EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT 08/01/05 Welcome to EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT for the week of August 1, the weekly e-mail of essential business travel news! To sign up for the e-Alert, click here. TSA could lose airport screeners due to budget cuts FAA chief warns of growing delays this summer Delta adopts new cancellation policy United flight attendants getting restless Bankruptcy fears renewed for Delta American dedicates first phase of terminal overhaul at JFK J.D. Power finds growing satisfaction with hotels BA has sale on transatlantic Club World fares FAA/SECURITY TSA could lose airport screeners due to budget cuts The Transportation Security Agency said last week that travelers could face longer security lines later this year, depending on what Congress does with the TSA budget for screeners. Acting TSA deputy administrator Thomas Blank told a House subcommittee last week that the Senate is considering a budget bill that would mean the elimination of 6,000 airport security screeners; TSA currently has a screener staff of 45,000. The House has passed legislation that would result in 2,000 screener job cuts. Airport officials at the hearing said that any significant reduction in screener numbers will mean very long lines for travelers, and that waits of more than 10 minutes could become commonplace. Perhaps Congress is relying on the continued deployment of new - and old - technology to take up the slack. The new: Newark and Palm Beach airports are the latest to get explosives trace detection machines; the old: TSA just graduated a class of 10 new canine explosives detection teams (i.e., bomb-sniffing dogs and their handlers). They'll be assigned to airport duty in San Francisco, Miami, Boston, LAX, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Nashville, El Paso, Tampa and Washington D.C. FAA chief warns of growing delays this summer According to USA Today, Federal Aviation Administrator Marion Blakely said last week that flight delays during July were running 31 percent greater than for the same month last year, in part because of Hurricane Dennis and other bad weather. She said the FAA counted a record 3,657 delays on July 13 - breaking the old mark of 3,471 set in June of 2001. An increase in the numbers of flights and passengers this year is contributing to the problem, she told the newspaper, since weather problems lead to longer back-ups of airplane traffic at major hubs. And when flights are cancelled, she added, airlines are having serious problems accommodating affected passengers because other flights are solidly booked, with no room for extra travelers. AIRLINES Delta adopts new cancellation policy Delta Air Lines said last week it has initiated a new policy on penalty-free cancellation of tickets. Specifically, Delta said that passengers who buy their tickets at Delta.com, Flysong.com, or other direct Delta ticketing locations, will have 24 hours to cancel those tickets without a penalty if they find a lower fare somewhere else, or if they have a change in their travel plans. If they do cancel within that time frame, they'll get a full refund, Delta said. The policy is valid for flights originating in the U.S., U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Canada. The cancellation request has to be made by midnight of the day after the ticket was purchased, or midnight of the departure date of the first flight, whichever comes first. Otherwise, normal fare rules apply. United flight attendants getting restless Flight attendants at United Airlines last week gave notice they are not about to take the loss of their pension plan lying down. The flight attendants' union has been saying for weeks that it retains the right to take action, since in its view United has violated its contract with the union. Last week, union members staged coordinated airport protest marches in several cities across North America, Europe and Asia. In Hong Kong, according to press reports, some three dozen flight attendants staged a wildcat walkout, but United said its flight schedules were not affected. The union has threatened to hold "CHAOS" job actions - Create Havoc Around Our System - a tactic that involves striking only selected flights or cities, but without advance notice. Bankruptcy fears renewed for Delta The Associated Press got hold of a Delta Air Lines memo from CEO Gerald Grinstein to employees last week in which the chief executive warned that the company's cost-cutting plan is not doing enough to save the troubled carrier, and that a Chapter 11 filing remains a possibility - although the company will try to avoid it. Grinstein told workers that rising fuel costs are a large part of the problem. He conceded that some other legacy airlines have returned to profitability, but said Delta's dilemma is "in large part a matter of timing and competitive market challenges unique to Delta." The company last week reported a loss of $388 million for the April-June quarter, giving it a total deficit over the past four and a half years of almost $10 billion. AIRPORTS American dedicates first phase of terminal overhaul at JFK American Airlines brought state and local dignitaries to JFK Airport last week for the dedication of Phase 1 of the airline's $1.1 billion terminal reconstruction project. Operations at the rebuilt facility will start August 24. The first phase includes a huge new lobby with 65-foot ceilings and 67 ticketing stations. A 250-foot underground tunnel with moving walkways and escalators links the new lobby to Concourse C, and the terminal has a new automated baggage handling facility with four carousels. There's also a new Admirals Club that can accommodate 185 people. American said that after its August 24 debut, the new facility will handle the domestic flights that now go out of American's Terminal 9, which will close for Phase 2 construction. After Labor Day, American's international flights to Tokyo, Brussels, Aruba and Bermuda will operate out of the new facility, followed by Dominican Republic flights later in the year. International arrivals won't come into the new terminal for 16-18 months, until a new federal inspection facility is finished. HOTELS J.D. Power finds growing satisfaction with hotels Based on 37,471 responses to its annual study of hotel guest satisfaction, J.D. Power and Associates said last week that customers' overall happiness with the guest experience is improving considerably as hotels add more comforts and amenities. Since the post-9/11 slump, the company said, many hotels have benefited from new investments in guest amenities and services. How much they benefit in terms of satisfied guests, the firm added, depended on what they spent the money on. "Brands that improve on offerings in the tried-and-true comforts of home that make for a convenient in-room experience tend to receive considerable boosts in customer satisfaction scores," J.D. Power said. The most important additions, it added, were free breakfasts, in-room refrigerators and coffee makers, pillow-top mattresses and high-speed Internet access. Ranking number one in their respective categories for most satisfied guests were Four Seasons (luxury), Omni Hotels (upscale), Hilton Garden Inn (mid-scale full-service), Hampton Inn & Suites (mid-scale limited service), Microtel (economy/budget) and Homewood Suites by Hilton (extended stay). AIR ROUTES DALLAS/FT. WORTH (DFW). American Eagle on August 1 will add a second daily roundtrip between DFW and Quad Cities Airport in Moline, Ill.; and will inaugurate regional jet service between DFW and Syracuse, N.Y., and between DFW and Rochester, N.Y. with one daily roundtrip in each market. LAS VEGAS (LAS). AirTran slated an August 4 start for new non-stops between Las Vegas-Akron/Canton and Las Vegas-Flint, Mich., with five flights a week in each market; AirTran will also add a fourth daily LAS-Atlanta roundtrip. LOS ANGELES (LAX). On August 1, Midwest Airlines adds a third daily roundtrip between Kansas City and Los Angeles. Alaska Airlines plans a May 2 start for new daily non-stop service between LAX and Mexico City, with a second to be added shortly thereafter. They'll originate in Seattle and Portland respectively. MIAMI (MIA). American Eagle will use 44-seat regional jets to launch one daily Miami-Dayton roundtrip and one daily flight between Miami and Piedmont Triad Airport in Greensboro, N.C., starting August 1. MILWAUKEE (MKE). Midwest Airlines will increase frequency on its Milwaukee-Newark route from three daily weekday roundtrips to four, and on the MKE-Minneapolis/St. Paul route from four a day to five, effective August 1. THIS WEEK'S DEALS AND SPECIALS FOR BUSINESS TRAVELERS BA has sale on transatlantic Club World fares British Airways has a summer sale on Club World (business class) travel to London and beyond, but tickets must be purchased by midnight Friday, August 5. The fares require a 14-day advance booking and a Saturday night stay. For details, go to www.ba.com/cluboffer. Fares are good for travel August 12 through September 7. Roundtrip fares are $2,911 from New York, Newark, Boston, Baltimore, Washington or Philadelphia; $3,117 from Midwestern and southern gateways; $3,591 from Denver, Phoenix or Seattle; and $4,088 from LAX or San Francisco. There's a $300 add-on for Club World travel beyond London to 45 European cities, and an extra $145 or so for taxes, fees and such. Meanwhile, BA has also come out with fall sale packages to London that are intended for tourists, but could be useful for business travelers on a budget. Prices are good for eastbound travel September 1-October 26, with a purchase deadline of September 16 and a final travel date of November 18. Packages include roundtrip air and a minimum of three nights in a hotel, with 10 to choose from in central London. Prices start at $567 from JFK or Newark, $693 from Chicago, $714 from the west coast - plus about $130 in taxes and fees. For information, call British Airways Holidays at 877-428-2228. August 10 is the ticketing deadline for sale fares from Delta Air Lines (www.delta.com) to Latin America, the Caribbean and Bermuda. The fares are good for trips August 18-December 12, with a minimum stay of two nights. Sample roundtrip fares, not including the usual heavy dose of government and airport taxes and fees, include $358 between Atlanta and San Juan; $418 between DFW and San Jose, Costa Rica; $498 between New York and Caracas; $538 between San Francisco and Guatemala City. For links to other websites where you can search for bargains, click here: www.executivetravelonline.com/reference/deals.html For in-depth analysis, news, features and opinions about the current business travel scene, check out Joe Sent Me (www.joesentme.com), produced by veteran traveler advocate/journalist Joe Brancatelli and a team of contributors. By Jim Glab To sign up for the e-Alert, click here.