Travel News | Travel Advice

Richard Branson, boss of Virgin has again gone on the offensive against claims of “monopolistic” practices against its long haul rival British Airways.

The “No Way BA / AA” campaign has, in the past, been used to successfully block British Airways and American Airlines’ plans to secure transatlantic anti-trust immunity.

The slogan has been added to one of the airlines Airbus A340-600 planes and Branson expects to roll this out to more aircraft, vowing to do “whatever it takes” to block the proposed deal. Branson feels that “if this monster monopoly is approved it will be third time unlucky for consumers. It will be bad for passengers, bad for competition and bad for the UK and US aviation industry.

BA and American, along with 3 other oneworld alliance members made a formal application for anti-trust immunity for their transatlantic operations in August.

If you are planning your next family holiday abroad and have youngsters or teenagers to keep entertained then consider travelling with Thomson.

The tour operator has a number of properties (which can be found in its’ Summer and Winter Sun brochures) which offer activities for a wide range of ages.

Called the Thomson Family Club, they promise to offer the “Ultimate Family Holiday”.

Within this club ages are separated into Tots for the 3-5 year olds, Team for the 6-8 year olds and Tribe for the 9-12 year olds.

If you are lucky enough to secure a holiday in a hotel offering the Thomson FamilyClub Xtra the benefits are extended.

You will receive benefits such as:

Babyzone – a quiet sanctuary where babies can be fed, changed and entertained in a room fully equipped by Mothercare and Hasbro.

There is a Football Academy open to girls and boys aged 5-16 years old, ideal for all budding Beckhams.

Kids are entertained with a dedicated entertainer and can learn circus skills and tricks, watch puppet shows and create model balloons.

There is a Stage Academy where kids receive singing and dancing lessons and get to perform infront of an audience, open for kids 5-16.

Finally there is a VIP Family Club, where children join the Thomson Dogs’ VIP Gang, offering front row seats to story time plus membership to the Thomson Dogs’ fan club and a VIP party for the whole family.

The Thomson Family Club Xtra range is available in properties in Majorca, Ibiza, Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria and Zante.

The Thomson Family Club Range is available in properties in Majorca, Menorca, Ibiza, Tenerife, Costa Dorada, Costa Brava, Aiya Napa.

More information can be found by visiting www.thomson.co.uk or by viewing the Thomson Summer Collection 2009 brochure.

We all hate delays – long periods of time spend in airports, often made even more miserable if you are travelling with young children, are abroad or soon to be late for that all important meeting.

But, even worse than a delay is the all too common cancellation.

If you find your flight is over-booked or cancelled entirely less than 14 days prior to departure you are entitled to compensation, thanks to the European Denied Boarding Regulation.

Your entitlement depends on where you were flying to, the timings of any alternative flights offered and when the cancellation occurs.

An example is as follows:

Passenger A books a short haul flight and arrives at the airport in good time on the day of departure.

Passenger A is advised at check in that the flight is cancelled.

The airline offers no alternative flight leaving no more than 1 hour and arriving no more than 2 hours after the original flight.

Passenger A is entitled to €250 refund.

However, often airlines do their best to avoid paying this. If they can prove that the cancellation was caused by “extraordinary” circumstances they may not be forced to offer any compensation. This could include bad weather, industrial action or technical problems. However, they must not be reasons which occur typically from time to time on a specific aircraft.

If your flight is cancelled due to “extraordinary circumstances and you are seeking compensation it may be a judge who has to decide whether steps were taken by the airline to provide a replacement plane.

Airbus are celebrating the success of its wide-bodied twin engine A330. Perhaps recently over shadowed by the launch of the double decker A380, the A330 could be described as Airbus’s real jewel in the crown.

During July ’08 alone the European manufacturer added 31 new orders for the A330 to its order-book, securing significant deals with Gulf Air for 20 A330-300s, Saudia for eight A330-200s and Tunis Air for three A330-200s.

In total the order book now stands at 1006 meaning the Airbus currently stands at the 4th most popular wide-bodied aircraft in commercial aviation history. It is now expected it will overtake the Boeing 767, the aircraft it was designed to compete with before the end of 2008.

And the future looks bright, as Airbus has secured tentative deals with carriers such as Air China, Alis Aerolinee Italiene and Emirates.

The A330 programme was launched 21 years ago with just a single version and a capacity for 295 passengers in a normal 3 class configuration and was designed to compete with the 767 and the less economical Lockheed L1011 TriStar and the Douglad DC10.

The first jet was delivered to Air Inter (subsequently absorbed by Air France) on Dec 30th 1993.

The introduction of the smaller A330-200 was introduced in 1995 and a freight version is expected to enter service in the second quarter of 2009.

According to official Airbus figures 555 A330s have been delivered, and 552 remain in service, which have completed more than 11 million hours of service.

Airbus also looks set to reach another significant milestone in the near future, approaching total sales of 10000 aircraft of all types.

It hopes to reach this mark before the summer of 2009.

A Pick of Airbus’ biggest A330 customers

A330-200
ILFC 65
Air China 40
AerCap 29
CIT Leasing 28
Emirates 28
US Airways 25
Airbus Executive & Private Jets 24
Hong Kong Airlines 20

A330-200F
Intrepid Aviation 20
Aircastle Advisor Ltd 15
Flyington Freighters 12

A330-300
Cathay Pacific 34
ILFC 30
Air Asia X 25
Northwest Airlines 21
Gulf Air 20
Thai Airways 20
Singapore Airlines 19

Most successful wide-bodied airliners

Rank 1 Boeing 747 orders 1523
Rank 2 Boeing 777 orders 1088
Rank 3 Boeing 767 orders 1011
Rank 4 Airbus A330 orders 1005
Rank 5 Boeing 787 orders 896

XL Airways enable a person to charter a flight from Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, East Midlands, Glasgow, Gatwick, Luton, Manchester or Newcastle. From these cities you can fly to Greece, Spain, Turkey, Portugal, Switzerland, or Italy. XL Airways wants to offer cheap flights to holiday destinations you might choose. They do have child fares, but they do not have senior fares. They do not allow pets on their flights due to the chartered factor.

The amount of baggage and size of the baggage is going to be determined by where you are flying. They do warn that there could be a handling fee for any oversized luggage. If there is excessive luggage, you could find a charge of 5 pounds per KG for short flights and 8 pounds for longer flights.

Any of the cheap flights through XL Airways are not going to have an in air service. You can purchase a selection of snacks such as paninis, crisps, hot and cold drinks. For shorter flights you are also able to purchase snacks or meals. For a slightly more expensive cost they do have meals served on board. Their flights are the ‘Excel One.’

Since XL Airways deals in chartered flights, you can expect to have a bit more room on the flights most of the time. The pricing for chartered flights is normally higher than your regular airline, but XL Airways offers cheap flights to help you out. These flights will still be a few pounds more than your regular airline, but well worth the space and comfort you can find on a chartered flight.

The customer service with XL Airways will be found in the excellent range. With a smaller flight crew, less individuals on board, and friendly faces at the counters you can expect to enjoy your chartered flight with XL Airways.

If you are a particularly tall passenger needing a little more leg room, you can request a seating area with a little more leg room. XL Airways flies to the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, and Egypt with their chartered flights.

When comparing airlines it is important to note the price, room, customer service, and flight destinations as we have done above for XL Airways. XL Airways may not be for everyone. They are great flights for groups who want to fly. You can book individually or charter the entire plane. This option offers you more for your flight than a regular airline.

XL Airways is also going to always have cheap flights. You can pre- book these flights months in advance, or wait to see what special options they might have for last minute flights. Like any other airline they will want to have a chance to sell a few last minute seats they haven’t filled yet. This is often where you can find the best rates for any flight. So next time you fly you might find it worth checking out XL Airways. Cheap flights on a short or long trip with a great price are what XL Airways is about.