Air France A380 First Flight into Tokyo released

Air France has released video of the first flight of an Air France A380 landing in Tokyo Japan.

Enjoy

 

Thai Airways has officially welcomed two aircraft into its fleet; details of the  new Thai Airways 777-200ER and Thai Airways Airbus A340-600 are as follows:

Name: Phra Nakhon - a Boeing 777-200ER with 292 seats in two classes, 30 Business Class and 262 Economy Class.

Thai Royal Silk Business Class seats will feature a seat width of 20 inches and have a 61” seat pitch reclining to 163 degrees, and are configured in a 2-2-2 seating configuration/layout The In-flight entertainment unit (IFE) screen measures 15 inch.

Thai Airways Economy Class on this aircraft will feature a 17.78 inch wide seat that has a 34 inch seat pitch. The IFE screen size measures 9 inches. For passenger enjoyment both aircraft come with an in-flight entertainment system that offer 30 movie selections, 110 music album choices, 31 electronic games and world news.

This aircraft expected to go into operation on routes to Johannesburg, Sydney Moscow and Athens

 

 

 Picture 1: Thai Airways A340-600 Economy Class Seats and Cabin

 

 

Picture 2: Thai Airways A340-600 Royal Silk Business Class Seats and Cabin

 

Name: Chon Buri - an Airbus A340-600 with a total of 267 seats in three classes 8 in Royal First Class, 60 in Royal Silk Business Class and 199 in Economy Class.

The 8 Royal First Class seats on the Thai Airways A340 are configured in a 1-1-1 seating configuration and feature a 22” wide seat that has a seat pitch of 76 inches and a recline of 180 degrees. The In-flight Entertainment (IFE) Unit screen measures 10.4 inches.

The 60 Royal Silk Business Class seats on the Thai Airways A340 are configured in a 2-2-2 seating configuration and feature a 20” wide seat that has a 76” seat pitch and a recline of 167 degrees

The 199 Economy Class seats on the this aircraft features a17.5” wide seat with a 34” seat pitch and a recline of 122 degrees, and a 9 inch IFE screen

The Thai Airways Airbus A340-600 will be put into operation on flights from Thailand to Dubai, Shanghai, Zurich and Sydney.

 

 

Picture 3: Thai Airways A340-600 Royal First Class Cabin and Seats

 

Emirates were the second airline to receive and introduce the Airbus A380 into its network and is also the largest purchaser of this aircraft with a total order of 58 aircraft. Today Emirates operates 10 aircraft that service 10 Routes. Below are the Emirates A380 Routes and Destinations that can be used to determine the if Emirates are operating an A380 on the route of your next holiday or business trip.

 

Dubai DXB  – London Heathrow LHR (EK001)
London Heathrow LHR – Dubai DXB (EK002)

 

Dubai DXB – Sydney SYD (EK412)
Sydney SYD – Dubai DXB (EK413)

 

Sydney SYD – Auckland AKL (EK412)
Auckland AKL – Sydney SYD (EK413)

 

Dubai DXB – Bangkok BKK (EK372)
Bangkok BKK – Dubai DXB (EK373)

 

Dubai DXB – Toronto YYZ (EK241)
Toronto YYZ – Dubai DXB (EK242)

 

Dubai DXB – Paris CDG (EK073)
Paris CDG – Dubai DXB (EK074)

 

Dubai DXB – Seoul ICN (EK322)
Seoul ICN – Dubai DXB (EK323)

 

Dubai DXB – Jeddah JED (EK803)
Jeddah JED – Dubai DXB (EK804)

 

Dubai DXB – Beijing PEK (EK306)
Beijing PEK – Dubai DXB (EK307)

 

Dubai DXB – Manchester MAN (EK017)
Manchester MAN – Dubai DXB (EK018)

 

Singapore Airlines first introduced the A380 into service on the Singapore to Sydney route on 25 October 2007 since this and now with 10 A380 aircraft Singapore Airlines A380 routes and destinations have been expanded to include the following:

 

Singapore SIN  – Sydney SYD (SQ221)
Sydney SYD – Singapore SIN (SQ220)

 

Singapore SIN – London LHR (SQ318/SQ322)
London LHR – Singapore SIN (SQ317/SQ321)

 

Singapore SIN – Hong Kong HKG (SQ856)
Hong Kong HKG – Singapore SIN (SQ861)

 

Singapore SIN – Melbourne MEL (SQ227)
Melbourne MEL – Singapore SIN (SQ238)

 

Singapore SIN – Zurich ZRH (SQ346)
Zurich ZRH – Singapore SIN (SQ345)

 

Singapore SIN – Paris CDG (SQ334)
Paris CDG – Singapore SIN (SQ333)

 

Singapore SIN – Tokyo NRT (SQ638)
Tokyo NRT – Singapore SIN (SQ637)

 

 

 

Hawaiian Airlines has just announced that it has completed its first ever flight from Oakland to Maui, Hawaii. This the first daily flight on this route for the company operated under flight number 23 and departed at 12:20 pm arriving at 5:30 am this morning in Maui.

 

The full media release from Hawaiian Airlines can be read below:

 

Hawaiian Launches First-Ever Oakland-Maui Flights

 

HONOLULU – Hawaiian Airlines today completed the launch of its first-ever, nonstop daily flights between Oakland and Maui, adding a significant boost in air seats this summer from the East Bay

for Maui’s visitor industry.

 

“Travel demand is strong for Maui and we’re proud to be providing these summer flights in support of Maui’s visitor industry and the island’s economy,” said Glenn Taniguchi, senior vice president

for marketing and sales. “We are offering some great airfares and travel packages throughout summer to boost interest in a special Maui vacation experience.”

 

Hawaiian designed its Oakland-Maui flight schedule to make it especially appealing to East Bay

travelers, allowing them to enjoy a first Maui afternoon upon arrival, along with a full day on island before departing for home.

 

Flight #23 departs Oakland daily at 12:20 p.m. and arrives on Maui at 2:20 p.m. Return Flight #24 departs Maui daily at 9:35 p.m. and arrives in Oakland the following morning at 5:30 a.m.

 

Hawaiian is operating the Oakland-Maui flight with its wide-body Boeing 767-300 aircraft that seats up to 264 passengers. To make the Maui experience even more enjoyable, passengers are treated to the hospitality of Hawaiian’s distinctive and award-winning “Hawaii Starts Here” onboard service, showcasing the culture, music, natural beauty, and people of Hawaii throughout the flight.

 

Hawaiian is offering the Oakland-Maui flight daily through September 6, 2010, adding more than

24,000 new seats to Maui’s peak summer travel season.

Lufthansa recently unveiled details of its new Business Class cabin and seats aboard its new Airbus A380 Superjumbo, and like any new aircraft and cabin product launch plenty of details to share with you.

 

 

 

However before I get into the details of Lufthansa A380 Business Class cabin and seat need to point out one of the stand out features that is available in all classes (not just Business and First Class) and that is the world air humidification system which increases air humidity from the normal aircraft average of 5% humidity up to 25%. This is sure to be a great feature, which will ensure passengers feel better on-board and also arrive at their destination more refreshed than ever before.

 

Lufthansa A380 Business Class Seat

 

 

 

Located on the upper deck behind first class the new business class cabin features 98 business class seats configured in a 2-2-2 seating arrangement, each seat measures 67 cm  (26.3 inch) wide and 145-152cm long (57-59.8 inch) long (Seat and Bed configuration). These numbers look great but there is one catch, the Lufthansa A380 Business Class Seat does not convert into a true lie-flat bed, in fact the maxim inclination is only 168° rather than the 180° you get on a lie flat bed.

In-flight Entertainment & Communication Options

All Lufthansa A380 Business Class Seats are equipped with the following entertainment options:

• 10.6 inch LCD Screen that has programming in 10 different languages, and includes
• In-Seat USB Port for charging USB devices such as iPods
• In-flight power compatible with all international
• 30 Current Feature Films
• 20 Video Channels
• 75 TV Series/Documentaries
• 30 Radio Channels
• 200 on-demand music CDs
• 10 multi-player Games
• Niceview Moving Map/Airshow that includes flight information and video from the aircrafts 3 external cameras
• Satellite Phone in each seat

 

 

 

Armed with only the above details one cannot get the full feel of how good Business Class on Lufthansa’s A380 is going to be, however going by the details we have the experience should be very good, especially with the new air humidification system.

 

This page will be updated as more information comes to hand, also expect a flight review very soon. If you would like to know the second this page is updated or we publish more Lufthansa A380 articles, you can subscribe to the Business Travel Email List and Business Travel RSS Feed.

 

What do you think about Business Class on Lufthansa’s Airbus A380? Also if you have flown on this aircraft how good is it? Please share your experiences in the comments section below.

 

Details of the Lufthansa A380 First Class Cabin and seats were recently unveiled during the aircraft’s handover ceremony at the Airbus plant in Hamburg Germany.

 

 

 Picture 1: The Lufthansa A380 First Class Seats

 

In the long list of features of noticeable absence were suites in first class, this decision to opt for a traditional open seat plan was made after close consultation its First Class passengers; however Lufthansa has addressed the privacy debate by implementing adjustable privacy screens which raised and lowered depending on the level of privacy the passenger wanted.

 

So let’s delve more deeply into the features in the Lufthansa A380 First Class Cabin:

 

First Class passengers enter the Lufthansa A380 directly from the First Class lounge and into upper deck cabin which features 8 first class seats/lie-flat beds configured in a 1-2-1 seating arrangement.

 

One of the stand-out features is the air humidification system which will raise the air humidity in the cabin from the current average of 5% up to 15 to 25%, which will go a long way to making good at the other end.

 

Lufthansa A380 First Class Seat / Lie Flat Bed

 

 

Photo 2: The Lufthansa A380 First Class Cabin and Seat

 

• Measures 80cm (2.6 feet) width X 207cm (6.8 feet) length, when in Bed configuration
• Patented Shape System allowing seat or lie-flat position of your choice
• Mattress designed by Paradies Germany’s luxury bedding experts
• 100% cotton Perkal Sheets by Fleuresse
• Individual adjustable privacy Screens
• Arm rests which lowers when it lie-flat position to increase surface area
• Turn-down service provided by flight attendants
  

Lufthansa A380 First Class Bathroom

 

 Picture 3: Lufthansa A380 First Class Bathroom

 

The Lufthansa A380 features two extremely large bathrooms in first class which according to Lufthansa are three times the size of an average first class bathroom; despite the size of notable absence is a shower such as what Emirates run in their A380.

 

The two first class bathrooms feature separate changing and lavatory areas, along with personal storage space options.

 

Additional amenities such as combs, shaving and dental sets are also available

 

Lufthansa A380 First Class In-flight Entertainment Options

 

In-flight entertainment wise first class features the following options:

• 17 Inch LCD Screen with programming in 10 Languages
  

Over 150 Entertainment on demand options including:

• 30 Current Feature Films
• 20 Video Channels
• 75 TV Series/Documentaries
• 30 Radio Channels
• 200 CDs on demand
• 10 multi-player games 
• In-Seat USB Port for the Charging of USB devices such as iPods and other devices
• Niceview in-flight moving map/Airshow and 3 External video cameras
  

International In-flight Power points allowing you to power laptops and other electronic accessories.

Lufthansa A380 Routes With the first commercial flight of the Lufthansa A380 just around the corner Lufthansa has recently announced the first routes and schedule for the Lufthansa A380 fleet.

 

Note the below Lufthansa A380 Routes will begin operation from dates listed below but will be operated progressively as they receive their next 4 Airbus A380 Aircraft.

 

Route	Flight	Departure	Arrival	Days of operation	Date of first flight
Frankfurt – Tokyo	LH710	13:35	07:30 +1	Tu, Fr, Su	11 June 2010
Tokyo – Frankfurt	LH711	09:35	14:15	We, Sa, Mo	12 June 2010
Frankfurt –Beijing	LH720	17:20	08:30 +1	Mo, We, Fr	25 August 2010
Beijing – Frankfurt	LH721	10:30	14:30	Tu, We, Fr	26 August 2010
Frankfurt – Johannesburg	LH572	22:35	08:50 +1	Mo, We, Sa	25 October 2010
Johannesburg - Frankfurt	LH573	18:55	05:20 +1	Tu, Th, Su	26 October 2010

Table 1: Lufthansa A380 Routes & Schedule

Lufthansa have 15 A380s on order and possible future routes include New York’s JFK from November 2010.          

 

The Lufthansa A380 Interior Cabin has finally been revealed with the release of the below Lufthansa A380 Cabin Photos. These pictures closely follow hot on the heel just the other week of the Lufthansa A380 Seat Map so analyzing both of these together we now have a better idea of what the latest A380 to fly the skies, will be like.

 

Lufthansa A380 First Class

 

As I revealed with release of the seat map, Lufthansa A380 First class is located on the forward upper deck will feature 8 seats in a 1-2-1 seating configuration. Unlike Singapore Airlines, Emirates & Qantas, the Lufthansa A380 First Class is a seat rather than a suite.

 

 

 

Despite the absence of suites in first class, the cabin looks very nice indeed designed to make clever use of the available space. 

One of the nice touche to come out of the Lufthansa A380 First Class cabin is the two restrooms, which from the picture below look huge, perhaps as big as the Emirates A380 First Class restroom, however with the absence of the shower.

 

Lufthansa A380 Business Class

 

The Lufthansa A380 Business Class cabin located on the rear upper deck and features 98 seats that are set out in a 2-2-2 seating configuration.

 

 

 

From what I have seen of these cabin photos both the Business Class and Economy Class cabin and seats looks a little dated in design, however not having the full specifications of both the Business and Economy Class cabin and seats I will need to reserve my final judgment until I have all of the details.

 

 

 

One note from watching the Lufthansa A380 Cabin Video the business class seat is not a true lie flat seat, which is a very big disappointment. Perhaps Lufthansa thought a lie flat seat in Business would encroach too much into their First Class product. I for one think it’s crazy for an A380 Business Class not to feature a lie flat seat.

 

Lufthansa A380 Economy Class

 

Lufthansa A380 Economy Class cabin features 420 seats in a 3-4-3 configuration, apart from the in-seat in flight entertainment unit (IFE) the cabin and seats look older in design. In terms of seat and in-flight entertainment options again I will provide another update when more information is released from Lufthansa

 

 

 

 

 

The Lufthansa A380 Seat Map Seat Plan has just been released by Lufthansa ahead of its first flight from Frankfurt to Tokyo on the 11 June 2010.

 

The seat map shows Economy Class on the lower deck and Business Class and First Class on the Upper deck and a total of 526 seats in these three classes.

 

Seat numbers in each class is as follows:

 

First Class 8 Seats

Business Class 98 Seats

Economy Class 420 Seats

 

Lufthansa A380 Cabin Interior Photos have not yet been released but expect something very soon

 

 

 

With the announcement of the merger between United and Continental Airlines out of the box, focus has turned to the merged company’s new logo, after just getting access to the merger announcement website the new logo is revealed.

 

 

Pic 1 - The New United Airlines Logo

 

 

Pic 2 - The New United Airlines Livery

 

I don’t know about this one, I think I preferred the old United Airlines logo, I would like to hear your thoughts?

 

Also to note it looks like the company slogan/motto will be "Let's Fly Together"

 

P.S. by the way the merger site can be found at the following address: http://www.unitedcontinentalmerger.com/

 

Breaking news out of the corporate Airline world today is that the directors of United Airlines Continental Airlines have agreed to merge to form the world largest airline.

 

The new Mega Airline will aptly fly under the United name, and will be run by Continental CEO Jeffery Smisek, with United’s CEO Glenn Tilton taking the role of Chairman. The company is expected to be ran out of United’s home Chicago.

 

The announcement is expected to be announced early Monday.

The big news in the airline world today is that Virgin Blue and Air New Zealand intend to seek regulatory approval to join forces and create an alliance on the Trans Tasman route (Australia to New Zealand)

 

The proposed agreement would see the following:

• Code sharing of all Tasman flights by either airline
• Code sharing of Australian Domestic sectors as part of a connecting Tasman trip
• Code sharing of New Zealand Domestic sectors as part of a connecting Tasman trip
• A revenue allocation agreement
• The creation of a joint Trans Tasman network planning and revenue management team involving members from both airlines
• Reciprocal Frequent Flyer benefits for members of both airlines
• Airline lounge Co-operation agreement providing reciprocal lounge access to members of both airlines lounge members.

This is really big news considering both airlines have recently received a battering on this route by the Qantas owned budget carrier Jetstar.

No details about when the Virgin Blue Air New Zealand alliance is planned to start once approval has been given.

 

 

 

With the explosion in availability of Airline in-flight wifi internet access over the last few years, the dream to finally be able to work or play on the internet at 30,000 feet is now more than just a dream, its reality.

 

However there are some things to know before going on board lap top in hand and expecting an internet service. We have put together the Airline In-flight Wifi Internet guide to detail the latest on In-flight Internet Wifi Service providers and the airlines which either already have in operation, are testing or have plans to implement these services in the future.

 

Airline in-flight Wifi Internet providers and Technologies

 

There are several players in the game of providing the back end technologies which allow your favorite airline to provide in-flight internet services.

 

Gogo by AirCell

 

 

 

Based on current airline participation & uptake AirCell Gogo is the most wide spread In-flight Internet provider, with currently 7 airlines (airTran, American Airlines, Delta United, US Airways & Virgin America) already with their in-flight internet services in use, and a further 3 (Alaska Airlines, Continental Airlines & Frontier Airlines) airlines about to implement.

 

Gogo by AirCell uses a ground radio based cell tower system (similar to mobile phone towers) to provide its service, and as such is only available when an aircraft is in-range of a Gogo cell tower which means only over US mainland and up to 100 Miles from US boarders.

 

Row44

 

 

In the early days Row44 had several airlines testing and signing up to this system, however in the last year several of these carriers have jumped ship to Gogo by AirCell. Currently the only carrier signed up with Row44 is SouthWest Airlines

 

Unlike GoGo by AirCell Row44 utilizes satellite technology to provision its inflight broadband and other service, and as a result services can be provided to aircraft virtually anywhere in the world.

 

LiveTV

 

 

LiveTV is a wholly owned subsidiary of JetBlue and up until now been in the business of providing Live Satellite Television to a number of airlines including Jetblue, Virgin Blue (Australia), Continental, AirTran, Frontier, ExpressJet to name a few.

 

However with the Inflight Wifi Internet game hotting up LiveTV has adapted its existing technology to provide internet services to its parent company JetBlue.

 

OnAir

 

 

 

Where Gogo and Row44 seems to be the choice of US carriers OnAir is the service used by airlines of most other countries. So far the following carriers have either tested or have partially implemented OnAir technology in aircraft, Air France, TAP Portugal, British Midland Airways, Ryanair, Shenzhen Airlines, Waraniya Airways, Kingfisher Airlines, Royal Jordanian, Jazeera Airways, Oman Air, Tam Airlines, British Airways, Air Asia and Qatar Airways, and Qantas Airways.

 

Until recently Ryan Air was OnAir’s biggest customer with 20 aircraft outfitted with OnAir equipment however on 29 March 2010 it was announced that OnAir and Ryan Air would break their agreement because both companies could not agree on a date for the future expansion of services. It is not known if the OnAir In-flight internet service remains available on the 20 Ryan Air aircraft originally outfitted with the service.  

 

As with Row44, OnAir uses satellite technology to provide internet and other services to aircraft, which has discussed earlier has the advantage of being able to provide services virtually anywhere in the sky. The OnAir system can provide bandwidth of up to 864 kbps to an aircraft.

 

Airline Availability

 

Below is the most up to date list of airlines currently with or testing airline in-flight internet services, we expect this list to change dramatically over the next year and will provide more details as it comes to hand.

 

Airline	Provider	Cost and other details	Availability	On Board Power
Alaska Airlines	Gogo by Aircell   Previously testing Row 44	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95	Coming Soon	No
American Airlines	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95   Check Wifi enabled flights with the AA Wifi Widget: http://www.aawifiwidget.com	All Boeing 767-200 & select MD80 & Boeing 737 Aircraft.
Delta Air Lines	Gogo BY Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95
JetBlue	LiveTV	Free as service still in testing	1 Confirmed Plane	No
Northwest	Gogo BY Aircell
Southwest	Row 44	Between US$2-US$12	4/544 Planes More Aircraft from Q1 2010	No
Virgin America	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95	100% of Fleet	Yes
AirTran	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any Gogo Airline) - US$39.95	100% of Fleet	No
Frontier Airlines	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any Gogo Airline) - US$39.95	Coming Soon
United Airlines	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95	All 51 Airbus A321 Aircraft by 1 June 2010
Air Canada	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95	No firm details	No
US Airways	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95	All 51 Airbus A321 Aircraft by 1 June 2010	No
Continental Airlines	Gogo by Aircell	Under 1.5 hr (1 Flight) - US$4.95 Laptop & Mobile 1.5-3 hrs (1 Flight) - US$9.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile Over 3 hrs (1 Flight) -US12.95 Laptop - US$7.95 Mobile 30 days Limited Promo (1 Airline) - US$29.95 30 day pass  (Any gogo Airline) - US$39.95	Second Quarter of 2010	Some check
Qantas	OnAir	During the lead up to the launch of the Qantas A380 it was announced their A380 aircraft would be fitted with the OnAir in-flight internet Service. However this was scrapped due to technical and regulatory issues. Instead Qantas announced they would introduce a limited cache of Qantas and other popular sites, however we have never seen this in operation.		All classes on A380 aircraft, other aircraft all First & Business Class seats on  international routes
Air France	OnAIr	Tests conducted on a single Airbus A318 completed in 2008	NA	NA
TAP Portugal	OnAIr	Tests conducted an Airbus A319	NA	NA
British Midlands Airways	OnAir	Test only on an Airbus A320	NA	NA
Ryanair	OnAir	Began service on select Boeing 737 Aircraft from February 2009 until March 2010 (Service now discontinued)	NA	NA
Shenzhen Airlines	OnAir	Select 737 and Airbus A320 Aircraft began operation in June 2009	NA	NA
Wataniya Airways	OnAir	Select Airbus A320 Aircraft, service began operation in January 2009	NA	NA
Air AsiaX	OnAir	To install both Mobile OnAIr and Internet OnAIr on its Airbus A380 Aircraft	NA	NA
Air Blue	OnAir	Select Airbus A320 Aircraft, began service Mid 2009	NA	NA
Kingfisher Airlines	OnAir	Airbus A330 and A340 Aircraft when into operation from June 2009	NA	NA
Royal Jordanian	OnAir	Airbus A320 Aircraft from 2008 and A340 Aircraft from 2009	NA	NA
Jazeera Airways	OnAir	Select Airbus A320 from 2009	NA	NA
Oman Air	OnAir	Select Airbus A330 aircraft from 2009	NA	NA
TAM Airlines	OnAir	Select Airbus A320 Aircraft	NA	NA
British Airways	OnAir	Airbus A318 Aircraft operating from London City Airport to New Yorks JFK International, in operation since June 2009	NA	NA
Air Asia	OnAir	Select Airbus A320 Aircraft from Mid 2009	NA	NA
Qatar Airways	OnAir	Select Airbus A320 Aircraft from End of 2009	NA	NA

 

This page has the latest information from Airlines on Airline Flight Cancellations and Schedule changes due to Volcanic Ash from the Icelandic Volcano Eruption. Last update 21 April 2010 02:30 pm +10 GMT (Sydney Australia) 05:30 GMT   with updates from Qantas.

 

If you are stuck trying to either get into or out of Europe please ensure you check back with this page on a regular basis for regular updates from the airlines

 

Air France

 

Update 20 April 2010

Air France will gradually begin to resume some flights more details can be found at the following page:

Air France to gradually Resume Flights following Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

Update 19 April 2010

Paris Charles de Gaulle and Paris Orly Airports closed until 20 April

 

Conditions permitting Air France will operate the following flights on 19 April 2010

Route	Flight Number	Departure Time	Arrival Time
Toulouse to Fort De France	AF4162	11:00 a.m	1:25 p.m
Toulouse to New York Kennedy airport	AF4168	2:00 p.m	2:00 p.m
Toulouse to Dakar	AF4170	4:00 p.m	7:35 p.m
Toulouse to Saint Denis de la Reunion	AF4172	8:00 p.m	8:50 a.m
Toulouse to Hong Kong	AF4174	10:00 p.m	3:35 p.m
Toulouse to Sao Paulo	AF4176	11:59 p.m	6:35 a.m
Pau to Dubai	AF4178	11:00 p.m	7:40 a.m

 

 

For flights on the 19 April Air France will operate a complimentary bus service from Paris Charles de Gaulle airport to Toulouse and Pau this bus will depart at 07:00 am and customers should arrive at least 1 hour before departure.

 

Latest update Air France Flight Cancellations and Schedule Changes due to Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

Air New Zealand

Air New Zealand flights into and out of the UK are not expected to commence operation until 6 am on Tuesday 20 April 2010 therefore the following services will be affected:

 

• Auckland to Los Angeles to London NZ2 will terminate in Los Angeles
• Auckland to Hong Kong to London NZ39 will terminate in Hong Kong
• London to Los Angeles to New Zealand (NZ1) is expected to operate

Latest update Air New Zealand Europe Flight Cancellations due to Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

American Airlines

American Airlines are recommending passengers regularly check the American Airlines Flight Status Information Page and not to proceed to your airport until your flight has been confirmed on the website that it will resume

 

British Airways

Latest Update 21 April 2010 08:00 am (+10 GMT - Sydney Australia)

British Airways plans to have some inbound flights landing into Heathrow and Gatwick between 0500 & 1200 hrs GMT on Wednesday 21 April 2010 and in addition have all long haul flights in operation on Wednesday 21 April 2010. Please check the British Airways website for more information

The latest media statement from BA can be read here: British Airways Announce Planned Resumption of Flights Following Volcanic Ash Situation

 

While the majority of Europe should be clear for flights today the UK is not clear, and as such British Airways do not believe they will operate any departing flights out of Heathrow today, however British Airways are expected to operate some long and short haul inbound flights later today. For more details please check the British Airways website.

Latest Update (20 April 2010 10:30 (+10 - Sydney Time) British Airways Statement on UK Flight Cancellations due to Volcanic Ash

 

Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific Flights into and out of London Amsterdam Paris, Frankfurt and Milan departing on 17 April, 18 April 19 April and 20 April have been cancelled. Some flights into and out of parts of Europe on the 21 April are expected to resume

 

Latest update Cathay Pacific Cancelled Flights and Schedule Changes due to Iceland Volcano Eruptions

 

Delta Air Lines

Delta Airlines are recommending passengers regular check the Delta Airlines Flight Status Page and not to proceed to the Airport until it has been confirmed your flight is back in operation.

 

Latest update Delta Air Lines Flight Cancellation and Schedule Change Policy Due to Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

Emirates

All Emirates Flights into and out of Europe (excluding Moscow, Athens, Larnaca, Malta and Istanbul) are cancelled until at least 21 April 2010, Emirates are advising passengers not to proceed to the airport if your flight has been cancelled.

 

Latest Update Emirates Flight Cancellations and Schedule Changes due to Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

Etihad Airways

Etihad Airways has the following Cancellations in place

Flight no: (From - To)	Date	Status
EY31, Abu Dhabi - Paris	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY32, Paris - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY17, Abu Dhabi - London	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY18, London - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY37, Abu Dhabi - Paris	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY38, Paris - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY1, Abu Dhabi - Frankfurt	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY2, Frankfurt - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY7, Abu Dhabi - Frankfurt	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY8, Frankfurt - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY11, Abu Dhabi - London	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY12, London - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY15, Abu Dhabi - Manchester	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY16, Manchester - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY55, Abu Dhabi - Brussels	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY56, Brussels - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY19, Abu Dhabi - London	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY20, London - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY3, Abu Dhabi - Munich	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY4, Munich - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY45, Abu Dhabi - Dublin	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY42, Dublin - Abu Dhabi	19-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY11, Abu Dhabi - London	20-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled
EY12, London - Abu Dhabi	20-Apr	ملغاة/Cancelled

 

Latest update Etihad Airways Flight Cancellations and Schedule Changes due to Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

Qantas

Latest Update 21 April 2010 2:30 pm (+10 GMT- Sydney)

Qantas have announced that they will resume London to Australia and Asia to Europe bound flights from today (21 April 2010), with Australia to Europe Bound flights to resume service from tomorrow (22 April 2010)

Details are as follows:

London to Australia to being operation from Today Wednesday 21 April 2010

 

London to Sydney via Singapore (QF8232) to depart 1205 hrs local time

London to Melbourne via Hong Kong (QF8230) departing at 1220 hrs local time

 

Asia to Europe flight to resume operation from Today Wednesday 21 April 2010

 

Singapore to Frankfurt (QF8205) departing at 2320 local time

Singapore to London (QF8209) departing at 2305 hrs local time

Bangkok to London (QF8201) departing at 2320 local time

Singapore to London (QF8231) departing at 2359 local time

Hong Kong to London (QF8229) to depart at 0735 local on Thursday 22 April.

 

Australia to Europe Bound flights will begin operation from Thursday 22 April 2010 with details as follows:

 

Melbourne to London (QF9) departing at 1530 hrs local time

Sydney to Frankfurt (QF5) departing at 1550 hrs local time

Sydney to London (QF31) departing at 1615 hrs local time

Sydney to London (QF1) departing at 1700 local hrs time

Melbourne to London (QF29) departing at 2300 local time

 

The full media release can be read here: Qantas Announce a Planned Resumption of Flights between Australia and Europe

Qantas have cancelled the following flights and made the following schedule changes:

 

Wednesday 21 April

• QF5 Singapore to Frankfurt cancelled
• QF9 Singapore to London Heathrow cancelled
• QF31 Singapore to London Heathrow cancelled

 

Thursday 22 April

 

• QF1 Bangkok to London Heathrow cancelled
• QF29 Hong Kong to London Heathrow cancelled

 

However services between Australia and Asian destinations will operate as follows:

• QF1 will operate Sydney to Bangkok as scheduled
• QF31 will operate Sydney to Singapore as scheduled
• QF9 will operate Melbourne to Singapore as scheduled
• QF29 will operate Melbourne to Hong Kong as scheduled

 

On Thursday 22 April, QF5 Sydney to Singapore will be cancelled, however all passengers will be accommodated on the scheduled return QF31 Sydney to Singapore service.

 

Qantas will continue to operate scheduled services between Asian destinations and Australia as follows:

 

• QF2 will operate Bangkok to Sydney as scheduled
• QF30 will operate Hong Kong to Melbourne as scheduled
• QF6 will operate Singapore to Sydney as scheduled

 

QF32 Singapore to Sydney has been cancelled, however all passengers will be accommodated on the scheduled QF6 Singapore to Sydney service.

 

Qantas inbound services from London Heathrow and Frankfurt will be cancelled as follows:

 

Wednesday 21 April

• QF32 London to Singapore cancelled
• QF30 London to Hong Kong cancelled
• QF10 London to Singapore cancelled
• QF2 London to Bangkok cancelled
• QF6 Frankfurt to Singapore cancelled

 

Qantas Airways Limited ABN 16 009 661 901

 

Thursday 22 April

• QF32 London Heathrow to Singapore cancelled
• QF6 Frankfurt to Singapore cancelled

 

Latest update Qantas Flight Cancellations & Schedule Updates due to Volcanic Eruptions Update 20 April 

Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines Flights into and out of Europe are have been cancelled (with the exception of Athens, Rome and Istanbul) As of 20 April 2010 Singapore Airlines has not given any indication of when it its services to resume. Singapore Airlines recommends regularly checking their website Singapore Airlines Website  for any change in this situation and not to proceed to the airport until your flight has been confirmed as in operation.

 

Latest update Singapore Airlines Flight Cancellations due to Volcanic Ash 19 April 2010 Update

 

Thai Airways

The following flights from Thai Airways have been cancelled and flights are not expected to resume until at least 21 April 2010

 

TG910                       Bangkok – London                    
TG930                       Bangkok – Paris                      
TG950                       Bangkok – Copenhagen          
TG954                       Bangkok – Oslo                       
TG960                       Bangkok – Stockholm   
TG920                       Bangkok – Frankfurt
TG970                       Bangkok – Zurich
TG916                       Bangkok – London
TG922                       Bangkok – Frankfurt
TG924                       Bangkok – Munich

TG911                        London – Bangkok                
TG931                        Paris    – Bangkok                
TG951                        Copenhagen – Bangkok        
TG955                        Oslo     – Bangkok               
TG961                        Stockholm  – Bangkok            
TG921                        Frankfurt    – Bangkok
TG971                        Zurich      – Bangkok
TG941                        Milan        – Bangkok
TG917                        London     – Bangkok
TG923                        Frankfurt  – Bangkok
TG925                        Munich     – Bangkok

 

United Airlines

United Airlines have not said anything formally in regard to flight cancellations other than to check the United Airlines Flight Status page

 

Vietnam Airlines

Vietnam Airlines have cancelled the below flights into and out of Europe

 

Scheduled Date of Departure	Flight Number	Itinerary
19-April	VN527	Hochiminh city – Moscow
19-April	VN533	Hochiminh city – Paris
19-April	VN545	Hanoi – Frankfurt
20-April	VN526	Moscow – Hochiminh city
20-April	VN532	Paris – Hochiminh city
20-April	VN544	Frankfurt – Hanoi

 

Vietnam Airlines next update is expected to include details of when these cancelled flights will resume. Vietnam Airlines are advising passengers not to go the Airport until their flights have been confirmed as back in operation.

 

Latest update Vietnam Airlines Flight Cancellations and Schedule Changes due to Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

Virgin Atlantic

Update 20 April 2010

Now that NATS have announced that UK airspace will reopen from 22:00 GMT tonight (20 April 2010 )  Virgin Atlantic have announced the are in the process to planning which flights will be scheduled and in what order. Virgin Atlantic are stating that passengers should not proceed to airports until their new flights are confirmed & scheduled.

The latest statement from Virgin Atlantic can be read here: Virgin Atlantic to Commence Flights Following opening of UK Airspace from 22:00 Tonight

 

Update 19 April 2010

All Virgin Atlantic flights into and out of the UK cancelled until at least Tuesday 20 April 2010 an update will be released by Virgin Atlantic after 17:00 H (UK Local time) on Monday 19 April 2010 to advise of further updates in relations to the operation of flight on Tuesday.

 

Latest update Virgin Atlantic Flight Cancellations and Schedule Changes due to Iceland Volcano Eruption

 

Note this page was created to give a broad overview of flight cancellations and schedule changes due to the European Volcano eruption in Iceland therefore the information from this page should not be used on its own and should be used in conjunction with details from your relevant airlines website.

 

 

When talking big one of the first thoughts that comes to mind is Emirates & Dubai, first they have the Emirates A380 and Dubai the Burj Khalifa Towers and now the Park Towers Dubai is set to make it mark.

 

This 365 meter Twin tower will be one of the tallest Single use hotel and residential apartment buildings in the world and you guessed it its located in Dubai owned by Emirates.

 

The Park Towers Dubai which is set to open its first tower with the hotel to be managed by Marriott in May 2011, eventually when the second tower is complete the entire twin tower complex will boast 1,612 rooms.

 

Commenting on the progress of the development, Ali Mubarak Al Soori, Executive Vice President, Chairman's Office, Facilities/Projects Management and P&L (NA) at Emirates, said: “Emirates Park Towers will be an iconic and dramatic addition to the ever-changing skyline of this exciting city.”

 

He added: “The construction process has followed the very highest international standards and specifications. Despite the challenges the real estate sector faces following the recent global financial crisis, there will always be a demand for the very best quality space, in the best buildings in the best locations.”

 

Since the first Qantas A380 was put into operation on 20 October 2008 flying the Melbourne to Los Angeles & Sydney to Los Angeles routes the Qantas A380 fleet has expanded to 6 aircraft operating from Melbourne & Sydney to Los Angeles & London (via Singapore)

 

For booking made during the month of May 2010, Qantas has heavy discounts on flights from the US to Australia and New Zealand (for Flights to Australia this includes the Qantas A380), the below link has all the details:

 

This is a great opportunity to fly the Award winning Qantas A380 to the Land of Down under

 

 

The table below contains detailed Qantas A380 Schedule and route information. To find and book a flight on Qantas Airbus A380 service use the below table to first select a Qantas A380 Route & flight number then ensure you select one of the associated days of operation as some service are in operation with both Qantas Boeing 747-400 and also Qantas A380 Aircraft.

 

Flight No	Route	Days of Operation	Depart	Arrive
QF93	Melbourne to Los Angeles	Wed, Fri and Sun	10:10	07:30
QF94	Los Angeles to Melbourne	Wed, Fri and Sun	23:20	07:55 +2 days
QF11	Sydney to Los Angeles	Daily	13:05	09:45
QF12	Los Angeles to Sydney	Daily	22:30	06:30 +2 days
QF31	Sydney to Singapore	Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri and Sat	16:15	22:30
QF32	Singapore to Sydney	Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu and Fri	09:40	19:15
QF31	Sydney to London	Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri and Sat	16:15	06:35 +1 day
QF32	London to Sydney	Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu and Sun	12:05	19:15 +1 day
QF9	Melbourne to London	Mon and Sun	15:30	05:40 +1 day
QF10	London to Melbourne	Fri and Sat	22:05	04:50 +1 day
QF9	Melbourne to Singapore	Mon and Sun	15:30	21:15
QF10	Singapore to Melbourne	Sat and Sun	19:45	04:50 +1 day
QF31	Singapore to London	Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri and Sat	23:59	06:30 +1 day
QF9	Singapore to London	Mon and Sun	23:05	05:40 +1 day
QF32	London to Singapore	Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu and Sun	12:05	08:00 +1 day
QF10	London to Singapore	Fri and Sat	22:05	18:00 +1 day

Table 1: Qantas A380 Routes & Schedule

 

Note: We will endeavour to keep the above table as update as possible but please note Qantas at times does at times make aircraft, date and time changes due to scheduling, load & technical reasons.

At approximately 8:20pm last night the nose tyres on a Qantas A380 unexpectedly burst as the aircraft came into land at Sydney’s Kingsford smith International Airport.

 

Qantas flight QF32 from London via Singapore had 241 passengers on-board, many of whom report seeing sparks and flames outside their windows, in the end the aircraft made a safe landing.

 

Qantas have said they don’t know what caused this incident however also noted that it was rare and had not occurred with any of its five other Qantas A380 aircraft.

The Qantas A380 tyre burst is the second incident in less than a week after a Qantas Boeing 747 on route from Sydney to Singapore returned not long after takeoff because of engine problems.

 

 

 

News dot com dot au reported:

"We saw from the observation deck and when it touched down the left wheel burst into flames and there were sparks and fire from the left-hand side and there was black smoke and when it went down the runway it stopped," said Mr Wayne Morris, 58, who was waiting for his wife, Maria, to arrive from a London holiday.

" The control tower said on the radio that all the tyres were blown.

"I was very concerned because you don't expect to see flames from a plane and after the engineers went on strike it makes you ask the question about safety."

 

I recently wrote an article for our sister website Asia Travel Magazine outlining the Top 10 Best Luxury Hotels in Asia, needless to say the article was a hit and since Luxury Hotels are somewhat related to business & Airline travel I decided to provide an excerpt for the readers of Business Travel Guru.

In no particular order the 10 Best Luxury hotels in Asia are

 

Shangri-la Hotel Singapore

The number 1 luxury hotel in Singapore for its attention to detail & service. Our pick for best room is any room or suite in the Valley wing

 

Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong

A well established top notch luxury hotel in Hong Kong which has been in operation since 1963. The top room at the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong is the Mandarin Suite

 

Peninsula Hotel Tokyo Japan

State of the art technology & Luxury yes this is the Peninsula Hotel Tokyo Japan. The best room in our opinion is the Peninsula Suite which has sweeping views of Hibiya Park and the Imperial palace gardens.

 

Mandarin Oriental Bangkok Thailand

Just like the Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong its sister in Bangkok is a real gem, a fave with the rich and famous as well as heads of state. The best room in this house is the Royal Oriental Suite.

 

The Peninsular Hotel Bangkok Thailand

Some of the best outfitted rooms you could want or even dream of. The Peninsular Hotel Bangkok is set on the Chao Phraya river. Again the best room at this hotel is the Peninsula Suite.

 

Four Seasons Chang Mai Thailand

Its tranquillity with a whole lot of luxury thrown in, The top room here is a private residence with private plunge pool.

 

Oberoi Udaivilas Udaipur India

If you are lucky enough to stay at the Oberioi Udaivilas Udaipur India you will find out what life is like as a King or Queen, service and attention to detail at this hotel resort is like no other.

 

Sofitel Metropole Hanoi Vietnam

The Sofitel Metropole Hanoi Vietnam is the number 1 luxury hotel in Vietnam, the Sofitel Metropole Hanoi is over 100 years old, built way back in 1901 when the French occupied Vietnam. This hotel has real French old world charm. The best room? If you are into older style architecture and design then a room in the Historical Wing is tops for those that cannot live without their mod cons a grand premium room in the opera wing is great.

 

St. Regis Shanghai China

The St. Regis Shanghai yearly wins many major national and international hotel awards, the facilities are great but the service is even better. Our top room is the Imperial Suite.

 

Pudong Shangri-La Shanghai China

The Shangri-La personally is one our favourite hotel chains and the Pudong Shangri-La Shanghai China does not disappoint, perhaps one of the best Luxury hotels in Shanghai if not China. Our pick for best rooms at this hotel is a Bund View Horizon Club Room but for the ultimate in luxury and indulgence pick the Shanghai Suite.

 

Again below is the link to my original article at Asia Travel Magazine which has a more in-depth look at each of these hotels:

 

10 Best Luxury Hotels Asia

The Air France A380 Seat map has now been officially published by Air France.

 

The seat map clearly shows 3 classes, La Premiere (First Class), Affaires (Business Class) and Voyageur (Economy Class) as expected Air France will not offer premium economy product on this their first Airbus A380 aircraft, however it has been confirmed future Air France A380 aircraft will be outfitted with Premium Economy.

 

Air France Airbus A380 Seat map & seat plan (Click image below for a larger view)

 

 

 

More details of the Air France Airbus A380 aircraft & cabin configuration can be found here:

Air France A380 Interior Cabin Revealed with Air France A380 Cabin Photos

 

 

Air France has revealed the interior cabin of its just received Airbus A380 Superjumbo.

 

There is no surprises with the details of its cabin configuration, matching very closely with what I have reported here on The Business Travel Guru in the past, however the release by Air France of these cabin pictures give the full picture of what to expect, if you get the chance to fly this aircraft

 

Air France A380 La Premiere First Class Cabin

The Air France Airbus A380 features 9 First Class La Premiere seats on the lower deck, no suites you say? Yes this is correct, Air France bucked the trend deciding not to follow Singapore Airlines, Emirates or Qantas in implementing suites in First Class La Premiere, maybe this is a sign of the economic times in Europe, but then again this aircraft would have been the planning stages for years.

 

The 9 first class seats are set out in a 1-2-1 configuration, this cabin features what looks to be a self service bar, along with a changing cabin/room with beauty products from Clarins.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Air France A380 Affaires Business Class Cabin

The Air France A380 Affaires or Business Class cabin is located in the forward upper deck of the aircraft, with 80 Seats set out in a 2-2-2 seating configuration; each seat is two meters long. The In-flight entertainment Unit IFE screen is 15 Inch (38 cm) wide.

 

Noise Cancelling Headphones? Air France is using nothing but the best, Sennheiser Noise Cancelling Headphones

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Air France Airbus A380 Voyageur Economy Class Cabin

Voyageur Economy Class on the Air France A380 seats at total of 449 passengers on both the lower and upper decks. Seating is configured in a 10 wide 3-4-3 configuration. The In-flight entertainment unit in Voyageur hosts an 8.4 inch LCD screen, along with 600 hours of viewing & 3,000 music tracks.

 

 

 

 

Air France A380 cabin interior cabin Video on Youtube

 

 

From the initial information & pictures which Air France has released about its Airbus A380, the product looks quite good, but is it in the league of its A380 Predecessors? I think the jury is out, will need to wait for a flight review! What are your thoughts?

 

 

 

 

Emirates is totally re-vamping its frequent flyer program from 1 January 2010, and introducing an earning model that varies depending on the type of ticket purchased, i.e Full paid ticket or Discount Ticket.

 

Amongst the many changes the one with the most impact to Emirates Skywards members is introduction of a reduced earning rate for fares discounted fares, which will be known as Skywards Saver Fares.  In addition to the introduction of a reduced earning rate zones will be used to calculate the number of awarded miles along with a bonus miles offer named Skywards Miles Accelerator.

 

Skywards Miles & Fare Type

After introduction on 1 January 2010 fares will be categorized as either Skywards Flex or Skywards Saver. Fares categorized as Skywards Flex will be non-discounted tickets and for the purposes of miles calculation & will earn 100% base miles, for whatever the miles calculation be for the zones travelled. The discounted Skywards Saver fares will earn 50% base miles for the Zone/s Travelled

 

Emirates Skyward Zones

Earning Skywards miles from 1 January 2010 will be calculated based on travel within Emirates 18 broad geographic zones, with Dubai being a standalone zone as the hub of the Emirates network.

 

As yet no details have emerged on the distribution of Skywards 18 Zones or the number of miles which will be earned for flying within them, however earning charts will be available from late October and an online calculator available from 1 January 2010.

 

Emirates Skywards Class & Tier Bonuses

Under Emirates new Skywards Frequent Flyer Program there is some great news if you are a business or first class flyer, as class bonuses are increasing, travelling Emirates Business Class your class bonus will increase from 50% to 75% of base miles, and for Emirates First Class an increase from 100% to 150% of base miles flown.

 

Skywards Tier Bonuses remain the same as the existing scheme, that being Sliver members 25% bonus Gold Members 50% Bonus

 

Skywards Miles Accelerator

The overhaul of the Skywards scheme introduces a new component to its program Miles Accelerator, which in effect is a monthly selection of flights available on the Emirates website that will earn bonus miles.

 

The list of Skywards Miles Accelerator fares will be updated on Emirates website monthly and only need to be booked & purchased during that month for future travel (up to 1 year)    

 

Air France has released details of the first flight of it Airbus A380 aircraft along with some basic cabin configuration details.

 

 

 

The first Air France A380 will service the Paris to New York route with the maiden flight taking place Friday 20 November 2009, and the return leg New York to Paris departing Saturday 21 November 2009.

 

If you are after a seat on the inaugural Air France A380 flight, Air France just as Singapore Airlines did, are auctioning tickets for both legs of the flight on eBay with proceeds going to charity. Head over to http://af380.com to participate in the auction.

 

The Air France A380 will in total seat 538 passengers with the upper deck seating 80 Affaires (Business Class) and 106 Voyageur (Economy Class) seats, and on the lower deck with 9 Air France Premiere (First Class) Seats and another 343 Voyageur (Economy Class) seats.

 

For fans of premium economy unfortunately the first Air France A380 will not include the newly launched Air France Premium Voyageur (Premium Economy) cabin, however Air France have publically stated they do intend to outfit & operate an Air France A380 Premium Voyageur cabin in the near future.

 

As yet no Air France A380 Interior cabin pictures have been released yet, and we here The Business Travel Guru think Air France will keep this under wraps until just before the first flight. As you would expect after the first flight there will be a flurry pictures from fans and enthusiasts posted all over the internet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the launch of Singapore Airlines A380 in October 2007, Emirates were the second Airline put into service an Airbus A380, and since my first Singapore Airlines A380 review and subsequent Qantas A380 Premium economy flight review you can imagine my eagerness to experience the Emirates A380 first hand.

 

21 May 2009 was the date for my Emirates A380 Business Class flight, and having flowing Emirates business class in the past (not the A380) and having read most of what other sites have had to say about their A380 I kind of half knew the treat I would be in for!

 

Limo Pickup from home

When you fly Business or First Class on Emirates the experience doesn’t begin when you arrive at the airport it begins at your house, with a Limo pickup at your current location (home, office, and hotel) the same goes after landing at your destination.

 

With my Limo pickup booked in several days prior to departure, I received a follow up call, the morning prior to my flight and again the night before from my Chauffer confirming my pickup address and pickup time. My flight EK 412 was scheduled to depart at 7:50am so I booking in a 5:15am pickup. Spot on 5:15am I had a call from my Emirates chauffer Stephen saying he was waiting downstairs, ready to take me to the airport.

 

I have to say the whole experience with Emirates Chauffer Company Brunel Worldwide Chauffer Drive was exceptional, making the lead up to my flight both worry and hassle free.

 

Emirates Check-in

Just less than 30 minutes after leaving home on Sydney’s north shore I arrive at  Kingsford Smith International Airport (Terminal 1) and make my way to the check-in counter.  Using the Business Class checking lane I am checked in within no time at all, and given an eExpress ticket that allowed me to beat the crowds and utilize the eExpress customs queue.  

 

The Emirates Lounge

The Emirates Lounge in Sydney is located on the arrivals level (level 1) near the transfer security check point, Note you need follow the signs to the lounge then come down an elevator to level 1

 

 

Picture 1: The Emirates Lounge in Sydney

 

The first thing I noted when entering was how quite and spacious the lounge was! Being an early morning flight the lounge catered a full breakfast, with the food you would expect from a good quality hotel, which beats many other airlines airline lounges I have been in over the past few years.

 

The Emirates Lounge at Sydney is a combined First Class, Business Class and elite Skywards members lounge, which is great for those travelling Business as The Emirates Lounge is a true First Class lounge in every aspect.

 

Boarding Emirates A380

At the Emirates gate, as you would normally expect there was a dedicated lane for Business, First Class and Skyward elite members, so we cleared the boarding gate fairly quickly and routed to an aerobridge that took us to first and business class on the upper deck.

 

 

Emirates A380 Business Class Cabin & Seat

For this flight I was allocated seat 23K which is a window seat in the last business section before the end of the aircraft and the Business Class Lounge & Bar.

 

My first impressions of the Emirates Business seat was wow impressive, even though I was in business and not first I felt I had my own personal space, a space which looks like it was designed for both work or rest. As you might remember from previous flight reviews that I have posted here on The Business Travel Guru leg room is a big deal for me and Emirates did not disappoint in this area, in that leg room wouldn’t even be an issue for someone 7ft tall.

 

Not long after getting seated a flight attendant came past offering pre-take off drinks Möet & Chandon Champagne, Orange Juice or Apple Juice. As I was flying in style I could not pass on the Möet and Chandon.

 

Emirates Business Class Cabin is configured with 76 full lie-flat seats in a 1-2-1 configuration

 

 

Picture 2: The Business Class Seat on the Emirates A380 Aircraft

 

Emirates new Business Class seats are very comfortable and include the following features/specifications:

 

• Lie-flat for a comfy sleep
• 47 cm (18.5 Inch) wide
• 99-122 inch seat pitch
• Up to 200 cm (79 in) Long when in lie-flat configuration
• Side desk/bar area
• Each row configured in an off-set configuration (see picture below)
• Built-in programmable massage function

 

 

Picture 3: The Business Class Cabin on my Emirates A380 Flight

 

If you are allocated a window seat, between your seat and the window you will find a stowage compartment, mine had additional blankets and another pillow in it.

 

Apart from the full-lie flat feature my next favourite feature was the massage function, it was running nearly the entire flight.

 

As I mentioned above what I loved about Emirates Business Class seat on their A380 was the scene of person space, which is great for working, for example you are working away and dinner is served, in Emirates new Business Class seat you no longer need to shutdown your laptop and pack your work away, simply move you work from the try table to the side table and start dining, when you dining is finished move you work back.

 

 

Emirates A380 Business Class In-flight Entertainment System ICE

Emirates In-flight entertainment and information system is called ICE, (short for Information Communication & Entertainment) all the stats I had read about ICE prior to this trip were impressive, over 1200 programming options, which included everything from TV Sitcoms to the latest block buster movies, along with a large selection of CDs

 

The Information area of ICE included the latest headlines from the BBC, flight information that displayed the current flight path, flight cams (Nose, Tail and ground view of the sky, sea and land outside of the aircraft)

 

Linked to the ICE system in Business Class on Emirates A380 is a huge 17 inch LCD Screen that displays a very high quality picture, and is the largest LCD screed I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing on a business class flight, this in addition to ICE made my relativity short flight that much better, fortunately or unfortunately depending on the way you look at it I had the opportunity to watch an entire movie on my return flight, no Bar/lounge because of turbulence.

 

 

Picture 4: The 17 Inch LCD Screen in Business Class

 

 The screen and ICE system can be controlled by the following 3 means:

 

• Touch Screen
• The IFE/Phone Handset
• Wireless remote console

 

A little later in the journey I had a chat with the Customer Service Manager and he pointed out that I could save my seat and In-flight entertainment system preferences to a memory stick, so that when I take another Emirates flight my seat setting can be uploaded into the ICE system and my seat is configured to my originally saved personal preferences. Not having a memory stick on this flight I did not get the opportunity to try this feature.

 

Another unique feature of Business Class on Emirates A380 aircraft is its wireless remote control that can be used as another method to control the ICE system and also to activate the seats massage feature.

 

Emirates A380 Business Class Dining & Wine List

The menu & wine list for both my flight over to Auckland and back was quite extensive.

 

The following selection was on the menu for the flight for Brunch (Sydney to Auckland)

 

Fresh Fruit

Fresh Seasonal Fruit

 

Main Course

Cheese and chives scrambled eggs

Mushroom Ravioli

Tuna Nicoise

Cheese Selection

 

Dessert

Lemon curd Tart

 

Bread

Bread Basket

 

Beverages

Tea Coffee and Chocolates

 

 

 Picture 5: A Glass of Moet& Chandon

Business Class First Class Bar & Lounge

The combined First & Business Class lounge on board is a real draw card which you don’t really get the feel for and appreciate until it has been experienced. I would have to say after the service the Lounge Bar area was the highlight of the flight.

 

The lounge seats around 8 to 10 people and is equipped with an impressive 42 inch LCD screen, the bar premium wines spirits and liqueurs, and is also the place to go to pick up a quick snack.

 

During the flight over to Auckland a lucky guys from Economy Class was invited up as it was his birthday, and to top that the Flight attendants had a birthday cake and sang Happy Birthday to him. It was truly a unique experience, one that not too many airlines would even contemplate doing!    

 

Picture 6: The Combined Business/First Class Lounge 

 

Picture 6: A wider shot of the Combined First/Business Class bar

 

 

Picture 7: The massive 42 inch LCD Screen in the First/Business Class Lounge

 

 

Picture 8: It was this lucky guys birthday, flight attendants sang Happy Birthday

 

Final Verdict

When I reflect back on my Emirates A380 flight what comes to mind first is service with a capital S, it was top notch and spot on. So much so that you really feel that the crew always had my best interests as their first priory, they actually went out of their way to for fill l all of my requests.

 

The next thing that comes to mind was the aircraft and the business class cabin implemented on their A380. The seat was extremely comfortable, especially when converted into the lie flat bed configuration. A long haul on Emirates A380 would be a breeze.

 

Brief overview of highlights of flight and Emirates A380 Business Class:

• Flight Attendants - Great service very friendly
• Business Class Seat –Comfy,  great personal space &  outstanding for working in-flight
• Business Class Lounge Bar – Guys this is a big draw card, a great social area
• LCD Screen and In-flight entertainment System ICE
• The Emirates Lounge in Sydney & Auckland

 

 

I would defiantly fly Emirates again, especially if it’s their A380, the entire Emirates A380 Business Class experience was number 1

 

 

For this flight I was a guest of Emirates Airlines flying from Sydney to Auckland, New Zealand, Return

 

Yesterday Emirates made aviation history by becoming the first airline to begin commercial services to Toronto Canada; the following video is of EK 372 Emirates A380 flight landing in Toronto Canada.

 

 

 

 

EK 372 wasn’t the only Emirates flight making history also yesterday, EK 241 an A380 flight from Dubai to Bangkok became the first commercial A380 Bangkok bound service.

 

On Thursday 11 February I had the opportunity to fly Premium Economy on Qantas’s brand spanking new Airbus A380 from Singapore to Sydney and just like the Singapore Airlines A380 aircraft which I experienced more than a year earlier this aircraft promised to deliver much more in the areas of space, comfort, in-flight entertainment and most importantly service.

 

For booking made during the month of May 2010, Qantas has heavy discounts on flights from the US to Australia and New Zealand (for Flights to Australia this includes the Qantas A380), the below link has all the details:

 

This is a great opportunity to fly the Award winning Qantas A380 to the Land of Down under

 

To begin I won’t be shy in pointing out that I absolutely love reporting on any Airbus A380, not just because it’s an ultra modern aircraft but also because of the modern features and amenities which airlines are implementing, and are a true generational step up from the upgrades airlines have previously put in place in the last decade.

 

 

 

So how does the Qantas A380 and Qantas Premium Economy cut it against Singapore Airlines A380 and other premium economy services?

Our day started off as a normal day in the air, we got to Singapore’s Changi International Airport well in advance of boarding, so I could catch up with the latest world news, do some work and chill out for a while prior to the flight.

Check-in at the Qantas Club/Business Class check-in counter was fairly straightforward as usual no problems with the excess baggage we had from Shopping in Saigon and Singapore.

 

Next part of the morning prior to boarding was at Changi’s joint Qantas/BA Business Class lounge, now this lounge has never been my favourite airline lounges in the world but it is adequate to get work/emails and/or rest before an onward flight. Every time I have visited this lounge it has always been extremely quite which is a pleasant change from Qantas’s domestic lounges here in Australia. Staff has always been friendly and professional. The only complain from fellow lounge dwellers was the lack of orange juice.

 

Qantas A380 Boarding Time

Boarding time was near so we headed down to our gate, and as we got closer I could not help but notice the size of the A380, it’s a massive aircraft dwarfing a nearby Boeing 747-400, a real mammoth piece of engineering excellence

 

Not long after clearing the security check point at our gate and taking some snaps for this review, our flight was called for boarding. Passengers in need of assistance or with young children were asked to board first followed by First Class, Business Class, Premium Economy and Oneworld Emerald/Ruby Frequent Flyers.

 

Since Premium Economy is located on the upper deck behind Business Class I was not surprised when Premium Economy was called to board with the First and Business Class Passengers, and not at the same time as Economy.

 

Qantas A380 Business Class

On the very long walk down to Premium Economy we pass by Business Class, the seats even though the same as in the Qantas media shots which I published earlier on this site, that received such a bad rap by the general public look so much nicer when you are walking past one, I am sure they would be even nicer to sit in for a long flight from Sydney to LAX.

 

On observation Qantas’s A380 Business Class seats don’t look quite as wide as Singapore Airlines A380 Business Class seats, but they look as comfortable, and out do SIA in terms of leg room, if you are a very tall person and cant fork out the dosh for First Class a Business Seat on the Qantas A380 would be more than adequate.

 

 

Qantas A380 Premium Economy

Finally we are at Premium Economy, the first thing that impresses me most about Premium again like Business is leg room. There is more room than what I would have expected in Premium Economy which was a great relief. Whenever I cannot fly Business Class domestically or internationally, Lack of Leg Room has been my biggest enemy. Having that extra leg room made the entire journey so much enjoyable.

 

Overhead locker space is more than ample, also window seats are equipped with stowage compartment between the seat and the window similar to what you will find in Business and First Class on Qantas’s 747 aircraft.

 

 

 

Prior to take off we were offered pre-take off drinks (Australian Sparkling wine, Orange Juice or water) A short time later it was take off time, looking out at the wings as our A380 taxied to the runway, I could not get over the wingspan of this massive aircraft nearly as wide as the runway!

 

The Qantas A380 Premium Economy Cabin is configured in a 2-3-2 seat configuration with 32 seats in total, in my opinion the best seats in this cabin are window seats on the front row (34) or 38 J/K.

 

38 J/K has the best legroom because it is an exit row, however a word of warning there is no under seat stowage and it is in close proximity to the Galley and Self Service Bar (May be an advantage depending, if you like a short walk to the chips and drinks)

 

Unfortunately the self service bar does not include alcohol; you still need to request this from a flight attendant.  

 

What about Premium Economy Flight attendants? There were at least to for our small 32 seat cabin and they were fabulous, very quick, able to help with all of my requests and very knowledgeable about the Qantas A380 aircraft, I spoke with one of them for 20 minutes or so about the aircraft and its features.

 

Qantas Premium Economy In-Flight Entertainment System

Just after the aircraft had taken then levelled off, flight attendants offered passengers hot refresher towels, I then decided to check out the A380s In-flight entertainment system. Qantas Premium Economy is equipped with a 26.9cm (10.6in) touch screen unit, its picture quality is outstanding beating the picture seen on most in-flight entertainment screens prior, I am sure this is because it using a digital as opposed to an analogue system, which provides a static free image.

 

 

 

The in-flight entertainment system is easy to operate but I found on some screen selections you need to double tap the item as the first tap highlights the item (Providing more information) then the second tap activates or plays that item.

 

The range of entertainment options was huge, everything from movies, TV series, music, documentaries, games and even business and language learning programs, Qantas claims to have over 1,000 audio and video on demand options, and I was not doubting them or taking the time to verify.

 

Noise cancelling headphones similar to ones found on other regular Qantas Business Class and Jetstar Star Class services were provided. They did a reasonable job of cancelling out unwanted noise but did not match the noise cancellation of either my Sennheiser PXC-250 or PXC-450 sets, so I quickly changed back to my PXC-450 set.

 

After playing with the in-flight entertainment system, it was time to catch up on some work, take notes for this review, and test out the laptop power.

 

Plugging my laptop into the in-seat power then attempting to power up my laptop, the first thing I noticed was the power light on my laptop power cable failed to light up laptop. From previous experience this generally happens if your laptop during start up draws more power than the outlet can supply, a laptop will generally draw 10Ampers or more at start-up. The trick here is to power your laptop up first, and then plug into the in-seat power outlet. After doing this the power light on my laptop’s transformer/brick lit up and I was in Business.

 

There has been much mentioned about Qantas’s cached and very limited internet service, but not having an network cable I could not test this out. This is something I will check and report on when I next get a flight on a Qantas A380 aircraft, hopefully by then Qantas will be offering a full internet service.

 

Qantas A380 Premium Economy Dining

Our Lunch option for the flight back to Sydney was Lamb curry with rice or Asian style chicken with noodles, served with bread roll, green bean salad, and a wide selection of wine, spirits, beer and soft drinks, in all honesty I found lamb curry to be a little bland, the stir fry chicken which my wife had was much better.

 

During the flight our flight attendants regular came thru asking if we wanted desert, drinks and/or snacks even though the mini-bar was not far away.

 

Qantas A380 Premium Economy trip Summary and Rating

If I am every in a situation where I cannot fly Business Qantas Premium Economy is a great option, the service was great, the aircraft fabulous, the seat and in-flight entertainment system far better and than I expected and I always have high expectations. Put simply I would be happy to fly Qantas A380 Premium Economy on any trip, and highly recommend for anyone who wants more than what standard economy offers, without having to pay for a Business Class fare.  I rate the experience better than both British Airway’s and Virgin Atlantic’s Premium Economy product. Full marks to Qantas and Airbus for making this flight a memorable experience.

 

 

 

My Score for the Qantas A380 Premium Economy Experience

Service	4/5
Seat	4.5/5
Dining	3.5/5
In-flight entertainment	4/5

 

Have you flown on Qantas's A380 in either Premium Economy, Business Class, First Class or Economy? How was your experience, we want to hear about your experience. Why not leave a comment below or post your review to the Business Travel Guru Airline Forum

Emirates pilots and cabin crews have been complaining that their new Airbus A380 planes are far too quite. Most passengers including myself would consider a quieter aircraft to be a plus, but it seems a quieter aircraft creates other noise issues.

 

The Blog FlightGlobal has reported pilots as saying:

 

” the lack of engine noise in the A380's cabin compared with other long-haul airliners means they are constantly disturbed by sounds created by passengers, such as crying babies, flushing vacuum toilets and call bells. Passengers also mistake the rest area for a lavatory, and pull the door handle.” “The Dubai-based carrier has asked Airbus for a solution that does not involve substantially adding weight, which rules out insulating the walls of the rest area, situated at the rear of the all-economy main deck”, says Emirates senior vice-president, fleet, Capt Ed Davidson. "We are expecting to hear back from them by the middle of the month," says Davidson, who admits that the airframer has "overdelivered" on its noise promises on the airline's Engine Alliance GP7200-powered A380s. One option could be installing lightweight generators to create ambient noise.”

 

 

You see low frequency plane noise (usually wind and engine noise) actually cuts out or makes the higher frequency internal cabin noise (people talking/kids screaming) seem less audible.

 

 

Have you flown on a Emirates, Singapore Airlines or Qantas A380, how was the internal cabin noise? Leave a comment below 

 

Today Emirates started flying Dubai to Heathrow with their new Airbus A380, this 489 seat aircraft will fly on flight numbers EK001 Dubai to London and EK002 for the return flight.

 

 

 

"We are delighted to bring our customers state-of-the-art comforts which are unmatched anywhere else in the world," says Emirates Airline president Tim Clark.

 

"Despite today's challenging economic environment, they have responded by booking every seat on our inbound and outbound flights."

 

"Owing to its environmentally-friendly performance, the Emirates A380s will make a huge contribution to Heathrow's efforts to reduce its overall emissions," says Clark.

 

This Airbus A380 is Emirates third; their first two A380 aircraft currently service Emirates Dubai to New York route

 

If you had to chose a name for each of the 20 future Airbus A380 aircraft that Qantas was about to put into service, what names would you chose and what criteria would you use for choosing?

Qantas has just completed its Qantas A380 naming program, where it asked members of the Australian public and aviation experts to help with the naming for all 20 of its future A380 fleet.

As you can imagine its no surprise that the list released today by Qantas chief executive officer Alan Joyce contained and honoured Australian Aviation Pioneers:

• Nancy-Bird Walton – the first woman to fly a commercial aviation service in Australia.
• Hudson Fysh – one of the founders of Qantas and the airline’s first Managing Director.
• Paul McGinness – one of the founders of Qantas.
• Fergus McMaster – one of the founders of Qantas and the first Chairman of the Company.
• Lawrence Hargrave – inventor of the box kite, linking four of these together in 1894 to fly 16 feet.
• Charles Kingsford Smith – Australia’s most famous aviator, who made the first trans-Pacific flight from the USA to Australia in 1928, and founded Australian National Airways Limited.
• Charles Ulm – Co-pilot, on Kingsford Smith’s record-breaking trans-Pacific flight between the USA and Australia in 1928 and co-founder of Australian National Airways Limited.
• Reginald Ansett – Founder of Ansett Airways Pty Ltd.
• David Warren – Inventor of the Black Box Flight Recorder.
• Bert Hinkler – Pilot of first solo flight from Britain to Australia in 1928.
• John and Reginald Duigan – First Australians to design, construct and fly a powered aircraft, in 1910.
• Phyllis Arnott – First Australian woman to gain a commercial pilot’s license.
• Keith McPherson Smith and Ross McPherson Smith – winners of the famous ‘Air Race’ between London and Australia in 1919.
• Lester Brain – Piloted one of the first Qantas routes in 1925 and ferried the first wartime Catalina Flying Boat delivered by Qantas Empire Airways in 1941. Later appointed General Manager of Trans-Australia Airlines in 1946.
• Lores Bonney – First woman to fly solo around Australia in 1932 and the first woman to fly solo from Australia to England, in 1933.
• Norman Brearley – Founder of Western Australian Airways Limited, which operated Australia’s first scheduled air service on 5 December 1921.
• P G Taylor – Navigator and co-pilot alongside Charles Kingsford Smith and Charles Ulm on many record-breaking flights between Australia and the United States and England and Australia. Taylor was awarded the Empire Gallantry Medal in 1937 for one of the most revered acts of bravery in the history of aviation.
• Scotty Allan – Co-pilot alongside Charles Ulm and P G Taylor on the 1933 record-breaking flight from England to Australia and later joined Qantas and flew DH86 aircraft on the Brisbane-Singapore route.
• John Flynn – Founder of the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
• Gaby Kennard – First Australian woman to fly solo around the world in 1989.

HTC Touch Pro Launch - Last week I had the opportunity to attend the HTC Touch Pro PDA  launch in Sydney Australia, and Wow what a device, the applications and functionality for the Business User are simply superb.

 

 

 

 

The stand out features on the Touch Pro that should appeal to most business travellers:

 

• 6 Input methods including a Slide out QWERTY keyboard including on-screen keyboard with autocorrect, write to text, compact QWERTY keyboard


• Flip to voice mail Send incoming calls to Voice Mail simply by flipping the phone (Great for meetings)


• TV out that’s right before entering a meeting copy your presentation to your HTC Touch Pro and you can leave your Laptop in the hotel or office.


• VGA Video (640 X 480) Resolution


• Opera Web browser (yes same as the iPhone 3G) giving you true full page web browsing, with the ability to zoom in and out by tapping on an area of the webpage.


• FM Radio for when you want to listen to local radio stations

With only a limited play of the HTC Touch Pro I can see this device may be Ultimate Business Travellers Phone/PDA. I will literally be getting my hands and fingers on a review device in the next few weeks so drop back to the our gadget and Luggage review area soon to get the full story.

 

 

Judy Grimes the Travel Writer does just kidding on Saturday Night live, with tips on how travel hassle free, a bit of a laugh for the end of your travel week.

 

 

Following in the theme of yesterday I have also found a YouTube Video of the preparation & painting of Qantas’ A380, quiet interesting for all Qantas, Plane and A380 enthusiasts.

 

 

Today Qantas welcomed the arrival into Sydney of its first out of a total order of 20 Airbus A380s double-decker superjumbo aircraft. Its arrival in Australia dead on 9am on Sunday 21 September 2008, was delivered two years late due to engineering issues at Airbus.

 

Qantas’s first A380 will be officially named Nancy-Bird Walton at a naming ceremony in Sydney on Tuesday September 30, and will then be involved in pilot training and promotional flights around Australia in early October, before her first commercial flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles on 20 October 2008 and then a Sydney to Los Angeles flight on 24 October 2008.

 

Qantas also today launched a new TV Commercial featuring its new Airbus A380, the YouTube version of the video can be watched below:

 

Qantas has taken delivery of its first Airbus A380 at an official handover ceremony in Toulouse France. The Aircraft is Qantas’ first airbus out of an order of 20, and will be put into operation from 20 October 2008 with its first commercial flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles, followed by its second flight from Sydney to Los Angeles on 24 October 2008.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Aircraft will leave for Australia tonight with a stopover in Singapore before landing in Sydney at 9:00 am on Sunday 21 September 2008.

 

Qantas’ A380 is to be the first Airbus A380 with on board in-flight internet access, which was originally planned to be a live service, but in recent days Qantas have pegged back the service to cached only access of Qantas website, but with live access to Email and Chat services. Qantas say technical and regulatory issues with their carrier have prevented them from providing the full live service, they previously promised; Qantas plans to offer a full live internet service from by the end of 2009.

 

Qantas have stated they are considering increasing their order of Airbus A380 aircraft, no details yet.

 

The Airbus press release can be read below:

 

Australia’s flagship airline, Qantas, has received the first of 20 Airbus A380s on order, at a ceremony in Toulouse, France. The Rolls-Royce powered aircraft was handed over to Qantas Chief Executive Officer, Geoff Dixon and Qantas CEO-Designate, Alan Joyce by Tom Enders, Airbus President and CEO and John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer Customers.

 

Geoff Dixon said: “When we ordered our A380 in 2000, we said that in addition to giving us the opportunity to reinvent our product, this revolutionary new aircraft offered capacity and operating savings, as well as environmental improvements. Everything we have seen since our initial order has reinforced this view.”

 

Qantas’ A380 cabin was created by internationally renowned designer Marc Newson. Typically the A380 seats 525 passengers in three-classes, however Qantas’ cabin is extra spacious with 450 seats (14 First, 72 Business, 32 Premium Economy and 332 Economy).

 

“The A380 sets the standards for the 21st century, “ said Tom Enders. “More than 380 patents on board underline the aircraft’s leadership in eco-efficiency and innovation and will allow Qantas to continue to grow whilst reducing its impact on the environment. We appreciate Australia’s iconic airline sharing the A380 vision with us from the very beginning.”

 

Qantas was the first customer to conclude the signing of a contract for the A380. In November 2000, it ordered 12 A380s, marking the first time in the airline’s long history it had ordered Airbus aircraft. Qantas later increased its order for A380s to 20, and is now the second largest customer for the world’s most modern aircraft.

 

The four Rolls Royce Trent 900 engines will each deliver up to 72,000 lbs of thrust, contributing to the aircraft’s overall fuel efficiency of less than three litres of fuel per passenger per 100 kilometres.

 

Rolls-Royce Chairman Simon Robertson said: “We appreciate the opportunity once again to be an integral player in shaping the future success of Qantas, Australia’s iconic carrier and one of the world’s leading airlines. This occasion marks another milestone for the Trent 900, the market leading engine for the A380.”

 

The aircraft’s efficiency and advanced technologies result in higher operational flexibility and outstanding economics, with a range of more than 15,000 km and seat-mile costs 20 per cent lower than its closest competitor. The A380 also provides vital extra passenger capacity without increasing the number of flights.

 

Qantas’ A380 will stop-over in Singapore before arriving in Sydney on September 21^st. Qantas’ first commercial A380 services will be launched on October 20^th from Melbourne to Los Angeles, and on October 24^th from Sydney to Los Angeles. Later Qantas will also fly the A380 to Singapore and London. Currently the Qantas group, including low-cost subsidiary Jetstar, has ordered a total of 110 aircraft directly from Airbus.

 

Qantas today announced that original plans for a full in-flight internet service on its soon to be launched Qantas A380 have been pegged back; instead the airline will launch a cached only internet service with only a limited number of sites.

 

 

 

Qantas would not reveal the type of number of sites their A380s cached in-flight internet service would provide, or the cost or the service.

 

 

A Qantas spokeswoman said the internet plans had been paired back due to "logistical and regulatory issues" encountered by its connectivity provider, OnAir. The airline said the full internet service was now scheduled to be available "later in 2009".

 

 

Qantas will begin operations of its Airbus A380 on 20 October 2008 from Melbourne to Los Angeles return with the second flight on the 24 October 2008 to be flown from Sydney to Los Angeles.

 

 

Last month American Airlines got into a sticky situation when numerous Flight Attendants and Passengers complained of passengers surfing for Porn.

 

 

The US Association of Professional Flight Attendants has called for content filtering to be put in place, which the airline has decided against preferring to give passengers a full internet experience like one they would have at home or in the office, but with the duty of monitoring inappropriate service use laying in the hands of Flight Attendants.

 

The introduction of in-flight internet across most of American Airlines domestic fleet last month has opened a proverbial can of worms the Airline, porn surfing.

  

 

Since the introduction a flood complaints have surfaced from both passengers and flight attendants complaining that some passengers are using the US$12.95 in-flight internet service to surf for porn, while in-flight.

   

 

In response to the in-flight internet err porn issue; The US Association of Professional Flight Attendants has requested the airline install internet filtering software to block any inappropriate websites.

  

 

American Airlines have since stated a preference toward an unfiltered internet experience such as what someone would have at their home of office, with the onus being on flight attendants to monitor and take appropriate action if any passenger was caught surfing porn.

  

 

I can only say it should not have been a surprise that a minority of passengers would surf inappropriate sites, and I am sure American Airlines would have thought thru and had great discussions including how flight attendants should deal with such issues.

  

 

As yet American Airlines have not officially stated what would happen if a passenger was caught surfing inappropriate content, personally I believe the users internet access should be blocked for the remainder of the journey.

 

 

  American Airlines issues have arisen in the same week in which Qantas have announced they will not be offering a full live in-flight internet instead switching plans to a cached only service to a limited number of websites.  There has been some speculation that Qantas’s decision to change tact was in-response to the issues now being experienced by American Airlines issues, but in reality it’s a coincidence with  Qantas stating the reason is because of Logistical and regulatory issues with its carrier On-air

 

 

United Airlines today denied a news article by the Florida Sun Sentinel that the company had filed for bankruptcy. In what seems like a case of reporting on the sinking of the Titanic six years after it happened, the Florida Sun Sentential foolishly & mistakenly referred from and basing their article on a six year old press release of the airlines 2002 filing.

   

United Airlines has called for the Florida Sun Sentential to retract their article which the paper is yet to do.

  

In a press release from United Airlines they quote the following, “United continues to execute it previously announced businesses plans to successfully navigate thru an environment marked by volatile fuel prices and continues to have a strong liquidity”

   

United Airlines is America’s second largest airline and recently came under fire after announcing and then quietly dropping plans to charge all economy class passengers on transatlantic flights for on board meals. After huge opposition and from passengers along with other airlines not following suite, United quietly dropped their buy on board meal plans.

 

 

With so much hype around the iPhone 3G and its new Exchange Sync features I decided to pick one up ditching my Windows Mobile device for a week to give the IPhone 3G Exchange client an aggressive test drive.

 

Now I rely heavily on my mobile device to keep in touch while on the run, using email, contacts, calendar, and of course my phone heavily, so if the iPhone 3G’s Exchange client has any issues I will sure find them. The first thing you notice when you pickup an iPhone 3G for the first time is its sexy menu system, which is great, but I want and need is the ultimate mobile email and scheduling device.

 

 

 

The iPhone 3G Email Setup

 

Delving into my iPhone’s email settings menu, the menu allow you to configure your Exchange mailbox account which I know is what you want, along with several other email services and systems including Yahoo Mail, Gmail, mobileMe, AOL, POP3 and  IMAP4, etc, which covers most of the major email servers and services.

 

After configuring my device for my corporate Exchange mailbox along with my personal IMAP4 mailbox, and then going into the iPhones email client I am given the choice of which of my mailboxes I want to open. Selecting my exchange mailbox I am presented with all of my corporate emails, entering into a messages it’s more evident how great the iPhones email client is, showing a full page email, including html emails.

 

Scheduling and calendaring is looks great but in reality there is one major flaw, and this is the ability to change/update a current calendar item or even the ability to propose a new meeting time, this is a feature that should have been made available, who knows why it was left out?

 

Contacts in Apples iPhone are great mainly due to the full screen format, placing all the information you want right in front of you, with also the ability to associate a picture or ring tone with a particular contact, all round contacts in the iPhone 3G are great.

 

To be truthful at the surface after my initial play with the email interface I so much wanted to give this device a glowing review, but after delving deeper I found many of the core features and functions that are found by default on a Windows Mobile device are missing all together, perhaps these will be included in a future incremental iPhone software upgrade or the future IPhone 3G 2, who knows?

 

Features missing from IPhone 3G’s Exchange/Email along with other general devices features which are missing:

 

Exchange, Email Client & SMS

 

• Copy and Paste between within the IPhone 3G’s email client and other applications – This should have been a core feature on the iPhone 3G, considering Apple’s main aim with this release was corporate/business users, for me its feature I most want and hope it will come along in a future software upgrade.

• Forward SMS message feature missing – That’s right there is no way to forward an SMS in the IPhone 3G to another person/s, and also because there is no/copy paste feature you cannot even compose a new SMS and then copy/paste the contents of the message you want to forward.
  

• MMS but a non issue for most mobile business users - Not a show stopper for me but I can imagine some business users may need or want this feature.

• Battery life with Exchange push mail – The downside of push email on any device Windows Mobile or iPhone is battery life, but it seems the iPhone 3Gs battery life is affected greatly when Exchange push email is enabled.  My personal experience has been a maximum of 1 day with Push email enabled, which is not good, but then I also listen to a lot of pod casts, music and do a lot of web browsing. I have found though tweaking my email sync setting and changing my exchange sync type to fetch instead of push increases battery life significantly, getting a more reasonable 3 days battery life. 

 

General iPhone 3G device features missing & flaws

 

• File Copy via Bluetooth – This is a feature I will miss most from my Windows Mobile device, the ability to compose a note or some text and then do a file transfer via Bluetooth.

• Bluetooth HPDSA Modem functionality – For me not a show stopper as I have a 3G HPDSA module for my laptop, many business users want this feature.

• Voice dialing and voice memos – Another great feature which is missing, doing a lot of call while on route in my car the voice dialing feature on my Windows Mobile device is great, somehow I don’t see Apple adding this feature too quickly.

• Stereo Bluetooth A2DP Support – Given Apple and iPhone’s are renowned as an entertainment device, why in the world would support for Stereo A2DP Bluetooth be left out?
  

• No Video Camera feature – Most if not all camera’s and PDAs Windows Mobile and other have a video camera feature, my only guess is that it’s been left out so we all upgrade to the latest device in 12 months time, but hopefully an update will fix this oversight.

• Complaints of cracks on white iPhones - Some users with white iPhones have complained their devices are cracking around the headphone socket and the edge of their screen; I need to see more info and evidence on this before this can be considered an issue, maybe these devices have been dropped?

• GPS – when I first saw the news that the iPhone 3G had a inbuilt GPS system I thought wow that will be good, in reality it just not so good the iPhone 3G uses goggle maps and assisted GPS via cell phone towers to get your location, not good at all, no voice prompting and if you are out in the middle of the outback with no coverage, this feature won’t work at all. I love TomTom on Windows Mobile.

 

What Apple got right

 

• User Interface - Even the most diehard Windows Mobile or Black berry user will have to agree the IPhone 3G’ss general user interface and email interface totally rocks.

• Full screen email and web browsing – We all have to love this one now the ability to view a full from a mobile device, no more mobile versions of websites for me. Also the ability to double tap any element of a webpage to zoom up is great.

• Predictive text input – Apple have done a great job with this, allowing anyone to quickly and effectively touch type via the on-screen keyboard. I have large fingers so when I used the iPhone 3G for the first time, nothing was coming out correctly but then I realized the predictive text input was actually correcting the mistakes made because of my big fingers.

• Phone and Music on the same device Priceless – No more having to carry two or more devices where ever I go.

Despite the above missing features (Apart from copy/paste) there are no real show stopper for me, using the iPhone 3G for email is a real joy, mainly because of the way the inbox is presented and the full page view of messages.

 

Hopefully Apple will get its act together and fix the majority of these issues in a software/firmware update. In the mean time I am waiting to see what is on offer from companies such as Samsung, LG and HTC via Windows Mobile 7 to counter the Awesome interface of the IPhone 3G.

 

 

Rumours are rife that last weeks grounding of Emirates first and only Airbus A380 because of unspecified electrical problems was actually due to its first class showers, and a possible leak.

Members of a popular travel forum have hinted that the problem may be caused because of a water leak around shower area below the location of one of the aircrafts two showers and it’s because of this moisture that the aircraft was grounded.

 

     

 

Late last month Emirates confirmed the delivery date of its second A380 had slipped also due to unspecified electrical issues, since the delivery date of Qantas’s first A380 (which by the way does not have on-board showers) did not slip, also as aircraft showers are a new technology which aircraft makers and outfitters are still refining the technology of this rumour may actually have some weight.   

 

But then again this could all turn out to be someone’s funny idea of a joke, either way BizTravelGuru is looking further into this issue and will post more information when it comes to hand.

I saw this funny YouTube video posted elsewhere and saw the funny side and a bit of the serious side given the latest push by some airlines to charge for just about everything they supply in addition to your actual flight.

 

Enjoy

Qantas will receive its first Airbus A380 in a handover ceremony in just under a month on 19^th of September 2008, with the Qantas A380 touching down on Australian soil in Sydney on 21^st  of September 2008.

 

After arrival in Australia this Qantas A380 won’t go into commercial service for another month, with a Melbourne to Los Angeles flight on Monday 20th October and a Sydney to Los Angles return flight from Friday 24^th October 2008.  

 

Some more Qantas A380 photographs have recently surfaced, showing the first Qantas A380 test flight in the its complete and stunning Qantas livery taking off from Hamburg Germany, in addition there are more Qantas A380 cabin photographs. I just love the look and feel of the Qantas logo at the top of the stairs going up to Business Class, the colour has a modern yet 1950’s feel to it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As always we love comments so feel free to leave your comments or Questions below or create a post in the Business Travel Guru Forums 

 

Skytrax the UK Based aviation research agency, have just released winners in the 2008 Skytrax World Airline Awards, and unsurprisingly the top Airline has award has been taken out by Singapore Airlines, in part to their new Airbus A380 and evolutionary cabin across all classes. What is very interesting is the lack of either a US or European carrier in the top 10.

 

The top 10 list comprises entirely of airlines in the Asia/Oceania region, which is great for those of us that live and fly within this area of the world, and not so good for the rest.

 

We are not entirely surprised by the lack of a US carrier in the top 10 just look back at my post earlier in the year titled  US Airline Carriers Wake up and smell the? In which I did not have much good to say about the majority of US carriers. I am however surprised not to see any European airlines in the top 10 list, expecting either British Airways, or Virgin Atlantic to sneak in, then again it’s a very competitive top 10, and the differences in quality of airlines between number 5 and 15 may only be slight.

 

The top 10 airlines in 2008 Skytrax World Airline Awards are:

 

 

Rank	Airline	Rank in 2007
1	Singapore Airlines	1
2	Cathay Pacific	3
3	Qantas	5
4	Thai Airways	2
5	Asiana Airlines	12
6	Malaysia Airlines	6
7	Qatar Airways	4
8	Air New Zeland	7
9	Emirates	9
10	Etihad	23

 

Full results can be found on the Skytrax Airline Quality website here:

Skytrax World Airline Awards

 

 

Singapore Airlines have just started flying an all Business class service from Singapore to Los Angeles, and is the second all business destination for Singapore Airlines, three months after first introducing their all business Singapore to New York route.

 

 

 

The configured 100 seat Airbus A340-500s feature lie flat Business Class seats measuring 76cm wide in a forward facing 1-2-1 configuration that give all seats direct access to the aisle. Other mod cons include the KrisWorld in-flight entertainment system with over 1000 on demand entertainment choices, and the ability to listen and view personal audio and video content from an iPod or iPhone thru the KrisWorld in-flight entertainment system.

 

 

SIAs all business service from Singapore to Los Angeles will operate on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays with daily services commencing from 21 September 2008

 

I have just put up another video of the Singapore Airlines A380 media event I attended in Sydney on the 26^th of October 2007 a day after the maiden flight of Singapore Airlines Airbus A380, from Singapore to Sydney.

 

 

 

 

The full review of Singapore Airlines A380 can be found here:

The Business Travel Guru gets close and personal with Singapore Airlines Airbus A380

So how does it compare with Emirates A380?

In short both A380s are great, Singapore Airlines A380 with their double suites, extreamly comfortable seats come lie flat bed, and a great menu, then the Emirates A380 with the worlds first in-flight shower, an all round great suite and the best in-flight entertainment system in the sky.

 

 

Delta airlines have announced the future roll out and launch in-flight Wi-Fi broadband internet access in 330 of their domestic aircraft in 2009. The Delta in-flight internet service will be available in both first class and economy classes and will utilize Aircell’s Gogo in-flight Internet technology.

 

Costing for this service will be a flat fee of US$9.95 for flight 3 hours less and $12.95 for flights longer than 3 hours. I have to commend Delta on the great pricing for this service, when we compare with in-flight phone calls priced across most airlines worldwide, this will really be a good bargain.

 

“Delta remains committed to providing a travel experience that maximizes the time our customers spend with us onboard by offering them even more productivity options,” said Richard Anderson, Delta’s chief executive officer. ”Our customers asked for in-flight connectivity, and we’re responding by rolling out the most extensive Wi-Fi network in the sky.  Beginning this fall, our passengers will have the ability to stay connected when they travel with us throughout the continental U.S.”

 

Gogo will be offered initially on Delta’s fleet of 133 MD88/90 aircraft and will rapidly expand to the remaining domestic fleet of more than 200 Boeing 737, 757 and 767-300 aircraft throughout the first half of 2009. The airline expects to have more than 330 aircraft complete by summer 2009.  The full fleet agreement between Aircell and Delta will provide a consistent, convenient experience for customers traveling on the airline who wish to use the Gogo Internet service.

 
“The advent of Air-To-Ground (ATG) technology has made broadband connectivity in the cabin economically viable for the first time for commercial airlines,” said Jack Blumenstein, President and CEO, Aircell. “The game has changed and Delta will be among the first to provide an enhanced customer experience with broadband Wi-Fi access on more than 1,000 daily flights within the U.S.”