Flight News | Deals and offers from Airlines

From seats and baggage to food and entertainment, airlines are charging for more ‘extras’ than ever before. Cheapflights.co.uk, the UK’s leading flight price comparison website, reveals the top 10 current hidden extras while its viewers predict the extras of the future.

Skyscanner has revealed the top 10 most searched for 2009 destinations to see where people are heading on holiday this year. London took the top spot and a total of five UK cities made the top 50, highlighting the fact that domestic air travel remains strong.

With economic uncertainties and the key holiday booking period looming, holidaymakers want reassurances that their money is financially protected. With immediate effect, all customers booking a flight on Thomson Airways are covered under the government backed ATOL scheme, meaning that customers can book in the knowledge that their money is safe.

Air Southwest has teamed up with Newquay Cornwall Airport to offer free airport parking for passengers until the end of January. The New Year offer is open to any Air Southwest customer already booked or planning to book a flight from Newquay during January, and applies from January 6 to 31.

Passengers looking to travel to the US during 2009 will be able to make savings when booking as part of American Airlines’ ‘Great American Sale’. Flights to nine of the most popular destinations in the US have been reduced for passengers booking their travel before 27 January 2009, with prices between London Heathrow and New York JFK now starting from just £239 per person return, including taxes and surcharges.

In an extension to the services it offers its passengers, American Airlines has announced the re-opening of its Flagship Lounge at Miami International Airport. The new addition will give passengers another quiet haven for relaxing or working before and after flights and will particularly benefit those travelling and connecting between American’s daily direct flights between Miami and London Heathrow.

New Oxford to Jersey flights are being operated by Air Southwest for 2009 with Jersey-based C.I. Travel Group, it has been announced. Linking the historic University City with the Channel Islands for the first time, the service will operate every Saturday between 11 July and 12 September 2009 from Oxford Airport, located just seven miles from Oxford city centre.

Eastern Airways has again been rated the number one punctuality performer at both Birmingham and Newcastle airports. From January to September 2008, the independent UK regional airline was once more the top scheduled airline at Birmingham and Newcastle ahead of notable carriers including flybe, British Airways, KLM, Lufthansa, easyJet and Ryanair.

Food and drink onboard no-frills flights can cost almost half as much as the actual flight*, warns Which? Holiday. A sandwich, small tub of Pringles, bottle of sparkling water, cup of coffee and a small bottle of red wine can add as much as £16.05 to the price of a single ticket**.

According to a poll by Cheapflights, the annual holiday is the last in a long line of wishes that UK consumers would strike off in the credit crunch. It seems Brits are swapping Versace for Valletta and Prada for Prague as they shun shopping sprees in favour of keeping their annual holiday.

The announcement by Newquay Cornwall Airport that it will re-open for business on Saturday 20 December has been welcomed by the airport's main airline operator, Air Southwest.

Delta will strengthen its gateway at Los Angeles International Airport in 2009 with the addition of its first-ever daily nonstop service between Los Angeles and Sydney, Australia* effective July 1; three-times weekly service between Los Angeles and Sao Paulo, Brazil* beginning May 21; and increased service between Los Angeles and New York-JFK starting March 2.

Delta customers can now book convenient nonstop flights between Detroit Metro Airport and Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport for service beginning on June 4, 2009.

Consistent with SkyTeam’s “Caring More About You” philosophy, the airline alliance has launched a redesigned version of its web site, skyteam.com. The new customer-centred web design aims to create an intuitive user experience that quickly delivers visitors the content they need from SkyTeam. With a fresh new look and clearer navigational features, the new web site reinforces the excitement of global travel.

Jet Airways, India’s premier international airline, has been voted as the ‘Airline with Best First-Class Service in the World’, by readers of the prestigious Business Traveler magazine, at the 20th Annual ‘Best in Business Travel’ Awards. The airline received the award at a gala ceremony at the Sofitel, Los Angeles on December 11, 2008.

Lithuanian Airlines (flyLAL) has announced that its 2009 flight schedule will include direct routes from London and Dublin to the Lithuanian summer tourist resort Palanga which lies on the Baltic coast.

Oman Air has secured valuable slots at London’s Heathrow airport to launch non-stop flights from Heathrow to Muscat in Oman. Oman Air currently operates a daily service to Muscat from London Gatwick but will move its operation to Heathrow from 15 January 2009.

At their annual Board Meeting, the CEOs of the Star Alliance member airlines have today voted to accept the application of Brussels Airlines to become a future member of the alliance.

Arik Air has appointed Aviareps PLC as its General Sales Agent in the UK and Ireland. Award winning Arik Air began operations in 2006. It is Nigeria’s leading commercial carrier and is based in Lagos. It currently operates a domestic network with almost 100 flights daily and a fleet of 20 state-of-the-art aircraft. The new service between London Heathrow and Lagos launches on 15 December 2008.

Star Alliance has opened a First and Business Class Lounge at Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) Airport. The 850 square metre facility is the largest of its kind in Terminal 1 and offers space for more than 200 customers.

While the financial industry continues to chew on the credit crunch, the pet industry experienced a boom with £1.8 billion spent on pet services in 2007 and has enjoyed further growth in 2008.

Flight Centre today announced the nationwide launch of its ‘Perfect Holiday Pledge’ to offer its customers the assurance of a holiday experience that meets or beats expectations. The travel retailer is so confident that its employees offer the best customer service in the industry it will give customers £100 towards their next Flight Centre booking if they are not 100 per cent satisfied with their holiday.

With the festive travel period just around the corner, Cheapflights.co.uk, the UK’s leading flight price comparison website, has compiled a top ten list of tips on how to beat the crowds this Christmas.

Beginning March 11th, 2009, Malaysia will become more accessible than ever before following the announcement that Air Asia X will be commencing service from London Stansted to Kuala Lumpur. With one-way fares including taxes starting from just £99 each way, Tourism Malaysia is confident that Kuala Lumpur will become the new crossroads of Asia.

The Port of Seattle unveiled the new third runway at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport this week. The opening of the third runway is expected to cut flight delays from an average of 10 minutes to 2.5 minutes.