From QUINTESSENTIAL JETS

Denver airport officials say hundreds of bags were loaded onto airplanes in late December without being run through security scanners.

An airport official told KMGH-TV in Denver that the incident involved ‘‘a couple thousands of bags over a couple of days.’’ The station said it had obtained records showing that the breach started on Christmas Day and lasted for seven days.

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration said it was investigating but that it appeared the incident was an unintentional human error. It said in a statement that it had taken steps to ensure the error was corrected and that additional safeguards were put in place.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Delta and JetBlue have asked the Department of Transportation for a temporary exemption from new rule meant to protect passengers from long ground delays. Under the new rule – which is set to take effect April 29 – airlines must let passengers offer planes within three hours. If they don’t, airlines face fines of up to $27,500 per passenger. “For an average Boeing 737 with a full load of passengers, the fine could be around $3.5 million” per plane, The Associated Press writes.

Why are Delta and JetBlue asking for the temporary exemption? They are the top two carriers at New York’s JFK Airport, where a runway closure could add significant delays to an airport that already struggles with on-time operations.

“Although JetBlue has already taken several steps to minimize the impact of this closure on its JFK operations, this exemption is necessary to ensure that JetBlue is not penalized if JFK becomes gridlocked at peak operating times,” AP quotes the airline as saying in its request to DOT.

JetBlue, at least, is worried that the New York delays could spill into other markets like Los Angeles and Orlando. AP notes that “one-third of the nation’s air traffic goes in, out, or over New York airspace every day — accounting for three-quarters of all chronic airline delays, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.”

Aviation Week adds “JetBlue, however, only requested the waiver for itself. In its filing, Delta supported JetBlue’s application and asked for the waiver to be extended to Delta ‘and other similarly situated carriers.’ ”

By Aviation Week.

It seems like the new fees and surcharges by airlines keep growing and growing. First, they started charging for food. Baggage soon followed. Then, they started having “premium” seats in coach. The latest way for airlines to squeeze customers takes that one step further: they are beginning to charge more for exit row seats. While I understand the airlines’ rationale for thinking up creative ways to attain more revenue, as a consumer, I’m not thrilled with this change.

The New York Times reports on this development today:

Last week, Continental Airlines said it would begin offering exit-row seats in coach to anyone who wanted to buy “extra legroom.” Continental said the per-seat price would depend on the route and the demand. Members of the two top elite-status levels would continue to be able to book the seats without charge, the airline said.

The airline industry generally exhibits usual oligopolistic behavior. Once one major airline changes a policy the rest usually follow. So I’d expect to see most airlines who offer exit row seats with additional legroom also make this change in the months to come.

As someone who once traveled several times per month as a consultant, racking up several hundred thousand frequent flyer miles, I learned as well as anyone the joy of the exit row. Savvy travelers know that you can often fully open your laptops and stretch your legs a little in those seats — but for a coach fare.

Still, I can see where airlines are coming from. If the seats offer a better in-flight experience, then they can probably get away with charging a premium. Their perspective seems logical, except for the fact that the exit row isn’t just any other seat with a little extra legroom.

The Times article notes this distinction and disapproves:

Evacuation is the sole purpose of the exit rows, which abut emergency doors. So in selling exit-row seats to all comers, airlines may raise concerns about who, exactly, is sitting in those seats — and whether they are able to perform the specified emergency duties, chief among them that they have “sufficient mobility, strength or dexterity” to open the emergency door and help with the evacuation.

Exit-row seats have usually been occupied by frequent fliers who often booked them in advance, free, as perks. “The presumption has been loosely that elite fliers at least had the experience to know what the drill is in an emergency, which is basically that you have to be prepared to get that door popped open,” said Joe Brancatelli, who publishes the subscription business-travel Web site Joesentme.com.

I found myself scratching my head after reading this. The article starts off on the right track, but then takes an odd deviation. Frankly, I think newcomers are more likely to pay attention to the flight attendant’s presentation than seasoned flyers, who have heard the spiel a million times. But the freshness of those directions probably outweighs any supposed expertise that experienced flyers have obtained. Unless they’ve actually done it before, I’m not sure how having passively heard the directions dozens of times outweighs having actively listened to them just moments ago.

My concern is a different one: if the exit row passengers have responsibilities demanded of them in case of emergency, why would they be expected to pay more — don’t those responsibilities earn them the extra legroom? That’s always how I had viewed it. I assumed that the premium I paid for the pleasure of sitting in the exit row was the role I had promised to play if necessary. Other than handling the physical and psychological stress of removing the 40+ pound door during an emergency, it’s my understanding that the exit row passengers might also assist the flight attendants with evacuation. Finally, exit row passengers also face the risk of getting trampled by others rushing to get off the plane.

That varies vastly with first class passengers, who simply pay for a more pleasant experience. The exit row passengers may get a better experience as well, but there’s a chance that they would have a far more stressful time than even the regular coach passengers in the case of emergency. Isn’t that a high enough price to pay for a little extra legroom?

By The Atlantic.

CHICAGO — United Airlines says last month’s back-to-back winter storms along the East Coast cost it $40 million in revenue, trumping smaller weather-related revenue losses reported by other U.S. carriers.

United’s disclosure Monday came after US Airways reported losing $30 million, Continental $25 million and Southwest $15 million. Delta and American, the nation’s two largest airlines, did not report storm-related revenue losses when they disclosed February traffic figures last week.

The storms caused the cancellation of several thousand flights, many of them in a band stretching from Washington to New York.

United parent UAL Corp. said traffic on United and its regional affiliates rose 2.1 percent, with paying passengers traveling 7.82 billion miles last month, up from 7.66 billion miles in February 2008.

Capacity fell 5.3 percent to 9.93 billion available seat miles, a measure of one seat flown one mile.

With traffic up and capacity down, total average occupancy jumped to 78.7 percent from 73 percent a year ago.

Without the help of regional affiliates, mainline United’s traffic slipped 0.5 percent, to 6.72 billion miles flown by paying passengers. United’s mainline capacity dropped 8.2 percent, and average occupancy rose 6.1 points to 79.4 percent full.

While the storms cost United lost revenue from canceled flights, they had the reverse effect in increasing revenue per available seat mile, a closely watched measure in the airline industry. That’s because with some passengers rebooking on other flights, there were fewer empty seats.

Passenger revenue per available seat mile, including regional flights, rose about 18 percent over February 2009, the airline said. The airline said about 1.5 percentage points of the gain was due to the flight cancelations and the impact of the Lufthansa strike on flights across the Atlantic.

By The Associated Press.

Dear Lemme –  Last April I made airline reservations to fly to Panama City on Oct. 9, 2009, with a return flight on Oct. 14. Three or four days after I made the flight arrangement I called Delta to cancel my reservation. I was told by the agent that my ticket was non-refundable and non-transferable.

My wife and I rarely fly. We are both in bad health. When I purchased the ticket no one informed me of any of this. I would appreciate your help.

The total cost of the ticket was $454.91. I want a refund.

Carl Blackburn

Louisville 40291

Dear Readers – We’re pleased that this matter was resolved to our letter writer’s satisfaction. Credit for $454.91 was posted to his credit card.

Lemme spoke with Mrs. Blackburn, who said she was “very grateful” for our assistance.

Dear Lemme – I have a problem with the Frankfort Sewer Department. Back in June I had a sewer problem and had to pay a plumber $400. I also spent a weekend cleaning sewage from two bathrooms, the hall and utility room only to find that the main line was stopped up due to a crack when the line originally was constructed.

I asked to be reimbursed for the $400. I filled out a claim form. About three months later I was informed that my claim had been denied.

T. West

Frankfort, Ky. 40601

Dear Readers – The Frankfort Sewer Department reviewed Lemme’s inquiry.

“The original claim by the homeowner was turned over to the department’s insurance carrier,” said director William R. Scalf Jr. “The insurance carrier reviewed all the information and determined that the City and the Sewer Department were not responsible for the damage to the property.”

By Courier-Journal

AS thousands of passengers who were caught up in last month’s bout of snowstorms along the East Coast can attest, finding a new flight after a major weather cancellation is getting not only harder, but more complex.

While bad weather has long caused major headaches for airlines and passengers alike, there was usually enough slack in the system to absorb last-minute changes and get travelers rerouted in some reasonable fashion. But aggressive cuts in capacity in recent years have left little wiggle room for adjustments.

On top of this, travelers are contending with some new weather-related twists: First, carriers have begun to pro-actively cancel flights, even before the first flakes start to fall. Second, when airlines expect bad weather, some are offering passengers the option to rebook even before the flight is canceled.

The moves are a way for airlines to get ahead of the logistical and public relations problems caused by weather disruptions.

“If we rebook them on an earlier flight, we accomplish both of our goals,” said Anthony Black, a spokesman for Delta, which has been increasingly offering travelers the chance to change their flights without penalty before a storm hits and flights are outright canceled. “It allows them to rebook and takes the additional pressure off the operation.”

Still, it all makes for a kind of interactive guessing game about a subject as fickle as, well, the weather. And ultimately passengers are at the mercy of the airlines.

Take Carolyn Torino, an accounts receivable representative from Hillburn, N.Y., who last year booked tickets on Continental from Newark to New Orleans for Mardi Gras for herself, her mother and 10-year-old son. When a storm canceled the flight, the best alternative she was offered was a flight four days later. While Continental had waived change and cancel fees, Ms. Torino had prepaid for rooms at a B & B over the holiday weekend, so she would be out $1,200.

Taking matters into her own hands, she spent the day with her family at the airport trying to fly standby. They didn’t get on. “We missed a family dinner and we had to pay for our B & B room for the night,” Ms. Torino said. Cost: $300.

Only after she pleaded with a gate agent at the airport did Continental find space on a flight out the next evening, Friday, Feb. 12. “If we did not stay in the airport all that day, I would have not gotten a plane until Monday morning, the 15th. I would have lost $1,200.”

While airlines typically attempt to rebook passengers on an alternate flight and offer refunds if flights are canceled, they are not obligated to refund, reroute or compensate passengers for meals or hotel costs incurred if their flight is canceled because of weather, according to the Department of Transportation.

Yet certain strategies can pay off as travelers duke it out over the remaining alternatives. Here are some guidelines on what to do if your flight is scrapped because of weather.
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Be Proactive

With rebooking now an option on many airlines even before flights are canceled, passengers with flexible schedules can take matters into their own hands, moving up their flight to beat the storm. Check the airline’s Web site for weather bulletins or storm waivers when forecasts are ominous.

Don’t Bypass the Automated System

Your first instinct may be to press zero when frantically trying to get a customer service representative on the phone, but you could actually end up waiting much longer. Travelocity, for example, moves up travelers whose flights were canceled midtrip or within 48 hours of departure to the top of the queue, based on their confirmation code or “Trip I.D.” Those who skip this step in the automated process don’t get to skip the line.

You may also be able to beat other travelers who are waiting on hold by rebooking your flight yourself online. Delta and United, among others, allow travelers to revise itineraries on their Web sites by clicking on a link in their weather bulletin and plugging in the confirmation number.

Be Creative

Many travelers automatically try to rebook another flight with the same airline, leaving from the same airport, when their flight is canceled. But those aren’t the only options. In cases of severe weather delays and cancellations, airlines generally offer full refunds for canceled flights or if the alternative schedules offered are simply unacceptable. That means, if you find a better flight on another airline, you can book that instead and recoup the cost of the original tickets.

Sure, booking a last-minute flight will inevitably cost more than those cheapo seats you purchased months in advance, but at least you’ll make it to your destination.

Consider Travel Insurance

Even though airlines typically waive change or cancel penalties amid major storms, travel insurance can cover things like unused hotel rooms or prepaid deposits. For instance, if Ms. Torino of Hillburn, N.Y., had travel insurance, she could have been reimbursed for the unused nights at the New Orleans bed-and-breakfast.

Be Persistent, But Be Prepared to Roll With it

Snow happens. And happens again, as Wendy Stryker, a litigator from New York, and her husband, Richard Robbins, discovered the hard way. They endured more than an hour of hold time between them when their Delta flight to Fort Lauderdale was canceled in early February. The next best alternative offered by the airline was four days later — the day they and their children were scheduled to return. Their choices: take a refund, or put off the trip and apply the unused tickets toward the purchase of a new flight. The family chose the latter but was told the ticket price had gone up about $150 a person.

Frustrated, Ms. Stryker persisted. She asked for a supervisor. “I said, ‘Please explain to me why you’re not going to honor our fare,’ ” she said. The response: “It’s not our fault because of the weather.” After much discussion and a 20-minute hold, the supervisor eventually agreed to rebook the family on a flight two weeks later at the original fare.

But the problem with the weather is that it’s so unpredictable. On the day they were supposed to fly, another storm hit New York, and Delta canceled the family’s flight yet again. This time they were rebooked onto a flight later that morning. But after they and other passengers had boarded, Delta announced that the plane was too heavy to fly given the weather conditions, and 40 passengers, including the Robbins family, were removed. “We had to wait a long time for them to get our gate-checked car seats and bag,” said Mr. Robbins. “I was last in line of 40 people in a mob scene.”

Finally, the family learned they would not get out until the next evening at the earliest, scuttling their plans for a long weekend getaway. They gave up and went home to Manhattan — seven hours after they’d left for the airport. “Had Delta canceled the flight rather than make us go to the airport, board and then kick us off, we wouldn’t both have missed work today and we wouldn’t have had this entire ordeal,” Mr. Robbins said.

By Michelle Higgins, New york Times

Continental Airlines will begin charging coach customers extra if they want a seat with more legroom.

Prices will vary depending on the length of a flight and popularity of the route. A spokeswoman said extra room on a Houston-New York flight might cost $59. International fliers would pay more than that.

Starting March 17, coach customers will be able to pay the charge at check-in to get an exit-row seat with at least seven inches more legroom than the other rows, Continental said.

Top-level members of Continental’s frequent-flier program — those who rack up at least 25,000 miles a year — and their traveling companions will still be able to claim the exit row without extra charge.

The number of seats with extra legroom will vary depending on the size of the plane. Continental, the nation’s fourth-largest airline, doesn’t plan to reconfigure its planes to add more such seats.

Officials with the Houston-based airline said the new fee is simply a matter of giving customers more if they’re willing to pay for it.

“Seats with additional legroom are higher-value seats, and we want to offer them to customers who recognize that value,” said Jim Compton, Continental’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer.

Some other airlines already charge extra for exit-row seats. United, for example, sells “economy plus” seats in coach, with up to 5 extra inches of legroom. On its Web site, United says the upgrade costs $49 on Denver-to-Seattle flights and $109 going from Los Angeles to Tokyo.

JetBlue also charges more for legroom. Some carriers charge extra for aisle or bulkhead seats. On US Airways, window or aisle seats can cost $5 to $30 extra.

Airlines have been steadily adding fees for services such as checking bags or buying tickets over the phone from a reservations agent. The fees began in earnest when fuel prices spiked in 2008, but airlines have kept the charges in place — and raised them — even when fuel prices fell because they were still losing money due to a drop in travel.

By David Koenig, The Associated Press

The federal government has made clear its strategy for cracking down on potential terrorist attacks in airplanes: more sophisticated scanners and increased scrutiny of passengers at crowded airports.

But now the nation’s flight attendants say the government needs to ratchet up security measures inside airplanes.

The Assn. of Flight Attendants has been lobbying Congress for the last month or so to adopt its strategy for stronger counter-terrorism measures. The group hopes that lawmakers will include money to put some of their ideas into action under an upcoming funding bill for the Federal Aviation Administration.

The group, which represents more than 55,000 attendants at 20 airlines, wants to implement a four-point plan:

• Institute mandatory hand-to-hand combat training for all crew members.
• Equip flight attendants with portable communications devices so they can speak to the pilots during emergencies.
• Standardize the size of carry-on luggage so that flight attendants can look for suspicious passengers instead of struggling with oversized bags.
• Shut down onboard wireless Internet during high-threat periods to prevent terrorists from communicating with collaborators on the ground.

“For better or for worse, once the cabin doors close, the flight attendants are the last line of defense,” said Corey Caldwell, a spokeswoman for the association.

She pointed out that combat training for flight attendants is now voluntary, with employees who take it attending the lessons on their own time.

A portable communications system would have allowed flight attendants to talk with the pilots during the attempted attack on a Northwest Airlines flight on Christmas Day, she added. On that flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, a Nigerian national allegedly tried to ignite an explosive hidden in his underwear.

The nation’s airlines have not agreed on a maximum size for carry-on luggage because the overhead bins vary in size according to airplane model. The group suggests the standard size be no bigger than 22 inches by 9 inches by 14 inches — the same limit already in place at American, Continental and Delta airlines. Virgin America, Southwest and Hawaiian airlines allow bigger carry-on bags.

“By having uniform standards, everybody would be on the same page,” she said.

As for shutting down the onboard Internet, she said the Transportation Security Administration would determine when the airlines are at a high risk for a terrorist attack.

Caldwell said the association has not come up with a price tag for the changes and is not seeking raises for flight attendants as part of the deal.

“We are not taking on more responsibility,” she said. “We just want more tools to make the plane safer.”

Reading possible terrorists’ clues

When it comes to airport security, an Israeli company has proposed an intriguing technology designed to read the minds of would-be terrorists.

WeCu Technologies (as in “we see you”) claims it has devised a method to identify airline passengers with bad intentions by reading the reactions of passengers to certain “stimuli.”

In the system being tested in Israel, projectors at airport terminals would flash different images associated with a certain terrorist group or symbols that only a would-be terrorist would recognize.

The assumption is that people cannot hide their reactions to certain images, just as anyone might react to a photo of a close relative suddenly appearing on a wall. The technology would use hidden cameras aimed at the passing face to capture and analyze even the most subtle reactions. Even an averted glance or a slight increase in heart rate could signal a passenger’s intentions.

If the cameras pick up suspicious looks or movement, the passenger can be pulled aside for further screening.

“One by one you can screen out from the flow of people those with specific malicious intent,” WeCu Chief Executive Ehud Given told the Associated Press.

Looking beyond the on-time rates

Because of a steep drop in passenger demand, most airlines are running fewer flights, and as a result are getting in and out of airports on time.

Statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation show that the nation’s airlines have the best overall on-time arrival rate since 2003.

But that doesn’t make a difference to FlyersRights. org, an airline consumer rights group that issues an annual airline report card based on different statistics.

In a report card issued last month, the group handed out nearly three times as many F’s as A’s.

According to the FlyersRights report card, JetBlue, Comair and Delta airlines were among 11 carriers that received the worst marks for on-time performance, while Alaska and Hawaiian were among four that earned A’s.

One set of grades was based on the frequency of flights being delayed more than three hours. The group graded each airline based on delays per total flights. So, JetBlue got an F for having one flight delayed for every 2,776 flights, while Alaska earned an A for one three-hour-plus delay for every 137,322 flights.

New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport won the dubious distinction of having the most flights — 195 flights — delayed more than three hours.

An airline’s on-time performance has taken on new importance since federal regulators adopted penalties last year for airlines that leave passengers stranded on the tarmac too long.

Under new federal regulations that take effect next month, airlines must give passengers the option to disembark if a flight is stuck on the tarmac for more than three hours. Airlines that fail to comply could be fined up to $27,500 per passenger. That could amount to $5.5 million for a jet carrying 200 people.

Most airline representatives are tight-lipped about how they plan to avoid the fines.

But at least one major U.S. airline has devised detailed plans for every airport to ensure that passengers are unloaded from the plane before the three-hour mark, according to an airline representative. He asked not to have himself or his airline identified because he was not authorized to speak on the subject.

In cases in which a delayed plane cannot pull back to the terminal because of congestion, he said, the passengers could be asked to climb out of the plane via a portable staircase onto the tarmac. This could be a nasty scene at Kennedy airport in the dead of winter, he said. “It’s going to be pretty ugly.”

By Hugo Martín, The Los Angeles Times

NEW YORK — An analyst for UBS upgraded Boeing shares on Thursday following strong monthly traffic reports from airlines and improving expectations for Boeing’s 2011 profit.

Analyst David E. Strauss moved Boeing to “Neutral” from “Sell.” He also raised his forecast for Boeing aircraft deliveries through 2012. Strauss said a survey of airlines shows more of them looking to move their deliveries closer rather than farther out for the first time since Sept. 2008.

Still, he said there are an estimated 1,200 extra aircraft available to airlines, and he expects Boeing to cut production. Even if production of smaller planes is not cut, and the new 787 makes money, earnings per share growth is still likely to be weak, Strauss wrote.

Boeing shares rose $1.05 to $66.50.

There was also word on Thursday that Boeing will bid again on an Air Force tanker, and will use its 767 aircraft as the basis for the tanker if it wins. Boeing also said it got a $163 million order for two of its new extended-range 737s from Somon Air in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

By The Associated Press.

If you want to stretch out on Continental Airlines, it may cost you.

Continental (CAL) has become the latest airline to start charging coach passengers for seats with extra legroom.

Starting March 17, passengers in coach can buy a seat in the exit row and grab at least 7 more inches of space. Passengers who belong to Continental’s frequent-flier program and fly at least 25,000 miles a year, and those traveling with them, will continue being able to select those seats at no additional cost.

“Our customers want more choices,” Jim Compton, Continental’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer said in a statement. “Seats with additional legroom are higher-value seats, and we want to offer them to customers who recognize that value.”

Passengers can buy the seats when they check in online or at the airport up to 24 hours before their flights. The costs will vary. Such a seat on a flight from Newark Liberty to Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston might cost an extra $59, for instance, while additional legroom might be available on a holiday at a discount, the airline says.

Continental isn’t alone in putting a premium on the most desirable seats as a way of bringing in extra revenue. JetBlue and AirTran are among the airlines that charge more for extra legroom or a seat in the exit row, according to SmarterTravel.com, which tracks fees in the industry.

US Airways, with its “Choice Seats” program, allows passengers to buy an aisle or window seat for premiums that range from $5 to $30.

And on Virgin America, main cabin seats that offer additional legroom in some exit rows and the bulkhead are a separate class of service called “Main Cabin Select.” Passengers who pay for the upgrade get nearly 6 inches of extra space as well as complimentary food and drinks.

“It’s (an) easy-to-implement and easy-to-defend source of revenue,” says Jay Sorensen, president of IdeaWorks, an airline consulting group. “Customers intuitively understand that better seats on an airplane could fetch a premium.”

U.S. airlines started charging separately for services that were once part of the ticket price in 2008 when they began imposing a fee for checking bags. Now, carriers charge for everything from early boarding to pillows, with the revenue stream helping them survive a deep travel downturn.

“And there’s going to be more to come,” Sorensen says of the extra charges, “because the need for revenue continues to be very great.”

By Charisse Jones, USA TODAY