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

July 23, 2004

Iberian: Deaf Passengers Can't Fly
A group of deaf teenagers going on holiday to Spain were told to leave their aircraft at the last minute today because they did not have an adult with them. Parents and disability rights campaigners attacked Iberian Airways for “humiliating” and upsetting the 23 youngsters. They were pupils of Mary Hare Grammar School for the Deaf at Newbury, Berks and were due to go on holiday to the Canary Islands, via Madrid, to celebrate the end of their A Levels. The break was organized several months ago and parents said the airline was told they would be traveling by themselves. “They checked in and boarded the plane at Heathrow after asking if they could sit together. Their baggage was loaded on but then someone decided to throw them off. “ Scotsman | Posted 6:30 a.m.
• Airline: Just Following The Law (BBC)
• Activists Say No Such Rules Exist (Guardian)

Before we denounce Iberian for its ignorance, here's a question: Why weren't the parents of these passengers told about the "rules" before the trip? What about the ignorant travel agent?

9/11 Panel: Fix Airport Screening
Nearly three years after the Sept. 11 attacks, two key elements of the Bush administration's effort to bolster airport security remain works in progress: more rigorous background checks of passengers and a better way to check for explosives in luggage. A plan to prescreen air travelers for terrorist connections, once described by the administration as an urgent need, has been sent back to the drawing board. And only eight of 441 commercial airports have systems recognized as the best at quickly and effectively screening checked baggage. The reasons for the delays are varied. Technology problems and privacy concerns doomed the passenger prescreening program, while the enormous cost -- an estimated $5 billion -- has held up progress installing large bomb-screening machines in airports. AP | Posted 6:45 a.m.

Extra Ryanair Passengers Put On Toilet
Low-cost airline Ryanair faces an investigation after flying from Girona in Spain to London's Stansted airport earlier this week with people seated in the aircraft's toilets, writes Dominic Coyle The airline, which was reported to the regulator following the incident, has acknowledged that the flight was overcrowded and that it should not have happened. "Ryanair does not overbook its flights," a spokesman said. "We are taking it very seriously and it is the subject of an internal investigation." It is understood that the passengers seated on the toilets for the duration of the flight were Ryanair staff. Other staff not on duty on the particular flight were sitting in jump-seats in the passenger cabin. Irish Times | Posted 7 a.m.

Airport Execs Clean O'Hare Bathrooms - Executives responsible for one of the busiest US airports are getting down and dirty in its bathrooms this week. About 25 executives in the city of Chicago's aviation department are pulling bathroom duty at the city's O'Hare International Airport to give them a better appreciation for the importance of sparkingly clean toilet facilities. AFP | Posted 7 a.m.

JetBlue Profits Down 77 Percent - JetBlue Airways Corp. said Thursday its second-quarter profits fell 77 percent due to high fuel costs and increased fare competition from the low-cost carrier's rivals. JetBlue earned $21.5 million, or 19 cents a share, compared with $38 million, or 36 cents a share, in the same quarter a year ago. A survey of analysts by Thomson First Call projected earnings of 21 cents a share for the quarter. AP | Posted 7:05 a.m.

Fuel Thieves Stopped at Miami Airport - Florida authorities have detained 11 people for allegedly running a scam in which they stole millions of dollars worth of fuel from Miami International Airport, a spokesman said. "Eleven people are in custody ... there will be further arrests," said Edward Griffiths, a spokesman for the Florida State Attorney's office. "This group of people were acting together to steal fuel valued at about four million dollars," he told AFP. AFP | Posted 7 a.m.

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• Off the Record... I received the first e-mail last Monday about Annie Jacobsen's "exclusive" first-person account of a terrorist dry run. I read it, and I didn't believe it. I saw Joe Sharkey's column about it. I read it, and I don't think he believed it, either. I saw the rest of the blogger and media community jumping on the "it's-happening-again" bandwagon. I wish I could say I was surprised by that. It's paranoia, no two ways about it.

Perhaps Annie's editors got it right in the introduction to her account: "The WWS Editorial Team debated long and hard about how to handle this information and ultimately we decided it was something that should be shared. What does it have to do with finances? Nothing, and everything."

They're only wrong about one thing: It's got nothing to do with finances, and indeed, her conclusions have very little to do with reality. They should have debated a little longer and a little harder.

Incidentally, I've lost count of how many "reports" of terrorist hijackers I've read or been sent since 9/11. Do we really think the bad guys are stupid enough to try the very same thing again? Come on. Posted 7:10 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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