EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT 01/03/06 Welcome to EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT for the week of January 3, the weekly e-mail of essential business travel news! To sign up for the e-Alert, click here. Independence Air will stop flying this week Delta's pilots ratify temporary wage reduction pact AirTran to invade two more high-volume Chicago markets SkyTeam alliance may not get antitrust immunity from U.S. LAN to deploy new business class American expands interline e-ticketing Delta gives up 16 gates at Orlando International Phoenix adds wireless Internet, new rental car center Hilton, Hilton International to merge; Denver gets a new Hyatt Reader Question of the Week: The Transportation Security Administration recently changed the rules so travelers once again can carry scissors and small tools on board; inspectors instead will focus more on explosives detection. What's your opinion of TSA's security procedures - effective, misguided, or somewhere in between? Send your reply to skyguide@aexp.com. AIRLINES Independence Air will stop flying this week Independence Air said Monday (January 2) that it will discontinue flight operations at 7 p.m. Thursday (January 5). The airline's parent company, FLYi Inc., has been desperately seeking a buyer or outside investor for weeks now as its only hope to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. However, "to date there has not been a firm offer put forward that meets the financial criteria necessary to continue operations as is," said CEO Kerry Skeen. "Therefore we are voluntarily discontinuing service as of Thursday evening." The company said it will ask the bankruptcy court for permission to automatically refund customers with reservations for flights scheduled to depart after Thursday evening. According to published reports, Mesa Air and United Airlines had expressed some interest in Independence Air's assets or operations - but apparently not enough. Independence Air started flying in 2004 as an independent low-cost carrier based at Washington Dulles after operating for years as a regional feeder carrier, Atlantic Coast Airlines, for United's Dulles hub. Federal rules require other airlines to carry stranded passengers of a bankrupt airline on a standby basis for a $50 one-way administrative fee. US Airways said it will offer that option to Independence Air passengers through March 6, and will also offer a confirmed-space special fare of $100 each way for travel through January 31. Delta's pilots ratify temporary wage reduction pact Pilots at Delta Air Lines, who had been threatening to walk off the job if the company and its bankruptcy court imposed big unilateral wage cuts on them, have voted to approve an interim agreement that will reduce their wages for now as negotiators for both sides keep working on a longer-term contract. The temporary pact will slash pilots' hourly wages by 14 percent, and would save the airline $143 million on an annualized basis, Delta said. The strike threat has not been entirely put to rest; the new date to watch is March 1. That's the deadline set by Delta and the pilots' union to come to terms on a new, long-term wage reduction agreement, with pilot ratification of that deal - assuming it is reached - by March 22, 2006. AirTran to invade two more high-volume Chicago markets AirTran Airways, which last month started flying the Chicago Midway-Minneapolis/St. Paul and Chicago Midway-Boston routes that were dropped by ATA Airlines, will do the same soon on ATA's defunct Chicago Midway-Newark route. AirTran will also move into a route that ATA is still flying: Chicago Midway-Dallas/Ft. Worth, which was recently designated as its newest code-share market with Southwest Airlines. AirTran said it will begin MDW-Newark service on March 8, with three flights a day; and MDW-DFW service on May 9, also with three daily roundtrips. AirTran said it will boost schedules at Midway on February 15 by adding one more daily frequency to Atlanta, one to Orlando and one to Sarasota/Bradenton; and will tack on another daily MDW-MSP roundtrip on March 8. By mid-May, AirTran said, its Chicago Midway operations will include 28 daily departures to seven destinations. INTERNATIONAL SkyTeam alliance may not get antitrust immunity from U.S. The U.S. Department of Transportation has tentatively turned down a request for antitrust immunity filed by the SkyTeam global alliance, which includes Delta, Northwest, Continental, Air France/KLM and other carriers. DOT did agree to grant broad code-sharing authority to six of the alliance's members, however, including Delta, Northwest, Air France, KLM, Alitalia and Czech Airlines. "While DOT is not proposing to grant immunity, code-sharing would allow the carriers to achieve most of the benefits they are seeking, such as being able to provide new and more convenient service," DOT said. The Justice Department had opposed the application for immunity, saying the airlines had failed to show that it would provide "significant public benefits." The application essentially sought to combine earlier grants of antitrust immunity to KLM/Northwest and to original SkyTeam members Delta, Air France, Alitalia and Czech Airlines. Northwest said DOT's decision is inconsistent with its earlier awarding of antitrust immunity to other global alliances, and added that it "does not help Northwest's efforts to emerge from bankruptcy." A Delta spokesman called the decision "a step backwards in terms of U.S. efforts to liberalize the international aviation marketplace." LAN to deploy new business class Latin American carrier LAN Airlines said it will roll out a new "Premium Business" service starting in March 2006 on long-haul routes between North and South America. Within two years, the new cabins will be on all its 767-300s, LAN said. The Premium Business Class seats will recline to a fully-flat 180 degrees, and seat pitch will be increased by one-third to 74 inches. Individual video screens will grow to 15.4 inches, and new in-flight audio, video and interactive gaming programs will be introduced. American expands interline e-ticketing American Airlines has implemented interline electronic ticketing capability with two more international carriers - Korean Air and Turkish Airlines - bringing its total number of such partnerships to 32. The change means that passengers can now have a single e-ticket issued for travel involving connections between American and either one of the two foreign airlines. AIRPORTS Delta gives up 16 gates at Orlando International Delta Air Lines, currently operating in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, said that on January 18, it will shut down 16 of the 24 gates it occupies at Orlando International Airport. However, the airline said it does not plan to reduce its current daily schedule of 115 Delta, Song and Comair flights a day at Orlando; indeed, it may actually increase schedules there. Delta handles almost one-fourth of Orlando's passenger traffic. Phoenix adds wireless Internet, new rental car center Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport has started to offer free wireless Internet access throughout the facility. The service is available on both sides of the security checkpoints, in retail concession areas, and at aircraft gate areas. "If a passenger's laptop computer or wireless electronic device is configured to operate in a wireless mode, it will automatically connect to the Internet when powered up near the shops and gates at Sky Harbor," a spokesman said. Meanwhile, the airport's new $270 million rental car center is expected to open this month. All the car rental businesses at PHX will be consolidated into the facility, which includes a large customer service center and a three-level garage. The opening of the new rental center will open up space for another 1,600 parking spaces in the airport's existing terminal garages. HOTELS Hilton, Hilton International to merge; Denver gets a new Hyatt Beverly Hills-based Hilton Hotels Corp. has agreed to acquire the lodging business of the U.K.'s Hilton Group (also known as Hilton International) for $5.7 billion, creating what it said would be the world's largest hotel company, with 2,800 properties in 80 countries. Officials said the merger would allow Hilton to grow its brand more quickly around the world. The deal shouldn't have much impact on Hilton HHonors members, since the Hilton Group hotels were already a part of that program, which is jointly owned and operated by the two companies ... It should be easier to find a hotel room in Denver now; the recent opening of the 1,100-room Hyatt Regency Denver at the Colorado Convention Center has increased the city's downtown room supply by 20 percent. AIR ROUTES ATLANTA (ATL). Delta Air Lines has added three more daily roundtrips between Atlanta and New Orleans, bringing its schedule back to pre-Katrina levels of 10 a day. On January 5, Delta Connection/Atlantic Southeast Airlines will add a sixth daily flight between Atlanta and Mobile. DENVER (DEN). January 3 is the launch date for Southwest Airlines' entry into the Denver market. Southwest kicks off service at DEN with four daily non-stops to Chicago Midway, five to Las Vegas and four to Phoenix. DETROIT (DTW). Effective January 3, Northwest Airlink will end its daily regional jet service between Detroit and Rockford, Ill. NEW YORK LAGUARDIA (LGA). American Eagle on January 9 will begin new non-stop regional jet service between LaGuardia and Madison, Wis., with one daily flight six days a week. WASHINGTON REAGAN NATIONAL (DCA). Delta Connection/Comair set a January 3 start-up for non-stop regional jet service between Washington National and Melbourne, Fla., with one daily roundtrip; Delta said the flight replaces its discontinued Washington Dulles-Melbourne service. DEALS AND SPECIALS FOR BUSINESS TRAVELERS From now through March 31, members of the Marriott Rewards program can redeem points for stays of two to seven nights at the Marriott ExecuStay apartment suites in Manhattan's Chelsea district. Suites have a full kitchen, separate sitting area, high-speed Internet and concierge service. Rates range from 65,000 points for two nights to 150,000 for seven. Call 800-MARRIOTT to book. Malaysia Airlines is offering U.S. travelers a special economy (Q class) fare of $699 roundtrip for travel from Los Angeles or Newark to Bangkok or Phuket, Thailand. Tickets must be bought online by January 31, for travel between January 9 and May 31. Taxes and fees of $165 are extra. There's no minimum stay requirement. To book, go to: www.malaysiaairlinesusa.com/mys/eng/destinations/packages_promotions/BKK-HKT.html Delta Air Lines is offering double miles to SkyMiles members who fly to five European cities from Cincinnati now through March 31. The double miles offer applies for travel originating in or connecting through Cincinnati to London Gatwick, Paris CDG, Rome, Amsterdam and Frankfurt. Members must enroll for the offer at www.delta.com/europedoublemiles 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. MEETINGS: A survey by trade magazine Meeting News finds meeting planners hope to fight higher hotel rates in 2006 by booking more low-season conferences, using less-expensive destinations, and keeping their gatherings shorter. If you get involved in meeting planning at your company, don't miss the March issue of Executive Travel magazine for advice on site selection, event scheduling and speaker selection. By Jim Glab Have a question or comment? Send it to skyguide@aexp.com. To sign up for the e-Alert, click here.