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Government, Industry Scramble for Solution to Air Delays
Debate continues over solutions to air delays that start in the northeast and spread across the country. Authorities zeroed in on John F. Kennedy International, with the Department of Transportation releasing its target figures for the number of daily flights that can be handled at JFK.

The target is 80 flights per hour between 6 a.m. and 9:59 p.m. daily, upping that to 81 per hour between 3 p.m. and 7:59 p.m. Mary Peters, Secretary of Transportation, said that the department is also developing a series of market-based measures to reduce congestion at New York’s three airports before the start of the 2008 summer travel season.

These include using congestion pricing to preserve passenger choice while reducing delays. Pressure is mounting to solve the problem; the Federal Aviation Administration gave JFK its rarely used worst congestion rating.

That designation means that flight schedules will be reduced in spring and summer whether or not the airlines agree to those reductions. It also formally extends FAA authority to cut schedules of overseas carriers at JFK, if necessary. Meanwhile, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has also entered the fray. It criticized the proposed flight limits, saying such limits would limit growth without solving the congestion problems. Anthony Coscia, chairman of the Port Authority, called the cutting flights “potentially a recipe for worsening the problem by pushing growing passenger demand to other airports.

” The Port Authority proposed expanding capacity, improving efficiency, maintaining safety, and allowing the region’s airports to meet current and future passenger demand. (Source: Dept. of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Port Authority of New Jersey press releases).

DOT Reports Airfares Down
Average airfares in the second quarter of 2007 were down 4.5 percent from the second quarter of 2006 and remained below the pre-9/11 high, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).

BTS reported that the average domestic itinerary fare in the second quarter of 2007 was $326, down 4.5 percent from the average fare in the second quarter of 2006, the post-2001 high, and down 5.8 percent from the historic second-quarter high of $346 in 2000. (Source: DOT press release).

American Starts Flights to Stansted
American Airlines now has daily service out of John F. Kennedy International to London Stansted, the only transatlantic service between New York and Stansted to offer both Business and Economy class seats. In April, it will add a second daily flight. Stansted airport is becoming increasingly popular with business travelers. It is less than an hour from central London by express rail. American is building a business lounge at the airport that is scheduled to be ready in the spring. (Source: American Airlines press release).

Delta, American Express Partner on Giveaway
Delta Air Lines is offering U.S. SkyMiles members the chance to participate in the third annual “Tickets for Life” sweepstakes and win a grand prize of 2.5 million SkyMiles and $25,000 - enough miles to redeem two domestic tickets every year for 50 years.

To enter the sweepstakes, members must enroll at delta.com/ticketsforlife, purchase a ticket at delta.com between Sept. 25 and. Dec.15, 2007, and travel before Jan. 15, 2008. Members who purchase tickets with any American Express® Card will be entered into the sweepstakes twice. (Source: Delta press release).

Aer Lingus Starts Nonstop San Francisco, Dublin Flights
Aer Lingus has begun non-stop flights between Dublin, Ireland and San Francisco International Airport. It is starting with four nonstops per week, departing Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. (Source: Aer Lingus press release).

Cash-free Flying
Increasingly, airlines are moving to credit cards in-flight. JetBlue has joined airlines such as Midwest Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, AirTran and others in going cashless in flight and accepting major credit and debit cards instead. American Airlines is also accepting credit and debit cards for onboard purchases, although it still accepts cash.

However, it is testing going completely cashless on flights out of San Francisco. Most carriers accept both cash and credit cards, with some accepting only credit cards on certain flights.

It makes it easier for business travelers to bill their in-flight meals back to the company, but also fattens airlines’ bottom line. Aloha Airlines reports that alcohol sales increased by 30 percent on cashless flights. (Source: airline press releases).

Car and Rail

Amtrak Offers T-Mobile Hotspots in Northeast Stations
Amtrak now has T-Mobile hotspot service in five key stations in its northeast corridor: Washington Union Station, Baltimore Penn Station, Wilmington Station, Philadelphia 30th Street Station and New York Penn Station. A variety of service plans are available, from one-day passes to unlimited annual access. (Source:
Amtrak press release).

Car Rental Companies Launch Carbon Offset Program
Enterprise Rent-A-Car, National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car have introduced customer carbon offset program that gives the 20 to 25 million customers who rent from them each year the chance to offset the carbon dioxide emissions generated by their rentals by paying $1.25 per rental to fund certifies offset projects that work to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. The three car rental companies will match the purchases, dollar for dollar, up to $1 million. The program will start Jan. 1.

Spot Light on
Business Travel Cost

The American Express 2008 Global Business Travel Forecast projects that business travel demand will out pace capacity in 2008, driving rate increase across air, hotel, car rental and meetings.

• Worldwide airfares expected to climb
• Hotel rates to see double digit increases in U.S., Europe and Asia
• Domestic trips including air, car and hotel, expected to increase six percent, costing an average of $1,110
• International trips expected to increase nearly seven percent for an average cost of $3,171
• Competition in some markets should help ease some airfare increases
• U.S.-E.U. Open Skies Accord, low-price airlines and efficient aircraft will also temper air increases
• Hoteliers to enjoy high demand and slow supply growth

Source: American Express

 

The 2 new American Express gift cards for travel are:

• Especially for Dining and
• Especially for the Bride & Groom.

Especially for Dining
comes with a choice of special offers from participating restaurants nationwide including California Pizza Kitchen and The Palm Restaurants. Dining gift card is available in $25 denominations.

Especially for the Bride & Groom
lets the happy couple decide how to celebrate their marriage. It comes with special offers from participating retailers and merchants nationwide including Flowers.com, Regis Salons and Shutterfly. The Bride and Groom gift card is available in $100 or $200 denominations.

Accepted at Over a Million Places Gift Cards can be used virtually everywhere in the U.S. that welcomes American Express Cards, so if they don’t feel like eating out, they can still use their Card for millions of other things.

Replaceable:
If the Card is lost or stolen, the unused balance can be refunded - replaced.

Cards Design:
The card design lets them know that you would like to treat them to a great night out.

They join the growing line-up of themed American Express line of Gift Cards which also includes the Especially for Birthdays, Especially for Teens, and Especially for Kids Gift Cards. The original gold American Express Gift Card can be personalized with the recipient’s name if purchased online.

for mor information http://www.americanexpress.com/gift/

Experts Predict 2007 Airline, Hotel, Car Rental Costs To Rise

A spate of forecasts issued by corporate travel industry consultants and travel management companies call for across-the-board supplier price increases in 2007, largely driven by corporate demand.

Though a handful of analysts predicted airfare hikes would cease for the remainder of 2006, particularly as the price of fuel slips back from record highs, most forecasts call for higher fares in 2007.

BCD Travel, for example, estimated airfares would increase 7% to 11% in 2007 from this year’s levels. This would continue an established trend: Domestic airfares have risen to their highest level since the end of 2001, with average ticket price at $247 for a one-way trip, up 13% from last year, according to American Express Business Travel Monitor, which tracks a variety of travel expense categories booked by American Express Business Travel clients.

The hotel industry has reaped the most benefits from the growth in business travel during the past few years, and 2007 does not promise an end to that trend.

Very strong demand coupled with a dearth of new full-service hotel development has allowed hoteliers to raise rates. BCD predicted 2007 daily hotel rates would average
6 percent higher than 2006 rates, with some markets rising as much as 10% to 14%.

Average negotiated corporate rate increases won’t be lower than the 5.25% rates increased this year, said Bjorn Hanson, head of the Pricewater-HouseCoopers hospitality and leisure practice, and gateway city increase could reach into double-digit percentages.

Car rental companies are facing pressure from increasing fleet costs caused by the struggling automobile industry-which is trying to improve its bottom line by de-emphasizing agreements with car rental firms – and likely will attempt to raise rates in the neighborhood of 10% from 2006 figures, said Neil Abrams, president of Purchase, N.Y.- based Abrams Consulting Group. BCD estimated car rental costs would rise 5% to 7%.

Meanwhile, in the second quarter of 2006, American Express Business Travel clients saw car rental costs rise 4 percent to $67.26, compared with the second quarter of 2005.

Hotels

No-Smoking Trend Affects European Hotels
European hotel guests prefer smoke-free hotels, according to a recent study by J.D. Power and Associates.

The study found that nearly 70 percent of hotel guests in Europe prefer a smoke free environment-and not just in their rooms.

The desire for a smoke-free environment ranges from 57 percent of guests who reside in Spain to 76 percent of guests who reside in Sweden and the United Kingdom.

In North America, 79 percent of guests want a smoke-free environment. (Source: J.D. Powers press release).

InterContinental Opens New Hotels
InterContinental is opening new hotels under two of its brand names; Staybridge Suites, an upscale, extended stay hotel brand, and Holiday Inn.

It is planning to open 100 more Staybridge Suites and has just opened a new one in Kalamazoo, Mich., and plans to open others in the state.

InterContinental has just opened another new hotel in its Holiday Inn, line, the 96-room Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Williamsburg-Historic Gateway, in Williamsburg, Va. (Source: InterContinental press release).

Cars

Avis Offers Special Pricing
Avis Rent-A- Car System is offering American Express cardholders who use their American Express car to pay for a rental from any neighborhood location up to 25 percent off daily, weekend and weekend rates.

In addition, those who rent for three days or more will receive a $25 American Express gift card. (Source: American Express press release).

American Express Global Forecast

Corporate travel costs will continue to rise, according to the latest American Express Global Business Travel Forecast.

Airfares will continue to rise worldwide, although not as fast as they did this year; hotel rates will continue to increase at the same rate as this year, and, in some markets, even faster.

Specific projections are:

• Global domestic economy fares should rise three to five percent; international business fares, three to seven percent
• Hotel rates will increase two to eight percent and as much as 18 percent in major markets such as New York
• Car rental costs will rise four to six percent in the U.S. and Canada.

Static inventory, increasing demand and volatile fuel costs are driving increases. (Source: American Express press release).

It’s a Pricier World for Airlines
The Air Transport Association of America has re-launched its quarterly Airline Cost Index. The latest version includes data through the second quarter of 2006.

It covers factors such as fuel efficiency, workplace productivity, labor costs, break-even load factors and travel agency commissions.

Year-over-year highlights show that the composite cost index was up 17.4 percent, compared to a 4.0 percent rise in the Consumer Price Index. The three largest cost components were fuel (25.5 percent), labor (23.8 percent) and transport-related expenses (14.7 percent). Some figures dropped; the average cost of employing a full-time equivalent worker dropped $248 to $72,301.

The overall unit operating cost per available seat mile rose 6.3 percent while the average break-even load factor dropped 3.4 points to 76.7 percent. (Source: ATAA press release).

JetBlue Launches Chicago Service
JetBlue Airways is introducing service to Chicago January 4, starting with five daily flights to New York’s John F. Kennedy International and two daily flights to LA/Long Beach Airport. In other parts of the country, JetBlue continues to expand its service.

In New York, it will introduce two daily flights to Florida from Newburgh’s Stewart International Airport to Fort Lauderdale and Orlando starting December 19 and it will add a daily nonstop to West Palm Beach January 5 2007. In addition, it has just launched non-stop service between Columbus, Ohio, and JFK. (Source: JetBlue press releases)

Delta Introduces Lie-Flat Seats
Delta Air Lines is installing fully horizontal sleeper seats in its international business class service.

It will introduce Contour Premium Aircraft seating early in 2008 when it takes delivery of two new Boeing 777 Long Range aircraft.

Delta joins international carriers British Airways and Virgin Atlantic in offering lie-flat seats on transatlantic routes. American Airlines is upgrading its business class seats to recline to an almost-flat 171 degrees, just a few degrees shy of the full 180-degree recline. (Source: Delta press release)

Northwest Airlines Extends Boarding Pass Faxing Service
Northwest now allow customers to print their boarding passes at international fax machines after checking in for flights over the internet.

This is in response to the fact that many business travelers have a laptop but no printer with them on the road, meaning they can’t check in online because they can’t print out a boarding pass.

In 2005, Northwest enhanced its Internet check-in service to allow customers to select either the “print boarding pass” or “fax boarding pass function after beginning online check in. “(Source, Northwest press release).

United Introduces Washington-Tokyo Service
United Airlines has introduced daily nonstop passenger service between Washington, D.C., and Tokyo, its first-ever Asia service from the nation’s capital.

This fall, United has increased its’ service out of Washington Dulles International Airport by 39 flights. (Source: United press release).

Airlines Open Interim Passenger Lounges in LAX International Terminal
First and business class passengers at Los Angeles International Airport, which is undergoing a $576 million renovation, can use interim premium class lounges in the Tom Bradley International Terminal.

The first class lounge is in the Bradley terminals’ mezzanine. The business class lounge is in a vacant ramp area opposite the terminal; passengers can use it by taking one of a continuing operating stream of buses serving the terminal.

The lounges will be in use until four new lounges open in May of 2007. (Source: Los Angeles World Airports press release).

Jacksonville-Mandarin County Chili Cook-off

This is the 12th Annual Mandarin Chili cook off and this year it will benefit:
Junior Achievement
Cooking Up Partnerships for the Next Generation.

Various items also will be up for raffle and silent auction, including two round-trip airline tickets to anywhere in the continental United States, which are donated by our Williamsburg Travel-American Express Jacksonville office.

Again this year, there will be a children’s Space Walk provided by SpaceWalk of Jacksonville, Southpaw from the Jacksonville Suns; Sweet Cheeks the clown offering face painting; live musical entertainment from Larry Mangum’s TLC Band; and, of course, lots of chili, hot dogs and soft drinks.

More than 1,000 people attended the cook-off last year.

Chili will be judged using a double blind method to ensure impartiality among contestants.

Other sponsors for the cook-off include JP Perry Insurance, Mandarin NewsLine, Nimnicht Cadillac, Stonewood Grill & Tavern, Jennifer Hayes, New Plan, Mortgage Consultant with SunTrust Mortgage and Vystar Credit Union. Secondary sponsors include Kelly Services, Medical Instrumentation Repair, Cravey Communications Inc., Robert W. Burke, CPA, Julington Creek Animal Hospital and NetBank.

Please contact our Jacksonville office for more information.