airlines - Blogs - Tripatini2024-03-29T13:31:34Zhttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/airlinesTips for international and domestic departureshttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/tips-for-international-and-domestic-departures2024-02-15T11:12:02.000Z2024-02-15T11:12:02.000ZFlyustravelshttps://tripatini.com/members/Flyustravels180<div><p>Preparing for international and domestic departures can be both exciting and overwhelming. Whether you're a seasoned traveler or embarking on your first journey, it's essential to plan to ensure a smooth and enjoyable trip. Here are some valuable tips to consider before your departure:</p><p> </p><h2>Check Passport and Visa Requirements:</h2><p> Ensure that your passport is valid for at least six months beyond your intended return date, as many countries have this requirement. Additionally, research visa requirements for your destination country and apply well in advance if necessary.</p><p> </p><h2>Book Flights Early:</h2><p> For the best deals and availability, book your flights early, especially during peak travel seasons. Consider using flight comparison websites or apps to find the most affordable options.</p><p> </p><h2>Pack Light and Smart:</h2><p>Make a packing list and stick to it to avoid overpacking. Choose versatile clothing items that can be mixed and matched, and consider packing travel-sized toiletries to save space. Don't forget essential items like chargers, adapters, and any necessary medications.</p><p> </p><h2>Arrive Early at the Airport:</h2><p>Plan to arrive at the airport at least two hours before your domestic flight and three hours before your <a href="https://www.odissiresearchcentre.org/jetblue-terminal-logan/">international flight</a> to allow enough time for check-in, security screening, and potential delays. Some airports, especially larger ones, may require even more time.</p><p> </p><h2>Check-In Online:</h2><p>Take advantage of online check-in options offered by airlines to save time at the airport. You can often choose your seat and print your boarding pass or have it sent to your mobile device.</p><p> </p><h2>Know Baggage Restrictions:</h2><p>Familiarize yourself with the baggage allowances and restrictions for your airline, as they can vary. Avoid surprises and extra fees by weighing your luggage before you leave for the airport.</p><p> </p><h2>Security Screening:</h2><p>Be prepared for security screening by wearing easily removable shoes, avoiding excessive jewelry or metal objects, and placing liquids and electronics in separate, easily accessible bags. Follow the instructions of security personnel to expedite the process.</p><p> </p><h2>Stay Hydrated and Healthy:</h2><p>Traveling can be dehydrating, so drink plenty of water before and during your flight. Consider bringing healthy snacks to keep your energy levels up, and try to get up and stretch periodically during long flights to prevent stiffness.</p><p> </p><h2>Stay Informed:</h2><p> Stay informed about any potential travel disruptions, such as weather-related delays or security alerts, by signing up for airline notifications and checking for updates on your flight status regularly.</p><p> </p><h2>Respect Local Customs and Laws:</h2><p>Research the local customs and laws of your destination to avoid unintentionally offending locals or breaking any rules. Familiarize yourself with basic phrases in the local language to communicate more effectively.</p><p> </p><h2>Exchange Currency Wisely:</h2><p>Exchange currency before your departure or upon arrival at your destination to avoid unfavorable exchange rates at airports or tourist areas. Consider using credit cards with no foreign transaction fees for added convenience.</p><p> </p><h2>Stay Connected:</h2><p>Ensure that you have a reliable means of communication while traveling, whether it's through a local SIM card, international roaming plan, or messaging apps that work over Wi-Fi.</p><p> </p><h2>Keep Important Documents Safe:</h2><p>Keep important documents such as your passport, visa, and <a href="https://www.indianevisaservice.org/spirit-airlines-las-vegas-terminal/">travel insurance information</a> secure at all times. Consider making digital copies and storing them in a secure cloud storage service for easy access in case of loss or theft.</p><p> </p><p>By following these tips, you can minimize stress and maximize enjoyment during your international or domestic departure. Remember to stay flexible and adaptable, as unexpected situations may arise, and above all, embrace the adventure that travel brings. Safe travels!</p></div>Hawaii travel guidehttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/hawaii-travel-guide2023-01-25T08:24:41.000Z2023-01-25T08:24:41.000Zmarcos stonehttps://tripatini.com/members/marcosstone<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/10948808462?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p><span style="font-weight:400;">Hawaii is a paradise that is famous for its spectacular surf, lively holidays and breathtaking natural beauty. Out of the 8 major islands, those that's the most sought-after islands are Hawaii (known by the name of The Big Island), Maui and Oahu. If you're looking to surf or bathe in the waters of Waikiki Beach, Oahu is your ideal destination. There you'll also be able to go to Pearl Harbor. With its volcanoes, walking trails, beautiful beaches, a unique cuisine and a wealth of information about Hawaiian culture, It's no wonder that Hawaii is the top destination for many. If you're thinking of visiting, check out this Hawaii travel guide to discover how you can maximize your stay in this stunning area of the globe. We've gathered the top tips from our experts on travel and have a variety of suggestions on places to visit, what's the most ideal timing to visit Hawaii and the best places you can stay where to stay, how to travel and more.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight:400;">There are several places to discover and learn more about this place. So, if you’re visiting and taking flights from <strong><a href="https://www.lowestflightfares.com/cheap-flights-seattle-hawaii-sea-hnl/" target="_blank">Seattle to Hawaii</a></strong>, then take a stroll of the entire city and find out what’s hidden in those tiny bustling streets. Also, book your tickets with Lowest Flight Fare to avail impressive deals.</span></p><h1><span style="font-weight:400;">When is the ideal time to visit Hawaii?</span></h1><p><span style="font-weight:400;">With mild and pleasant temperatures all year long, It's not just the conditions in Hawaii, more so how busy the place gets, that determines when is the best time to visit. Because of its proximity to and the US continental shores, Hawaii provides a sanctuary for American people seeking respite from the winter chill. This means that the Christmas season in December can be the most crowded and costly period to visit. Even though there are not many variations in temperature, trade winds slow down in spring and the rain is also reduced. The time from March to May can be and the ideal time to take in the many perks Hawaii offers.</span></p><h2><span style="font-weight:400;">What's Summer similar to in Hawaii?</span></h2><p><span style="font-weight:400;">Hot, sunny, and humid, The Hawaiian summer is a time of peaceful sea conditions and affordable lodging. While during the American school holidays can bring many guests, but it's generally thought of as a low-season which results in excellent rates on hotel rooms and rental cars. The best attire is casual summer attire, including shorts, shirts and dresses. Remember sunscreen as well as hats and sunglasses.</span></p><h2><span style="font-weight:400;">What's the Autumn as in Hawaii?</span></h2><p><span style="font-weight:400;">As the autumn months begin as the trade winds start to increase, which means great surf is added to Hawaii's endless array of things to do. At this time there is no change in the Hawaii temperature is at or near the 20s, allowing breathtaking conditions for sightseeing, swimming and exploring. The best attire is shorts and t-shirts, dress, with smart casual clothing for eating out. Remember to wear a lightweight sweater to keep warm in the evening.</span></p><h1><span style="font-weight:400;">What's Winter as like in Hawaii?</span></h1><p><span style="font-weight:400;">The winter months typically bring more rain across Hawaii, However, this does have some advantages. It is also the time of season when the waterfalls are in full splendor. Because of the layout of the land that lies on the islands, conditions differ. It's possible to have sunny weather in one part of the island, while raining at the same time on another. The best attire is shorts or shirts, dresses and a lightweight jumper. Don't forget: A rain poncho or umbrella.</span></p><h1><span style="font-weight:400;">What's Spring similar to in Hawaii?</span></h1><p><span style="font-weight:400;">Of all Hawaii seasons, it is spring that is possibly the best time to see these islands in their absolute most stunning. The days are hot, and the rain has slowed down, and the trade winds have slowed to a light breeze. For the ultimate in relaxation, the gardens of tropical plants are blooming. Wear appropriate clothing: Resort clothes, with an option for a long-sleeved top for cooler evenings. Make sure to pack your snorkeling gear and swimmers - the ocean is warm and tranquil.</span></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-weight:400;">Take some time to explore the splendid attractions of this place, and make your trip worthwhile. While booking your <strong><a href="https://www.lowestflightfares.com/cheap-flights-houston-cancun-iah-cun/" target="_blank">flights from Houston to Cancun</a></strong>, don’t just fool around restaurants and tall buildings. Instead, take a good note of what’s under the table. </span></p><p> </p></div>These Are the Best Days for Christmas Travelhttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/these-are-the-best-days-for-christmas-travel2022-12-13T14:01:16.000Z2022-12-13T14:01:16.000Zflyustravelshttps://tripatini.com/members/flyustravels<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/10909257867?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><p>It would help if you started by making vacation flight reservations as soon as feasible. The Traveler advises that holiday flight reservation must be before Thanksgiving. It is recommended to plan an international flight for at least two and up to eight months. Most airlines give their best Christmas travel pricing between August and September, so book early.</p>
<p>Since the holiday date varies yearly, picking the best flying days might be tricky. This year's Christmas also happens on a Saturday, adding an extra layer of complexity.</p>
<p>To that end, when would you recommend flying this coming Christmas, 2022? The staff at Flyus travel surveyed many U.S. gateway and destination locations to agree on the best and worst travel dates.</p>
<p>Their 2022 Christmas Travel Survey found that approximately 43% of Americans plan a trip for Christmas or the holiday season.</p>
<p>As the <em><strong><a href="https://flyustravels.com/flight/usa-to-india-flight-deals" target="_blank">USA to India Flight Deals</a></strong></em> travel sector recovers in 2022, many people will take their first flight in years. Book your Christmas or New Year's flight early for the best rates (ideally, you have already booked your holiday travel).</p>
<p>The number of passengers and the price of airfare might vary significantly on different days of the week. Information about the best and worst days to fly over the holidays, long in advance to schedule your trip, can be found in this handy guide. Please refer to their comprehensive best and worst days to fly a guide for the other days of the year.</p>
<p><strong>When Is the Best Time to Reserve Holiday Flights?</strong></p>
<p>Thanksgiving and Christmas flights are best booked far in advance. You should typically book domestic flights one to three months in advance. Ideally, you would book your foreign ticket two to eight months in advance. If you want to ensure that you get the desired flight, arrival time, seat, and price, you should make your vacation reservations as far as possible.</p>
<p>Reservations for international and domestic flights (revenue and award tickets) often become available 11 months in advance. In contrast, domestic flights should be with caution if you plan to travel during the shoulder seasons. Most people find the best deals on international flights right at the start of the booking period. It's common for the price of domestic flights to be higher when they first go on sale and then decrease after some time has passed. Because of this, it is recommended that you book your foreign ticket well in advance of your domestic journey, particularly during the holidays.</p>
<p><strong>The Best and Worst Days of the Holiday Season to Fly</strong></p>
<p>Because Thanksgiving always falls on a Thursday, the best and worst days to book a flight around the holiday are consistent. Since Christmas does not always occur on a Sunday, it presents a unique set of challenges. Below are the best and worst days to shop and travel over the holidays. They analyzed hundreds of airline pricing data points around Thanksgiving and Christmas to develop their best and worst dates projection. The many cities in the United States included in their sample were both points of departure and arrival.</p>
<p><strong>Are flights on Christmas Day safe?</strong></p>
<p>The days leading up to and including Christmas see a significant rise in airport passenger volume, whereas Christmas Eve and Christmas Day tend to see much lower passenger volumes. The farther you are from the vacation, the fewer people there will be.</p>
<p><strong>It's also a popular time to travel before Christmas</strong></p>
<p>Before December 25th, these were the busiest days at U.S. airports: 2021's busiest day before Christmas was Thursday, December 23rd. Friday airline traffic was light since few individuals wanted to travel on Christmas Eve.</p>
<p>Once again, the most popular day to travel in 2020 was Wednesday, December 23rd, the day before Christmas Eve. Despite being a few days after the actual holiday, Friday, December 20th was the busiest travel day in 2019, demonstrating that people were anxious to begin their festivities as soon as the work week concluded.</p>
<p>The Wednesday before Thanksgiving (usually a Thursday) is traditionally the busiest day to travel in advance of the holiday, much like the day before Christmas Eve.</p>
<p><strong>The best and cheapest time to leave for a Christmas vacation flight</strong></p>
<p>If your Monday-through-Friday work schedule conflicts with federal holidays, go Friday, December 23rd after work (Christmas is on Monday, December 26th, this year). If you plan your ticket around certain times, you'll face a busy airport and pay extra.</p>
<ul>
<li>However, if you have any leeway in your schedule, you might consider the following alternative departure days to Friday.</li>
<li>Earlier in the week is ideal if you can work from home or take time off. Flyus travel data suggests that passengers may save up to 35% by departing earlier in the week than on the Thursday or Friday before Christmas.</li>
<li>According to Flyus travel, they are taking round-trip airfare from the <a href="https://flyustravels.com/blog/indian-travel-agency-in-chicago" target="_blank">Indian travel agencies in USA</a>, Mexico, on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday before Christmas is $200 cheaper per person than taking the same route on the Thursday or Friday before Christmas.</li>
<li>Flyus travel analyzed passenger records for the seven days before and after Christmas over the previous three years to find out how busy the airports and checkpoints tend to be on Christmas Day. The day of Christmas itself always had the fewest drivers on the road.</li>
<li>With minimal crowds and joyous spirits, Christmas Day flying wouldn't be so bad. If you take the first flight of the day, you may cook your holiday dinner.</li>
<li>If you must arrive by Christmas, leave on Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve is busier than Christmas Day, but less so than the days before.</li>
<li>Flying out on Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday, November 20–22, will allow you to spend more time with loved ones (or more time touring if you're going on a nontraditional vacation) and less time waiting in lines dealing with harried fellow travelers. If you're flexible with your travel dates, November 24th flights might be the most cost-effective option.</li>
<li>These are the most significant and cheapest dates that will send you home feeling full and gluttonous: This is next Friday, November 25th (hum, Black Friday: maybe go for the duty-free deals instead?)</li>
</ul>
<p>If Christmas is a holiday you observe, then they will move on to it. Since it doesn't always occur on the same day each year, the dates shown here will fluctuate. Don't go anywhere this year on these days to escape the crowds:</p>
<ul>
<li>You may save money on airfare by departing on the following dates: Sunday, December 18th; Monday, December 19th; Tuesday, December 20th; Saturday, December 24th (yes, it's Christmas Eve, and many people won't be booking this ticket); Sunday, December 25th (Christmas Day? There's never been a better time to buy because everything is cheap.</li>
</ul>
<p> </p></div>Airline Pilots and their Extremely Rigorous Traininghttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/commercial-aviation-airline-pilots-training-avgeek2022-12-06T07:30:00.000Z2022-12-06T07:30:00.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><p><span style="font-size:8pt;"><em><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}10857795868,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10857795868,RESIZE_930x{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="10857795868?profile=RESIZE_930x" width="750" /></a><a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/es/foto/vista-de-cabina-gm666297356-121449315?phrase=airline%20cockpit%20pilots" target="_blank">Rathke</a></em></span><br /> <br /> <br /> A few of you may have had the privilege of visiting the flight deck of a commercial airliner, and found yourself fascinated by the myriad levers, buttons, and other mechanisms surrounding the captain and co-pilot. After seeing that instrument panel, have you ever wondered what kind of training a pilot has? Of course, they must have a flight license, but how do you study for it? How long does it take? Are there other requirements along with flight training itself? Here's a quick explanation of all that, plus a little more:</p>
<h3><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong>Getting the Licence</strong></span></h3>
<p><br /> To earn the <strong>Airline Transport Pilot Licence (ATPL)</strong> , you must have at least 1,500 flight hours, which include at least 500 in multi-pilot operations, 150 as PIC (pilot in command), 200 cross-country hours, 75 instrument hours and 100 night-flight hours.</p>
<p>The <strong>Commercial Pilot License (CPL)</strong> and <strong>Airline Transport Pilot Licence (ATPL) Frozen</strong> allow you to act as a pilot in command of a single-pilot aircraft or as a co-pilot of a multi-pilot aircraft. For the CPL, at least 650 theoretical hours and 150-200 flight hours - depending on whether the training is integrated or modular - are required. The theoretical requirements are the same as for the ATPL, but with fewer practical hours. At this point you could fly for an airline with the ATPL Frozen: the theoretical part completed and flight hours pending, with a number of restrictions.</p>
<p>Although the ATPL is the license to carry out air transport, it is the CPL with ATPL Frozen that allows you to receive compensation for it. Therefore both licenses are part of the integral training to be able to work as a commercial aircraft pilot.</p>
<p>There are currently three ways to get the ATPL:</p>
<ol>
<li>Through the university degree <strong>Commercial Aviation Pilot and Air Operations</strong>, offered by a number of institutions throughout the world. This degree takes four years and includes more than 50 subjects, including physics, meteorology, flight instruction, air legislation, commercial law, and geography. It's therefore, a well-rounded degree, since someone who puts himself or herself at the controls of an aircraft must be very prepared in various fields.</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li>Modular training, which enables those who complete the various courses to fly different types of aircraft until they reach the ATPL, passing through lower licenses (<strong>PPL</strong>, CPL, etc.). This is ideal for those who prefer to go step by step, especially if they need to combine it with other studies or jobs.</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li>An integrated degree, which usually takes two or three years (faster than the modular one). Some schools offer an Aviation Management degree along with it - which is not strictly necessary itself, experts recommend adding a university degree to the ATPL, since it is highly valued when it comes to finding work.</li>
</ol>
<p><br /> In <strong>Europe</strong>, the minimum training required by the <a href="https://www.easa.europa.eu/"><strong>European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA)</strong></a> to become a pilot is 650 theoretical hours (and, of course, passing all subjects).</p>
<h3><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong>Upon Receiving the Licence</strong></span></h3>
<p><br /> But even once future pilots do finally receive their licences, their training isn't yet over! Normally they leave school with a limited ATPL or "Frozen", which enables them to be first officers (i.e., co-pilots). Once the 1,500 flight hours have been completed, and having fulfilled the requirements above, they've officially passed and obtained the Airline Transport Pilot Licence.</p>
<p>To work at an airline, in addition to the ATPL pilots need a rating for each type of aircraft. For example, if the airline flies <strong>Airbus A320</strong>s, you can only work if you have the specific clearance for that aircraft model. The type rating course takes about a month and combines theoretical sessions with a flight simulator. Landings and take-offs are also carried out without passengers.</p>
<p>Each airline also provides additional training and tests its pilots in different subjects, such as operator conversion, <a href="https://love2fly.iberia.com/2013/11/19/dangerous-goods/" target="_blank">dangerous cargo</a>, CRM, communications, <a href="https://love2fly.iberia.com/2022/01/17/aircraft-safety/" target="_blank">safety</a>, and many more.</p>
<h3><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong>Additional Schooling</strong></span></h3>
<p><br /> To obtain the ATPL, would-be pilots must have a secondary school diploma, and it's recommended to concentrate if possible in science, maths, and technology. For non-native-English speakers, proof of a minimum level of English equivalent to B1 or B2 is also required, since this is the international language of aviation. Both the EASA and the UN-affiliated <strong><a href="https://www.icao.int/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">ICAO</a></strong> require English accreditation with so-called "language competence", with a minimum level of 4 (Operational).</p>
<h3><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong>Other Requirements</strong></span></h3>
<p><br /> You've now gotten an idea of the enormous amount of training needed by a commercial pilot. But there are yet other considerations even beyond all that. Pilots must be in good health and obtain a special medical certificate before finally achieving their dream. <a href="https://www.copac.es/" target="_blank"><strong>COPAC</strong></a> (Spain's official commercial pilot school located in Madird) explains that this battery of exams includes vision and hearing testing, an electrocardiogram, blood and urine tests, etc. All this can take a whole day to complete. There are several conditions that may preclude someone from receiving the certificate, including cardiovascular diseases; epilepsy; certain types of diabetes; and colour blindness.</p>
<p>You pass all this, and congratulations - you're now an airline pilot! But even so. Throughout their careers, pilots must stay current with refresher courses and exams to maintain and update knowledge and skills.</p>
<p>It’s clear that pilot training is very extensive and demanding. By the way, according to one study, somewhere around 635,000 new commercial pilots will be needed around the world by 2037 - in case any of you wants to become one!</p>
<p> </p></div>Flight Cancellation Insurance and Your Refund Rights: A Quick Reference Guidehttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/airlines-flight-cancellation-insurance-refund-rights2022-08-01T16:05:00.000Z2022-08-01T16:05:00.000ZFlyustravelshttps://tripatini.com/members/Flyustravels180<div><p>It happens: you book flights but something comes up and you have to cancel. And if you have no travel insurance,cancelling and pursuing a refund can be a daunting prospect. So here are some tips for cancelling pre-paid tickets and bookings, and getting a refund.</p>
<p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>For Starters, When Booking Use a Tour Operator</strong></span></p>
<p>When you cancel a trip, having a travel agent fight for you to secure a refund or compensation is a huge advantage. Consult with your travel agent about your alternatives before making any last-minute changes.</p>
<p>Should enter trip reservations and pre-purchased tickets into an Excel spreadsheet for easy reference</p>
<p>Take a look at your <strong><a href="https://flyustravels.com/flight/direct-flights-from-india-to-canada">Direct flights from India to Canada</a> </strong>travel schedule to get started. If you have pre-paid airline or rail tickets, list them.</p>
<p>After that, make a list of any hotel bookings you've made. Finally, establish a note of any additional reservations or pre-purchased tickets you want to use while on your trip.</p>
<p>This entire list will assist you in guaranteeing that you cancel all your reservations or tickets.</p>
<p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Do Your Research on Cancellation Policies of Your Travel Companies</strong></span></p>
<p>Should now review the cancellation policies for your bookings and pre-paid tickets. You should have reviewed these rules before booking, but it's necessary to refresh your memory on each company's policy again.</p>
<ul>
<li>Make a mental note of the steps involved in cancelling your subscription. When reviewing cancellation rules, be sure you can answer the following questions:</li>
<li>To cancel, do they have to phone or email the company?</li>
<li>Do you have a toll-free number or email address for customer service?</li>
<li>Is there a way to get a refund, a coupon, or points from the company?</li>
<li>How long would it take until they get the money back? Is there a specific reason for this?</li>
<li>Before going on to the next phase, be sure you can answer each of these questions.</li>
</ul>
<p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Re-read the fine print of your travel insurance policy</strong></span></p>
<p>Before cancelling a trip, travellers who have purchased trip cancellation insurance should review the policy's coverage details. Make sure you know the grounds for trip cancellation under the insurance. For compensation under the policy's Trip Cancellation benefit, your cause for cancellation must come as an eligible reason.</p>
<p>Consider the possibility of a Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) advantage under specific policies. Will repay your unused, non-refundable pre-paid fees or deposits under this policy if you cancel your trip following the proper cancellation procedures indicated in your insurance documentation.</p>
<p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Terminations in Their Entirely</strong></span></p>
<p>It's time to cancel your vacation now that you've gathered all the relevant information.</p>
<p>It would help if you began by making reservations and purchasing tickets in advance that have a limited number of changes you may make. Make sure you cancel them promptly. After that, you may make additional arrangements and purchase your tickets.</p>
<p>You'll need to get in touch with the company's customer care department to cancel a reservation. When dealing with customer service, always remember to be polite yet forceful. You may be able to get a better deal if you terminate your contract.</p>
<p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Cancellation Fees for Late Cancellations</strong></span></p>
<p>Late cancellation costs may apply if you try to reschedule or cancel a travel reservation. Some airlines, for example, levy a fee if you cancel your ticket within 24 hours of departure.</p>
<p>Whether your travel company imposes late fees, find out if there are ways to avoid them.<br /> </p>
<p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Ensure that You and any Travelling Companions Stay in Touch</strong></span></p>
<p>Establishing clear lines of communication with your fellow travellers is critical. As long as you're not travelling alone, you should be open and honest with everyone who's with you on your trip.</p>
<p>Please do not cancel the trip until you inform them first, and don't do so unless you have a valid reason for doing so. Communication early on may help modify if necessary.</p>
<p><strong>Contact Your Travel Insurance Company to Make a Claim</strong></p>
<p>Claims may now be submitted by those who have trip cancellation insurance. Be one last check of your insurance paperwork to ensure you know what is and is not covered.</p>
<p>Gather all your documentation (i.e., receipts, confirmations, emails, etc.) and your insurance id. An online portal, an email, or a postal form should be acceptable methods for submitting a claim. For further information on how to file a claim, visit your insurance carrier's website or contact the company's customer service department.</p>
<p>Be patient and give as much paperwork as possible to examine your claim, which generally takes a while.</p>
<p><strong>If You Need to Cancel, Do it as Soon as Possible<br /> <br /> </strong>The earlier you begin the cancellation process, the simpler it will be to handle. You are cancelling in advance, even if just a few days or weeks, shows consideration for your travelling companions, who may have taken time out of work or school to join you.</p>
<p>Additionally, if you cancel ahead of schedule, you may have an easier time obtaining a refund. Booking businesses like hotels and airlines may charge cancellation fees or not provide full refunds if you cancel within 24 or 48 hours after making a reservation.<br /> <br /> <strong>Don't Send Me an Email</strong></p>
<p>When cancelling a service, you may require help from the company's customer support department. If you need to cancel an appointment at the last minute, phoning the company's customer care number may be more suitable than sending an email.</p>
<p>When trying to cancel a trip at the eleventh hour, a company's email response time is notoriously slow. Over the phone, may answer further inquiries and concerns more quickly.</p>
<p>While emailing may be the preferred method of communicating with a company representative about cancelling your subscription, a phone call may be the most efficient and successful method.</p>
<p>Sometimes, clients may be required to use email or online chat to contact customer care.<br /> <br /> <strong>Maintain a Record of Everything</strong></p>
<p>Always record your purchases and reservations if you need to change or cancel your plans.</p>
<p>Don't throw away anything from travel businesses or their representatives, including emails, receipts, phone calls, and printed documentation. For the duration of your journey, have these papers at your fingertips.</p>
<p>You may expedite the cancellation process by keeping track of every step of your reservation and transaction. In addition, you may provide documents to your travel insurance carrier when submitting a claim.</p>
<p>To ensure that you get your refund or coupons, it's a good idea to record your cancellation procedure.<br /> <br /> <strong>Consider the possibility of a refund in another form</strong></p>
<p>If you cancel at the last minute, you may not get a full refund from certain travel firms. However, they may provide coupons or credits instead of a refund.</p>
<p><strong>What do you mean by a "Travel Voucher"?</strong></p>
<p>As though they were gift cards, travel certificates and credits may use as vouchers for future firm purchases. For example, the employer may pay for a round-trip plane ticket or a one-night stay at a hotel.</p>
<p>Even though these reimbursements may not always be optimal, they might lead to more cheap travel in the future.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong><a href="https://flyustravels.com/flight/flights-to-india-from-canada">Flights to India from Canada</a></strong></p>
<p> </p></div>How Does an Aircraft's 'Black Box' Flight Recorder Work?https://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/how-does-an-aircraft-s-black-box-flight-recorder-work2022-04-06T07:40:00.000Z2022-04-06T07:40:00.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><img src="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/10261301081?profile=RESIZE_400x&width=400"></div><div><h6> </h6>
<h6><span style="font-size:8pt;"><em>by guest blogger </em></span><a href="https://puriruiz.es/"><em><span style="font-size:8pt;">Puri Ruiz</span></em></a></h6>
<p>Much has been written about this small device that all commercial aircraft have been incorporating for more than half a century. And little wonder: "black box" flight recorders are essential in order to identify the causes of an accident.</p>
<p>We know, thanks to ironclad statistics, that the airplane is the safest means of transportation, but several decades ago there was a model of aircraft, the <strong>Comet</strong>, whose accident rate was well outside of normal range. It was the early 1950s and the experts wanted to know what they were due to. Australian chemist and aeronautical engineer <strong>David Warren</strong> was the creator of the first black box, and developed it based on a technology that recorded in-flight conversation. But back in 1939 there was a more rudimentary prototype, created by Frenchman <strong>François Husseno</strong>, with photographic film and calibrated with mirrors, to which sensors launched flashes that reflected on it and thus recorded the flight history. An interesting fact: it's said that Hussenot, aware of the importance of his invention, hid the box near a beach on the <strong>Atlantic Ocean</strong> when the <strong>Nazis</strong> invaded <strong>France</strong>, so that they wouldn't get hold of it.</p>
<p>From Warren's device to today, black boxes have come a long way. To begin with, airplanes do not incorporate one, but two, both normally located at the rear of the aircraft. And each of them has a specific function:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>FDR (Flight Data Recorder):</strong> this device records all those parameters that can be recorded on a commercial flight, such as altitude, course, speed, engine performance, etc. Most of these devices today record between 17 and 25 hours of data and are subjected to exhaustive reviews annually to verify optimal reliability.</li>
<li><strong>CVR (Cockpit Voice Recorder):</strong> records the voices and sound warnings of the last two hours of the flight (or the last half hour, depending on the plane and the device) via microphones located in the upper part of the cockpit, so that we can also have spoken information. A standard CVR records four different channels of audio data. Of course, digitization has brought noticeable improvements to its manufacture. On the one hand, yesterday's magnetic tapes are no longer used; these days all the information is stored in solid state drives, also known as flash memories, which can also keep this data for years, and have their own power supply that does not rely on the airplane's.</li>
</ul>
<p>Airplane black boxes also have an underwater beacon that emits geolocation signals for 30 days. Technology is advancing rapidly in this regard, and black boxes are getting better and better: since 2019, different aircraft have begun to be equipped with devices that capture up to 25 hours of sound recording, and due to their smaller size they can be placed in two locations: one at the front of the plane and the other at the rear. In this way, the possibilities of preserving all the information are much greater. Technological companies such as <strong>Leonardo</strong> or <strong>L3Harris</strong> are two of the leading companies in its manufacture.</p>
<p>But of course, all this would not make any sense without one fundamental thing: the extraordinary resistance of chosen materials. The FDR and CVR devices are protected by the <strong>CSMU</strong> (<strong>Crash-Survivable Memory Unit</strong>) system, which makes them virtually unbreakable for two reasons:</p>
<p>The materials. Titanium and steel encase and armor the recording system of both devices. Titanium is a metal with the best hardness-density ratio, very resistant to corrosion, fatigue and capable of being subjected to high temperatures without deforming. Steel has similar properties, although its weight is greater. People often ask why the entire plane could not be made from these materials: it would simply be too heavy to take flight.</p>
<p>The demanding resistance tests. In addition to the fact that these devices are periodically inspected, before being installed on aircraft they undergo numerous tests that certify their extremely high durability: resistance to fire, penetration, water pressure, crushing and strong impact.</p>
<p>All information stored in the FDR and CVR devices (that is, the two black boxes) is digitally extracted and processed in a specialized laboratory through sophisticated programs.</p>
<p>Finally, it is interesting to know why it is called a black box. The origin of this name is not entirely clear: some old prototypes of the British <strong>Royal Air Force</strong> were painted in that color, and others were a kind of camera obscura that incorporated photographic plates. But they might also receive this name based on systems theory, where a black box is an element that receives input and produces an output, or series of responses. Whatever the origin, black boxes aren't even black but rather covered with a special orange paint, also highly resistant to corrosion and high temperatures.</p>
<h6> </h6>
<h6><em>Photo | <a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/es/foto/registrador-de-vuelo-conocido-como-caja-negra-utilizada-en-aeronaves-gm586725114-100720909" target="_blank">narvikk</a></em></h6>
<p> </p>
<p> </p></div>Inflight Dining: From Design to Seatback Trayhttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/airlines-inflight-dining-meals2022-03-18T05:50:00.000Z2022-03-18T05:50:00.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><p> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}10216909265,RESIZE_400x{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}10216909265,RESIZE_930x{{/staticFileLink}}" width="750" alt="10216909265?profile=RESIZE_930x" /></a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Admittedly, inflight dining has not gotten a lot of love over much of the course of commercial aviation's history. Actually, early in that history, in the 1930s, multi-course meals were cooked onboard. However, as the postwar demand for flights took off in the 1950’s and 60’s and aircraft sizes (and therefore passenger numbers on each flight) grew, this soon proved impractical, and the complexity of cooking for hundreds of passengers in a tight space within a limited time frame prompted airlines to switch to premade meals, heated in onboard galleys.</p>
<p> <iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s7hM4NtfMbY" width="1269" height="714" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Nowadays, inflight meals for all classes of service are prepared in an elaborate process on terra firma according to <a href="https://www.academia.edu/28264120/World_Food_Safety_Guidelines_for_Airline_Catering" target="_blank">World Food Safety Guidelines for Airline Catering</a> by a handful of international catering companies, including <a href="https://www.gategroup.com/en-gb/brands/gate-gourmet/" target="_blank"><strong>Gate Gourmet</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.lsgskychefs.com/" target="_blank"><strong>LSG Sky Chefs</strong></a>, and <strong>Austria</strong>-based <strong><a href="https://www.doco.com" target="_blank">Do & Co</a></strong>, which has operations at 31 sites worldwide, including <strong>Madrid</strong> and <strong>Barcelona</strong> airports, where it services <strong>Iberia</strong>'s fleet. The catering chefs meet with airline representatives, with a lot of discussion and debate before a new menu is agreed upon and implemented. Decisions on menus and recipes also vary according to route to cater for international and regional tastes, as well as class of service (premium vs. economy).</p>
<p> </p>
<p><img class="size-full wp-image-19028" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/l2f-jan-22-pic-inflight-meals-being-packaged-in-central-kitchen-istock-1079717252.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="836" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Regardless of all that, another eternal challenge for menu designers is the fact that high altitudes suppress the functioning of the taste buds and thus our enjoyment of inflight meals. <strong>Guillaume de Syon</strong>, a history professor at <strong>Pennsylvania</strong>'s <strong>Albright College</strong>, has studied the history of airline meals, and suggests that pressurisation can make passengers thirsty and food taste "dry and flavourless” as a result. Other studies have shown that perception of saltiness and sweetness drops 30 percent when flying above 31,000 feet, and the pressurisation and resulting low humidity at cruising altitude (12 percent drier than most deserts) is also believed to dry out the nose and desensitise the olfactory sensors essential for tasting the full flavour of dishes. <strong>Russ Brown</strong>, a director for <strong>In-flight Dining & Retail</strong> in the <strong>USA</strong>, says, “proper seasoning is key to ensure food tastes good in the air, to account for the cabin dining atmosphere.” <strong>Gerry McLoughlin</strong>, an executive chef also based Stateside, agrees, saying he has to use “vibrant flavours and spices” to make in-flight meals taste "more robust".</p>
<p> </p>
<p><img class="aligncenter wp-image-18996 size-full" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/l2f-jan-22-pic-inflight-meals-doco-being-loaded-onto-airplane.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="1200" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Once the menus are decided, Do & Co's chefs do much of their cooking on various grills that are a metre and a half (five feet) wide, with opposite ends of the grill are used to cook different foods - one end for big batches of vegetables, for example, with sautéd potatoes at the other. And of course different grills and utensils are always used to keep meat and veg options separate. Designed to be served the very same day it's cooked, once the food is prepared for the passengers as well as for the crew, the chefs then clean up again to assemble the dishes on serving trays. The food that needs reheating on the plane is given priority, and ladled into foil containers topped with cardboard lids that have small holes for ventilation.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><img class="size-full wp-image-19034" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/l2f-jan-22-pic-inflight-meals-aircraft-galley-istock-489673526.jpg" alt="" width="1183" height="887" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p>These packaged meals go onto trolleys which are rolled into special refrigerators, where they are blast chilled and organised according to the flight numbers. The next step is load them onto refrigerated containers (above) for transportation out to the aircraft, where they are transferred and further chilled in the oboard kitchens, known as galleys. On the larger planes there are usually four galleys. One at the back and front and two in the middle of the aircraft. On smaller planes, there are normally two galleys at the front and back. Cleverly fitted into these small galley areas are ovens, refrigerators, cafetières, coffee machines, and hot water dispensers, as well as space to store hundreds of alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, juices, and milk. Prior to takeoff, these galleys are thoroughly cleaned and the meals are prepared for service by the cabin crew, using tongs and other implements.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-19037" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/l2f-jan-22-pic-inflight-meals-pic-of-economy-meal-jab.jpg" alt="" width="1200" height="1200" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p>After takeoff and before meal service begins, hot food is the first to be prepared. Meat is heated up in ovens while fish and vegetables are warmed up in steam ovens (microwaves and open flames are not allowed on aircraft for safety reasons). Pre-departure, drinks are teed up too. Alcoholic beverages (obviously recommended in moderation only) are paired with mixers; hot drinks are readied with sugar, milk, and stirrers; and soft drinks are lined up with ice. Ready for showtime!</p>
<p>(Finally, here's an interesting fact: Iberia Airlines are pioneers in the design and adoption of lighter trolleys and galley appliances, modernised equipment designed to be as environmentally friendly as possible. During the last decade we’ve managed to reduce galley weight by 25 percent, saving millions of euros in fuel and significantly reducing our carbon footprint, as part of our long-term commitment to <a href="https://love2fly.iberia.com/2021/12/01/airline-aircraft-biofuels-sustainable-aircraft-fuels/">decarbonisation</a>.)</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<h6><em>photos | Iberia Airlines, <a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/es/foto/chefs-envolver-comida-bordo-tonificada-gm1079717252-289360453" target="_blank">Kondor83</a>, <a href="https://www.tripatini.com/members/DavidPaulAppell16" target="_blank">David Paul Appell</a>, <a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/es/foto/galleys-stowages-gm489673526-74791227" target="_blank">Xtsukub</a>, <a href="https://www.tripatini.com/members/JoseBalido" target="_blank">José Balido</a> </em></h6>
<p><br />
</p>
<p> </p></div>The Hub System - a Great Innovation of Commercial Aviationhttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/the-hub-system-a-great-innovation-of-commercial-aviation2022-01-12T08:55:00.000Z2022-01-12T08:55:00.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><p><a href="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-hub-me-gusta-volar-baja.jpg" target="_blank"><img class="align-center" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-hub-me-gusta-volar-baja.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" width="750" alt="iberia-hub-me-gusta-volar-baja.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" /></a> </p>
<p>Airline flights in much of the world are organised through a system called "hub-and-spoke," invented by U.S. airline <strong>Delta</strong> in 1955; made widespread in the <strong>USA</strong> after that country's deregulation of the airline industry in 1978; and commonplace in <strong>Europe</strong> as well since the <strong>European Union</strong> finally eliminated the last of its own air-industry restrictions in 1997. The model is named after the basic design of a traditional wheel, where the "hub" is a central airport and the spokes are the flights coming in and out (in the case of <strong>Iberia</strong>, of course, the hub being <strong>Madrid</strong>). </p>
<p> </p>
<p><a href="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-hub-me-gusta-volar-embarque.jpg" target="_blank"><img class="align-center" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-hub-me-gusta-volar-embarque.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" width="750" alt="iberia-hub-me-gusta-volar-embarque.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" /></a> </p>
<p>Interestingly, it happened to be a Spanish airline, Iberia affiliate <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viva_Air" target="_blank"><strong>Viva Air</strong></a>, which set this reform in motion by appealing to the <strong>European Commission</strong> after the French government denied it permission to fly between Madrid and <strong>Paris</strong> based on an unpublished rule. <strong>Javier Gandara</strong>, president of the Spanish <strong><a href="https://www.alaspain.com/" target="_blank">Association of Airlines</a></strong> wrote in 2018, “The end result was an unprecedented increase in air traffic; in the number of routes; and, above all, in the level of competition. According to data from the Commission itself, between 1992 and 2015 the number of intra-European routes quadrupled to more than 3,500, and more importantly, the number of them served by three or more airlines increased sixfold. The consequence of all this has been an exponential increase in the accessibility by consumers to this mode of transport, democratising what until then was a luxury available to very few.”Little by little, with deregulation and liberalisation, the larger carriers gravitated toward the hub-and-spoke system, in which basically their aircraft operate in "waves." In the mornings, all the planes that overnight at the hub airport depart for the the various designated destinations, while a wave of planes that have spent the night at those destinations flies to the hub. The schedules are coordinated so that the planes arrive at the hub for between an hour and 90 minutes (this time may vary depending on the number of planes), and between a half hour and an hour after the arrival of the last one, they begin to take off in a new wave. In that time, passengers and their luggage will have disembarked from their arrival aircraft and embarked on those that will take them to their final destination. This operation is repeated two or three times a day. </p>
<p> </p>
<p><a href="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-hub-barajas-baja.jpg" target="_blank"><img class="align-center" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-hub-barajas-baja.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" width="750" alt="iberia-hub-barajas-baja.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" /></a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>The main advantage of this system is that it allows multiplying the offer of destinations without having to multiply the number of planes, since from each city it is possible to fly, through a stopover, to all the others served from the hub. In addition, it allows offering more frequencies as there are more passengers to each destination.In this way, Iberia, for example, in its Madrid hub adds passengers arriving from Europe to those arriving from various Spanish cities, as well as those who board in Madrid, and are traveling to <strong>Latin America</strong>, to which Iberia offers the greatest airlift from Europe, with many destinations having at least two daily flights. And of course in reverse from Latin America into Spain and the rest of Europe. </p>
<p> </p>
<p><a href="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-colas-hub-me-gusta-volar-baja.jpg" target="_blank"><img class="align-center" src="https://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/iberia-colas-hub-me-gusta-volar-baja.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" width="750" alt="iberia-colas-hub-me-gusta-volar-baja.jpg?profile=RESIZE_930x" /></a> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The hub-and-spoke system can also have even greater multiplier effects when partner airlines with which codeshare or joint ventures are in place come into play. This in turn makes it possible to offer all the destinations that this other in turn offers from its hub, and makes routes commercially sustainable that with a simple origin-destination operation could not be profitable.Last but definitely not least, this all allows more attractive airfares for passengers, since the average occupancy of the planes is higher and the costs lower (as fewer planes are required to achieve the same offer of seats for each destination).</p>
<h6> </h6>
<h6><em>By guest blogger <a href="http://www.fly-news.es">Fly News</a></em></h6>
<p> </p></div>A Question for Avgeeks: What Are 'Winglets?'https://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/a-question-for-avgeeks-what-are-winglets2021-11-24T18:50:00.000Z2021-11-24T18:50:00.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9837192256,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9837192256,RESIZE_710x{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="9837192256?profile=RESIZE_710x" width="750" /></a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>At some point when you're approaching your plane you've surely wondered to yourself why the wings are curved, no? This design feature is called a winglet (also known as a wingtip device), and it's there not just to look cool but for an important purpose: to maximise aerodynamic efficiency. Interested in learning more? Read on!</p>
<p>If you're an aviation geek, you know that airplanes stay in the air thanks to the interaction of four types of physical phenomena:</p>
<p><br /> Thrust - that related to the traction generated by the engines and their propellers</p>
<p><br /> Weight - that related to the force generated by gravity</p>
<p><br /> Lift - the upward force that the aircraft maintains (lift)</p>
<p>Aerodynamic drag. - And it's with this last one, aerodynamic drag or resistance, that winglets take center stage, especially. Their main objective is always be to reduce the aerodynamic drag of the aircraft, allowing a more gradual contact of both air masses. You will notice that these devices are organic in inspiration, similar to the wings of birds - even letting the feathers appear at the ends when they need it. And as with birds, aircraft are able to move due to the pressure difference between the upper part of the wing (the upper surface) and its lower part (the lower surface).</p>
<p> </p>
<h3><span style="color:#ff0000;font-size:14pt;"><strong>Vortexes and Aerodynamic Drag</strong></span></h3>
<p><br /> This is the key point when it comes to winglets' function. Airflow from high pressure areas will always be directed to low pressure areas, and this difference in air masses can generate small eddies at the tips of the wings which are known as vortexes. And the difference in pressure between the lower part of the wing and the upper part causes increased drag and less lift, which leads to lower efficiency - and therefore increased fuel consumption.</p>
<p>Installing winglets counters this, weakening the force of the vortexes and reducing the flow of air that is mixed by the pressure difference, achieving energy efficiency and reducing aerodynamic resistance.</p>
<p> </p>
<h3><span style="color:#ff0000;font-size:14pt;"><strong>Winglets vs. Sharklets</strong></span></h3>
<p><br /> In 2013, manufacturer <strong>Airbus</strong> launched new wings called sharklets (meaning little shark fins) on its <strong>A320</strong> family models, considerably improving the performance of the aircraft. Since then, <strong>Iberia</strong> has integrated sharklets into its fleet on models such as the <strong>A321</strong>, <strong>A320</strong>, <strong>A319</strong>, and <strong>A350</strong> (with this new model, they allowed the evolution of the winglets to address three key points: greater aerodynamic, energy, and ecological efficiency).</p>
<p><br /> These devices serve to elongate the tip of the aircraft from the vertical axis by around 2.5 metres (just over eight feet) and reduce the aircraft's aerodynamic drag by around 6 percent. With less dynamic resistance, the engines need less thrust to overcome it and thus achieve a direct saving in fuel consumption - estimated between 3 and 4 percent depending on the route distance. So as engines require less thrust and consume less fuel, they also emit less CO₂ into the atmosphere - estimated that around 900 tonnes less per aircraft per year.</p>
<p><br /> And the benefits of this state-of-the-art design do not end here; the aircraft can also fly higher, approximately 39,000 feet. It can take off with a lower thrust or with a greater takeoff weight, in addition to being extended the flight hours of its service life.</p>
<p> </p>
<h6><a href="https://megustavolar.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/winglet_airbus_a319-132.jpg" target="_blank"><img class="align-center" src="https://megustavolar.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/winglet_airbus_a319-132.jpg?profile=RESIZE_710x" alt="winglet_airbus_a319-132.jpg?profile=RESIZE_710x" width="750" /></a></h6>
<h3><strong><span style="color:#ff0000;"><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Other Types of Winglets</span></span></strong></h3>
<p><br /> Though winglets and sharklets are the best known of these structures, over the decades the aeronautics industry has developed a number of additional variations, including:</p>
<p><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong><br /> Canted Winglets<br /> <br /> </strong></span></p>
<p>These are mini-wings - essentially, short wedges - with an upward slope that were once found on Airbus A330 and A340 aircraft as well as on the <strong>Boeing 747</strong>. These days, however, they're a rarity.</p>
<p><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong><br /> Blended Winglets<br /> <br /> </strong></span></p>
<p>Seen on many <strong>Boeing 737NG</strong> models, these combo winglets feature a smoother transition from wing to fin, as if it were an extension of the wing.</p>
<p><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong><br /> Split Scimitar Winglets</strong></span></p>
<p>Also found in the Boeing 737NG family (specifically the <strong>Boeing 737 MAX</strong>), this variation fine-tunes the blended winglet by adding a downward-pointing fin, providing a reduction in drag and a range increase corresponding to 2 percent or more for long-range emissions.</p>
<p><span style="color:#ff0000;"><strong>Wingtip Fences</strong></span></p>
<p>These are the fins used on some Airbus models, such as the A330 and A340 or the A350 family and <strong>A320neo</strong>. Their surfaces extend both above and below the wing (as the name suggests), forming a wingtip “barrier” to prevent higher-pressure airflow from leaking to underneath the wing. In the case of Iberia, you could find old or traditional tips in <strong>A32X</strong> models that formerly used this type of device.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="font-size:8pt;"><em>Images | <a title="User:Beninho" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Beninho">Bene Riobó,</a> <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Till.niermann"><em>Hasta Niermann</em></a></em></span></p>
<p><br /> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p></div>Airline Ticket Pricing 101: the Top 10 Factors Which Influence Airfareshttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/airline-airfares-ticket-prices2021-08-18T13:11:48.000Z2021-08-18T13:11:48.000ZFlyustravelshttps://tripatini.com/members/Flyustravels180<div><p><em><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9553071263,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9553071263,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="750" alt="9553071263?profile=original" /></a><a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/es/foto/pasajeros-en-tarjeta-de-embarque-electr%C3%B3nica-en-pantalla-del-smartphone-gm1027575138-275493885" target="_blank"><span style="font-size:8pt;">Atstock Productions</span></a></em></p><p></p><p><br /> When booking flights, most of us look to save as much money as we can. But if you're <a href="https://flyustravels.com/lp/" target="_blank">looking to book cheap air tickets</a>, you need to understand the various factors that influence the cost of fares. </p><p></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Flight Distance</strong></span></p><p><br /> The logical rule of thumb is that the greater the distance, the higher the ticket prices. Thus we conclude airplane ticket prices are directly proportional to the distance covered. But though distance is an essential factor, it's not the only one - the relative popularity and number of planes serving various routes also come into play. So it's not uncommon to find cheaper fares on popular long-haul flights with a lot of competition than on less popular destinations that are closer in.</p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Time of Year</span><br /> <br /></strong></p><p>For any given destination, there are basically three flying seasons throughout the year. Peak season (sees the highest number of arrivals, off peak the lowest, and shoulder season falls in between the two. Since demand is highest during peak season, fares will be at their highest For example, if you're booking tickets <a href="https://flyustravels.com/lp/direct-flights-to-poland-from-usa/" target="_blank">to <strong>Poland</strong> from the <strong>USA</strong></a>, fares will be highest during Poland's peak travel season, from March to May and September to November.</p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Time of Day/Week</span></strong></p><p><br /> The day and time of day can also make a difference in fares, with more popular/convenient flight times more expensive and off-hours less so. When you <a href="https://flyustravels.com/lp/" target="_blank">search for flights</a>, try different days of the week if you can, and check different times of day for the best fares.</p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Which Class You're Booking<br /></span></strong></p><p><br /> A no-brainer here, but bears repeating. Tickets in economy class - with narrower seats, lower seat pitch, less legroom, and more bare-bones service - will be cheaper than in the front of the cabin for business and first class, with self-contained pods whose seats turn into lie-flat beds and whose food and drink options are far superior to economy (a few high-end airlines even have completely private suites). Some airlines also offer an intermediate "premium economy" category whose main advantage is better legroom.</p><p></p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Flight Itineraries</span></strong></p><p><br /> There are three basic types of itineraries. Nonstop flights are the fastest, and thus tend to be the most expensive. Connecting flights - which require you to fly to at least one intermediate airport and change to another flight to reach your final destion - take the most time and thus are the cheapest option. And in between are direct flights, which may involve a stop but not necessarily a change of planes; they still tend to take longer than nonstops, and their fares fall somewhere between nonstops and connecting.</p><p></p><p><span style="font-size:14pt;"><strong>Fare Restrictions</strong></span></p><p></p><p>In order to get the cheapest available fares, you may have to accept restrictions such as no-cancellation policy; no accrual of frequent-flyer points; and baggage fees.</p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Competition Among Airlines</span></strong></p><p><br /> As a general rule, airlines have to consider their competitors' fares to stay in the market. Thus you're unlikely to see great disparities on different airlines for tickets to the same destination. </p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Historical Data</span></strong></p><p><br /> Every airline maintains historical data on each of its destinations. If in say the past three years one is receiving huge ticket bookings and another is hardly getting any, the airline will keep the prices higher for the more visited destination and decrease fares to encourage bookings to the less popular one.</p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Sales & Promotional Fares</span><br /></strong></p><p><br /> Especially when launching a new route or trying to promote a particular destination, carriers periodically hold sales, and oftentimes their competitors will adjust their own fares in response. </p><p><strong><br /> <span style="font-size:14pt;">Single-Airline Flights vs Codeshares</span></strong></p><p></p><p>Codeshares are an arrangement in which two or more carriers publish and market the same flight under their own airline designator and flight number as part of their published schedules. But oftentimes, if you buy your fare from the codesharing airline that doesn't operate the flight, you'll end up paying more, because that airline has to pay the operating airline in order to share its code. So check flight details carefully before booking.</p><p></p><p> </p></div>6 Hacks for Maximum Airplane Seat Comforthttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/airlines-airplane-seat-tips2021-09-09T10:08:01.000Z2021-09-09T10:08:01.000ZFlyustravelshttps://tripatini.com/members/Flyustravels180<div><p><span style="font-size:8pt;"><em><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9553052467,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9553052467,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="750" alt="9553052467?profile=original" /></a><a href="https://www.istockphoto.com/es/foto/mujer-disfrutando-el-vuelo-gm453256731-29324960" target="_blank">Myshkovsky</a></em></span><br /> <br /> <br /> Flying long haul (especially overnight) and worried about airplane seat comfort? After all, nobody wants to land at their destination feeling fatigued and uncomfrtable. But if you're traveling coach, low humidity along with narrow seats with minimal reclinability and legroom all add up to what can be a pretty unpleasant six to 18-plus hours.</p><p><strong><br /> Pick a Window Seat</strong></p><p><br />You're far from alone if you find sleeping upright hard during a flight. You can certainly try a neck pillow or similar kind of support. But as good and possibly better is to book a seat next to a window, so as to be able to use it as a headrest provides the best neck support even better than a neck pillow. Just take a sweater and a blanket and roll it up. Now put it on the top of your sleeping side shoulder. And Voila, you are ready to have some comfortable sleep. You can use the airline pillow as an armrest if you need it. </p><p><br /> You can use essential oils that blend and help you feel less fatigued. Thus you can have a better sleep. If you take any medicine or vitamins before sleeping, then take them as well. The best part about booking an aisle or a window-side is that no one is goion ng to wake you up in the middle of the night just because that person needs to use the bathroom.<br /></p><p><strong>Pack a Spare Tray</strong></p><p><br /> Planning to work during the flight? But aren’t sure about the tray space being enough? Well, the solution is simple. Book an aisle seat and pack a spare tray along with you. Now, whenever your trey space gets full from your laptop and devices. And you are in the need of some extra space. Take the spare tray out and use it as the required extra space. Put anything you want in this extra space from your drinks and food items to devices. And enjoy a spacious traveling experience.</p><p><strong><br /> Bring Your own Seat Cushion</strong></p><p><br /> No matter which flying seat you select, the aisle, the middle, or the first one. The thing you must have to ensure maximum comfort during air travel is a set cushion. Well, you can always roll up a blanket or sweater to use as a pillow or armrest. But what does a better job of being a pillow than an actual pillow, Right? While buying a seat cushion, make sure that it isn’t slippery. Because it is going to make a grip on your neck with the seat or window. And if it is slippery, you will not enjoy a proper sleep for sure. So investing in a cushion is investing in your sleep. </p><p><br /> You can also prepare a separate sleeping kit if you are catching a night flight. The best way to do it is to keep all the things that you use before sleeping. If you take any medications before going to bed, keep deep. Other than that you can keep eye masks and a tiny warm blanket along with you. Air travels can be cold at night and bringing a small blanket will be of big help. Get proper sleep so that you won’t land fatigued. Make sure you make the right adjustments.</p><p><strong><br /> Keep a Massage Ball</strong></p><p><br /> If you are a frequent traveler, then you should know that how tiring the flight rides sometimes can be. The ultimate solution to getting relieved from the muscle knots is keeping a massage ball with you. And using it in times of need. With these balls, you can reduce any kind of muscle pain you adhere to during your flights. They release the tension in the muscles, making you feel relaxed and sleep better. </p><p>The best time to use a massage ball is before going to sleep. It helps you sleep better and enjoy your flying experience. </p><p><strong><br /> Make a Footrest</strong></p><p><br /> Taking everything along with you for the 8-9 hours you are going to spend on an airplane is not an adroit move. The best way to make the most of your air travels is to make the most of the material. The material you have with you while you are flying. If you can take a footrest with you, take it. But if you have a flight for 4-5 hours, then I won’t recommend you to carry the extra weight. Here you can make your footrest. All you have to do is use your bag pack as a footrest. And prevent leg pain that you would otherwise have. Due to the lack of leg space in the economic section of airplanes.</p><p><strong><br /> Don’t Forget Lumbar Support</strong></p><p></p><p>While taking long flights, like <a href="https://flyustravels.com/lp/flight-from-usa-to-london/">Flight from USA to London</a> the thing that is going to save your back is good lumbar support. Use an airline pillow or simply roll a thin blanket or top and put it across the lower seatback. It will save the natural curl at your back from the airplane's resistance. And you will save yourself from some unwanted back pain. </p><p>You can also take the help of your massage ba;l. Just massage the area while using the massage ball. And then put the rolled towel or blanket across the lower seatback. This will be a much more effective way of preventing unwanted backaches.<br /> <br /> <br /> <strong>Always Carry a Hand Sanitizer <br /> <br /></strong> Standing up every time you need to eat something or touches something will piss off your neighbor. Keeping a hand sanitizer will not only keep you safe but will also present some unwanted gaze.<br /> <br /> <br /> <strong>Bring Snacks </strong> <br /> <br /> The airport’s food can be hard to digest and can easily bloat you. To avoid it pack snacks like dry fruits, salads, fruits along with you.</p><p></p><p>We hope you've found this helpful! (And if you're looking for a direct flight from the U.S. to Itally, click <a href="https://flyustravels.com/lp/direct-flights-to-italy-from-us/"><strong>here</strong></a>!)</p><p>. </p></div>Lapland: In the Happiest Nationhttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/lapland-in-the-happiest-nation2019-09-21T03:22:24.000Z2019-09-21T03:22:24.000ZCheap Flights Freakhttps://tripatini.com/members/CheapFlightsFreak<div><p>According to the 2019 World Happiness Index Report Finland is declared as the happiest nation in the entire world. And in Finland, Lapland is one of the cleanest and also has loveliest landscapes including a thousand of forests and lakes. You can get your reservations done by <strong><a href="https://www.delta-airlines-reservations.us/" target="_blank">Delta Airlines</a></strong> for commuting. There are some totally ravishing reasons to visit Lapland, Finland.</p><ol><li><strong>Northern Lights<br /></strong>Aurora Borealis in a clear night sky can be an awe-inspiring experience. In northern Finland, there is a place named Lapland where Northern Lights appear about 200 nights a year which makes it very obvious. Auroras are seen mainly at the high altitudes which are produced when electrically charged particles in the solar wind meet oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the upper layer of the earth’s atmosphere. You may have experienced a lot skies with stars flooded in it but this is a totally unique sky gazing experience where the sky has interesting patterns with a lot of colours.</li><li><strong>Santa Claus<br /></strong>Santa is loved and famous all over the world nut in Finland you can actually meet him in person. Santa’s annual mission is to deliver happiness all around the world but he is eagerly waited on the eve of Christmas with his furry reindeers. But in Finland you don’t have to wait for a particular day as he resides there. The red man was originally from Korvatunturi who now resides in Rovaniemi, Lapland where he greets his visitors all year round.</li><li><strong>Best skiing experience<br /></strong>The skiing season in Lapland lasts almost for half a year which is from October to May. In fact, Ylläs’ 330km of tracks are more than any one place has to offer in Europe.</li><li><strong>The one and only midnight sun film festival<br /></strong>When the sun stays up for over two consecutive months in the northernmost parts of the country it is time to be festive. Perhaps the most iconic of summer events is the Midnight Sun Film Festival in Sodankylä, Lapland. 2015 marked the event’s 30th anniversary, inviting tens of thousands of international movie buffs to watch films under the never-setting sun.</li><li><strong>Husky Safari, Reindeer Safari And Ice fishing<br /></strong>Husky safari can be a great fun where a group of 6 huskies give you a snow camp tour. A reindeer safari can give you a fairy tale experience. Go jingle bells with the reindeer in the snow covered land. This arctic safari will remind you of every fairy tale you have ever heard. Ice fishing may seem easy task to do but in a freezing cold like Lapland you cannot last for a long time. It is a fun activity though but tough thing too. A total fun with a lot of layers on.</li></ol><p> </p><p>This is the fine beauty of Lapland. So, I think now whenever you will think of the phrase “winter is coming” you will think of Lapland in Finland. For the greatest airway experience to this remarkable place do not forget to <strong><a href="https://www.deltaairlinesreservations.us/" target="_blank">book a flight on Delta</a>.</strong></p></div>Enjoy Great Fares on Flights from UAE to Popular Cities of Pakistanhttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/enjoy-great-fares-on-flights-from-uae-to-popular-cities-of2018-10-22T06:59:00.000Z2018-10-22T06:59:00.000Zjohnwalleshttps://tripatini.com/members/johnwalles<div><p id="a289" class="graf graf--p graf-after--h3">Pakistan is one of the ultimate travel destinations in the world. However, it isn’t particularly an easy destination to travel in. Going on a trip to Pakistan needs a little bit of preparation and as well as you should know about the popular cities in Pakistan beforehand.</p><p class="graf graf--p graf-after--p">So, now we have compiled a list of popular destinations in Pakistan. Please have a look and plan an itinerary and pack your bags.</p><p class="graf graf--p graf-after--p"><strong class="markup--strong markup--p-strong">Fly With Pakistan International Airlines:</strong></p><p id="a5a1" class="graf graf--p graf-after--p"><a href="https://www.rehlat.ae/en/airlines/pakistan/pakistan-international-airlines-tickets-online-booking/" class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" target="_blank">Pakistan International Airlines</a>, also known as PIA, is the national flag carrier airline of Pakistan. It operates scheduled flight services to 23 domestic destinations and 30 international destinations in 27 countries across Asia, Europe, and North America. The main hub of Pakistan International Airlines is Karachi and Lahore whereas Islamabad and Rawalpindi are the secondary hubs.</p><p id="f701" class="graf graf--p graf-after--p"><strong class="markup--strong markup--p-strong">Book Flights from Abu Dhabi to Islamabad, a City Laced With Natural Beauty</strong></p><p id="c215" class="graf graf--p graf-after--p">Islamabad — the capital city of Pakistan, is one of the most stunning cities in the South Asian region. Blended with a rich history and culture, the city is progressing and developing rapidly. And the city brims activities, cultural and heritage sites, places to visit, and contains a wealth of entertainment.</p><p class="graf graf--p graf-after--p graf--trailing">Book your<span> </span><a href="https://www.rehlat.ae/en/cheap-flights/schedules/abu-dhabi-to-islamabad/azi-isb/roundtrip/pakistan-international-pk/" class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" target="_blank">Abu Dhabi to Islamabad Pakistan Airlines flights</a><span> </span>at Rehlat — One of the fastest growing online travel companies in the Middle East and get your bookings done at lowest fares!</p><p class="graf graf--p graf-after--p"><strong class="markup--strong markup--p-strong">Book a flight from Dubai to Islamabad, The Most Livable City in Pakistan</strong></p><p class="graf graf--p graf-after--p">Renowned as “The Green City,” Islamabad is surrounded by much greenery, including many nature preserves and national parks. And the city is packed with several attractions — sport, history, culture, and architecture combine to rejuvenate the visitor.</p><p id="dd12" class="graf graf--p graf-after--p">Book<span> </span><a href="https://www.rehlat.ae/en/cheap-flights/schedules/dubai-to-islamabad/dxb-isb/roundtrip/pakistan-international-pk/" class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" target="_blank">Pakistan International Airlines from Dubai to Islamabad</a>, and soak up in Islamabad’s culture, history, and verdant serenity. Book and avail amazing deals and offers on your<span> </span><a href="https://www.rehlat.ae/en/cheap-flights/" class="markup--anchor markup--p-anchor" target="_blank">flight bookings</a>.</p><p class="graf graf--p graf-after--p graf--trailing"></p></div>Travel During the Coronavirus/COVID-19 Pandemichttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/travel-during-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic2020-12-09T14:45:46.000Z2020-12-09T14:45:46.000ZVictor Blockhttps://tripatini.com/members/VictorBlock124<div><p><span><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009499894,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009499894,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="9009499894?profile=original" /><br /> <br /></a></span> <span>Middle seats in the planes of some airlines are vacant. Passengers and crew members aboard cruise ships are socially distancing when possible and wearing masks. Some countries remain closed to non-residents, while others won’t allow people from the United States to enter. </span></p><p><span><br /> Few aspects of life have been hit harder by the COVID-19 pandemic than travel, and there’s no end in sight. Or is there? </span><span>The kinds of trips people take in the months ahead will be different than in the past. A number of travel industry experts predict that not all of the changes will disappear as the virus does.</span> <span>Hotels are running below capacity and many people who normally would be flying are loathe to set foot on an airplane (though this Thanksgiving just passed turned out to be an exception). <br /> <br /></span></p><p><span>According to CNN Business, “airline traffic has plunged and it probably won’t recover any time soon.” Stewart Chiron, a leading expert known as the Cruise Guy, says the Covid 19 outbreak may be the worst blow the industry has ever suffered. <br /> <br /></span></p><p><span>But that doesn’t mean people seeking an escape from home have no alternatives. Let’s consider the short-term outlook and longer-term probabilities.</span></p><p></p><p><span><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500070,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500070,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="750" alt="9009500070?profile=original" /></a></span></p><p><span><br /> <strong>Where to Go</strong></span></p><p></p><p><span>While the borders of many countries are closed,</span> <span>some have lifted travel bans – although perhaps not for people from </span><span>the United States due to the high rate of infections here. Even when</span> <span>they’re open to Americans, there are safety regulations that must be</span> <span>followed, and some popular tourist sites have restricted access. The </span><span>first step in planning a trip should be to check the latest information</span> <span>for travelers (here's <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/coronavirus-travel-restrictions.html" target="_blank">one recently updated list from the <em>New York Times</em></a>).</span></p><p><span><br /> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500088,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500088,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="750" alt="9009500088?profile=original" /></a></span></p><p></p><p><span><strong>How to Get There</strong></span></p><p></p><p><span>When Dr. Louis Meyers recently flew from</span> <span>Burlington, Vermont to Washington, DC, he was routed through</span> <span>Charlotte, North Carolina, and his ticket cost much more than in the </span><span>past. Higher fares, fewer direct flights and hassles getting through a </span><span>number of airports are the new norm for air travel. </span><span>According to a report on the <a href="https://www.sfgate.com/" target="_blank">SFGate.com</a>, these challenges </span><span>aren’t likely to go away soon. It predicts that for the foreseeable </span><span>future a high percentage of flyers will be “travelers with serious </span><span>business on the other end.”</span></p><p><span><br /></span></p><p></p><p><span><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500854,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500854,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="750" alt="9009500854?profile=original" /></a></span></p><p></p><p><span><strong>Cruising Is Losing</strong></span></p><p></p><p><span><em>The Economist</em> magazine forecasts that giant </span><span>passenger ships will take a long time “to recover their appeal.” In the meantime, predicts Jay </span><span>Johnson of Coastline Travel Advisors in California, cruise </span><span>lines may have no offer reduced fares in the short term in order to </span><span>attract people to board ships again.</span></p><p><span><br /></span></p><p><span><br /> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500666,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500666,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="9009500666?profile=original" /></a></span></p><p></p><p><span><strong>Going with a Group</strong></span></p><p></p><p><span><a href="https://www.travelstride.com/" target="_blank">TravelStride.com</a>, a leading marketplace</span> <span>for world-wide travel, notes that most tour companies have</span> <span>implemented safety guidelines and flexible cancellation policies;</span> <span>limited group sizes; and taken other steps to keep people healthy. The </span><span>organization’s website hosts more than 50,000 group tour packages, </span><span>expedition cruises and independent itineraries.<br /> <br /></span> <span>Currently, its experts recommend custom travel as an option</span> <span>which eliminates any concerns about going with a group. The </span><span>website also includes a list of countries that are reopening for tourism,</span> <span>which is regularly updated.</span></p><p></p><p><span><br /> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009501262,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009501262,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="750" alt="9009501262?profile=original" /></a></span></p><p></p><p><span><strong>What Lies Ahead</strong> <br /> <br /> <br /> While it’s impossible to predict with certainty</span> <span>how travel will evolve in the months and years ahead, there</span> <span>are signposts which point to what’s likely to take place. </span></p><p><span><br /> Many observers believe that airlines will offer fewer choices</span> <span>and charge higher fares. Low-cost seat options may dwindle and</span> <span>passengers are likely to have limited alternatives for flight times,</span> <span>routes – and possibly companies. The International Air Transport </span><span>Association estimates that the industry won’t fully recover from</span> <span>the impact of the pandemic until 2024.</span></p><p><span><br /> In the meantime, rather than heading for megaresorts, amusement parks and other</span> <span>popular vacation spots, more people are likely to drive to a beach, the</span> <span>mountains or a lake that’s fairly close to home. As a result, hotels</span> <span>and motels probably will enjoy an uptick in business.<br /> <br /></span></p><p><span>Early in November, the USA's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</span> <span>lifted the “no-sail” order it had imposed and</span> <span>authorized a phased-in return of passenger cruises. In order to resume </span><span>sailings, ship lines must take steps that include informing people of the </span><span>potential risks caused by the pandemic; limiting voyages to a maximum</span> <span>of seven days; testing crew and passengers; and mandating wearing </span><span>masks and social distancing. It probably will take some time for those </span><span>protocols to be put in place. </span></p><p><span><br /> Even as consumer travel slowly increases, business-related trips</span> <span>may lag behind. Robert Crandall, former head of American A</span><span>irlines, predicts that many companies currently conducting</span> <span>meetings and other tasks electronically rather than in person won’t</span> <span>return completely to their previous travel practices.</span></p><p></p><p></p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500694,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009500694,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" width="750" alt="9009500694?profile=original" /></a></p><p><span><strong>The Silver Lining</strong></span></p><p></p><p><span>However, along with the near catastrophic situation that has i</span><span>mpacted travel there are some bright spots on the horizon. One relates </span><span>to negative effects that "over-tourism" has had on some destinations</span> <span>around the world. The temporary reduction of visitors will give them</span> <span>a much-needed rest and an opportunity to recover and reset.</span></p><p><span><br /></span> <span>Furthermore, the many setbacks to travel caused by the pandemic</span> <span>have done nothing to dampen the penchant of Americans for vacation</span> <span>trips. Michelle Gielan, a psychologist who heads the Institute for</span> <span>Applied Positive Research, conducted a survey on the role of</span> <span>vacation journeys in people’s happiness quotient. </span><span>She reports that</span> 97 percent of respondents said having a trip to look forward to makes them happier, and 80 percent said planning travel during the coming six months does so. The potential kicker is that 96 percent replied that feeling safe during a trip is a high priority. </p><p></p><p>As travel gradually returns toward normal, more people will share the joy it can bring to life. Hopefully that includes you. </p><p></p><p></p></div>How To Choose Your Chinese Airlines When Travellinghttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-choose-your-chinese-airlines-when-travelling2019-10-05T00:30:00.000Z2019-10-05T00:30:00.000Zword smith davishttps://tripatini.com/members/wordsmithdavis<div><div align="justify"><p>Whether you are going to China for business or for pleasure, the most important thing is getting the right Chinese airlines so that you can avoid any further <strong><a href="https://www.tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/6-tips-to-avoid-road-trip-stress" target="_blank">stress or anxiety</a></strong>. You want to make sure that you get to be able to decide the right one so that you know you are going to get the worth of the money you will be paying for. However, as there are a lot of airlines out there it might be a bit hard to choose which one will suit you the most. To help you out, here are some of the things you can consider when doing so.</p><p><strong>Value for money</strong></p><p>One of the main things that you need to consider would be the price you are going to be paying for your air fare because this should determine how much you should be getting. If you are paying a lot, then you should also be getting a lot, this is a golden rule that you must really take note of. Do not pay for too much if you are not going to get the worth of each cent you are paying for. Getting what you pay for is of the essence so you might as well make sure that you will be getting it as well.</p><p><a href="https://www.journeywonders.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/tiananmen-square-965028_1920-770x513.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="https://www.journeywonders.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/tiananmen-square-965028_1920-770x513.jpg?profile=RESIZE_710x" class="align-center" width="609" height="406" alt="tiananmen-square-965028_1920-770x513.jpg?profile=RESIZE_710x" /></a></p><p><strong>Take note of fees</strong></p><p>There are a lot of small airlines out there and though their flights are much cheaper, their baggage allowance rates are different from the larger ones so it would be good to take note of the extra fees that you will be paying for because this would matter a lot as everything is going to add up to become your final fee. You want to make sure you are not being overcharged or anything like that because that would really determine how things are going to work for you. Read the fine print and get to know more about how you are going to be able to spend your money much better in the long run of things as well.</p><p><strong>Be flexible</strong></p><p>If you can make it in such a way that you get to keep your flight schedule very flexible, you might just get to avail some extra discounts in the long run. A lot of travel agents should be able to find you very flexible when you decide that you are going to be able to get a lot of travel dates as well. This can entail you to a cheaper option that is really going to make you quite happy in the long run of things too. There is no need to worry so much about things and you really should just <strong><a href="https://www.mychinainterpreter.com/chinese-airlines" target="_blank">check this out</a></strong> if you can but do not force yourself out if it is not possible.</p><p><strong>Compare seats</strong></p><p>If you are deciding on choosing between two airlines then you should opt to compare the prices of the seats and think about which one would suit you better in the long run too at the same time.</p></div></div>Middle East Airlines Bookinghttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/middle-east-airlines-booking2019-01-07T11:10:37.000Z2019-01-07T11:10:37.000Zeiliyah hanahttps://tripatini.com/members/eiliyahhana<div><p style="margin:0px 0px 1.25rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;font-size:17.008px;line-height:inherit;font-family:'PT Serif', Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;vertical-align:baseline;color:#000000;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px;background-color:#ffffff;text-align:justify;">Middle East Airlines is the national flag carrier of Lebanon and commenced its services from Beirut to a number of destinations in Syria, Cyprus, Egypt, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and much more destinations in the Gulf. Established in 1945, <a href="https://www.rehlat.ae/en/airlines/lebanon/middle-east-tickets-online-booking/" target="_blank">Middle East Airlines flights</a> operates its major services from Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport using a fleet of Airbus A330-200 and A320-200 aircrafts equipped with state of the art amenities.</p><div class="yuzo_related_post style-2" style="margin:10px 0px;padding:10px 0px;border:0px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;font-size:17.008px;line-height:inherit;font-family:'PT Serif', Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;vertical-align:baseline;width:776.79px;display:inline-block;clear:both;color:#000000;letter-spacing:normal;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px;background-color:#ffffff;"><div class="yuzo_clearfixed yuzo__title" style="margin:5px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;clear:both;display:block;"></div></div></div>9 Foods to Avoid When Flyinghttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/9-foods-to-avoid-when-flying2015-12-01T19:30:00.000Z2015-12-01T19:30:00.000ZMax Peslinghttps://tripatini.com/members/MaxPesling<div><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><a href="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/foods-not-to-eat-before-flying.jpg" target="_blank"><img width="640" class="align-center" src="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/foods-not-to-eat-before-flying.jpg?width=640" alt="foods-not-to-eat-before-flying.jpg?width=640" /></a><br /> In this day and age, for every person who takes care about what he or she eats, it seems many more are still fairly careless about it. But even those who watch what they eat may not realize that conditions while flying in a commercial jetliner – especially longhaul – can present issues when it comes to certain foods. And so, there are some you really might want to avoid in order to make your flight as comfortable as possible. Some of these may seem like no-brainers, so consider this simply a reminder; others might very well surprise you. If you’re ever uncomfortable on flights, you might consider some of the following as potential culprits.<span id="more-7592" style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"></span></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Alcohol</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Not surprisingly, this probably tops the list. Yes, beer, wine, and cocktails have become a time-honored part of the airport and inflight experience of millions. The problem arises with the dryer air in the typical airline cabin. Alcohol further dehydrates, and this can lead to discomfort both physical (such as headaches) and mental/emotional (heightened anxiety), even if your don’t over-indulge. And it’s an especially bad idea if you’re also taking medication.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Coffee</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Another libation that’s sloshed about liberally both at airports and onboard. But if you must have a cup of joe, make it decaffeinated, because caffeine can make you not only dehydrated but also jittery and needing to pee. In fact, for this reason, many flight attendants will serve passengers only decaf (bet you didn’t know that!).</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Beans and Certain Other Veggies</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">You know the old children’s rhyme, “beans, beans, the magical fruit – the more you eat, the more you toot!” Well, it’s not just flatulence you have to worry about – it’s the fact that the gas that builds in your stomach and gastrointestinal tract can also become uncomfortable (in fact, this phenomenon even has a name: “<strong>jetbloat</strong>”). It’s also not just beans – you’ll want to watch out for other normally healthy vegetables such as artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, onions, and peas.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Carbonated Soft Drinks</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Another no-brainer, I think you’d have to agree, considering the gas contained in soda’s carbonation (furthermore, a secondary effect can also be heartburn).</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Chewing Gum</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">More than a few travellers rely on gum to keep their ears from popping. But all that chewing brings a lot of air down to your stomach - contributing, again, to gas and bloating. As you swallow more air, gas builds up in your stomach, which can make you feel bloated.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">French Fries</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Now we’re getting to another big bugaboo: grease, oils, and fat. Fried food and many kinds of fast food can contribute to heartburn up in the air (and when it’s high in salt and transfats, it can also make you retain fluid, with effects such as swollen feet).</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Apples and Certain Other Fruit</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Again, normally as healthy as you please, but the especially high fiber in fruit like apples can crank up the gas, too. Others on this list include berries, guavas, kiwis, nectarines, papayas, peaches, and pears. You might also want to stay away from acidic juices like orange and grapefruit, which can lead to heartburn (not to mention the fact that vitamin C is a diuretic, if you get my drift).</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Meat, Especially High-Fat</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">This is a carnivorously mixed bag. Various meats can leave some people prone to indigestion, and many tempting airport options – gooey bacon cheeseburgers and the like – are also high in fat, salt, and transfats. Lean meat, fowl, seafood, and other protein are a better way to fly.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><strong style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-weight:bold;vertical-align:baseline;">Spicy Food</strong></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">A touch of heat on the plate at the right time can be invigorating, but this is probably not the right time, otherwise you could set yourself up for stomach discomfort and bladder irritation (and do you really want a burning mouth at 35,000 feet?).</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Finally, do keep in mind that some things are not so much a matter of personal discomfort as of common courtesy – for the most part, fairly obvious choices such as garlic, curry, and other stinky food that can give you both bad breath and body odor.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><em style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-style:italic;vertical-align:baseline;"> </em></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;clear:both;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"></p></div>Singapore Airlines Introduces storybook on its flightshttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/singapore-airlines-introduces-storybook-on-its-flights2018-08-23T07:00:00.000Z2018-08-23T07:00:00.000Zeiliyah hanahttps://tripatini.com/members/eiliyahhana<div><div class="s-block-item s-repeatable-item s-block-sortable-item s-blog-post-section blog-section" style="margin-bottom:30px;max-width:100%;vertical-align:top;color:#555555;font-family:'source sans pro', sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:normal;text-align:left;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px;background-color:#ffffff;"><div class="container" style="margin:0px auto;padding:0px;width:816px;"><div class="sixteen columns" style="display:inline;float:left;margin-left:10px;margin-right:10px;width:796px;"><div class="s-blog-section-inner"><div class="s-component s-text"><div class="s-component-content s-font-body" style="font-size:18px;color:#444444;line-height:1.7;"><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;text-align:justify;"><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009297661,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009297661,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-full" width="720" alt="9009297661?profile=original" /></a></p><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;text-align:justify;">Singapore Airlines will feature a new picture storybook for children that explore the award-winning transport system of<span> </span><a href="https://www.rehlat.com/en/airlines/singapore/" style="border-width:0px 0px 1px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;text-decoration:none;color:#3388bb;border-color:rgba(51,136,187,.6);border-style:solid;">Singapore</a>. The book named ‘Lost in Singapore’ is a story about a boy’s quest in finding his missing pet parrot. His quest takes him on an island on different modes of transport. He travels the popular locations like Changi Airport, and he receives help from a girl in Singapore and other friendly characters.</p><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;text-align:justify;"></p><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;text-align:justify;">The story will be written by Matthew Cooper, who penned other iconic children’s titles. While the illustrations of the book were done by Candice Phang. Mr. Cooper’s previous books have been endorsed by Chris Patten, former governor of Hong Kong, Nury Vittachi, an author and columnist, and Jane Goodall, famous primatologist.</p><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;text-align:justify;"></p><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;text-align:justify;">Books play a vital role in encouraging love of reading for the young. Singapore Airlines also follows the same and giving importance of education. This beautifully illustrated book will introduce the young readers the vibrant scene of Singapore’s transport system and shows how the national carrier has played a vital role in transforming the country into an aviation hub.</p></div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="s-block-item s-repeatable-item s-block-sortable-item s-blog-post-section blog-section" style="margin-bottom:30px;max-width:100%;vertical-align:top;color:#555555;font-family:'source sans pro', sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:normal;text-align:left;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;white-space:normal;word-spacing:0px;background-color:#ffffff;"><div class="container" style="margin:0px auto;padding:0px;width:816px;"><div class="sixteen columns" style="display:inline;float:left;margin-left:10px;margin-right:10px;width:796px;"><div class="s-blog-section-inner"><div class="s-component s-text"><div class="s-component-content s-font-body" style="font-size:18px;color:#444444;line-height:1.7;"><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;"> </p><p style="border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-style:normal;font-weight:400;line-height:1.7;margin:0px;padding:0px;">Get your <span><a href="https://www.rehlat.com/en/airlines/singapore/singapore-airlines-tickets-online-booking/" target="_blank">Singapore Airlines Flights</a></span> with Rehlat – the Middle East’s leading online travel company offering <span>flights</span> and hotel bookings at lowest prices. Enter your travel destinations on Rehlat and select convenient Singapore Airlines flight schedule and fly in budget. To know more information like Singapore Airlines checkin, baggage information, etc. log on to Rehlat now.</p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>How Do Airline Pilots Keep From Getting Lost?https://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/airlines-pilots-navigation2015-07-21T15:59:27.000Z2015-07-21T15:59:27.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><a href="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/lost-with-map.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/lost-with-map.png?width=640" width="640" class="align-center" alt="lost-with-map.png?width=640" /></a><br /> <em>by Javier Pedreira</em><br /> <br /> Even with all the signs and signals on the roads and motorways, all of us have at one time or another gotten lost whilst driving. It would be natural to imagine, therefore, that in the vast expanse of the sky it would be quite easy to get lost without any signals for guidance. However, the fact is that there are indeed signals up there to rely upon.<span id="more-1994" style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"></span></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Going back to the early days of aviation, it’s true that the intrepid pilots of the day did have to rely upon navigation by sight, seeking out cities, roadways, or geographical formations, with the aid of little more than a compass. Despite today’s fancy technology, flying by sight remains to this day every pilot’s core navigation skill, and he or she starts training by learning to apply<a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_flight_rules"><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;">visual flight rules</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(<b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;">VFR</b>)</a><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>as a critical Plan B, should all other systems fail.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Of course, things get further complicated in bad weather or at night, so at a certain point a dedicated navigator was needed to take charge of calculating important factors such as position, velocity, route, wind speed (a process known as<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;">dead reckoning</b>), so that the pilot could focus on actually flying the plane.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">In any case, before long the first navigation aids made their appearance in the form of radio signals emitted from stations whose positions were reflected in aeronautical charts. In this fashion, thanks to the on-board receiver which indicates the direction of a given station, it’s possible to trace routes between them regardless of whether it’s day or night, cloudy or clear.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><img width="300" height="156" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-2003" style="background:none;margin:4px 24px 12px 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;width:auto;height:auto;vertical-align:baseline;float:left;display:inline;max-width:640px;" alt="aviation navigation" src="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/aviation-navigation.png" />Furthermore, tracing routes to two or more of these stations, it’s then possible to calculate the position of the aircraft because it coincides with the point at which the routes cross (the more stations involved, the greater the accuracy). These early<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;">radio direction finders</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>were eventually replaced by a system called<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"><a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VHF_omnidirectional_range">VOR (VHF Omni Directional Radio Range)</a></b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>which was similar but more precise, and which is the prototype for the radio assistance equipment most in use in world aviation today.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">The majority of VOR stations incorporate additionally a <b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"><a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distance_measuring_equipment">DME (distance measuring equipment)</a></b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>system, which if an aircraft carries aboard the necessary instruments allows the crew to determine at all times its position just by receiving a signal from one of the stations.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">In recent years, besides, increasing numbers of planes are equipped with GPS receivers, augmented in precision in Europe since 2009 by a satellite- and ground-based system called <b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"><a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Geostationary_Navigation_Overlay_Service">EGNOS (European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service)</a>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b>Thus if VOR/DME has a precision of 900 metres (2,953 feet) and GPS of 9 metres (29.5 feet), with EGNOS it’s two metres (6.5 feet), therefore the more widespread this system becomes, the better use can be made of existing airspace, since as a result, less redundant margin of separation between planes in the air is needed; this is especially welcome at airports with high traffic and in areas with particularly congested air corridors such as those over much of Europe.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"> </b><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"> </b></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">As a backup to VOR and GPS, aircraft incorporate an<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"><a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_navigation_system">inertial navigation system (INS)</a></b>, which thanks to onboard sensors which detect ascents and descents, turns, accelerations, and other movements, constantly calculates position without receiving any external signals.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><img width="300" height="200" class="alignright size-full wp-image-2004" style="background:none;margin:4px 0px 12px 24px;padding:0px;border:0px;width:auto;height:auto;vertical-align:baseline;float:right;display:inline;max-width:640px;" alt="airplane control panel" src="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/airplane-control-panel.jpg" />It should also not be forgotten that thanks to radar and radio, ground-based air traffic controllers are able to see the big picture of the positions of all the aircraft within their zone of responsibility and will also do their part to keep pilots and navigators on track. With all of this, flight crews have more than enough resources at their disposal to monitor their position at all times, but this doesn’t mean that they can fly through the air willy-nilly.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">When planning a route from one airport to another, the first priority is to establish a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"><a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://love2fly.iberia.com/2013/10/straight-line-not-shortest-distance/">flight plan</a></b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>which defines the passage of the aircraft through a series of determined waypoints on air navigation charts, known as “fixes,” with designations formed from five letters which are fairly easy to remember (and sometimes even whimsical, depending on who’s doing the naming), such as WOLVS, TURBO, and PESTO. In addition to the fixes, routes can also include radio navigation aids, whose names have three letters on charts – such as for example VES, the VOR/DME designation for Asturias in northern Spain.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Also, in order to reach one of these points, a plane follows an airway, which is like a road in the sky between two or more waypoints. These airways have names which are a little less creative than the fixes, such as UN733, which covers Spanish airspace from HIDRA, in the northeast of Galicia, across the NDB station of Santiago de Compostela, crossing the entire Iberian peninsula via other fixes, leaving land via the NDB over Valencia, ending up at BASSO, above the island of Majorca.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Thus a flight path between two airports is never going to be precisely<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://love2fly.iberia.com/2013/10/straight-line-not-shortest-distance/">the shortest route</a>, especially in an airspace as heavily trafficked as Europe’s. Routes preset by an airline’s operations department will be used repeatedly whenever possible (taking into account adjustments for weather and other factors). Thus a flight from A Coruña to Madrid generally follows the coordinates LECO.FORN1C.FORNO.UN733.ZMR.ZMR3A.LEMD</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"><a href="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/air-navigation-map.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://love2fly.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/air-navigation-map.png?width=640" width="640" class="align-center" alt="air-navigation-map.png?width=640" /></a><br /> <br /> This connects the airport of A Coruña in Galicia (LECO) with Madrid (LEMD), passing over FORNO, a fix situated over Monforte de Lemos (also in Galicia), and ZMR, the NDB of Zamora, travelling between the two waypoints via airway UN733.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">The flight plan also specifies the procedure for reaching FORNO from A Coruña airport, using the departure point FORNO 1C, as well as how to get from ZMR to Madrid airport, using arrival point ZMR 3A.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">Fixes, in effect, are quite comparable to traffic signals we encounter on ground roads, with air traffic controllers analogous to traffic cops. With all of these systems and safeguards in place, you can see it’s not so easy to get lost even up in the wild blue yonder.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;">This entire process, tremendously simplified here, is part of a larger régime known as<b style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;vertical-align:baseline;"><a style="background:none;margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;color:#d7192d;vertical-align:baseline;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instrument_flight_rules">instrument flight rules (IFR)</a></b>, which specify not just how to get from place to place but at what altitudes, protocols for detouring to alternative airports, and so forth. But all that, dear avgeek, is for another blog post.</p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"></p><p style="background:#ffffff;font:13px/16px Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;margin:0px 0px 16px;padding:0px;border:0px;text-align:justify;color:#333333;text-transform:none;text-indent:0px;letter-spacing:normal;word-spacing:0px;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:normal;"></p></div>Saudi Arabian Airline’s Flight Network & Luxury Inflight Serviceshttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/saudi-arabia-airline2017-06-07T14:24:03.000Z2017-06-07T14:24:03.000Zjohnwalleshttps://tripatini.com/members/johnwalles<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009150681,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="750" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009150681,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="9009150681?profile=original" /></a></p><p><br /> With 70 destinations and 133 aircraft, <a href="http://https//www.rehlat.ae/en/airlines/saudi-arabia/saudi-arabian-tickets-online-booking/" target="_blank">Saudi Airlines</a> is the third largest in the Middle East, with Jeddah, Riyadh, and Dammam as its main hubs. The airline pride itself on its network strengths to Asia, Europe, Africa and North America, and is aware of the responsibility of being a pioneer within its region. Here some of what you can expect on every Saudi Arabian flight:</p><p><b><br /> Why Saudi Airline has been continuously voted one of the best airlines in the Middle East?</b></p><p><br /> Saudi Airline is the favorite because it sticks to the core traditional value of the kingdom, and at the same time uses the state-of-the-art technology and equipment to step ahead of its competitors. The flag carrier of Saudi Arabia offers brilliant onboard services like five-star food and beverages, inflight entertainment, and duty-free shopping. </p><p><b><br /> Can I get halal food on flights?</b></p><p><br /> Yes, in fact Saudi Arabian offers only halal food on all its flights. Furthermore, there's a online menu section where passengers can place orders for meals including those designed to feature seafood; fare appropriate for children, infants, vegetarians, and diabetics; and cuisine that's low-fat or salt-free.</p><p><b><br /> Do you know Saudi Airline even offers a special meal for the visually impaired?</b></p><p><br /> You've got to, er, see it to believe it. Saudi Arabian's meal designed for the visually impaired comes with portions precut into bite-size chunks. Passengers can access the food menu also, as it is highlighted on a Braille menu using the clock concept.</p><p><b><br /> What are Saudi Arabian Airline's most popular routes?</b></p><p><br /> <span>·</span> Kuwait to Jeddah </p><p><span>· </span>Kuwait to Cairo</p><p><span>· </span>Kuwait to Riyadh</p><p><span>· </span>Kuwait to Chennai</p><p><span>· </span>Riyadh to Borg El Arab</p><p><span>· </span>Jeddah to Dubai</p><p><span>· </span>Riyadh to Cairo</p><p><span>· </span>Jeddah to London</p><p><span>· </span>Dubai to Jeddah</p><p><span>· </span>Dubai to Riyadh</p><p></p><p>Get your Saudi Airline booking today at Rehlat.ae and save more with every flight. Happy travelling! <br /><br /></p></div>Where Does Fear of Flying Come From?https://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/where-does-fear-of-flying-come-from2014-09-20T20:00:00.000Z2014-09-20T20:00:00.000ZCapt Tom Bunn LCSWhttps://tripatini.com/members/CaptTomBunnLCSW<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008877088,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="737" height="552" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9008877088,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="9008877088?profile=original" /></a><br /><br />One of the safest things you could be doing right now is flying. According to solid research, 3 miles on an Interstate highway puts you at the same risk of fatality as does a coast-to-coast flight. Every time you drive 3 miles on an Interstate highway (or about 1.5 miles urban) you have placed yourself at the same risk as taking a flight.</p><p><br />This statistical analysis was developed when traffic deaths rose sharply after 9/11, as people switched from flying to driving. Researchers Michael Sivak and Michael Flannagan used airline performance from a ten year period, 1992 - 2001. During that period, the chance of fatality was 8 in 100,000,000. During that period a flight was equal in risk to driving 10.8 miles.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:13px;">Currently, the chance of a flight being fatal is 1 in 45,000,000. This increase is flight safety brings the risk of flying down. A flight is now equal to 3 miles of Interstate driving, rather than 10.8. Since most of us drive more than that a day, when we interrupt our daily routine and get on an airliner, we increase our safety. The research is at</span> <a href="https://www.americanscientist.org/issues/pub/2003/1/flying-and-driving-after-the-september-11-attacks" target="_blank" style="font-size:13px;">www.americanscientist.org</a></p><p><br /> If flying is so safe, why do fears develop? When we consider doing something, we imagine what might go wrong. If something goes wrong, what do we do? We feel better if we can take action, or if we can escape. And that is why flying is so often a problem. When we hear an unfamiliar noise or feel the plane drop, stress hormones are released. These hormones produce a "call to action." If we could take meaningful action, the stress hormone release would stop. But, as passengers, there is nothing we can do. Thus, stress hormone release continues.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:13px;">If the plane drops again and again, as it does in turbulence, the hormones build up to cause a stronger and stronger urge to escape. But on a plane, we can't. That is when high anxiety or panic can develop.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-size:13px;">It doesn't matter how illogical this fear may be, for when stress hormones build up, logic pretty much goes out the window. What can be done to prevent feelings caused by stress hormones? The answer is to train the amygdala - the part of the brain that triggers stress hormones - not to do so when flying. Details on how to do this are in my book,</span> <em style="font-size:13px;"><a href="http://www.fearofflying.com/book" target="_blank">SOAR: The Breakthrough Treatment for Fear of Flying<br /><br /></a></em><span style="font-size:13px;">But here are the basics. There are certain moments in human relationships that produce a hormone, oxytocin, that inhibits the amygdala. These moments have to do with reproduction. Nursing a child produces oxytocin so the mother can focus on the child's needs rather than feel anxious about other things that need to be done. Oxytocin is also produced in females in sexual foreplay if the chemistry between her and her partner is just right. This, apparently, is nature's way of setting aside fears of sexual intimacy. In males, oxytocin comes at orgasm. So, find a moment in which oxytocin was being produced. Next, that moment needs to be linked (remember Pavlov and his dogs?) to the various moments of flight that might trigger the release of stress hormones.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-size:13px;">The way I suggest people link the two is to imagine the oxytocin-producing moment and pretend a photograph is being held by the baby's face (in a nursing situation) or by the lover's face (in a romantic situation). Each moment of flight needs to be linked so that, as the flight progresses, things that happen on the flight trigger (by association) enough oxytocin to keep the amygdala from releasing stress hormones. There are photographs you can use for this at</span> <a href="http://www.fearofflying.com/photos" target="_blank" style="font-size:13px;">www.fearofflying.com/photos</a></p><p></p><p><br /><br /><em><span class="font-size-1">photo: <a href="http://www.tripatini.com/photo/fear-of-flying?context=user" target="_blank">DPA</a></span></em><br /><br /></p><p></p></div>How and Why Fear of Flying Can Starthttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/how-and-why-fear-of-flying-can-start2017-02-10T21:30:00.000Z2017-02-10T21:30:00.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009128260,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009128260,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="640" class="align-center" alt="9009128260?profile=original" /></a><br /> <br /> <span class="font-size-1"><em>by Tom Bunn</em></span><br /></p><p>When <strong>fear of flying</strong> develops, it's sometimes because there has been a bad flight. But, in many cases, difficulty begins for no apparent reason. The average age of onset is 27. The truth is, many of us become more anxious as we get older and more mature. As teenagers, when parents told us to be careful, we thought they were from some other planet! We thought bad things happen to other people, or in places far away. <br /> <br /> <span id="more-4945"></span></p><p>As we grow older and (hopefully) wiser – or as something shocking hits home – we become more aware of how vulnerable we are, and we think more often about what could go wrong. We look for ways to stay in control, and avoid situations we do not control.</p><p><br /> Staying safe isn’t always a simple and straighforward matter. Our judgment is colored by feelings. Statistics point to flying as the safest mode of travel. Yet driving <em>feels</em> safer. Why? It’s because of how the mind works.</p><p><br /> When we drive, our attention is often divided. As we think about other things or have a conversation, the car is guided as if on autopilot. Usually we get away with it because a part of the brain called the <strong>amygdala</strong> monitors what is going on. If something unexpected happens, the amygdala releases stress hormones that grab our attention and force us to focus on what is going on.<br /></p><p><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/Amyg.png" target="_blank"><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/Amyg.png?width=189" width="189" class="align-right" alt="Amyg.png?width=189" /></a>The amygdala (right) is the size and shape of an almond. That’s where it gets its name: <em>amygdala</em> is the Greek word for almond. Though this gland operates outside of consciousness, we feel the effects of its operation. We also feel an increase in our heart rate and our breathing rate. That’s a primitive response that gets us ready to run or fight. In addition, a not-so-primitive response takes place. Stress hormones activate “executive function,” the brain’s high-level decision-making.</p><p><br /> Executive function assesses the situation. If no threat is noted, it signals the amygdala to quiet down. If a threat is detected, the hormones continue and keep us focused on the problem. We need to deal with it. If we can come up with a plan, the moment we commit to it and take action, executive function signals the amygdala to stop stress hormone release.</p><p><strong><br /> Acting Is the Key</strong></p><p><br /> Action, because it stops the release of stress hormones, makes driving feel safer than flying. By the way, it doesn’t matter whether the plan of action is a brilliant one or a lousy one: commitment to any plan extinguishes feelings of anxiety.</p><p><br /> Flying, though safer than driving, doesn’t permit the anxiety-stopping action that driving does. When a noise or a drop releases stress hormones, a person who regulates arousal automatically checks to see what is going on. But if nothing is obviously wrong, he or she drops the matter.</p><p><br /> How is this ability to regulate arousal automatically developed? Though there are genetic differences, it is believed the primary factor is early learning. When a young child experiences arousal, if a caregiver is consistently available, is attuned to the child, comforts the child, and reassures the child, arousal – even at high levels – becomes non-threatening. Over time, the attuned and responsive caregiver’s response is built into the child’s psyche. There is serves to automatically and unconsciously calm the child when aroused.</p><p><br /> Later as an adult, when aroused on a plane, if there is no obvious danger, the person who has built-in regulation drops the matter. But a person who regulates arousal consciously needs more. To that person, arousal means danger. The matter can be dismissed only if danger is ruled out. Unable to prove there is no danger, scenes of disaster come to mind which increase hormone release. Since there is no action a passenger can take, hormones build up and result in high anxiety, claustrophobia, or panic.</p><p><br /> Conscious and deliberate regulation of arousal may work satisfactorily on the ground. A person who controls things masterfully may be successful in business or in a profession. But not in flight. Except of course, for the pilot. Perhaps it will not come as a surprise that a lot of pilots are “control freaks”. Hopefully you will feel better by knowing that your pilot, like you, must make sure everything about the flight is under control.</p><p><br /> In future blog posts we will explore ways to deal with anxiety in flight by increasing your ability to regulate arousal automatically and unconsciously.</p><p><br /> Up next: why all too many fear-of-flying therapies <a href="http://love2fly.iberia.com/2014/09/many-fear-of-flying-therapies-ineffective/" target="_blank">don’t really work</a> – and what does.</p><p><em><span><strong><br /> Tom Bunn</strong>, </span><span>L.C.S.W.,</span> <span>is a retired airline captain and licensed therapist who has specialized in the treatment of fear of flying for over thirty years. He is the author the bestselling book on flight phobia, </span></em><span>SOAR: The Breakthrough Treatment for Fear of Flying. <em>His company, <a href="http://www.fearofflying.com/" target="_blank">SOAR, Inc.</a>, founded in 1982, has helped more than 7,000 clients control fear, panic, and claustrophobia.</em></span><em><br /></em></p><p> </p><p><span class="font-size-1"><em>photos| DPA, <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Amyg.png" target="_blank">Washingtonirving</a> </em></span></p><p> </p></div>Extra Room in Economy: But Will It Last?https://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/aisle-seat-economy-american-airlines2014-06-25T19:00:00.000Z2014-06-25T19:00:00.000ZEd Wetschlerhttps://tripatini.com/members/EdWetschler<div><p><font color="#262626"><font face="Verdana, sans-serif"><font><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008851459,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9008851459,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="324" class="align-right" alt="9008851459?profile=original" /></a><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008851682,original{{/staticFileLink}}"></a>If you've flown on any of American Airlines' 737s in the past year or two, you've seen bolted-in seat trays in rows 16 and 17 that prevent the middle seat from being occupied. The result: Seats A (window), C and D (aisle), and F offer extra elbow room and places for drinks and stashing small carry-ons. Me, I'm on a run, having recently taken four straight flights where I sat in the much-coveted Row 16.</font></font></font></p>
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<p><font color="#262626"><font face="Verdana, sans-serif"><font>Nice, but don't you find this somewhat strange? <br /> After all, American Airlines' largesse would seem to run counter to the ethos of cramming as many paying customers as possible into Economy Class. What motivates American to bestow this gift of private space (and of being able to use your arm rest) upon us lowly sardines? </font></font></font></p>
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<p><strong><font color="#262626"><font face="Verdana, sans-serif"><font>Unhappy Flight Attendants</font></font></font></strong></p>
<p><font color="#262626"><font face="Verdana, sans-serif"><font>American Airlines did not take those middle seats off the market out of sheer humanitarianism, nor did the company do this to assuage guilt over having treated its customers like circus clowns in a Mini-Cooper. Rather, it has to do with Federal aviation regulations, which mandate one flight attendant for every 50 passengers. Since those 737s were configured for 154 passengers, American decided that it made better business sense to leave four seats empty than to pay a fourth flight attendant.</font></font></font></p>
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<p><font color="#262626"><font face="Verdana, sans-serif"><font>The flight attendants, I can tell you, are not amused. And soon enough, maybe you won't be, either, because American may start selling those middle seats again. Mind you, I can't confirm that, in part because conversions like this can rarely be predicted to the exact day. </font></font></font><span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif;color:#262626;">However, there's another factor, as well: When I sent a journalist's inquiry to the good people at American Airlines, they did not respond to my request for more information.</span></p>
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<p><strong><span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif;color:#262626;">The Armrest Wars</span></strong></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif;color:#262626;">If the brass won't respond, what do the rank-and-file -- that is, flight and gate attendants -- say? That the armrest wars will resume around October, give or take a few weeks. Since the economics haven't changed -- the airline might still be paying more for an additional flight attendant than it would net from selling those four seats -- this might be a case of American Airlines making a concession to its work force. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Verdana, sans-serif;color:#262626;">Meanwhile, if you're flying American these next few months, find out if your plane will be a 737. If it is, carpe diem.</span></p>
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<p><font color="#262626"><font face="Verdana, sans-serif"><font> </font></font></font></p></div>El Al - What an Airlinehttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/el-al-airline-israel2016-08-08T15:30:00.000Z2016-08-08T15:30:00.000ZHarvey frommerhttps://tripatini.com/members/Harveyfrommer<div><p><a href="http://worldtravellist.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/El-Al-Plane.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-33524" src="http://worldtravellist.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/El-Al-Plane.jpg" alt="El Al Plane" /></a></p><div class="container-fluid"><div id="content" class="clearfix row-fluid"><div id="main" class="clearfix"><div class="homeCont span9"><div class="desp"><p class="lead"><span class="font-size-1"><em>photo: Ziv Bok</em></span></p><p></p><p><span class="font-size-1"><em>by Myrna Katz Frommer and Harvey Frommer</em></span></p><p> </p><p>A massive undertaking planned for the Frommers: Four months in Israel researching and interviewing for our book, an oral history about the miraculous nation as told by those who lived the experience. Very long trip from New York to Tel Aviv.<br /></p><p>In our long travel writing career, we have flown all over on different airlines, some exceptional, some not so exceptional. We checked around for the most exceptional airline to accommodate our bountiful luggage, need for non-stop flight and comfort and security.</p><p><br /> El Al was the easy choice – on paper that is. In practice, the airline of Israel that came into existence in 1948 — the same year as the country did, was the right choice.</p><p><br /> Much history is associated with this very unique airline as archival images from the collection of Marvin G. Goldman, archivist of El Al, reveal:</p><p> </p><a href="http://worldtravellist.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/El-Al-Plane-Crew.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-33525" src="http://worldtravellist.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/El-Al-Plane-Crew.jpg" alt="ACD EL AL DC-4, Paris, 1st Flight, EL AL Archives" /></a><br /><p><em><span class="font-size-1">El Al’s first scheduled passenger flight, 31 July – 1 August 1949, arrives at Orly Airport, Paris.</span> </em></p><p> </p><a href="http://worldtravellist.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/El-Al-Plane-Shimon-Peres-Boarding.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-33526" src="http://worldtravellist.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/El-Al-Plane-Shimon-Peres-Boarding.jpg" alt="El Al Plane Shimon Peres Boarding" /></a><br /><p><span class="font-size-1"><em>Shimon Peres, then director general of Israel’s Ministry of Defense and later prime miniister, boarding an El Al Lockheed Constellation aircraft at Lod Airport, Tel Aviv</em></span></p><p> </p><p>Leaving the United States and then returning from Tel Aviv back home, from our dealings with flight bookings, through the baggage handling, the seamless security checks, the well prepared food, the courtesy and professionalism of all crew members, everything was over the top A-plus.</p><p><br /> The only blip was El Al is “dark” on the Jewish Sabbath and on religious holidays. There are never any scheduled flights. A very small blip for us.</p><p><br /> We experienced first-hand the <a href="http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosher">kosher</a> <a href="http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airline_meal">in-flight meals</a> which had a lot to recommend them as far as freshness, variety, quality. Flight attendants were caring and highly competent.</p><p><br /> We also experienced first-hand the special security associated with the airline of Israel, There were many questions asked at different stops along the way from checking in to baggage check. All operated seamlessly in a system of security procedures, on the ground and on the aircraft. Passengers are requested to show up three hours before departure. All El Al terminals around the world are closely monitored for security. There are plain-clothes agents and fully armed police or military personnel patrolling the premises for explosives, unusual behavior, threats. Inside the terminal, passengers and their baggage are checked by a trained team. El Al security procedures require that all passengers be interviewed individually prior to boarding. All of this was done swifly, painlessly and reassured us about safety.</p><p><br /> Most El Al pilots are former <a href="http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Air_Force">Israeli Air Force</a> pilots, and they operate out of cockpits with double doors, making for added security. There are reinforced steel floors that act as a barrier between the passenger <a href="http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabin_%28aircraft%29">cabin</a> and baggage storage.</p><p><br />El Al boasts the most nonstop flights between New York (JFK/Newark) and Israel as well as the only nonstop service from Los Angeles. In June 2015, non-stop service from Boston to Tel Aviv was put into place. Globally, EL AL has more than 40 destinations from Israe. Dozens of other destinations are reachable via its partnering with other leading carriers.</p><p><br />There are all kinds of choices we make in life. Flying El Al to and from its homeland is a non brainer all the time.</p><div class="postEdit"><p class="tags"></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Some of the Principal Issues Facing the Travel Industry Part Two of a Two Part Series (Part One is in last month’s edition)https://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/some-of-the-principal-issues-facing-the-travel-industry-part-two2016-03-14T01:09:20.000Z2016-03-14T01:09:20.000ZPeter Tarlowhttps://tripatini.com/members/PeterTarlow<div><p align="center"><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4">Last month we examined some of the challenges facing the tourism industry in 2016. This month we examine some of the other challenges with which tourism leaders may have to contend in 2016. It should be noted that although the material in both the February and March editions is treated as separate challenges, there is often an interaction between them and these challenges are not stand alones but rather part of a total whole.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">Be prepared for economic instability.</span> We are now seeing the stock market on a roller coaster and coupled with low gas prices, there is a sense of ennui and foreboding. Last year’s feel good combination has now changed to one of wait-and-see in the United States, Latin America and Europe. Experts indicate that there are multiple clouds on the horizon. These include an unstable European economy, recession in countries such as Brazil and low employment rates, and a slowing down of the Chinese economy. It is essential to remember that although unemployment is low in the US, this figure does not necessarily reflect a strong economy, but rather that millions of people have ceased looking for work. In this world of false recoveries, low unemployment does not translate into the willingness on the part of the public to travel more.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">-View the world carefully.</span> The political world will continue to be unstable and when instability hits people are less likely to spend money on luxury items such as travel. Political instability is now a major concern in Africa and Latin America, with the Middle East, Europe, and North America open to terrorism attacks and Latin America still suffering from high levels of crime and drug trafficking. Furthermore, no one knows how Europe’s refugee crisis will play out and what the consequences of increased crime will be on European tourism. Brazil, along with much of Latin America, is suffering from both issues of crime and issues of health and sanitation.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">-Be aware of the lack of trained personnel.</span> Because many tourism areas have grown rapidly there are too many location where there is a dearth of skilled labor. Tourism needs people who are both inspired and well trained. Yet, too few people in the tourism industry speak multiple languages, are proficient in high tech computer skills or have a good knowledge of statistics and how to utilize them. This lack of education and training creates not only numerous financial losses but also creates lost opportunities and the inability to adapt to new challenges.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">-Low Salaries, recruitment and retention.</span> Many on line and front line workers receive low salaries, have low levels of job loyalty, and change jobs with high level of rapidity. This high turnover level makes training difficult and often each time a person leaves, the information is lost. T o make matters even more challenging these are often the person with whom visitors come in contact. The formula tends to guarantee low job satisfaction and low levels of customer satisfaction. This situation has resulted in the lack of availability of skilled manpower by the travel and tourism industry, one of the largest if not the largest employment generators in the world. If tourism is to be a sustainable product then it needs to turn part-time jobs into careers without pricing itself out of the market. If the travel and tourism industry hopes to continue to grow it will need trained personnel, and a willing and enthusiastic workforce at every level from the managerial, to skilled workers to the semi-skilled worker.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">-Nonsensical regulations and over regulations.</span> No one is arguing that tourism should be an unregulated industry, but often governments’ desires to regulate trumps common sense. All too often decisions are made so as to avoid a law suite or negative media coverage. Too many regulations are reactive to problems that are minimal while refusing to be proactive regarding growing problems. Often the desire to over-regulate puts tourism businesses in jeopardy and fail to help the consumer.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">-The lack of adequate and truthful marketing. </span> Too many locations tend to either exaggerate or simply fabricate. The lack of truth in marketing means that the public not only loses confidence in the industry but investors fear being burnt. Marketing has to be both innovative and true. Tourism is a highly competitive industry and requires good and innovative marketing that captures a place’s essence while making people aware of the locale’s tourism offerings.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">-The lack of amenities or the over charging for the use of amenities.</span> In too many locations around the world there is a lack of simple amenities. From clean and potable water at hotels to well maintained public rest rooms. In all too many locations finding simple public services is a constant challenge. Signage is often unintelligible to the foreign tourist, parking turns an outing into a nightmare, and as hard as it seems to believe there are all too many “good” quality hotels that charge for internet service. In many locations the hotel’s in-room phone service is outrageously expensive even for local calls. The lack of amenities or the over charging for their usage destroys the sense of hospitality and turns guests into mere customers.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">-The need to develop or update tourism infrastructure.</span> Around the world tourism suffers from poor infrastructure. These infrastructure challenges range from substandard docks and ports of entry to modes of transport to urban infrastructure such as access roads, electricity, water supply, sewerage and telecommunication. As airplanes begin to carry more people airports will face not only the problems of handling large numbers of arriving passengers but also will need to find ways to unload luggage faster, and transit people through immigration and customs lines. The lack of infrastructure will also impact issues of security as governments attempt to ferret out potential terrorists while creating a warm and welcoming arrival experience.</span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">The airline industry will continue to be the part of tourism that visitors love to hate.</span> Air travel has gone from elegant to pedestrian. Today passengers are crowded onto planes as of they were cattle and treated as if they were criminals rather than honored guests. Airfares are so complicated that passengers need a college course to understand them and the once popular airline loyalty programs continue to degenerate. Service is often so bad that when flight attendants smile, passengers actually thank them. Unfortunately the “getting there” has become part of the “being there”, and unless the tourism industry can work with the airline industry to change attitudes, be less mercenary and more flexible the entire industry may suffer. When poor air service is combined with infrastructure problems the combination may in the long run be deadly and “staycations” may over take vacations.</span></p><p align="center"><span class="font-size-4"> </span></p><p><span class="font-size-4"><span style="color:#ff6600;">Nothing works if visitors are afraid and not secure.</span> The spread of terrorist groups throughout the world is a major threat to tourism. Tourism must learn to create not merely security and safety but ‘surety”: the interaction between the two. That means that locations without TOPPs (tourism policing) programs will suffer and eventually decline. Private security and public security will need to learn to interact and work well not only with each other but with the media and marketers. The old and outdates adage that security scares visitors is more and more being replaced with the adage that the lack of security provokes fear among visitors. Cyber crime will continue to be another major challenge the travel industry faces. Tourism cannot merely hobble from pandemics and health crisis to the next. Also, unless the travel and tourism industry can protect visitor privacy and lower the incidents of fraud, it will face an ever greater and daunting challenge during 2016. </span></p></div>Flight Attendants Get No Respect. But Can They Do Their Jobs?https://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/flight-attendants-get-no-respect-but-can-they-do-their-jobs2014-01-03T13:00:00.000Z2014-01-03T13:00:00.000ZKaleel Sakakeenyhttps://tripatini.com/members/KaleelSakakeeny<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008805680,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-right" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9008805680,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="458" alt="9008805680?profile=original" /></a></p><p>Wanted: Someone to push heavy carts along a narrow aisle dispensing drinks, cookies and conversation, with a smile.<br /> <br /> Applicant must be able to evacuate a plane, determine, behind closed curtains, what passengers are most likely to help in an emergency and wonder about the little girl flying alone, sitting next to that suspicious man.</p><p><strong>The big question, considering the multiple roles an attendant has to fulfill, is whether fluffing pillows and handing out pretzels compromise the authority flight attendants must have if they are to insure passenger safety in an emergency.</strong></p><p>Or as <a href="http://www1.salary.com/Flight-Attendant-Salary.html" target="_blank">Salary.com</a> says that attendants attend to airplane passengers to ensure their safety while on the aircraft. Serve beverages and food and keep the cabin clean for passengers' comfort. Maintain supplies on the plane.<br /> <br /> Average salary: Approximately $65,000 a year and endless hours flying in a metal tube. <a href="http://www.whichbudget.com/blog/en/news/1546-dishwashers-have-it-better-than-flight-attendants-in-2013-job-satisfaction-report" target="_blank">WhichBudget</a> documenting job satisfaction, notes that <strong>flight attendants came dead last in the travel, tourism and hospitality sector, falling behind dishwashers and air traffic controllers.</strong><br /> <br /> <strong>And MSNBC’s “Bartenders or Bad Cops” reports that flight attendants are sleeping less, working longer hours , earning less and dealing with a public that is increasingly rude and demanding.</strong><br /> <br /> Who can forget Steven Slater’s dramatic departure as a flight attendant from a JetBlue flight a few years back?<br /> <br /> One former Delta flight attendant clearly said that it’s very difficult “be a good host, be helpful, then have to police people.” That attendant has since left the airline to start her own web site, <a href="http://inflightinsider.com/" target="_blank">Inflightinsider.com</a> where she dispenses tips to travelers on how to protect their shoes, make use of street-wise maps and other useful lifestyle-flying tips and advice, presumably a much less stressful job than her previous one.<br /> <br /> <strong>Passengers apparently are flying with an increasing sense of entitlement and are apt to become outraged when a request for an upgrade or amenity is denied.</strong></p><p>Isn’t it time, in light of an increasingly stressed-out flying experience, to reexamine the “clout” and “responsibility” attendants must have to do their real jobs: Providing passenger safety?</p><p>And if they’re seen as in-flight servants, smiling customer relations personnel, will anyone look to them in times of crises?<br /> <br /> We say, get someone else to serve the soda and pretzels. Give the flight attendants the training and authority to save lives, and concentrate on solving real in-flight problems, not cosmetic or public relations’ ones.<br /></p></div>Airport Travel with Little Oneshttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/airport-travel-with-little-ones2013-10-03T18:31:05.000Z2013-10-03T18:31:05.000ZAustin Crowleyhttps://tripatini.com/members/AustinCrowley<div><p align="center" style="text-align:left;">Vacations can be exciting. And for parents who feel the need for a break away from work and all of the stress, it can be one of the most relieving times in your life. However, traveling with young children can almost put all of that that stress right back into the situation. I know that traveling with kids through airports can be seem little daunting, and with kids, it may seem a little impossible. However, there are some quick tips for you to make your vacation trip run as best as it can when there’s children on board.<br /> <br /> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008793093,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}9008793093,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="640" class="align-center" alt="9008793093?profile=original" /></a><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/fabulousterrah/2917377543/" target="_blank">Source</a></p><p style="text-align:left;"><b>At the airport</b></p><p>Going through security can be intimidating… but try adding a couple toddlers attached to your hip, and you’ll find that your stress level just reached its peak. With the new TSA regulations, it’s always a good idea to be up-to-date on what you need to avoid when going through security, especially with children.</p><ul><li>If you need to take liquids (baby formula, milk, juice, etc.), make sure it’s in the travel size requirement—3.4 ounces (100ml). This way, the TSA officer won’t make you throw away any liquids you may have brought. If you or your child has a medical condition that requires you to bring your medication, don’t worry! This surpasses the 3.4 ounces rule; before going through security, make sure this is noted for them.</li><li>Any child under the age of 12 does NOT have to take their shoes off when going through security.</li><li>Before boarding that plane, let your child get their energy out. I’m not saying let them run wild; if the airport has a play area, let them get their silliness out there, or walk around the airport with them until their little legs get tired.</li><li>Most flight services don’t offer inflight complimentary meals until an hour after takeoff—this can be a very bad thing if your child hasn’t been fed since they got to the airport. Before boarding the plane, make sure your child is well fed. This can help any future, unpredicted tantrums.</li><li>If your child has a tendency to wander, or if you have a fear that they might become lost, seek out a travel insurance policy that specifically addresses the return of children. Whether they’re simply lost at the terminal or left behind thousands of miles away, these policies can arrange for their safe return. For example, many local <a href="http://locator.carolinas.aaa.com/search/nc/charlotte/insurance.html">Charlotte insurance agents</a> in my neck of the woods offer these services since it is a major airport city.</li></ul><p><b>Facing the ride</b></p><p>Believe me, I have seen the looks that are received when you walk on the plane with small children; people are giving you that “your kid better not scream the entire trip” look. And as a lifelong traveler, I can completely relate with that feeling. But don’t fret—I have some ideas to keep your child entertained while plane is in flight, and the other passengers will be thankful as well.</p><ul><li>Do they have a stuffed animal, blanket, toy, etc. that they <i>cannot</i> live without? Don’t pack this in their suitcase. (I learned my lesson on this one.) This can keep them comforted during takeoff and landing, two of the most stressful times for youngsters if they aren’t used to flying.</li><li>Bring little snacks. We all know that when you get bored, you eat. Easy snacks like Goldfish or Cheerios are relatively healthy options, but watch out for sanitation with finger foods since every season is flu season when you’re on a plane.</li><li>The all too favorite game “I Spy” or “Simon Says” is always a good trick too— this gets your child to get their energy out in a different form: being quiet <i>and</i> in their seat. A parent’s dream.</li><li>Pack a few of their favorite stories or books that they love to read, as well as any coloring books. And hey—this can give you quiet time!</li><li>And lastly, set realistic goals for the trip. Don’t fantasize about your children doing exactly what you say, and the passengers applauding you for a job well done—as long as you’re optimistic, and <i>realistic</i>, things will be better in the long run for your sanity. </li><li>If you’re <i>really</i> the accommodating type, consider bringing a tub of earplugs to spare other nearby passengers of a child’s whining.</li></ul><p>I hope these tips help in your future travels, and that you have a safe and exciting trip with your family in tow. What are your favorite methods of keeping children quiet and others sane when flying abroad?</p></div>Flights from San Jose to Limon Costa Rica make travel easyhttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/flights-from-san-jose-to-limon-costa-rica-make-travel-easy2015-11-24T23:45:46.000Z2015-11-24T23:45:46.000ZShannon Farleyhttps://tripatini.com/members/ShannonFarley<div><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008891290,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9008891290,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="543" alt="9008891290?profile=original" /></a>Planning to <b>come to the <a href="http://www.lecameleonhotel.com/blog-category/338-explore-the-magical-south-caribbean-coast-of-costa-rica.html" target="_blank">Costa Rica Caribbean Coast on vacation</a></b>? While the <b>drive from San Jose to Puerto Viejo</b> is pretty, there is a much easier way to get to Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast. Fly!</p><p>It takes about <b>four hours to drive the 217 kilometers</b> <b>to Puerto Viejo</b> from San Jose. The stretch on Route 32 through the Braulio Carrillo National Park is certainly very beautiful, but can also be treacherous when raining, foggy, or after dark – a good portion of the time.</p><p>Save yourself the headache and stress of driving. Getting to the southern Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica is easy on <b>30-minute domestic flights between San Jose and Limon</b> operated by <a href="http://www.natureair.com/" target="_blank">Nature Air</a> and <a href="http://crc.flysansa.com/en/home" target="_blank">Sansa Airlines</a>. After the 30 minute flight, it is only a quick 30-minute drive from the Limon Airport to Puerto Viejo. In an hour from San Jose, you can be lounging under a palm tree on a stunning Caribbean beach with a cold fruit drink in your hand. Besides that, the views of Braulio Carrillo National Park and the Sucio, Reventazon and Pacuare rivers are even better from the air!</p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008945883,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9008945883,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="640" alt="9008945883?profile=original" /></a>Costa Rican airline <a href="http://www.natureair.com/limon-flights.aspx?gclid=CIquqOrLjsICFZPm7Aod9g0Ajg" target="_blank">Nature Air</a> operates flights four times per week to the Caribbean port city of <b>Limon from San Jose</b>. Flights depart from the <a href="http://www.fly2sanjose.net/" target="_blank">Juan Santamaria International Airport</a> by San Jose on Mondays, Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, leaving at 5:50 a.m. and arriving to the Limon airport at 6:20 a.m. Return flights depart Limon at 6:30 a.m. and arrive to San Jose at 7:25 a.m., with a quick stop on the way to Tortuguero in the northern Caribbean.</p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009014069,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009014069,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="530" alt="9009014069?profile=original" /></a><a href="http://crc.flysansa.com/en/destinations/Limon" target="_blank">Sansa Airlines</a> operates <b>flights between San Jose and Limon</b> regularly, departing from Juan Santamaria International Airport:</p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009014253,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-right" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009014253,original{{/staticFileLink}}" height="245" width="245" alt="9009014253?profile=original" /></a>San Jose to Limon: depart 6:50 a.m. / arrive 7:35 a.m. Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun</p><p>San Jose to Limon: depart 7:45 a.m. / arrive 8:05 a.m. Daily</p><p>San Jose to Limon: depart 2:30 p.m. / arrive 3:30 p.m. Daily</p><p> </p><p>Limon to San Jose: depart 7:01 a.m. / arrive 7:56 a.m. Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun</p><p>Limon to San Jose: depart 7:45 a.m. / arrive 8:47 a.m. Daily</p><p>Limon to San Jose: depart 3:40 p.m. / arrive 4:20 p.m. Daily</p><p></p><p><b>Costa Rica Caribbean Coast</b></p><p>Sunshine, warm turquoise Caribbean Sea, palm trees, lush jungle, sloths in the trees, parrots and toucans flying overhead, cool restaurants, great hotels and a laid-back Caribbean vibe … what more could you want on holiday? <b>The <a href="http://www.enchanting-costarica.com/costa-rica-2/10-things-expect-costa-ricas-southern-caribbean-coast/" target="_blank">southern Costa Rica Caribbean Coast</a> has everything for an idyllic Caribbean vacation</b>.</p><p>Try out <b>new adventures</b>: snorkeling or scuba diving around coral reefs, go sea kayaking, hike in the jungle, visit a sloth sanctuary or a jaguar rescue center, learn how to make chocolate, surf some of the best waves in Costa Rica.</p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9008824294,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9008824294,original{{/staticFileLink}}" width="451" alt="9008824294?profile=original" /></a>Whether you <b>come to Costa Rica’s Caribbean Coast</b> for a romantic getaway, family vacation, friends’ trip, or honeymoon, the <b>place to stay in <a href="http://www.lecameleonhotel.com/area.html" target="_blank">Puerto Viejo</a></b> is <b><a href="http://www.lecameleonhotel.com/" target="_blank">Hotel Le Caméléon</a>.</b> The <a href="http://www.enchanting-hotels.cr/en/le-cameleon-boutique-hotel.html" target="_blank">Costa Rica boutique hotel</a> offers <a href="http://www.lecameleonhotel.com/rooms.html" target="_blank">upscale beach accommodations</a> in the tropical rainforest, facing one of the area’s <b>most beautiful beaches –</b> <a href="http://www.enchanting-costarica.com/costa-rica-2/prettiest-beach-by-puerto-viejo-costa-rica-is-playa-cocles/" target="_blank">Playa Cocles</a>.</p><p><b><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}9009014653,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="650" class="align-center" src="{{#staticFileLink}}9009014653,original{{/staticFileLink}}" alt="9009014653?profile=original" /></a>Hip, modern and chic</b>, Le Cameleon Boutique Hotel has 23 rooms stylized in all-white minimalism with touches of bright colors that change every day like a chameleon, and <b>all of the comforts you expect</b> at a four-star resort. The hotel’s <a href="http://www.lecameleonhotel.com/restaurant.html" target="_blank">La Sula Sea Lounge Beach Club</a> across the street is the place to hang out by the shore and meet friends for a cool drink or a light meal. <b>Hotel Le Caméléon</b> provides <a href="http://www.lecameleonhotel.com/puerto-viejo-costa-rica-spa.html" target="_blank">spa services</a>, private yoga classes, <a href="http://www.lecameleonhotel.com/restaurant.html" target="_blank">first-class restaurant</a>, reading/lounging areas, and a lap pool and cool water Jacuzzi.</p><p><b><i>Article by Shannon Farley</i></b></p></div>Tourism and Terrorism in Today's World: What Must Be Donehttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/terrorism-tourism-security-paris-metrojet-egypt2015-11-16T16:36:59.000Z2015-11-16T16:36:59.000ZPeter Tarlowhttps://tripatini.com/members/PeterTarlow<div><p><a href="http://img07.deviantart.net/7634/i/2005/237/6/e/dark_eiffel_tower_by_kaliumgirl.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://img07.deviantart.net/7634/i/2005/237/6/e/dark_eiffel_tower_by_kaliumgirl.jpg?width=640" class="align-center" width="640" alt="dark_eiffel_tower_by_kaliumgirl.jpg?width=640" /></a><br /> <br /> This month has not been easy for specialists in <strong>tourism security</strong>. We first witnessed the terrorist bombing of the Russian aircraft, causing not only death and destruction to innocent civilians but also a major blow to Egypt’s tourism industry. Then, on Friday the 13th, the first reports of the terrible attacks in Paris began to come through the newswires.<br /> <br /> It is still too early to provide a full security picture of the events. The French police are correctly holding back information and being during their investigation not to provide the “enemy” with needed details. Although these attacks may not have been a direct assault against the tourism industry, we do know that the venues attacked all were places of public gatherings - part of the backbone of tourism. As such, it is essential that everyone in tourism be well aware of the consequences of these attacks and learn from them. It is not possible to determine as of this writing (November 14) if these attacks have now run their course or if other attacks will follow in the days ahead.<br /> <br /> In reading this article, please note that it does not attempt to ascertain the causes or responsibility for these attacks but rather examines only the consequences of these attacks on the tourism industry as a whole, and presents ideas for tourism’s continued viability in an age of terrorism.</p><p><strong>The End of an Open Europe?</strong></p><p>The Metrojet Russian airliner downing and the Paris attacks will force the travel industry to deal with a major travel paradigm shift. France closed its borders and the idea of an open Europe may now be coming to an end. This shift in travelers’ mindsets that came about after September 11, 2001 could well soon return, and the Western nations which for the last seven years have viewed terrorism as a criminal act rather than as an act of war. National leaders may now have to reassess their modus operandis. The Paris terrorist attacks, and the possibility of new attacks, have given the travel and tourism a new major wake-up call and will force the industry once again to place tourism security at the top of its priority list.<br /> <br /> Unfortunately, many in the travel and tourism industry had hoped that in the years since 9/11, tourism security could once again be placed on the back burner. Put in its simplest of terms; travelers will once again demand good tourism security and not only at airports, but at public venues, restaurants, hotels and stadiums. In the old travel industry paradigm, security was in too many locations the industry’s stepchild or “dark secret.” Industry leaders rarely spoke about threats to tourists in public, fearing that such openness would scare away visitors. The common belief has been that security was a “necessary evil” that one had to have, but that security added nothing to the business’ bottom line.<br /> <br /> For this reason, tourism and travel security were rarely publicized, never mentioned in marketing campaigns, under-funded, and its practitioners were often underpaid. The old paradigm led to poor security at airports, hotels, restaurants and attractions. Security professionals who spoke of acts of terrorism, biochemical attacks, and crime were seen as alarmist, and tourism marketers often asked security professionals to rephrase their warnings in ways that would be acceptable for public consumption.</p><p><strong>The Post-Paris Paradigm for Travel</strong><br /> If the public perception changed after September 11, the attacks against the Russian airliner and the city of Paris will mean that tourism officials who ignore security are placing their entire industry in peril. The bottom line will be simply that where there is no security, tourism will perish, but in those locales where tourism security is professionalized and well thought through, the tourism industry can continue to flourish.<br /> <br /> The post-Paris paradigm for the travel and tourism industry is based on the fact that tourism security is now a major part of a location’s marketing strategy.<br /> <br /> Below are some suggestions and ideas to help you prepare for this new and dangerous world.</p><ul><li><strong>Get over denial, it can happen in your community.</strong> Recognize that no part of the world today is immune from a terrorist attack. Too many parts of the travel and tourism market simply do not believe that an attack can happen to them. It can! Furthermore, as the media often devotes a great amount of coverage to an attack against a tourism area, the fear factor spreads from one locale to entire regions, nations, and even continents.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Recognize that there is a fundamental political shift in the world.</strong> Old assumptions will no longer hold. The tourism industry will need to recognize that the Islamic State and other terrorist groups are at war with it. From a business perspective t old assumptions about the world are very dangerous. Those parts of the travel and tourism industry that emphasize security will have a good chance of surviving. The venues that provide give good security mixed with good customer service will flourish. Those parts of the travel and tourism industry that hold on to the old way of thinking will fade away.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Develop coordinated efforts between security professionals and tourism professionals.</strong> Tourism professionals need to see security professionals and tourism police as allies. That means that tourism professionals must work to insure well-trained TOPPs (Tourism Oriented Policing and Protection units) officers. These TOPPs units should exist in any city that has a major tourism industry or sports stadium.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Develop a tourism task force.</strong> People who should be on this task force are local officials, tourism officials, and transportation officials. The key to this task force is the quality of your facilitator.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Do not create a false sense of security.</strong> Gas masks will do nothing in case of a biological or chemical attack, while sealed rooms may be very useful. Much of what done at airports is a form of “security theater” that, as seen in the recent downing of a Russian airliner over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, does not address real problems. Do not panic people, but deal with safety and security issues in the most professional manner possible. People begin to panic not when you take precautions in a professional manner, but when you fair to take precautions.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Invite specialists to help train not only security personnel but also tourism officials.</strong> All too often tourism officials do not attend security training and merely leave security issues in the hands of unpaid and underfunded security specialists. People lecturing must be both specialists in security and in travel and tourism. Remember terrorism against tourism is not a passing emergency, but now a permanent way of life with a self-proclaimed "state” (the Islamic State, aka ISIS) seeking to undermine the totality of tourism. Travel and tourism-industry professionals who are in denial and refuse to accept this new political reality are risking their business’ health and making a potentially costly error.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Develop security coalitions with all components of your community.</strong> Make sure that your police department is trained and understands tourism, make sure that your hotel and attraction workers know how to handle a security emergency. This is also a time for regionalization. For example, if your state tourism conference has never had an expert speak on tourism security, ask: why not? Both rural and urban areas should be thinking about the security of their guests.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Know what is unsafe in your community and work with local governments to improve these security concerns.</strong> How safe is your local airport? Are cab drivers’ backgrounds investigated? Who has access to guests' rooms? Who is working behind the scenes at airports? Are these people vetted (have their personal backgrounds checked)?</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Send representatives to tourism security conferences.</strong> The oldest and most famous one is held each year in Las Vegas. Every major CVB should have a representative at a tourism security conference along with at least one member of its law enforcement agency. This year’s conference is from April 10-13 and information can be obtained at <a href="http://www.touristsafety.org">www.touristsafety.org</a>.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Make sure that all police personnel and security personnel are aware</strong> of how important tourism security is to their community’s reputation and economic health. Most police have never been trained in good tourism security. It is essential to have a person work with your local police who can “translate” between tourism and security issues.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>"Security" and "safety" may have different meanings to scholars, but in the world of travel they are one and the same.</strong> In the world of terrorism against tourism, any lack of either safety or security can result in the decimation or even destruction of a tourism industry.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>Remember that the best crisis management is good risk management!</strong> It is a lot cheaper to stop an attack then it is to recover from an attack. In both the case of the Russian airliner and the Paris attacks, it appears that tourism officials were taken by surprise. The cost of these surprise attacks cannot only be measured in economic costs but also in the cost of lives destroyed, and reputations ruined. The tourism industry’s number-one priority must be to do everything possible and to work with security agencies so as to assure the safety and security of its guests but also to insure the viability of the tourism industry.</li></ul><p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <span class="font-size-1"><em><a href="https://www.google.com/search?as_st=y&tbm=isch&hl=en&as_q=eiffel+tower+dark&as_epq=&as_oq=&as_eq=&imgsz=&imgar=&imgc=&imgcolor=&imgtype=&cr=&as_sitesearch=&safe=images&as_filetype=&as_rights=#imgar=&imgc=&imgrc=E8e3VWUae3279M%3A" target="_blank">image | Kaliumgirl/Deviantart</a></em></span></p><p></p><p></p></div>Airport Marshallers: Traffic Cops of the Tarmachttps://tripatini.com/profiles/blogs/airports-marshallers-airlines-aviation2015-09-24T21:00:00.000Z2015-09-24T21:00:00.000ZIberia Airlineshttps://tripatini.com/members/IberiaAirlines<div><p><a href="http://megustavolar.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/se%C3%B1aleros.jpg" target="_blank"><img width="614" class="align-center" src="http://megustavolar.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/se%C3%B1aleros.jpg?width=614" alt="se%C3%B1aleros.jpg?width=614" /></a></p><p><br /> Today we hit the tarmac to learn more about the important role played by the ladies and gents you see outside your aircraft window gesticulating up a storm. They’re called<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b>marshallers</b>(known as<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><strong><i>señaleros</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></strong>in Spanish), and besides guiding planes whilst they’re on the ground, these individuals perform other less well known functions as well, such as cooperating with other airport authorities to monitor various vital technical procedures, and providing assistance in case of an unusual incident of any sort.<br /> <br /> These marshallers are of course the folks in the reflective vests and noise-blocking earmuffs we see guiding our planes in and out of parking positions, standing in front with paddles by day, flashlights by night, or in a vehicle with the words “Follow Me” on the back. They work day in and day out, in fair weather or foul (obviously including rain, snow, and freezing winter temperatures). Imagine what it’s like in summer, too, in many airports of the world where it can get intensely hot and either muggy or dry, and they must work long hours under the blazing sun.<br /></p><p><a href="http://megustavolar.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/Marshall.jpg" target="_blank"><img width="640" class="align-center" src="http://megustavolar.iberia.com/wp-content/uploads/Marshall-640x426.jpg?width=640" alt="Marshall-640x426.jpg?width=640" /></a></p><p><br /> Other functions marshallers undertake include airfield inspections, emergency planning, accident/incident analysis, monitoring of security protocols, and even penalising lapses which affect the security of aircraft and others.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Aircraft_hand_signal_all_clear.svg/79px-Aircraft_hand_signal_all_clear.svg.png" target="_blank"><img width="79" class="align-right" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Aircraft_hand_signal_all_clear.svg/79px-Aircraft_hand_signal_all_clear.svg.png?width=79" alt="79px-Aircraft_hand_signal_all_clear.svg.png?width=79" /></a>Their work must at all times be coordinated with the operations centre and control tower; it’s that collaboration, as well as the marshallers’ experience and knowledge of the runways and tarmacs, that are so important to the success of this critical aspect of commercial flight. <br /> <br /> And since each aircraft they handle is different, the job of the marshall is anything but routine. Guiding a Fokker isn’t the same as bringing in an Airbus 340: the former occupies a parking stand with a capacity for larger planes, while the latter has to be placed in a stand where distances between stands are not as wide and any miscalculation could result in an accident. If in addition the 340 is parked at a gate with a jetway to connect, the precision in placement must be absolute, without any margin for error – this is one of the job’s most delicate moments.<br /> <br /> Much rests on the shoulders of these men and women – including our own safety as passengers. Do keep that in mind the next time you spot them gesticulating outside your window!</p><p></p></div>