EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT 02/21/05 Welcome to EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT for the week of February 21, the weekly e-mail of essential business travel news! To sign up for the e-Alert, click here. AirTran invades Charlotte; Southwest sets Pittsburgh schedules Northwest starts selling food in domestic coach cabins Continental, Air France implement code-sharing this week Japan gets a third major international airport near Nagoya Europe imposes tough new passenger-protection rules on airlines Registered traveler program coming to Orlando New road construction eases traffic near San Jose's airport SkyTeam carriers open combined facility at Mexico City's airport New food outlets are coming to Baltimore/Washington International Hotels: Latest branding changes AIRLINES AirTran invades Charlotte; Southwest sets Pittsburgh schedules Now that Southwest has invaded US Airways' hub at Philadelphia, and will soon do the same at the latter's Pittsburgh stronghold, the last thing bankrupt US Airways needs is another low-cost airline starting up service at its Charlotte hub. But guess what? AirTran Airways said last week it will become Charlotte's newest carrier on May 4, when it introduces four daily Charlotte-Atlanta and two daily Charlotte-BWI (continuing to Boston) flights, using two-class 717s. "Charlotte has been plagued by the highest fares in the country for a number of years; that changes May 4," said AirTran president Robert Fornaro. He added that Charlotte "represents a great opportunity for AirTran Airways' future growth plan," but revealed no further details. Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines last week revealed its initial schedules for Pittsburgh, where it will begin flying on May 4. Southwest will start out with 10 flights a day at PIT, including four a day to Chicago Midway; one to Las Vegas; one to Orlando; and four to Philadelphia. Introductory advance purchase fares are as low as $29 one-way between PIT-Midway and PIT-Philadelphia. Northwest starts selling food in domestic coach cabins The latest carrier to jump on the food-sales bandwagon is Northwest, which will start to phase in meal and snack sales March 1 for the economy cabins of domestic flights. Free meals will end on some 450 flights a day in March, expanding to around 900 by summer. Instead, passengers will be offered $3 snack boxes that contain non-perishable selections like potato chips, cheese spreads, raisins, crackers and Granola bars. On some longer routes, coach passengers will be able to buy various sandwich-type meals for $5. Northwest will continue to provide free food in first class and business class, and to all passengers on transatlantic and transpacific flights. Continental, Air France implement code-sharing this week On February 26, Continental Airlines and Air France will begin the implementation of a code-share agreement that they signed when Continental entered the SkyTeam global alliance last fall. Continental passengers will be able to book CO-coded connections beyond Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport to the French cities of Biarritz, Bordeaux, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Strasbourg, Lyon, Nice and Toulouse; as well as Vienna, Austria; Porto, Portugal and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. Meanwhile, Air France's code will go on Continental flights to five cities beyond its Newark hub, and 16 beyond its Houston hub. INTERNATIONAL Japan gets a third major international airport near Nagoya Japan last week cut the ribbon on its third major international airport, offering travelers a new alternative to Tokyo Narita and Osaka's Kansai International. Located near Nagoya, it's called Central Japan International Airport, or Centrair; it replaces the old Nagoya Airport, which only has half as many gates as the new one. Centrair is expected to handle some 12 million passengers annually, and will have flights to 24 domestic and 28 foreign cities. Northwest Airlines -- which flies there from Detroit, Manila, Tokyo and Saipan -- has moved its Nagoya flights to the new facility, and United expects to begin non-stops there from San Francisco in March, followed by American Airline service from Chicago in April. The new airport is on a man-made island just offshore, about 30-40 minutes from central Nagoya - our roughly the same distance as the old airport. Europe imposes tough new passenger-protection rules on airlines Europe's airlines are fighting it in court, but for now, they are subject to a stringent new set of passenger-protection rules that took effect in the European Union last week. The new rules include substantial increases in the penalties for overbooking - up to $780 for persons who are denied boarding because the airline sold too many seats, depending on the distance of the flight. The regulations also require that airlines do something for passengers whose flights face lengthy delays (i.e., five hours or more) - like meal vouchers and if necessary, hotel rooms - even in cases when the delay may be caused by something beyond the airline's control, like bad weather. The rules apply to all flights within the EU, regardless of the nationality of the airline; and to all flights of EU carriers into Europe from foreign countries. Both EU and non-EU citizens are eligible to benefit from the rules, officials said. AIRPORTS 'Registered traveler' program coming to Orlando The federal government's experimental "registered traveler" program - designed to allow pre-registered, pre-screened business travelers get through security checks faster - will expand to Orlando International Airport, with passenger enrollment expected to begin in mid-May, airport officials said last week. The program is already in place in Boston, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis and Washington D.C. Orlando's version will be different, however, in that the airport will contract with a private company to run the program; at the other sites, the Transportation Security Administration is in charge. Airport officials said they expect to begin selecting a service provider in mid-March. Once the program begins, persons who want to participate will have to "complete an application, provide biometric data including fingerprint and iris identification, and pass a security assessment which includes checks with federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies," an airport spokesperson said. New road construction eases traffic near San Jose's airport Persons flying out of San Jose might not need to allot as much time to drive to the airport now, thanks to the completion last week of a major road construction job near Norman Mineta San Jose International, known as the Route 87 Freeway Project. "The now-completed project is a 3.1-mile stretch between Julian Street and Route 101," said a spokesman for the California Department of Transportation. "The State Highway 87 project closes a gap in the freeway system that was once an at-grade expressway with stoplights. The completion of the project promotes easier movement in and out of San Jose and the airport, and eases traffic congestion in and around the area." Work on the project started seven years ago. SkyTeam carriers open combined facility at Mexico City's airport At Mexico City International Airport, SkyTeam member airlines have opened a new combined passenger facility. Located on the first floor of the International Terminal at Bay F1, the SkyTeam central ticketing area is easily accessible from both the parking garage and curbside. It features extra seating areas and more space overall, as well as new easy-to-read Flight Information Displays. Air France, Aeromexico and Delta are currently sharing the facility, and Continental, KLM and Northwest are due to join them soon. New food outlets are coming to Baltimore/Washington International More new food outlets are coming to Baltimore/Washington International, airport officials said last week. California Tortilla, a "fresh-Mex" chain based in Rockville, Md., will open its first restaurant at BWI in May, within the new A/B Food Court. Other California Tortilla outlets will follow in the Main Terminal and in Concourse C's food court. Obrycki's, a well-known seafood restaurant in the historic Fells Point section of Baltimore, will open an airport location in Concourse B in July. BWI will also get several new fast-food outlets starting in May, including Quiznos Subs ships in Concourse A/B and D; and three Villa Pizza restaurants in Concourses A, B and the Main Terminal. Finally, Scottish baker Walkers Shortbread will open stands in the C and D concourses. Spa opens in JetBlue's JFK terminal At New York Kennedy, you might not think cost-conscious JetBlue passengers would be part of the spa set, but they can be - now that a new Oasis Day Spa has opened in JetBlue's Terminal 6 at its JFK hub. Available services range from $25 manicures or haircuts to $95 for a full one-hour massage, along with pedicures and hair stylings. The day spa is located across from Gate 7. HOTELS Latest branding changes... The Hilton in Tarrytown, N.Y., close to several corporate headquarters in Westchester County, has been reflagged as the Doubletree Hotel-Tarrytown ... Another new conversion to the Doubletree brand is the former Hyatt Regency Oak Brook outside Chicago ... In Oklahoma, the former Hilton-Oklahoma City Northwest has become the Crowne Plaza Oklahoma City ... Miami's Radisson Mart Plaza Hotel and Convention Center is now the Sheraton Miami Mart Hotel ... As part of an overall renovation and improvement program, the Hyatt Regency Denver has been upgraded to the Grand Hyatt Denver ... In Texas, Hilton plans a March 1 opening for the Hilton Houston Post Oak, located in the city's Uptown business district a block from the Galleria ... In Europe, Fairmont Hotels has taken over management of Monaco's Monte Carlo Grand Hotel; it's now the Fairmont Monte Carlo. AIR ROUTES BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON (BWI). British Airways has introduced its new Club World business class service on the Baltimore-London route, providing six-foot-long seat-beds that recline 180 degrees. LOS ANGELES (LAX). Alaska Airlines has started new service between LAX and Loreto, Mexico, operating twice a week on Thursdays and Sundays. MILWAUKEE (MKE). Northwest on February 22 will add new service between Milwaukee-Pittsburgh and Milwaukee-Toronto, with two daily non-stops in each market. ST. LOUIS (STL). Frontier Airlines plans to launch new service between St. Louis and Cancun on February 25, operating three times a week on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. THIS WEEK'S DEALS AND SPECIALS FOR BUSINESS TRAVELERS SAS (800-221-2350; www.flysas.com) has a two-for-one sale on tickets to Scandinavia from its U.S. gateways of Newark, Washington Dulles, Chicago and Seattle. The purchase deadline is March 5, and travel must end by March 31. The promotion, which must be booked by phone, provides one free roundtrip economy ticket for one paid roundtrip. Going to San Francisco in April? For the entire month, the Pan Pacific San Francisco (800-533-6465; www.panpacific.com) will waive the usual hotel tax (well, the tax will still be paid, but by the hotel rather than the guest), resulting in a 14 percent savings on your final bill. Room rates start at $189. For links to other websites where you can search for bargains, click here: www.executivetravelonline.com/reference/deals.html By Jim Glab To sign up for the e-Alert, click here.