EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT 02/27/06 Welcome to EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT for the week of February 27, the weekly e-mail of essential business travel news! To sign up for the e-Alert, click here. Venezuela to curtail service by U.S. carriers Hyatt plans to offer Registered Traveler memberships Alaska inspects its entire fleet after pressurization incidents Northwest gets more time to negotiate with unions Southwest eyes more gates for expansion at Denver American, Southwest kick off Love Field competition THIS WEEK'S QUESTION FOR READERS: Alaska Airlines planes had some incidents of pressurization problems recently (see below). What's the scariest thing that you ever experienced while you were in-flight? Send your reply to skyguide@aexp.com. AIRLINES Northwest gets more time to negotiate with unions The bankruptcy court overseeing Northwest Airlines operations has given the airline a few more days to come to terms with pilots and flight attendants over new contracts. This was the second delay from the court, which had been expected to rule Friday (February 24) on management's request to terminate its existing union contracts so it can impose new wages and work rules unilaterally. If that happens, the pilots and flight attendants have threatened to walk off the job, an action that could prove fatal to the carrier's continued existence. The court has now given the airline and the unions until the close of business on Wednesday (March 1) to reach new agreements. Meanwhile, Mesaba Airlines - a Northwest Airlink partner that is also in Chapter 11 - is pursuing a parallel path in its own bankruptcy court. Mesaba has asked the judge to let it terminate existing labor contracts, and its pilots are also threatening to strike if that happens. The court is expected to rule on Mesaba's request before the end of March. Southwest eyes more gates for expansion at Denver The Denver Post reported last week that Southwest Airlines expects to increase the number of gates it uses at Denver International Airport from two to four by June, giving it the capacity to boost daily flight operations there to as many as 40 a day. Southwest currently operates 13 flights a day from Denver to Phoenix, Las Vegas and Chicago Midway, with some Saturday service to Oakland and San Diego. On March 4 (see below), the low-cost carrier plans to add non-stop service from Denver to Salt Lake City and to Baltimore/Washington International Airport. The Southwest gates at DEN will all be close together on the C concourse. FAA/SECURITY Venezuela to curtail service by U.S. carriers Although details were sketchy and subject to change, news reports late last week indicated that the government of Venezuela planned to impose severe restrictions effective March 30 on flights into the country by U.S.-flag airlines, including Delta, Continental and American. The reason for the restrictions seems to have something to do with the U.S. having restricted service into this country by Venezuelan carriers in 1996 over safety concerns, and refusing a recent request by Venezuela to lift those restrictions. Needless to say, relations between the Bush administration and Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez have not been friendly, and this step could only make them worse as the U.S. is likely to retaliate in some way. The Venezuelan imposition of flight restrictions on U.S. carriers was initially supposed to start March 1, but it was pushed back to March 30 after the carriers objected. Venezuela reportedly plans to bar all flights into the country by Continental and Delta, and to cut back 70 percent of American's service. American flies into Venezuela from Miami, San Juan, New York and Dallas/Ft. Worth, while Continental has flights from Newark and Houston, and Delta from Atlanta. Hyatt plans to offer Registered Traveler memberships As the Transportation Security Administration moves ahead with plans to offer a "Registered Traveler" program at major airports nationwide by June, Hyatt Hotels plans to team up with one potential vendor to offer enrollment in the program through its hotels. Hyatt said last week it has formed a partnership with Verified Identity Pass, Inc. - which currently operates the Registered Traveler pilot program at Orlando International - to offer free participation in the firm's program, called Clear, as a special perk for Diamond-tier members of its Gold Passport frequent-stay plan. "In addition, Hyatt plans to make the Clear membership available to other Hyatt guests through exclusive promotional offers later this year," a spokesman said. As the program gets going, the company said, Hyatt and Verified ID expect to set up enrollment stations in Hyatt properties as a convenience for guests. "We want our Gold Passport members to be the first to enjoy this improved experience as it becomes available," said Hyatt senior VP Thomas O'Toole. The membership fee for the existing Registered Traveler program at Orlando is $79.95. Alaska inspects its entire fleet after pressurization incidents Alaska Airlines said it is conducting inspections of all 110 of its aircraft in the wake of several recent incidents related to cabin pressurization. The company said it doesn't expect the maintenance checks to disturb its flight schedules. According to press reports, there have been at least five incidents in the past two weeks when warning signals went off in Alaska's planes in-flight, indicating problems with cabin pressure. In one incident, oxygen masks were automatically deployed; in several cases, the aircraft landed prematurely or returned to their departure airports. In December, an Alaska MD-83 depressurized in-flight after an accident on the ground left it with a 12-inch-long hole in its fuselage before takeoff. AIR ROUTES American, Southwest kick off Love Field competition DALLAS LOVE FIELD (DAL). March 2 is the day when the war starts - the war between Southwest and American Airlines at Love Field, that is. Now that Southwest succeeded in expanding the range of service from Love to include Missouri, American is moving in and will start flying two-class MD80s from DAL March 2, with four flights a day to St. Louis and three to Kansas City, while American Eagle will offer four regional jet flights a day from Love to San Antonio and five from Love to Austin. Both American and Southwest are trying to lure passengers at Love Field with a variety of sale fares and frequent flyer program bonuses. CHICAGO MIDWAY (MDW). March 8 is the launch date for AirTran Airways' new non-stop service between Midway and Newark Liberty International Airport, operating three times a day. CHICAGO O'HARE (ORD). United Airlines will add Puerto Vallarta to its O'Hare route map on March 4, when it begins a weekly (Saturday) A320 roundtrip to the Mexican resort destination, with plans to increase to daily frequencies in December 2006. DENVER (DEN). On March 1, United Express will launch twice-daily regional jet service between Denver and Rockford, Ill. Effective March 4, Southwest Airlines will beef up its new Denver presence by adding four daily non-stops to Salt Lake City and one a day to Baltimore/Washington International. LAS VEGAS (LAS). America West will begin daily non-stop service March 1 between Las Vegas and Maui. LOS ANGELES (LAX). Delta will use a 737-800 for a new daily non-stop service between Los Angeles and Columbus, Ohio, starting March 1. United Airlines on March 4 will kick off new weekly (Saturday) service from LAX to Cancun, Mexico; on June 8 it will boost the service to daily frequencies and will switch it to its Ted affiliate. PHOENIX (PHX). America West will offer more options to Hawaii starting March 1, when it begins a second daily Phoenix-Honolulu flight and four flights a week between PHX and Lihue, Kauai; on March 2, the airline adds new service to Kona on the Big Island with three flights a week. SALT LAKE CITY (SLC). Effective March 6, Delta Connection/SkyWest Airlines will begin three daily roundtrips between Salt Lake City and Long Beach, Calif., using regional jets. SAN ANTONIO (SAT). United Express/Trans States Airlines, which last week started new service between San Antonio and new Orleans, will kick off a big expansion of service at the Texas city March 3, adding new non-stop flights once a day to Colorado Springs, Omaha and Kansas City; and twice a day to Albuquerque, Oklahoma City and Tulsa. TAMPA (TPA). Spirit Airlines on March 5 begins twice-weekly service between Tampa and Cancun, increasing to five days a week May 1. DEALS AND SPECIALS FOR BUSINESS TRAVELERS AeroMexico (800-237-6639; www.aeromexico.com/usa) is offering seats between the U.S. and Mexico in its front-cabin Clase Premier at bargain rates from now through December 10. Sample one-way fares are $399 from Houston to Mexico City, Phoenix to Guadalajara, San Diego to Loreto; $449 from Phoenix to Mexico City; $499 from Atlanta or Chicago to Mexico City, Chicago to Durango, or LAX to Mexico City; $599 from Boston, Miami or San Diego to Mexico City. Fares are non-refundable, require a $200 change fee and must be purchased at the time of booking, at least three days in advance of departure. Delta will allow Platinum Medallion SkyMiles members to redeem miles for all kinds of merchandise, starting in March when the new Medallion Marketplace opens up on www.delta.com. Platinum members who log on at www.delta.com/medallionmarketplace with their SkyMiles number and PIN will be able to trade miles for electronics, home and garden items, outdoor equipment, hotel stays and gift cards. Need a car in Europe this year? If you book by March 31 with Avis at www.avis.com/europe and use Avis Worldwide Discount (AWD) number 0374700, you'll get an extra 10 percent off the company's already-low Internet rental rates. The offer is good for cars picked up before January 1, 2007 in the U.K., Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain or Switzerland. 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. NEVER TOO OLD TO LEARN. You don't want to take golf or tennis lessons at home, where your friends might see you? Then do it when you're away on business; see details in the March issue of Executive Travel. By Jim Glab Have a question or comment? Send it to skyguide@aexp.com. To sign up for the e-Alert, click here.