Whom or what would they kill to get an upgrade?
Nepal Airlines mechanics sacrificed two goats to appease Akash Bhairab, the Hindu sky god, after they just couldn’t quite fix the problems in their Boeing 757. How many goats does it take to get a 757 to arrive on time at LAX? Slaughtering livestock isn’t limited to Himalayan aviation: Longtime readers may recall that Turkish Airlines maintenance workers killed a camel to celebrate the disposal of a regional jet last year.
$100K isn’t a good flight value
I know it was for charity. But paying $100,000 to fly on the inaugural Airbus A380 flight on Singapore Airlines seems a bit much. Most importantly, will they earn miles?
Shocker: Motel 6 really won’t leave the light on for you
To conserve energy, the ultra-budget chain doesn’t really leave lights on. So says their folksy pitchman Tom Bodett. So you know it’s true.
Delta’s apparently not afraid of the competition
Inside baseball, maybe, but still: Looking over the blogroll at Delta’s blog, I noticed that they link to their competitors: Southwest’s blog. That’s pretty gutsy for a corporate blog!
United names dates and planes for new business class rollout
The first plane to receive the long-awaited upgrade of 180-degree lie-flat seats in the business class cabin: a Boeing 767. It’s scheduled to travel between Washington and Frankfurt on October 29, 2007. Saver awards are unavailable at press time.
US Air Force tags nuclear warheads to wrong airport
Next time your luggage heads to Ketchikan, Alaska instead of Kansas City, take heart: The Air Force does it too. A B-52 bomber mistakenly carried six nuclear warheads from Minot, North Dakota to Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. Oops. Just better hope it doesn’t end up at the Unclaimed Baggage Center.
Courts: Entering an airport means you’re subject to searches
This is old news, but I admit I just got wind of it now. If you’re at an airport in the U.S., you can’t turn around and leave the premises if you want to avoid being searched. “Citing threats of terrorism, the court ruled passengers give up all rights to be free of warrantless searches once a ‘passenger places hand luggage on a conveyor belt for inspection’ or ‘passes though a magnetometer.’ [...] In 1973, the circuit court ruled that airport searches were valid ‘only if they recognize the right of a person to avoid search by electing not to board the aircraft.’” Not anymore. Offer to leave all you want, they can still search you. For the law-dogs out there, the case is United States v. Aukai, 04-10226. (via Wired’s Threat Level)
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September 6th, 2007 at 5:52 am
I believe you also cannot leave gov’t buildings to avoid a search. Also prisons. But I think those rules predate 911. I’m neither a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV or the campaign trail, so YMMV.
1973 huh? Wow, Nixon flashback. Wasn’t that right before we strung up another gov’t in another distant land? I also think that might be around the time I first kissed a pretty girl. Definitely a mixed year.
-TF
September 6th, 2007 at 8:45 am
[...] new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!Upgrade: Travel Better points us to an Adage.com story as proof that: To conserve energy, the ultra-budget chain doesn’t really [...]
September 7th, 2007 at 1:30 am
Did anyone find the dates and routes United plans to roll out the 747 and 777 they speak of? I’m planning a trip to Southeast Asia in December, so this knowledge could be helpful in making my travel plans.
September 7th, 2007 at 6:29 am
You’re probably out of luck, unless you score the ONE 747 that is scheduled to be completed in December. From the press release: