Virgin Blue last month announced its newly acquired partnership with Mondial Assistance. Passengers will now be able to purchase both their flight tickets and travel insurance in the same online transaction. Virgin Blue claims to be the first airline in the Asia Pacific region to have adopted the technology, which is said to have already received a favourable response from passengers.

Qantas Wins for Entertainment- Value

The Avion Awards, sponsored by the World Airline Entertainment Association, has named Qantas Airways Limited as offering the Best Overall In-flight Entertainment. The winners were determined by a 23-member international media panel that evaluated in-flight audio, video, magazines and interactive media from 42 passenger airlines. Qantas took the top award in the Large Fleet (25 or more) category, with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines being named as 1st Runner-Up.

AIR APARTHEID

Few things are more annoying than restless, tired, irritable children kicking the back of your seat on a long-haul flight.

Virgin's policy sees unaccompanied children and minors seated together at the rear of the plane. Some argue the policy is discriminatory and outdated; it impinges on the children's fundamental rights as equal citizens. Some parents of well-behaved children are outraged that they too are forced to sit at the rear of the plane with other screaming children.

Virgin justifies the policy by maintaining that at the rear of the plane the children have greater access to toilets and the attentions of two air-hostesses. To some the policy is blatant discrimination, to others it is the finest example of customer service Virgin has offered them in a long time.