In The News Today

British Airways' cabin crew plans to start striking Tuesday and the airline is aiming to operate about half of its short-haul flights and more than 60% of its long-haul service from London during the walkout.

We are traveling again. Following the threat of major recession and travel cutbacks, ARC (Airline Reporting Corporation) reports international air sales by travel agents jumped more than 31%, while domestic sales were up 21%. Total transactions hit almost 13.4 million an 8.3% increase. For the year to date, total sales are up more than 20%, to $27 billion. And Amadeus, a multi-line cruise booking engine for travel agents, reports 10^ increase in travel agency cruise bookings.

Airlines seek to block hike in airport fees Arline industry is pressing Congress to drop a provision in the Federal Aviation Administration re-authorization bill that would allow airports to increase Passenger Facility Charges by as much as $2.50 per customer. Airlines said the measure is "harmful and "unnecessary" and could increase travel taxes by up to $112 for a family of four.

Why Danes are Great Studies have shown that Danes are among the happiest people on Earth, with their government-funded health care, dedication to fitness and general positive attitude. This all means Copenhagen offers visitors plenty of reasons to smile! The city features plenty of amenities to put a smile on the face of even the most reluctant traveler. The people are warm and helpful, great public transportation along with sights, sounds and charm unique to this special place. Consider Denmark for your next adventure.

Busy day for the travel indsutry!

Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, Jim Oberstar, wants the Justice Department to block the planned merger of Continental and United. He said the merger will move the country toward having an airline system dominated by three mega-carriers and United would become the world's largest airline. Two years ago Oberstar opposed the purchase of Northwest Airlines by Delta but Antitrust regulators approved it.

Want to 'fly' through airports? Registered Traveler Program Is back - Clear was one of the leaders in the RT program but shut down two years ago, followed by Vigilant Solutions, for lack of money. The assets of Clear were recently bought by AlClear LLC, which has announced plans to bring back the program. 1Queue will start pre-enrollment for travelers today www.flyiqueue.com. An actual start date will be announced soon. Annual memberships will be $149, with discounts for families, multiple-year memberships and negotiated volume corporate purchases. iQueue will offer a special introductory annual membership rate of $99 during the first 90 days of lane operations in Indianapolis. And the prgram will offer former Clear and Preferred Traveler members six months of free membership as credit for the time remaining on their previous memberships. Indianapolis International Airport has become the first to sign up for the relaunched registered traveler program.

Updated Travel Warning For Mexico - Department of State issued the following updated Travel Warning for Mexico on 6 May 2010: "The Department of State has issued this Travel Warning to inform U.S. citizens traveling to and living in Mexico about the security situation in Mexico, and to advise that the authorized departure of family members of U.S. government personnel from U.S. Consulates in the northern Mexico border cities if Tijuana, Nogales, Ciudad Juarez, Nuevo Laredo, Monterrey and Matamoros has been extended." For the complete statement, go to www.state.gov

Ash Cloud Update - An ash cloud caused by the eruption of an Icelandic volcano prompted the closure of six airports in western Ireland, including Shannon, for several hours earlier today. The airports have since been reopened, and air space over Ireland is open and operating without restrictions. There is a potential for additional disruptions to flights in the coming days, though the situation remains somewhat unpredictable and will be dependent on wind patterns and the strength of the volcano's eruptions.

Crew member on RCCL Explorer of the Seas Goes Overboard - The incident will delay the ship's arrival at Cape Liberty tomorrow by several hours. The crew member was reported missing at 8:40p.m. on May 5. Closed-circuit camera footage showed the employee on Deck 5, and 'climbed over the railing and lowered himself over the side of the ship." The captain returned the ship to that position and was met by the Coast Guard to begin searching for the missing crew member. The Coast Guard assumed control of the search this morning and the ship resumed its course.