According to the Daily Breeze, the A380 will make a return visit to LAX at 2:00pm on November 28. The A380 will land on the new 200 foot wide Runway 25 Left and make a gate compatability check at the Tom Bradley International Terminal. The A380 will fly to Australia on November 30th.
Qantas will be the first airline to fly the A380 to LAX with a flight from Melbourne, Australia in October 2006 (now a two month push back on the date). Qantas currently operates the Boeing 747-400 Extended Range on the LAX-Melbourne route. The 747-400ER gives Qantas the ability to fly non-stop in both directions on the route. It is likely that Qantas will replace all of the 747's on its LAX routes with A380's. Qantas flies from LAX to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in Australia; Auckland, New Zealand and to New York's JFK Airport. The LAX-JFK flight is open only to Qantas passengers flying to and from Sydney.
http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/articles/10859026.html
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
The British are coming with the A380
Not to be left behind in the frenzy for new aircraft orders, today British Airways ordered $8.2 billion (at list prices, airlines always get discounts) of new aircraft: 12 orders and 7 options for the Airbus A380 and 24 orders and 18 options for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Rolls Royce engines will power both aircraft. These aircraft will replace some of BA's 57 Boeing 747-400's and all of BA's 20 Boeing 767's. BA Chairman Willie Walsh and TV news reports indicate that British Airways will operate the A380 from London-Heathrow to LAX. Other high-density British Airways routes from London likely to see service with the A380 include New York, San Francisco, Singapore, Hong Kong and Johannesburg. According to the BA press release, the 787 Dreamliner "will be used to start new routes and increase frequencies in existing markets." Deliveries of the new aircraft are expected between 2010 and 2014.
British Airways will now be at parity with Virgin Atlantic that has ordered 6 A380’s and 23 787's. British Airways competes with Virgin Atlantic, Air New Zealand, American Airlines and United Airlines on the LAX-London Heathrow route. Virgin Atlantic will begin A380 flights in 2013.
The BA A380 order could mean that there will be up to 14 daily A380 flights into LAX by 2014.
Press:
http://www.britishairways.com/travel/bapress/public/en_gb
http://www.airbus.com/en/presscentre/pressreleases/pressreleases_items/07_09_27_british_airways_12_a380.html
http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2007/q3/070927b_nr.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7015621.stm
http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Sep27/0,4670,BritainBritishAirways,00.html
Video:
http://www.bloomberg.com
British Airways will now be at parity with Virgin Atlantic that has ordered 6 A380’s and 23 787's. British Airways competes with Virgin Atlantic, Air New Zealand, American Airlines and United Airlines on the LAX-London Heathrow route. Virgin Atlantic will begin A380 flights in 2013.
The BA A380 order could mean that there will be up to 14 daily A380 flights into LAX by 2014.
Press:
http://www.britishairways.com/travel/bapress/public/en_gb
http://www.airbus.com/en/presscentre/pressreleases/pressreleases_items/07_09_27_british_airways_12_a380.html
http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2007/q3/070927b_nr.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7015621.stm
http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2007Sep27/0,4670,BritainBritishAirways,00.html
Video:
http://www.bloomberg.com
Monday, August 20, 2007
Slipperly glideslope to LAX expansion?
I am back online after moving. Fortunately, no flying was involved with delayed flights, overflowing toilets or lost luggage. I have backlogged articles to post.
This Daily News editorial is one definitely worth reading. The D-N hits the nail on the head that last week’s runway incursion is being used as another excuse to expand Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
http://www.dailynews.com/opinions/ci_6659781
While LAX needs to be safe and secure, it does not need to be expanded. The whole idea behind regionalism is to allow people to use their local airports for flights instead of clogging up the freeways to go to LAX. We need expansion at Ontario to provide Orange County and Inland Empire residents with an international gateway. We need expansion at Palmdale to give Antelope Valley, Santa Clarita Valley, Victor Valley, North San Fernando Valley and Ventura County residents an easily accessible airport. This is why groups such as the Alliance for a Regional Solution for Airport Congestion (ARSAC) http://www.regionalsolution.org/ were formed and the Southern California Regional Airport Authority (SCRAA) was revived. http://www.scraa.org/
LAX expansion supporters are not some much concerned about runway safety or passenger convenience as they are about getting multi-billion dollar construction contracts. This is why in October 2004 when the LAX Master Plan was up for a vote at the L.A. City Council that we had seen then-L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce Chairman George Kieffer standing arm-in-arm with then-L.A. County Federation Secretary-Treasurer Miguel Contreras. It was a disgusting sight of business arm-in-arm with labor ready to feed at the public trough. Had LAX Master Plan Alternative D been implemented, it would have been the largest public works project (by dollar value) in the United States. The original cost estimate of $9.6 billion ballooned to $11.3 billion by the time the LAX Master Plan reached the Los Angeles City Council by October 2004. Today, that cost is probably more than double due to the rising demand for concrete and steel in China. Considering these costs, the public’s money is better spent in creating additional regional airport capacity at Ontario and Palmdale than throwing money down the drain to remodel dirty restrooms at LAX. LAX restrooms should be cleaned daily as a course of regular business. It should not take a J.D. Power & Associates survey to tell LAX to clean up its restrooms.
Getting back to runway safety. There is no need to move the north runway further north or to install a centerline taxiway. A centerline taxiway will not resolve the two recurring safety problems at LAX: 1) aircraft entering runway areas without permission and 2) controllers allowing aircraft to land on the inboard runways which are supposed to be used for take-offs only.
Aircraft entering runways at LAX without permission is a solvable problem. Since 1998, there have been 16 runway incursions on the north runway complex. None of these incursions were fatal or caused damaged to aircraft or other property. Out of these 16, 10 have been problems where aircraft have crossed the hold bars to runway entrances, but not actually entered the runway. The solution to this problem is something called Runway Status Lights (RWSL). RWSL are red lights installed at all runway entrances. When the red lights are turned on, this indicates to the pilot that the runway is not safe to enter. Had RWSL been installed on the south runway complex during the recent Runway 25 Left rebuild, then two runway incursions on the remaining operational Runway 24 Right may have been prevented. In those two incursions, aircraft actually did enter or cross south inboard Runway 25 Right without permission.
RWSL is a proven technology having been tested and installed at Boston (BOS), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and San Diego (SAN) airports. RWSL is a commercial-off-the-shelf technology with no less than three manufacturers offering this product. RWSL can be installed in about one year. This is a simple and cost-effective fix that can resolve LAX’s biggest incursion problem. To protect the flying public, the FAA and LAX should install RWSL immediately on all LAX runways.
The second biggest and the most deadly incursion problem at LAX is controllers allowing aircraft to land on the inboard runways. LAX has a Preferential Runway Use Policy of utilizing inboard runways for take-offs and outboard runways for landings. When controllers do not follow the Preferential Runway Use Policy, it can have fatal consequences. On February 1, 1991, a controller cleared a USAir Boeing 737 jet to land the north inboard Runway 24 Left after a controller had already given a SkyWest Metroliner turboprop clearance for a mid-field take-off on the same runway. Thirty-four people were killed when the USAir jet slammed into the SkyWest turboprop.
http://www.lafire.com/famous_fires/910201_B737Crash/020191_B737Crash.htm
This was the second deadly accident to occur at LAX. The other one was in 1978 when a Continental Airlines DC-10 suffered a tire blow out and left landing gear collapse. Two people died in that incident. Runway geometry was a not a factor in these incidents.
Since 1998, there have been 3 incidents where controllers gave permission to aircraft to land on the inboard runway where another aircraft had already been given permission to take-off. None of these incidents were fatal. One incident in 2004 almost had an Asiana Boeing 747-400 land on top of a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737. Fortunately, the Asiana pilot aborted the landing. The solution to this second most prevalent incursion problem is the easiest, fastest and cheapest to fix- controllers need to strictly adhere to the Preferential Runway Use Policy of using inboard runways for take-offs and outboard runways for landings. To protect the flying public, the FAA should make the Preferential Runway Use Policy their official policy for LAX tower operations today.
More on centerline taxiways later.
This Daily News editorial is one definitely worth reading. The D-N hits the nail on the head that last week’s runway incursion is being used as another excuse to expand Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
http://www.dailynews.com/opinions/ci_6659781
While LAX needs to be safe and secure, it does not need to be expanded. The whole idea behind regionalism is to allow people to use their local airports for flights instead of clogging up the freeways to go to LAX. We need expansion at Ontario to provide Orange County and Inland Empire residents with an international gateway. We need expansion at Palmdale to give Antelope Valley, Santa Clarita Valley, Victor Valley, North San Fernando Valley and Ventura County residents an easily accessible airport. This is why groups such as the Alliance for a Regional Solution for Airport Congestion (ARSAC) http://www.regionalsolution.org/ were formed and the Southern California Regional Airport Authority (SCRAA) was revived. http://www.scraa.org/
LAX expansion supporters are not some much concerned about runway safety or passenger convenience as they are about getting multi-billion dollar construction contracts. This is why in October 2004 when the LAX Master Plan was up for a vote at the L.A. City Council that we had seen then-L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce Chairman George Kieffer standing arm-in-arm with then-L.A. County Federation Secretary-Treasurer Miguel Contreras. It was a disgusting sight of business arm-in-arm with labor ready to feed at the public trough. Had LAX Master Plan Alternative D been implemented, it would have been the largest public works project (by dollar value) in the United States. The original cost estimate of $9.6 billion ballooned to $11.3 billion by the time the LAX Master Plan reached the Los Angeles City Council by October 2004. Today, that cost is probably more than double due to the rising demand for concrete and steel in China. Considering these costs, the public’s money is better spent in creating additional regional airport capacity at Ontario and Palmdale than throwing money down the drain to remodel dirty restrooms at LAX. LAX restrooms should be cleaned daily as a course of regular business. It should not take a J.D. Power & Associates survey to tell LAX to clean up its restrooms.
Getting back to runway safety. There is no need to move the north runway further north or to install a centerline taxiway. A centerline taxiway will not resolve the two recurring safety problems at LAX: 1) aircraft entering runway areas without permission and 2) controllers allowing aircraft to land on the inboard runways which are supposed to be used for take-offs only.
Aircraft entering runways at LAX without permission is a solvable problem. Since 1998, there have been 16 runway incursions on the north runway complex. None of these incursions were fatal or caused damaged to aircraft or other property. Out of these 16, 10 have been problems where aircraft have crossed the hold bars to runway entrances, but not actually entered the runway. The solution to this problem is something called Runway Status Lights (RWSL). RWSL are red lights installed at all runway entrances. When the red lights are turned on, this indicates to the pilot that the runway is not safe to enter. Had RWSL been installed on the south runway complex during the recent Runway 25 Left rebuild, then two runway incursions on the remaining operational Runway 24 Right may have been prevented. In those two incursions, aircraft actually did enter or cross south inboard Runway 25 Right without permission.
RWSL is a proven technology having been tested and installed at Boston (BOS), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and San Diego (SAN) airports. RWSL is a commercial-off-the-shelf technology with no less than three manufacturers offering this product. RWSL can be installed in about one year. This is a simple and cost-effective fix that can resolve LAX’s biggest incursion problem. To protect the flying public, the FAA and LAX should install RWSL immediately on all LAX runways.
The second biggest and the most deadly incursion problem at LAX is controllers allowing aircraft to land on the inboard runways. LAX has a Preferential Runway Use Policy of utilizing inboard runways for take-offs and outboard runways for landings. When controllers do not follow the Preferential Runway Use Policy, it can have fatal consequences. On February 1, 1991, a controller cleared a USAir Boeing 737 jet to land the north inboard Runway 24 Left after a controller had already given a SkyWest Metroliner turboprop clearance for a mid-field take-off on the same runway. Thirty-four people were killed when the USAir jet slammed into the SkyWest turboprop.
http://www.lafire.com/famous_fires/910201_B737Crash/020191_B737Crash.htm
This was the second deadly accident to occur at LAX. The other one was in 1978 when a Continental Airlines DC-10 suffered a tire blow out and left landing gear collapse. Two people died in that incident. Runway geometry was a not a factor in these incidents.
Since 1998, there have been 3 incidents where controllers gave permission to aircraft to land on the inboard runway where another aircraft had already been given permission to take-off. None of these incidents were fatal. One incident in 2004 almost had an Asiana Boeing 747-400 land on top of a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737. Fortunately, the Asiana pilot aborted the landing. The solution to this second most prevalent incursion problem is the easiest, fastest and cheapest to fix- controllers need to strictly adhere to the Preferential Runway Use Policy of using inboard runways for take-offs and outboard runways for landings. To protect the flying public, the FAA should make the Preferential Runway Use Policy their official policy for LAX tower operations today.
More on centerline taxiways later.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
LAX officials raked over coals at L.A. Council committee meeting
Report from Denny Schneider, President of ARSAC from today's meeting of the L.A. City Council's Commerce, Trade and Tourism Committee. ARSAC, the Alliance for a Regional Solution for Airport Congestion, is one of four groups that sued over the LAX Master Plan.
Agenda item three was for LAWA to present the status of LAX improvement projects and the redesign efforts. Both Chairwoman Councilmember Janice Hahn and our Councilmember BILL ROSENDAHL were both emphatic that LAX improvement must accommodate both immediate and future aircraft operational demands and that LAWA action has been untimely at best. Both ARE WORKING TO STOP THE RUMOR MILL THAT "MODERNIZATION" PLANS MUST INCLUDE EXPANSION. THEY ALSO SAID THAT DESTRUCTION OF NEIGHBORING COMMUNITIES WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. The two Council members assailed LAWA over and over for not having moved forward on the "Green Light" projects that were approved in the Settlement Agreement one and a half years ago. The bottom line is that LAWA hasn't gotten very far in fixing LAX.
LAXTEC President, Frank Clark spoke for the international airlines and their concern that there will be inadequate terminals and contact gates for the large A380 aircraft. He suggested that inadequate existing gates is the reason that international carriers are considering other destinations. He insisted that the remote gates that LAX is refurbishing at a cost of over $8M is unsatisfactory. He reiterated the statement that LAX is losing international traffic, but noted that there is satisfaction in the plans to improve Tom Bradley and a new midfield terminal. [ARSAC has questioned the business loss assertion and will be working to refine passenger destination numbers to determine what the current trend really is.]
An LAEDC rep announced that we are losing substantial money daily revenues from aircraft diverted to other cities. They are preparing a white paper for release in late August. Councilman Rosendahl strongly noted that there must be a distinction in any report between "destination" passengers who represent significant tourism dollar infusion and those just passing though LA on their way to another location. The loss of "pass through" passengers does not have very much economic impact.
I personally urge everyone to write to the Mayor to remind him that expansion north is unacceptable, PERIOD. He may be reached by fax at 213 978-0750. Please send a copy of your correspondence to me at DennySchneider@WeLiveFree.com so that I can disseminate your comments to the other elected officials throughout the area. For more information, please see www.REGIONALSOLUTION.org
Agenda item three was for LAWA to present the status of LAX improvement projects and the redesign efforts. Both Chairwoman Councilmember Janice Hahn and our Councilmember BILL ROSENDAHL were both emphatic that LAX improvement must accommodate both immediate and future aircraft operational demands and that LAWA action has been untimely at best. Both ARE WORKING TO STOP THE RUMOR MILL THAT "MODERNIZATION" PLANS MUST INCLUDE EXPANSION. THEY ALSO SAID THAT DESTRUCTION OF NEIGHBORING COMMUNITIES WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. The two Council members assailed LAWA over and over for not having moved forward on the "Green Light" projects that were approved in the Settlement Agreement one and a half years ago. The bottom line is that LAWA hasn't gotten very far in fixing LAX.
LAXTEC President, Frank Clark spoke for the international airlines and their concern that there will be inadequate terminals and contact gates for the large A380 aircraft. He suggested that inadequate existing gates is the reason that international carriers are considering other destinations. He insisted that the remote gates that LAX is refurbishing at a cost of over $8M is unsatisfactory. He reiterated the statement that LAX is losing international traffic, but noted that there is satisfaction in the plans to improve Tom Bradley and a new midfield terminal. [ARSAC has questioned the business loss assertion and will be working to refine passenger destination numbers to determine what the current trend really is.]
An LAEDC rep announced that we are losing substantial money daily revenues from aircraft diverted to other cities. They are preparing a white paper for release in late August. Councilman Rosendahl strongly noted that there must be a distinction in any report between "destination" passengers who represent significant tourism dollar infusion and those just passing though LA on their way to another location. The loss of "pass through" passengers does not have very much economic impact.
I personally urge everyone to write to the Mayor to remind him that expansion north is unacceptable, PERIOD. He may be reached by fax at 213 978-0750. Please send a copy of your correspondence to me at DennySchneider@WeLiveFree.com so that I can disseminate your comments to the other elected officials throughout the area. For more information, please see www.REGIONALSOLUTION.org
Virgin America to launch LAX flights on August 8
Tickets are now on sale!
A stylish aircraft cabin awaits you with leather Recaro seats, a seatback inflight entertainment system and even electrical plugs for your laptop and iPod!
LAX-San Francisco, 5 daily flights beginning August 8, 2007
LAX-New York JFK, 2 daily flights beginning August 29, 2007. 3 daily flights on September 16th.
LAX-Washington Dulles, 2 daily flights beginning October 24, 2007.
http://www.virginamerica.com/va/home.do?method=virginAmerica
A stylish aircraft cabin awaits you with leather Recaro seats, a seatback inflight entertainment system and even electrical plugs for your laptop and iPod!
LAX-San Francisco, 5 daily flights beginning August 8, 2007
LAX-New York JFK, 2 daily flights beginning August 29, 2007. 3 daily flights on September 16th.
LAX-Washington Dulles, 2 daily flights beginning October 24, 2007.
http://www.virginamerica.com/va/home.do?method=virginAmerica
International airlines flocking to LAX
By 2010, several airlines will add LAX to their networks:
Emirates to Dubai. Flights could be on an Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental. Emirates has not yet ordered this aircraft.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=7739
Jet Airways to India. Flights will be via Jet Airways' European hub in Brussels, Belgium possibly on a Boeing 777-300ER or even a 787 Dreamliner. From Brussels, passengers can fly onward to Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Chennai in India.
http://www.jetairways.com/Cultures/en-US/United+States+of+America/About+Us/Press+Room/Press+Releases/Europeanhub.htm
See Jet Airways' remarkable new, almost completely private First Class seat here:
http://www.jetairways.com/msib21/FrontEnd/skins/default/flash/jet_flash/flash.html
Kingfisher Airlines to India. Flights could be one-stop on an Airbus A380 or an Airbus A340-500.
SilverJet to London-Luton Airport. SilverJet, an all-business class airline, has expressed interest in expanding to LAX. Flights would be operated with Boeing 767-200ER's.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=9203
"V Australia" to Sydney and Melbourne. This division of Richard Branson's Virgin Blue (Australia) will operate 6 Boeing 777-300ER's. The name "Virgin" is not used in the title of this Pacific Ocean area airline due to a 1999 agreement with Singapore Airlines when it purchased 49% of Virgin Atlantic. Singapore Airlines has unsuccessfully attempted to gain rights from the Australian government to fly between Australia and the United States.
http://www.virginblue.com.au/about_us/news/index.php?co=vb&artdate=072007#news250707
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=9505
Emirates to Dubai. Flights could be on an Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental. Emirates has not yet ordered this aircraft.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=7739
Jet Airways to India. Flights will be via Jet Airways' European hub in Brussels, Belgium possibly on a Boeing 777-300ER or even a 787 Dreamliner. From Brussels, passengers can fly onward to Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Chennai in India.
http://www.jetairways.com/Cultures/en-US/United+States+of+America/About+Us/Press+Room/Press+Releases/Europeanhub.htm
See Jet Airways' remarkable new, almost completely private First Class seat here:
http://www.jetairways.com/msib21/FrontEnd/skins/default/flash/jet_flash/flash.html
Kingfisher Airlines to India. Flights could be one-stop on an Airbus A380 or an Airbus A340-500.
SilverJet to London-Luton Airport. SilverJet, an all-business class airline, has expressed interest in expanding to LAX. Flights would be operated with Boeing 767-200ER's.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=9203
"V Australia" to Sydney and Melbourne. This division of Richard Branson's Virgin Blue (Australia) will operate 6 Boeing 777-300ER's. The name "Virgin" is not used in the title of this Pacific Ocean area airline due to a 1999 agreement with Singapore Airlines when it purchased 49% of Virgin Atlantic. Singapore Airlines has unsuccessfully attempted to gain rights from the Australian government to fly between Australia and the United States.
http://www.virginblue.com.au/about_us/news/index.php?co=vb&artdate=072007#news250707
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=9505
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
American to add seasonal flights to LAX
American Airlines is adding two seasonal routes to LAX.
Just in time for ski season, American will fly between LAX and Eagle/Vail, CO from December 13, 2007 to March 30, 2008.
LAX to San Jose, Costa Rica begins on November 15, 2007.
http://www.aa.com/aa/i18nForward.do?p=/aboutUs/newServiceRoutes.jsp&anchorEvent=false
Just in time for ski season, American will fly between LAX and Eagle/Vail, CO from December 13, 2007 to March 30, 2008.
LAX to San Jose, Costa Rica begins on November 15, 2007.
http://www.aa.com/aa/i18nForward.do?p=/aboutUs/newServiceRoutes.jsp&anchorEvent=false
China mania: United bids for LAX-Shanghai route; other airlines push for East Coast-China routes
China, China, China is all we hear about in international business these days and the aviation industry is not exempt. On May 23rd, the U.S. and China announced a more liberal aviation bilateral agreement that will allow three new U.S. airlines to fly to China- 1 in 2007 and 2 in 2009.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=8995
U.S. airlines are flooding the U.S. Transportation Department with applications for new routes to China. The only non-stop route including LAX is being proposed by United Airlines. In January 2007, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded United a new route to China with the first ever capital-to-capital flight of Washington-Dulles to Beijing on March 28th.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.htmlstoryID=7562
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=7872
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=8400
United is competing against other airlines that also have set-up online petitions for new China routes.
On July 25, United sent emails to its Los Angeles area Mileage Plus members asking them to sign an electronic petition in support of United's bid for an LAX-Shanghai route. The petition is addressed to U.S. Transportation Department Secretary Mary Peters. United claims in the email that, "Currently, Los Angeles, with a population of more than 18 million, is the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. without nonstop service to China by a U.S. carrier. We believe strongly that this route is necessary for the convenience of our travelers to China." If awarded, United would begin LAX-Shanghai flights on March 25, 2009. Presently, only China Eastern Airlines provides non-stop service on the LAX-Shanghai route. There is one catch to United's application- if LAX is rejected, then United wants a Washington Dulles-Shanghai route.
UA's petition: http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6722,52274,00.html
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/search/autosuggest.jsp?docid=256530&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aviationnow.com%2Favnow%2Fnews%2Fchannel_comm_story.jsp%3Fview%3Dstory%26id%3Dnews%2FCHIF07187.xml
American Airlines is pushing for a Chicago-Beijing route. American lost a previous bid of Dallas/Fort Worth to Beijing when it could not get its pilots union to agree to a longer duty time to support the flight. AA modified the route application to DFW-Chicago-Beijing to comply with the pilot's union contract.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=7332
http://www.aa.com/content/amrcorp/pressReleases/2007_07/16_china.jhtml
AA's petition: http://www.flytochinaonaa.com/
Continental Airlines has proposed a New York/Newark-Shanghai route. The flight would start in Cleveland, go to Newark Airport and then onto Shanghai.
http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/content/company/shanghai.aspx
CO's petition: http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/content/company/petition.aspx
Delta Airlines is requesting permission to fly Atlanta-Shanghai and Altanta-Beijing.
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10781
DL's petition: http://www.nextgatewaytochina.com/
Northwest Airlines has applied for Detroit-Shanghai and Detroit-Beijing routes.
http://www.nwa.com/corpinfo/newsc/2007/pr071620071861.html
NW's petition: http://www.nwa.com/features/chinabid/
MaxJet, the all business class Boeing 767 airline, is a surprise candidate in proposing a Shanghai-Seattle route with continuing same-plane service to LAX.
http://www.maxjet.com/docs/7_17_07_China_application.pdf
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/search/autosuggest.jsp?docid=256530&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aviationnow.com%2Favnow%2Fnews%2Fchannel_comm_story.jsp%3Fview%3Dstory%26id%3Dnews%2FCHIF07187.xml
USAirways seeks to expand its flights to China with a new Philadelphia-Beijing flight. The flight will originate in Charlotte, NC.
http://www.usairways.com/awa/content/aboutus/pressroom/newservice/index.aspx?c=00241_hp_china
US's petition: http://www.choicestochina.com/
More reading:
Air Transport World story on China route applications:
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=9574
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=8995
U.S. airlines are flooding the U.S. Transportation Department with applications for new routes to China. The only non-stop route including LAX is being proposed by United Airlines. In January 2007, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded United a new route to China with the first ever capital-to-capital flight of Washington-Dulles to Beijing on March 28th.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.htmlstoryID=7562
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=7872
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=8400
United is competing against other airlines that also have set-up online petitions for new China routes.
On July 25, United sent emails to its Los Angeles area Mileage Plus members asking them to sign an electronic petition in support of United's bid for an LAX-Shanghai route. The petition is addressed to U.S. Transportation Department Secretary Mary Peters. United claims in the email that, "Currently, Los Angeles, with a population of more than 18 million, is the largest metropolitan area in the U.S. without nonstop service to China by a U.S. carrier. We believe strongly that this route is necessary for the convenience of our travelers to China." If awarded, United would begin LAX-Shanghai flights on March 25, 2009. Presently, only China Eastern Airlines provides non-stop service on the LAX-Shanghai route. There is one catch to United's application- if LAX is rejected, then United wants a Washington Dulles-Shanghai route.
UA's petition: http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6722,52274,00.html
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/search/autosuggest.jsp?docid=256530&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aviationnow.com%2Favnow%2Fnews%2Fchannel_comm_story.jsp%3Fview%3Dstory%26id%3Dnews%2FCHIF07187.xml
American Airlines is pushing for a Chicago-Beijing route. American lost a previous bid of Dallas/Fort Worth to Beijing when it could not get its pilots union to agree to a longer duty time to support the flight. AA modified the route application to DFW-Chicago-Beijing to comply with the pilot's union contract.
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=7332
http://www.aa.com/content/amrcorp/pressReleases/2007_07/16_china.jhtml
AA's petition: http://www.flytochinaonaa.com/
Continental Airlines has proposed a New York/Newark-Shanghai route. The flight would start in Cleveland, go to Newark Airport and then onto Shanghai.
http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/content/company/shanghai.aspx
CO's petition: http://www.continental.com/web/en-US/content/company/petition.aspx
Delta Airlines is requesting permission to fly Atlanta-Shanghai and Altanta-Beijing.
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10781
DL's petition: http://www.nextgatewaytochina.com/
Northwest Airlines has applied for Detroit-Shanghai and Detroit-Beijing routes.
http://www.nwa.com/corpinfo/newsc/2007/pr071620071861.html
NW's petition: http://www.nwa.com/features/chinabid/
MaxJet, the all business class Boeing 767 airline, is a surprise candidate in proposing a Shanghai-Seattle route with continuing same-plane service to LAX.
http://www.maxjet.com/docs/7_17_07_China_application.pdf
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/search/autosuggest.jsp?docid=256530&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aviationnow.com%2Favnow%2Fnews%2Fchannel_comm_story.jsp%3Fview%3Dstory%26id%3Dnews%2FCHIF07187.xml
USAirways seeks to expand its flights to China with a new Philadelphia-Beijing flight. The flight will originate in Charlotte, NC.
http://www.usairways.com/awa/content/aboutus/pressroom/newservice/index.aspx?c=00241_hp_china
US's petition: http://www.choicestochina.com/
More reading:
Air Transport World story on China route applications:
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=9574
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Singapore Airlines upgrades aircraft on Singapore non-stop
Singapore Airlines recently replaced the 181 seat Airbus A340-500 on the LAX-Singapore non-stop flight with a 278 seat Boeing 777-300ER. The new 777 service will provide 8 First Class seats, 42 Executive Class seats and 228 Economy class seats. The new aircraft increases seat capacity on this route by 54%.
The aircraft interior is simply gorgeous. See it for yourself here: http://www.singaporeair.com/saa/en_UK/content/exp/new/index.jsp
Compare the two aircraft seating plans at SeatGuru.com:
A340-500: http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Singapore_Air/Singapore_Air_Airbus_A345.php
B777-300ER: http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Singapore_Air/Singapore_Air_Boeing_777-300ER.php
The aircraft interior is simply gorgeous. See it for yourself here: http://www.singaporeair.com/saa/en_UK/content/exp/new/index.jsp
Compare the two aircraft seating plans at SeatGuru.com:
A340-500: http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Singapore_Air/Singapore_Air_Airbus_A345.php
B777-300ER: http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/Singapore_Air/Singapore_Air_Boeing_777-300ER.php
LAX adding new flights
Contrary to what you are reading in the newspapers, LAX is adding more domestic and international flights. The new services are grouped below by airline.
American Airlines
American is the second largest airline at LAX. American's regional carrier, American Eagle, is adding a new non-stop to Santa Fe, NM on December 14th. Flights will be on American Eagle's 44-seat Embraer ERJ-140 regional jets.
http://www.aa.com/content/amrcorp/pressReleases/2007_07/23_santafe.jhtml
Delta Airlines
Delta is expanding its service in a big way at LAX. Western Airlines had served many of the domestic and Mexican destinations listed below from LAX. Delta acquired Western in 1986. Delta is also adding service to some cities in Mexico and Central America that have never before had non-stop service to LAX. Did you know LAX is the number one U.S. airport in flights to Mexico? New non-stops added in June and July include:
Boise, ID
Denver, CO
Oakland, CA
McAllen, TX
Oklahoma City, OK (starts September 4)
Phoenix, AZ
Sacramento, CA
San Francisco, CA
San Jose, CA
Santa Fe, NM (starts December 10)
Spokane, WA
Vancouver, Canada
Belize City, Belize
Guanacaste-Liberia, Costa Rica
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Culiacan, Mexico
Guadalajara, Mexico
Hermosillo, Mexico
La Paz, Mexico
Loreto, Mexico
Los Mochis, Mexico
Terreon, Mexico
Tijuana, Mexico
Zacatecas, Mexico
Zihuatanejo, Mexico
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10558
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10639
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10699
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10722
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10790
MaxJet
MaxJet is an all-business class airline flying Boeing 767-200ER's from the U.S. to London's Stansted Airport (airport code STN). Stansted, located east of central London, is a major base for two of Europe's largest low cost airlines, Ryanair and easyJet. There is a convenient rail connection from London Stansted to central London. MaxJet will begin offering four weekly flights from LAX to London Stansted on August 30, 2007. http://www.maxjet.com/homeAction.do#/html/flyingMaxjet/flyingMaxjetLosAngeles.html
United Airlines
United is the largest airline serving LAX. On September 5th, United is adding a Wichita, KS daily roundtrip served by explus on a Canadair Regional Jet 700 and in October a daily flight to Hong Kong with continuing service to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on a Boeing 747-400. http://www.united.com/press/detail/0,6862,58186,00.html
http://www.united.com/press/detail/0,6862,58105,00.html
American Airlines
American is the second largest airline at LAX. American's regional carrier, American Eagle, is adding a new non-stop to Santa Fe, NM on December 14th. Flights will be on American Eagle's 44-seat Embraer ERJ-140 regional jets.
http://www.aa.com/content/amrcorp/pressReleases/2007_07/23_santafe.jhtml
Delta Airlines
Delta is expanding its service in a big way at LAX. Western Airlines had served many of the domestic and Mexican destinations listed below from LAX. Delta acquired Western in 1986. Delta is also adding service to some cities in Mexico and Central America that have never before had non-stop service to LAX. Did you know LAX is the number one U.S. airport in flights to Mexico? New non-stops added in June and July include:
Boise, ID
Denver, CO
Oakland, CA
McAllen, TX
Oklahoma City, OK (starts September 4)
Phoenix, AZ
Sacramento, CA
San Francisco, CA
San Jose, CA
Santa Fe, NM (starts December 10)
Spokane, WA
Vancouver, Canada
Belize City, Belize
Guanacaste-Liberia, Costa Rica
Guatemala City, Guatemala
Culiacan, Mexico
Guadalajara, Mexico
Hermosillo, Mexico
La Paz, Mexico
Loreto, Mexico
Los Mochis, Mexico
Terreon, Mexico
Tijuana, Mexico
Zacatecas, Mexico
Zihuatanejo, Mexico
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10558
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10639
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10699
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10722
http://news.delta.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=10790
MaxJet
MaxJet is an all-business class airline flying Boeing 767-200ER's from the U.S. to London's Stansted Airport (airport code STN). Stansted, located east of central London, is a major base for two of Europe's largest low cost airlines, Ryanair and easyJet. There is a convenient rail connection from London Stansted to central London. MaxJet will begin offering four weekly flights from LAX to London Stansted on August 30, 2007. http://www.maxjet.com/homeAction.do#/html/flyingMaxjet/flyingMaxjetLosAngeles.html
United Airlines
United is the largest airline serving LAX. On September 5th, United is adding a Wichita, KS daily roundtrip served by explus on a Canadair Regional Jet 700 and in October a daily flight to Hong Kong with continuing service to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam on a Boeing 747-400. http://www.united.com/press/detail/0,6862,58186,00.html
http://www.united.com/press/detail/0,6862,58105,00.html
Welcome to the LAX Blog!
The goal of the LAX Blog is to be the number one source of information on all matters concerning Los Angeles International Airport. In addition, we will cover other L.A. City owned airports such as LA/Ontario, LA/Palmdale and Van Nuys Airport. Blog away!
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