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E L L I O T T ' S TRAVEL NOTES
Travel news, opinion and analysis

August 12, 2004

Hurricanes Force Airline Cancellations
Major airlines canceled some service to the Caribbean and Florida on Wednesday and kept a close eye on other big airports as two storms churned through the Atlantic. American Airlines, Air Jamaica, British Airways and US Airways canceled flights to Jamaica due to Hurricane Charley, which was sweeping through the region and heading toward South Florida. Low-cost carrier AirTran Airways also canceled flights to several cities in Florida and Mississippi due to Charley and Tropical Storm Bonnie, which is preceding the more powerful storm and targeting the Florida panhandle. Airlines also offered passengers on some Caribbean and Florida routes the chance to rebook tickets to avoid potential travel disruptions. Reuters | Posted 6:30 a.m.
• Florida Braces For One-Two Punch (Democrat)
• Tampa Could Get The Worst Of It (Biz Journal)

I'm right in the middle of it here in Orlando. So if this blog isn't updated tomorrow, it's probably just a temporary power outage. (I hope.)

Fall Fare Sales Really Take Off
Planning a late vacation this year may turn out to be a smart move: Several airlines are deeply discounting fall fares, in anticipation of a drop in traffic following a busy summer. American Airlines, US Airways, and JetBlue Airways, are each running extensive sales on domestic and international flights. Other airlines are offering giveaways or more limited sales. While it's not unusual for airlines to put their seats on sale in the fall, airline officials said this year's sales are different because despite nearly full planes all summer, air fares were unusually low. Boston Globe | Posted 6:35 a.m.

Union to Court: Replace United CEO
Angered by United's decision to stop contributing to employee pension plans, the machinists' union asked a federal bankruptcy judge yesterday to appoint a trustee to run the airline. The union's request added more strain to the most bitter labor-management conflict the airline industry has seen in more than a decade. Appointment of a trustee would be an extraordinary step that is generally taken only in the case of fraud or clear mismanagement. It effectively removes a chief executive's power and often prompts the departure of other senior managers. The New York Times | Posted 6:45 a.m.

JFK Screeners Charged With Stealing - Four federal security screeners were charged with stealing watches, jewelry and other property from baggage at two New York City airports, authorities said Wednesday. One screener was accused of stealing $40 in cash, watches and rings from luggage sent by undercover detectives last week through screening at the American Airlines terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport. AP | Posted 7 a.m.

Miami Wants $40 Million in Car-Rental Charges - The Miami-Dade Aviation Department has collected about $2 million of what it hopes will grow to $30 million to $40 million in car-rental surcharges to help pay for a car-rental hub at the planned Miami Intermodal Center. The car-rental complex is to be one of the first pieces of the center near Miami International Airport. Officials envision the center as a link for all forms of transportation in the county. Miami Today | Posted 7:05 a.m.

Passengers Get Bumped From Carnival Cruise - A year ago, Guy and Kathy Kessler decided they would take a weeklong cruise aboard Carnival's Miracle to celebrate Kathy's birthday next month. "We booked through a travel agent that deals with the military down at Patuxent Naval Air Station," Guy Kessler said. And through the military, the Kesslers paid a price they couldn't pass up -- just over $1,700 plus gratuities. But at the end of July... "We got a phone call from our travel agent stating that we were bumped from our cruise," Kessler said. WBAL | Posted 7 a.m.

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• Off the Record ... here's an interesting story-behind-the-story. A recent editor's note in The New York Times about a Travel Advisory column caught my attention. It concerned a July 11 story about the Clean Beaches Council, a nonprofit group that runs a voluntary program to rate United States public beaches for cleanliness and safety. Why were California's beaches left off the list? The report said that when the council's president, Walter McLeod, speculated that heavy use of the state's beaches was a major factor. But what he didn't mention (and what the reporter apparently didn't ask about) is that McLeod's group charges communities $2,500 to be listed and then $1,250 a year to remain certified if they continued to meet other criteria. So California's beaches may be cheap, but they're not dirty. Posted 7:10 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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