EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT 03/20/06 Welcome to EXECUTIVE TRAVEL SKYGUIDE E-ALERT for the week of March 20, the weekly e-mail of essential business travel news! To sign up for the e-Alert, click here. Northwest tests extra charge for aisle, exit row seats JetBlue is coming to Pittsburgh in June United will upgrade international first, business class Air fares rise again, led by Southwest this time Alaska speeds up fleet renewal with new 737-800s NBC: Screeners at 21 airports couldn't detect bomb materials Oneworld carriers agree on consolidation at London Heathrow Avis, Budget will offer electronic toll payment systems THIS WEEK'S QUESTION FOR READERS: Northwest wants a few extra bucks for guaranteed last-minute access to aisle or exit row seats (see below). Is it worth $15 to you to book one of those seats 24 hours before departure? Send your reply to skyguide@aexp.com. Last week, we asked if the availability of lie-flat seats in international business class affected your choice of airlines. Responding readers were unanimous in saying that it does. "Lie-down seats are a real plus," said one. "Why go on an older style seat when one can choose British Airways or one of the Asian airlines with a flat bed?" asked reader Martha Blaxall. Reader Lanny Harer recently flew from the U.S. to Dubai and Baku, back home and off to Singapore. "Only on one leg did I use a (U.S.) carrier not only because of the seats but also the service," he said. (See United story below.) AIRLINES Northwest tests extra charge for aisle, exit row seats Northwest Airlines last week took the industry's latest step toward "unbundled" pricing by starting to charge extra for the chance to reserve a last-minute aisle or exit row seat on domestic flights. The policy will only apply to 10 or fewer seats per departure; the rest will still be pre-assigned at no cost. But business travelers who haven't secured an advance seat assignment of their choice will be able to book an aisle or exit row space for $15, in addition to their regular air fare. WorldPerks Elite members will be able to book the held-back preferred ("Coach Choice") seats up to 36 hours before departure; non-elites will get first crack at any remaining seats 24 hours before flight time. The policy won't apply if a flight is fully booked, and Northwest will still set aside a block of preferred seats exclusively for WorldPerks elite members to reserve farther in advance, as it did before. United last year started giving non-elite members of Mileage Plus the chance to secure a seat in its Economy Plus area for $25 or more per segment, but that provides them with more legroom than the rest of coach. The Northwest Coach Choice seats don't provide that extra pitch. Northwest's move had pundits wondering what will come next, now that most airlines are charging extra for in-flight food service that used to be free, and for curbside baggage check-in at certain airports. The speculation is that regular checked luggage could be the next free service to incur a fee - and perhaps even carry-on bags, to deter passengers from trying to carry on everything if checked bags incur a charge. JetBlue is coming to Pittsburgh in June JetBlue Airways unveiled its latest expansion plans last week, including the addition of two new cities to its route network: Pittsburgh and Jacksonville. Using its new 100-seat Embraer 190 jets, the airline will break into the Pittsburgh market on June 30, with four daily roundtrips to its base at New York JFK and two flights a day to Boston Logan. On June 15, JetBlue will begin service to Jacksonville from New York JFK, operating three daily A320 non-stops. JetBlue also said it will kick off Boston-Buffalo service June 30, with three daily Embraer 190 flights. United will upgrade international first, business class Now that United Airlines has emerged from bankruptcy with fresh financing, it has said that it will spend some money improving the passenger experience. And last week the company announced its first step in that direction: a $165 million order with seat manufacturer B/E Aerospace that will overhaul the first class and business class cabins on its international aircraft. While the obvious trend in trans-oceanic premium cabins is to install lie-flat (or almost flat) seats, United strangely did not say if it will do this. In fact, the airline gave no details at all about the front-cabin overhauls, except to say the new products will "meet the needs of our global travelers in a way that is distinctly United." A B/E Aerospace executive correctly noted that "until now, the market for premium class retrofit activity has been driven by airlines in the Pacific Rim, Middle East and Europe," and he said the new order will represent United's "competitive response." The new cabins are expected to start appearing in 2007, and the whole fleet will take two to three years to complete. Air fares rise again, led by Southwest this time For four years, low-cost leader Southwest Airlines managed to abide by a promise to passengers that one-way fares on the carrier wouldn't exceed a cap of $299. This drove competing carriers nuts, since they were being hit with massive fuel price hikes that Southwest largely managed to avoid for a long time, thanks to hedges on its own fuel purchases. But those locked-in fuel prices are expiring, and last week even Southwest had to bow to the new economic reality, raising its fares by $2 to $10 one-way, depending on the market. United, American, Continental, Delta, Northwest and US Airways breathed a sigh of relief and quickly matched Southwest's higher fares. Alaska speeds up fleet renewal with new 737-800s Alaska Airlines said last week it will speed up delivery of the new Boeing aircraft it has on order, and will also accelerate the retirement of its MD-80s, giving Alaska an all-737 fleet by the end of 2008. The airline currently has 26 MD-80s in its fleet. Under the new delivery schedule, it expects to receive 39 737-800s between 2006 and 2008. When the transition is complete, Alaska said, it will have 114 planes in its fleet (vs. the current 110), but its total available seat miles will grow by 18 percent. The switch to a single aircraft type and the use of the more fuel-efficient new 737s should save the airline $115 a year in fuel and operating costs, Alaska said. ADVERTISEMENT MIDWEST AIRLINES More Frequency to ATL, LGA and PHL Starting April 2, Midwest Airlines will increase service on three key routes. The MKE-ATL route will offer 3 roundtrips each weekday. The MKE-LGA route will offer 5 roundtrips each weekday. And the MKE-PHL route will increase to 4 roundtrips each weekday. These Signature Service flights feature new Boeing 717s, two-across wide leather seats, extra legroom, and adjustable headrests and footrests. Book the lowest fares at http://www.midwestairlines.com. FAA/SECURITY NBC: Screeners at 21 airports couldn't detect bomb materials NBC News said it learned from federal sources that secret tests by the Government Accountability Office to sneak bomb-making materials onto commercial aircraft were completely successful. Successful, that is, from a suicide bomber's point of view. The investigators reportedly were able to smuggle the materials through security screening at all 21 airports that were tested. NBC said the materials for homemade bombs were readily available from public sources or over the Internet. The Transportation Security Administration criticized the GAO tests, saying it was "highly implausible" that a variety of "random items commonly found under a kitchen sink" could be combined to make an effective explosive device. AIRPORTS Oneworld carriers agree on consolidation at London Heathrow Officials of London's Heathrow Airport said they have reached an agreement with the airlines in the Oneworld global alliance to consolidate the carriers' LHR operations after the facility's long-awaited Terminal 5 opens in March 2008. Oneworld members operating at Heathrow include British Airways, American, Qantas, Cathay Pacific, Iberia, Finnair and Aer Lingus; pending members include Japan Airlines, Malev and Royal Jordanian. Under terms of the agreement, the new Terminal 5 will belong exclusively to British Airways, while other alliance members will all move into Terminal 3, the one closest to the new facility. American, Cathay, Japan Airlines and Royal Jordanian are already in Terminal 3. Aer Lingus and Finnair currently use Terminal 1, while Iberia and Malev are in Terminal 2 and Qantas in Terminal 4. The airport authority said Terminal 3 will undergo a multi-million dollar modernization over the next several years. CAR RENTALS Avis, Budget will offer electronic toll payment systems Cendant Car Rental Group, the parent of Avis and Budget, plans to start offering customers in some regions of the U.S. the chance to rent a vehicle with new technology that will allow them to use electronic toll collection gates on major highways. Starting in April, persons who rent from Budget or Avis in the metro New York area, including northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut, will be able to get a car equipped with E-Z Pass. In Houston, renters will be offered vehicles with PlatePass, the Texas equivalent of E-Z Pass. Cars thus equipped will no longer have to stop at the cash-only lanes on tollways and bridges. The company will charge users an extra $1.50 a day in the northeast, or $2 a day in Texas, in addition to regular rental charges - plus toll charges incurred during their rental. AIR ROUTES CHICAGO O'HARE (ORRD). Effective March 26, Japan Airlines will increase frequencies on its O'Hare-Tokyo Narita route from 10 flights a week to 14, offering twice-daily departures LOS ANGELES (LAX). March 22 is the launch date for LAN Peru's new direct service between LAX and Sao Paulo, Brazil, operating via Lima four times a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday). NEW YORK KENNEDY (JFK). Starting March 26, Swiss will add a second daily flight between JFK and Zurich. DEALS AND SPECIALS FOR BUSINESS TRAVELERS Northeast corridor travelers who like to ride the rails can earn a voucher for a free roundtrip ticket on Amtrak's Acela Express or Metroliner trains between select city pairs for each two paid roundtrips (or four one-way tickets) on those trains from now through June 17. You have to be a member of Amtrak's Guest Rewards program, and you have to register for the offer at www.amtrak.com or by calling 800-307-5000, selecting Option 2 and using promotion code 31306. American Airlines said it will provide a selection of special bonus awards next year to AAdvantage Executive Platinum, Platinum and Gold members who meet certain miles/points goals during 2006. The special awards, which will not incur any mileage cost, include systemwide upgrades, Admirals Club passes and the chance to give AAdvantage Gold status to a friend or family member. There's no advance registration required, but AAdvantage members must be enrolled in the program's e-mail account summary service so they can be notified in January 2007 as to what they qualify for. Go the "My Account" on www.aa.com and click on "E-mail Subscriptions." A listing of possible rewards is at www.aa.com/eliterewards. 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. How can you go from being a corporate drone to a successful entrepreneur? Read the experiences of seven survivors of the business wars in the April issue of Executive Travel and learn their secrets. By Jim Glab Have a question or comment? Send it to skyguide@aexp.com. To sign up for the e-Alert, click here.