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

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August 27, 2004

U.K. Airports Ban Heavy Luggage
Heavy suitcases have been banned from Edinburgh airport, with passengers being forced to repack their contents into smaller bags. From yesterday, baggage weighing more than 70lb each has been barred to protect staff from injuring themselves during handling. The move follows a similar limit being introduced at Heathrow airport earlier this year. It will later be extended to Glasgow, Aberdeen and several major English airports. A 70lb case weighs as much as a six-year-old child or 32 bags of sugar. BAA Scotland, which runs Edinburgh airport, said the restriction on such bags had been introduced simply to enforce an existing weight limit. Scotsman | Posted 6:30 a.m.
• Heathrow Introduced Ban in June (Evening Times)
• Could Stop 40 Percent of Staff Injuries (BBC)

It's about time. I've seen passengers try to check in everything but the kitchen sink.

Agents Fight Northwest on Fees
Travel agents and the systems they use to book plane tickets fought back Thursday against Northwest Airlines' new fees on the tickets they sell. Starting Wednesday, Northwest will pay only $5 of the $12.50 cost of booking a Northwest ticket through a global distribution system such as Sabre or Galileo. Northwest had absorbed the $12.50 as a cost of doing business but now wants travel agencies and Web sites to pick up $7.50 of the cost. AP | Posted 6:35 a.m.

Government Introduces 'Secure Flight'
In a concession to privacy advocates, the government on Thursday announced plans for a computerized profiling system for air travelers that would be less intrusive than previously envisioned. "We will meet the goal of improving security," said Transportation Security Administration chief David M. Stone, promising a more thorough and accurate system. "We will be protecting privacy and civil liberties." Stone said that people wrongly suspected would be able to clear their names. The government said it would call the new system "Secure Flight" instead of continuing to refer to it by the acronym CAPPS II. Los Angeles Times | Posted 6:45 a.m.

Disney Cruise-Bound Bus Bursts Into Flames - A Disney Cruise Line bus packed with tourists blew a tire on the Bee Line Expressway on Thursday and was evacuated before the vehicle burst into flames. The fiery spectacle tangled traffic on the Bee Line in east Orange County for miles, contributing to two accidents in which three people were taken by helicopter to hospitals, said Trooper Kim Miller, a Florida Highway Patrol spokeswoman. To make matters worse, a state prison bus transporting inmates east on the Bee Line in the same area broke down about that time. Orlando Sentinel | Posted 7 a.m.

U.S. Airlines Ask For More Government Help - US airline chief executives called on Congress to hold hearings on "soaring" fuel prices and said the government should consider releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to increase supply. "We are convinced that the only thing that will stop the wild increase in prices is fear by the speculators that the US government is ready to step in," 18 industry chief executives said in a letter to Senate and House committees. New York Post | Posted 7:05 a.m.

Passenger Sues Southwest Over Seat Policy - cosmetics company executive filed suit against Southwest Airlines over its policy for seating large-statured passengers. Warm Spirit Inc. co-founder and president Nadine Thompson alleges she was unfairly required to buy two seats because she is black. AP | Posted 7:10 a.m.

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• Off the Record ... here's an early look at our weekend features. John Frenaye writes about how Northwest's fees will affect you and your travel agent, and he tells us how he reacted when he heard about the new charges. And I suggest that the new fees don't go far enough. (And yes, I talk about coin-operated toilets, and I'm only half kidding.) Posted 7:15 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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