Both Major Airports in Thailand Closed

On Tuesday night, protesters took over the Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, Thailand, effectively shutting the country down in terms of international traffic. By Thursday, they also succeeded in taking over the domestic Don Muang airport, effectively canceling all flights within the country as well. Through the light of these events, the domestic turmoil of the country has been in the international spotlight for the past few days. The protesters, known as the People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) have been asking for their Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat to step down due to his connections with the previous Prime Minister, who was ousted due to charges of corruption. While the current Prime Minister refuses to step down, he has also refused to reclaim the airport, which while peaceful, has caused the situation to be in a standstill.

Airport officials have released that they will not reopen the international airport until Monday night at 6 pm in Thailand since facilities will need to be cleaned and fully operational before being functional. However, that is contingent on the airport being cleared of its current occupants - the protesters. Since the PAD has made clear that the group has no intentions of moving out, it might take another few days, or even weeks before the PAD is convinced by negotiators to leave the airports.

The Suvarnabhumi International Airport handled over 40 million passengers, it was 18th busiest in the world in 2007, with an average of 700 flights a day. In order to thwart the loss of the two major airports in the country, the Thailand government has opened up U Ta Pao air force base, which is located about 140 kilometers (90 miles) south of Bangkok. While a few airlines have decided to use the base as their airport to make sure stranded passengers leave the country, others, such as Singapore Airlines, have decided to temporarily suspend all flights to and from Bangkok until further notice. Thai Airways has suspended all domestic flights from Don Mueang airport as well. Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways have both canceled their flights in and out of the city as well, but have set up flights for those who are stranded.

For the time being, Japan Airlines plans on flying one flight at 1PM in Thailand from U Ta Pao on Saturday, with a 324-seater Boeing 747-400 plane. It will board passengers according to how recently they made their reservation - older reservations will receive priority. On Sunday, the airline plans on two more flights, one at 1pm (a 245 seater Boeing 777) and another at 4 pm (a 382 seater Boeing 747-400).

All Nippon Airways is planning similar flights out. On Saturday, a 306 seater Boeing 777-200ER will fly from U Ta Pao base at 1:30pm. It is currently still planning flights for Sunday and Monday. The airline, unlike Japan Airlines, is also selling tickets for this flight as well.

Some tourists are taking several flights to return to their respective countries. A layover in Singapore and/or Malaysia has been popular enough to prompt Malaysia Air to change their Kula Lumpur to Phuket aircraft to a bigger one that seats more.

There are concerns that that are up to 10,000 Japanese stranded in the country. All of them are expected to be in hotels since none could be found in the airports. The same cannot be said of Americans - there are several stranded at the airports with an approximate total of about 4000 from all over the world. Currently, due to the government intervening, several hotels in Bangkok have opened their doors and are allowing guests who have already checked out to stay for free, as well as those who were originally planning on checking out. In addition, for tourists, even if their visa expires while they are in Thailand, as long as they show their original flight information, they will not be fined for overstaying.

While it is clear that the Thailand government has taken into consideration the concerns and needs of the travelers, the PAD has effectively frustrated many of them. Even though the protesters are giving away free food, distributing flyers to explain their reasoning behind their actions and being amicable, many tourists simply want to go home. Hopefully, many of them will be able to do so, in time.

Happy Thanksgiving to All!

No matter if you eat turkey, chicken, duck, pheasant, cornish hen, or any other bird or ham or lasagna (seems to be popular lately) or anything to your liking tomorrow on Thanksgiving Day,

@Tabit wishes you a well-fed holiday vacation.

We hope you, your family, and friends have a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving weekend.

Zagat 2008 Airline Survey Ranks Continental, JetBlue, Singapore, Southwest Among Best

Zagat released its airline survey results for 2008 on November 28th. They surveyed 9,950 people, which totaled to 162,000 trips, with 38% of the flights taken for leisure compared to 62% for business reasons. The survey included 17 domestic US airlines, while also including 68 international airlines.

While average overall ratings involving comfort, service and food had increased from the previous year, the biggest growth of service was seen in the premium economy class while some growth was seen for economy class. In addition, many felt that the airline's websites were much better than actual in-air performance; therefore, airlines seem to have a long way to go before customers are willing to admit service was good all around.

For domestic Premium Economy seating as well as international Best Value for Money categories, Continental Airlines took first place. At the same time, while Continental did not take top honors for the other domestic categories, it still ranked #1 above all other major domestic US carriers known as the "Big 6" - American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, United, and US Airways - for the second year in a row. Overall, Continental was able to rank in the top 5 for 10 out of 14 categories, strengthening Continental's strong image.

On the other hand, for domestic Economy seating, JetBlue ranked first. In addition, the airline outranked all other airlines in terms of domestic In-flight Entertainment. The airline also ranked within the top 5 for all ranking categories dedicated to domestic airlines, contending with Continental in many aspects.

For International Economy, Singapore continued to rank first for both Premium Economy and Economy class seating for the 9th survey in a row. All Nippon Airways was able to make it into the top 5 for Premium Economy class as well.

Overall however, Southwest took many of the first place rankings, including Best Value for Money, Best Airline Website, Best Frequent Flier Program, Best Consumer On-Time Estimates, and Best Luggage Policy. It only failed to grab one top spot out of all categories it was included in the top 5, and that was the best large domestic airline economy seating, losing to JetBlue. However, it seems that Southwest must be doing something right - it is evident the airline has a strong following.

Other interesting facts were also released: of those surveyed, 60% used airline websites, 4% called the airline directly, 18% use travel booking sites like Expedia and Orbitz, 9% through work, and 8% use a travel agent. In addition, 65% use their frequent flier miles for free flights, while 25% use them for upgrades, and 10% deem them useless and don't utilize them at all.

Faulty Luggage Scales Found in New York City Airports

Quite a number of airline baggage scales at two major New York City airports have been found faulty. At least 4% of scales at LaGuardia Airport and 14% at John F. Kennedy Airport were incorrect for a total of 102 faulty scales, with an overestimation of at least one pound or even more. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs took matters in to their own hands due to increase in complaints of airline baggage fees. Currently, all scales by 10 at John F. Kennedy have been corrected.

Air Fares Fall for the Holiday Season

Usually, during the holidays, airlines are packed, airfares soar, and passengers are standing around the luggage carousel, desperately hoping their bag will come out quickly. Due to this, many smart shoppers are used to purchasing their airline tickets months in advance of the holiday season. However, for every scenario, there is an exception - and this year is one of them.

Somehow, for the first time in many years (for many, the first time in their life time), holiday travel prices are dropping as the holidays are approaching. Sound like a contradiction? For previous years it is - but not this year. As the economy slumps further, many people are finding that they need to pinch for pennies. But it did not help that the airline fees were at an all time high during the summer due to high fuel prices. Unfortunately for some - fortunately for some bargain hunters - the airlines realized that beyond specific dates, people were unwilling to shell out the increased holiday prices that were published over the early fall. Beyond specific dates such as November 20th, December 20th, and December 26th to the 28th, most airlines were seeing empty seats in flights they are used to seeing long waitlists for.

Of course, like any holiday season, certain destinations simply don't warrant a price decrease, since passengers already expect a higher fare. An example of this is New York City, where flights have been booked relatively solid for dates outside of the ones listed above for a while now. But exceptions like New York are rare, and therefore bargains have been appearing all over the internet. Perhaps it's time to go check out that flight you were interested in back in the fall?

Wireless Access in Planes a Reality

Virgin America will join American Airlines as the only carriers in the world to offer full internet access while flying. Today, Virgin has scheduled one Airbus A320 aircraft to have the service available, allowing its passengers to enjoy all the features of the web, including e-mail and instant messaging, as well as downloading video. Passengers can use one of three wireless access points on aboard the plane, for a fee varying from $9.95 to $12.95 a flight, depending on the length of the flight. Gogo, as the service has been dubbed, will be reviewed for expansion to 24 other planes by mid-2009, provided that it successfully concludes its week of testing.

While internet has always been an interest for many passengers as wireless capabilities expanded on ground, previous systems have been expensive, or with unreliable connections. Currently, JetBlue has a system that has e-mail service that utilizes existing cell phone towers for service - however, this system can only work on flights over land. Due to this, the service Gogo uses, Aircell, is also limited to domestic flights as well. However, many passengers believe this is better than nothing, and therefore the outlook seems to be positive for now.

Various other airlines have released similar plans:

Satellite Based System - Row 44
- Alaska Airlines to test in a Boeing 737 in 2009
- Southwest Airlines to test in 4 aircraft in early 2009

Cell Phone Tower Based System - Gogo
- Air Canada to test in several Airbus A319s in 2009
- Delta Airlines to test by the end of 2008, with expansion to Northwest as well. By 2009, should have 330 aircraft with the system.

Cell Phone Tower Based System - LiveTV
- Continental Airlines to test the system by Summer of 2009

It will be interesting to see if US Airways and United Airlines come up with a plan of their own - even though they have yet to mention any news concerning wireless internet access. But as demand increases, it will only be a few years before wireless internet becomes a standard in all domestic flights across the United States.

DayJet Files for Chapter 7

In midst of this financial crisis, yet another airline had filed for banruptcy. DayJet, a small startup airline based in Boca Raton, Florida has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy at a Deleware federal court. While the airline had approximately $17 million in assets, it also had $23 million in liabilities, putting the company deep into the red.

The airline was well known for its on-demand personal jet service, which serviced many smaller airports. DayJet concentrated on the Southeast because of the lack of major airline presence due to service cutbacks over the recent years. However, the airline suddenly ceased operations on September 18th, citing the lack if capital as its reason. In addition, the airline refused to honor existing tickets or give refunds, and those who had already started their travel but had yet to complete their trip were stuck without a plane ticket to their destination. In addition, though the airline has stopped service since September 18th, it was only on November 14th that the airline filed. The reason for this delay has not been cited.

It seems long ago when airlines were bristling with passengers and capital. Only time will tell if and when would the outlook be positive again.

Southwest to Expand into New York

Southwest Airlines Co. has released a statement that they plan on expanding to New York City by purchasing several takeoff and landing slots at New York LaGuardia Airport.

Since ATA airlines has gone bankrupt, previously used take off and landing slots are currently unused and currently held by the bankruptcy court in Indianapolis. The court has made the claim that they would auction off the LaGuardia slots, and therefore Southwest would need to make bids in order to expand to the New York Area.

Currently, the airline only operates to Islip Airport on Long Island, making it difficult for many customers to access. Since LaGuardia Airport is one of the three major metropolitan airports in the New York City area, Southwest's expansion to the area would allow the carrier to finally enter the competative arena of being able to connect to European flights, since most European flights fly out of New York. Although Southwest operates as a completely domestic carrier, it is currently working with other international airlines to expand its service. Recently, Southwest has made ties that would allow it to operate code share flights to Canada and Mexico. Therefore, by moving into the New York market, Southwest would potentially become a larger international carrier through code shares and eventually, their own flights to and from Europe.

Southwest is the largest carrier in the US domestic arena, yet the airline is known to arrive on time most of the time, unlike other carriers which carry a smaller passenger load. This is mostly due to its well planned flight schedule, proven at both Philadelphia and San Francisco airports. As the airspace in New York is one of the most overcrowded areas in the nation, the airline will be facing some difficulty in scheduling. However, at the same time, since Southwest is only planning on purchasing 14 slots, which can allow about one gates worth of flights a day, for now, it is expected that they would succeed in continuing their mantle of success.

For the future, critics will be focusing on both Southwest Airlines' performance as well as how the airline would fare in the New York City environment, due to the large amount of international carriers in the area. But for now, at least Southwest is planning on expanding to LaGuardia while cutting flights from less profitable markets. This in turn allows the airline to stay the same size since the size of its fleet would not have to be expanded. Perhaps the airline will succeed in New York - prospects currently look good since the airline is the only carrier without fees.

Tabit Walker - English Blog Opens!

Greetings from @Tabit! We hope everyone is bundled up during this early winter season - it has been getting rather chilly out in the streets of New York City.

While we have had a Japanese blog going on for some time now, it was brought up that we did not have a way to reach out to our English speaking customers. Starting today, we will be posting news and new information about the airline industry - domestic and international alike - as well as potential vacation locations to visit when you need a break and get away. With time, we are looking to widen the span of our blog posts, so keep a look out for new types of information!

Since new information comes out so often, we are looking to update this blog about 2-3 times a week. If there are topics you would like for us to post about, or go more in depth, please do not hesitate to ask!

We at @Tabit look forward to hearing from all of you!