A 90 year old flight attendant seems extraordinary considering we have only had a century of commercial flights! Bob Reardon started flying with Northwest Orient on 1st October 1951. The airline, in those days, flew DC-6s and Boeing 377 “Stratocruisers”. Northwest Orinet first flew to Japan in 1947 and for years was the largest foreign airline flying into Japan. Mr Reardon turned 90 in May, 2014. He set two Guinness World Records; one as the world’s oldest active flight attendant and the other for the longest career as a flight attendant (62 years). There is no upper limit on flight attendant ages in the USA whichI think…
Malaysia’s Marketing Fail
Poor Malaysia Airlines, they cannot put a foot right it seems. “We are committed to regaining the confidence of our customers and sending them on memorable holiday experiences as a trusted five-star carrier.” Lee Poh Kait, Malaysia Airlines regional senior vice president, Australia, New Zealand & South West Pacific. After a horror year, Malaysia Airlines have started to rebuild. Apart from lowering fares to ridiculous levels, its major shareholder has announced a complete transformation of the loss making carrier. In addition, the airline is looking for ways to market itself. Its latest campaign has been pulled,…
$25 for using Travelocity app
If you download and use the Travelocity app to book a hotel room of $US99 or more, they will give you $25 off the booking. I used it for a resort room in Thailand. The code one uses is MOBILE25. The deal is available until 30th november 2014. I checked with kayak.com which lists almost all possible rates one can get for a hotel. The Travelocity rate was a good one and the extra $25 was a bonus. I am an ingrate though. I am unlikely to use the app regularly. It does promise exclusive special prices. It will also keep all…
How I use plane safety briefings
“Ladies and gentlemen, the Captain has turned on the Fasten Seat Belt sign. If you haven’t already done so, please stow your carry-on luggage underneath the seat in front of you or in an overhead bin. Please take your seat and fasten your seat belt. And also make sure your seat back and folding trays are in their full upright position. For many passengers the start of the safety briefing is a sign they can start dozing, reading or texting. Are safety announcements an anachronism? Accounts of US Air Flight 1549‘s evacuation indicate that one of the key reasons many passengers were able to…
Knee Gadget Sales Rise
After “that incident” on United Airlines this week, the Knee Defender, a gadget that blocks airplane seats from reclining, has seen a boost in sales. It’s website crashed yesterday under the weight of orders for the $US21.95 Knee defender! The device consists of two clips that slip onto the seatback tray. The incident, occurred, on United Flight 1462 from Newark, New Jersey to Denver, Colorado. A male passenger (48 years old), seated in a middle seat of row 12 used the Knee Defender to stop the female passenger (also aged 48) in the seat in front of him…
Royal Jordanian Welcomes First 787
Middle Eastern carrier Royal Jordanian received their first Boeing 787 last Wednesday evening. Named “Crown Prince Hussein Bin Abdullah II“, the plane flew non stop from Seattle to Amman, a 13 hour flight. It is pictured below at Queen Alia International Airport in Amman. Royal Jordanian is the second Middle Eastern airline to operate the 787, after Qatar. RJ will receive four more of the Dreamliners thus year giving them five by the end of the year. They will replace the airline’s currently A340 and A330 planes. With 24 business class seats and 246 seats in economy, the carrier will introduce the plane into regular service…
Second Flight Diverted Due to Reclining Seat!
Is this a new trend? Another fight over whether a seat should be reclined or not leading to an aeroplane diversion occurred this week. En route from Miami to Paris, on American Airlines flight 62, passenger Edmund Alexandre demanded that the female passenger in front of him not recline her seat. After she refused, Mr Alexandre got into an altercation with the flight attendants. After grabbing one of the attendants, he was restrained by federal air marshals. The Boeing 767 then diverted to Boston. So, is it a new trend? Are we going to see open war…
Empty Malaysia planes herald “no surprise” restructure
My partner flew Malaysia Airlines two weeks ago and had the choice of four empty rows of five seats per economy passenger to stretch out in. This was how empty the plane was. A photo doing the rounds of the internet shows a starkly empty Malaysia Airlines Airbus A330 operating as flight 146. The service which departed Melbourne at 740am flying direct to Kuala Lumpur arriving at 1415 on Thursday 14 August 2014 had about 60 people on board. My next Malaysia Airlines flight is in two weeks. I called to arrange a “good seat” to find that…
Looking for the World’s Fastest Airline
As a runner, I am really interested in this event taking place next Saturday at Budapest Airport in Hungary. They will play host to a competition between airlines to see who is the fastest airline …on the ground. On Saturday 6 September, a 12 kilometre (8 mile) race involving 1,000 runners will take place on Budapest Airport’s Runway 1 (13R-31L) to raise funds for child cancer charities. The runway is 3km long so I presume teams will run it four times. There will be prizes awarded for: The fastest male and female “The Fastest Airline in the World” “The Fastest Airport…
Iceland Northern Lights from USA $899
I know that Iceland has been somewhat topical with a volcano threatening to blow! It is also one of the most amazing stunning and interesting places, I have ever visited. I have been hankering to go back since my visit there five years ago. On top of that I well and truly want to see the phenomenon known as the Northern Lights. Many years ago, I had the privilege of watching the “Southern Lights” ( Aurora Australis) in Tasmania, Australia. the shimmering, dancing colours is an image I will never forget. My appetite is whetted for their Northern…
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