A recent report from IATA (International Air Transport Association) shows that global air travel dipped roughly 2.9% in September as compared to August. This is seen by many as an early sign that global economic conditions are taking their toll (and will continue to take their toll) on the airline industry across the board.

According to the report, African carriers saw the sharpest decline (down 7.8%) with Asian-Pacific carriers witnessing a drop-off of 6.8%. While a decline in demand and the resulting drop in overall air travel doesn’t come as a shock with the current state of the global economy, the pace at which the drop has occurred and the scale on which it has occurred has surprised members of the IATA:

"Says, Giovanni Bisignani, director general, and CEO, IATA, ‘The deterioration in traffic is alarmingly fast-paced and widespread. We have not seen such a decline in passenger traffic since SARS in 2003.’" (from the Financial Express )

If the trend continues, Bisignani believes that the loss of revenue for member airlines in 2008 will surpass their initial predictions of close to $5.2 billion.

In order to combat the wane in demand, international carriers have taken similar steps to those we’ve seen domestically including holiday/winter airfare sales and reduced prices on longer flights. It remains to be seen if these appeals and others to consumers will help reverse the trend and put more travelers back in the skies in markets across the globe over the next several months.

Wherever you are, we wish you the very best!

Happy Thanksgiving from your friends at FareCompare.com

Last week, we covered some of the problems Virgin America has had getting things started in Chicago. Flight dates were initially pushed back, and many have wondered if the carrier has any real future in the Windy City. However, the Chicago issues have not necessarily dampened Virgin America’s desire to expand into other markets, and this could occur without the airline expanding its fleet (for a couple of years, at least).

A plan that would increase utilization of the current fleet without increasing inventory over the next two years is geared towards allowing Virgin America to step-up its presence on the East Coast (Boston, Miami, and Atlanta are being discussed), and move into the middle of the country. The airline is confident that the Chicago issues will be resolved soon, and they’re also setting their sights further south:

“Austin [Texas] is a nice fit for us…” (Virgin America President and CEO David Cush, from Aviation Week)

Virgin America continues to pride itself on an air travel experience that isn’t matched by the legacy carriers. Perhaps more importantly to travelers in Virgin America’s potential new markets, though, is the fact that new airlines and new routes at your home airport can often lead to lower airfare.

Business travelers in Northern Ohio received some good news yesterday. The Department of Transportation has awarded US Airways two slots to fly between Ronald Reagan National Airport (DCA) in Washington, DC and Akron-Canton Airport (CAK). With the new slots, US Airways will be able to offer one daily non-stop flight between the cities.

Gaining non-stop access to DCA will help both US Airways and Akron-Canton Airport appeal to business travelers in the area who haven’t always had the most convenient time flying to the nation’s capital. While this may not be big news outside of parts of Ohio, it is an interesting story. Slots at Reagan haven’t been the easiest to come by in the past (especially ones with flights connecting non-stop to smaller markets); a point that isn’t lost on the folks at CAK:

“This is a historic day for the Akron-Canton Airport and the region as we were in desperate need of an easier way to get to Washington, D.C.,” said Rick McQueen, President & CEO.” (from PR Newswire)

US Airways’ new service begins in January of 2009.

I predict a lot of “pricing chaos” for the airlines in 2009.

I talk about this in my weekly column for ABCNews.com — and provide several rules of thumb to help most travelers get a better deal. Number one is, use FareCompare.com — we have the latest fares, first. Here are some more rules:

• Don’t Procrastinate - Start shopping for airline tickets about four months before departure — this is when airlines begin actively managing and releasing cheaper seats and you’ll also be more likely to catch a system-wide airfare sale
• Travel the Cheapest Days — Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday
• Travel the Cheapest Times of Day — First flights out, after lunch and dinner, and last flights out
• Shop Online Monday Afternoon Through Thursday — Sales are typically launched and matched by other airlines early in the week, and expire on Friday
• Consider Connecting Flights — Airlines charge a premium for coveted non-stops
• Turn Business Trips into Weekend Getaways — Stay a Saturday night, and typically you can get two tickets for the weekend for less than one last-minute business ticket
• Be Flexible - This is especially true for international travel with its defined pricing seasons — time it right, and you can save $400 by leaving 24 hours before or after the day you’d planned to take off

See the rest of my column right here.

The New York Post reports that American Airlines has been cited by the Dept. of Consumer Affairs for using some inaccurate baggage scales at its check-in counters at JFK.

The agency did not say if these wrongly calibrated scales worked in favor of the airlines or passengers — but, if they worked against bag owners, that could be costly.

“If airlines are going to start charging travelers left and right for their luggage, their scales had better be perfect. We’re shutting down any airline luggage scale that doesn’t get it right.” –Jonathan Mintz, Dept. of Consumer Affairs (from the New York Post)

American Airlines responded that, it spends tens of thousands of dollars each year on scale calibration.

According to the Post, if you see a bright red “condemned” sticker on a scale, just be sure it doesn’t show your luggage as “overweight”.

Sometimes, it pays to be a turkey.

Like, the White House Turkey (actually, it’s turkeys — there are always two of them). After the President pardons them — they get to fly to Disneyland on United — in first class.

In fact, the birds and their entourage will take over the entire first class cabin — we should be so lucky.? So what are the birds going to do in Disneyland? Reporter Terry Maxon speculates that “The turkeys will be on display at Disneyland until, I presume, they pass away of excessive weight.”

Congratulations to United — yes, I suppose some honors are more, uh, dignified than others, but you take what you can get.

You know how much flak the heads of Detroit’s automakers got last week when they flew their private jets to Washington — to ask for a bailout.

Now, there is talk that they are going to go to D.C. for round-two – in a caravan of cars — fuel efficient cars.

I want to say to those execs, you know, there is a middle ground: instead of choosing between private luxury aircraft and automobiles — just check with FareCompare.com — for the best deals on the commercial airlines. Unfortunately, they didn?t ask me.

The folks that take the Zagat surveys are all over the map when it comes to airlines — but then I suppose, so are the categories.

These are my personal favorites among categories:

• Best Value for the Money (domestic): Southwest
• Best Value for the Money (international): Continental

Other “bests”?: JetBlue won for best inflight entertainment — domestic. while Virgin Atlantic took the honors for international entertainment. And Midwest was deemed best midsize domestic premium seating.

See all the categories and winners, right here.

Last week, reader Marilyn saw the airline ticket she purchased this summer go down in price, and I suggested some options on how she might still be able to save some money or even make up the difference in the two fares in the form of a voucher.

I want to dive into those options a bit deeper today.

For domestic airline tickets, the prevailing charge to change a ticket is $150; called the “change fee”. This fee is part of the rules of your airfare. However, there is a process, sometimes called a “rollover,” which addresses ticket prices going down on a flight (same flight) that you have already already purchased. In such cases, there are often special rules outside of the “change fee” — allowing you to typically get a voucher for the difference (you have to contact the airline, because they do not do it automatically).

Unfortunately, this “feature” on airlines that have it, is not easy to find on their websites so we did a bit of digging and found the following:

• Alaska Airlines has no fee for same flight price drops (we couldn’t find an online link but spoke with a couple of reps, evidently it is built into their online ticket change tool)
• American Airlines doesn’t have anything special for price drops outside of same day of purchase, the normal change fee applies
• Continental Airlines doesn’t have anything special for price drops outside of same day of purchase, the normal change fee applies
• Delta Air Lines¹ doesn’t have anything special for price drops outside of same day of purchase, the normal change fee applies
• JetBlue has no fee for same flight price drops (we couldn’t find an online link, but spoke with a couple of reps. Use their online change tool, or give them a call)
• Northwest Airlines offers vouchers for flight price drops, and according to reps charges a fee of $50 for the process.
• Southwest Airlines has no fee for same flight price drops (built into their online ticket change tool)
• United Airlines² has no fee for same flight price drops as long as flight meets listed criteria.
• US Airways doesn’t have anything special for price drops outside of same day of purchase, the normal change fee applies

¹Under FAQ — “If I have purchased a ticket and a new fare is introduced, can I obtain a credit?”

²Under customer service FAQ. Go to “Existing Reservations,” then “If I have purchased a ticket and a new, lower fare is introduced, can I obtain a credit?”

FareCompare.com hasn’t gotten an official “seal of approval”, but we have been included in a new book by the editors of Good Housekeeping, and I couldn’t be more delighted.

And I don’t think the timing for this book could be better: it’s called “Good Deals & Smart Steals” and it’s all about a matter close to my heart - saving money.

This is from a review of the book in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch online:

“Here’s another savings for traveling: If you want to keep up with the latest airfares or know when a price drops to a level you’d like, sign up for e-mail alerts. Farecompare.com e-mails prices on flights between any two cities you choose. The alerts are sent up to four hours before fares are published online or to agents.” -Good Housekeeping’s “Good Deals & Smart Steals”

Sounds like this could make a great stocking-stuffer…

The TSA (Transportation Security Administration) in concert with the Ad Council has produced a series of videos called “Why” that attempt to explain why the TSA has the rules that they do (and you can see the videos here).

One video asks: Why do we have to remove our shoes? Answer: because the X-ray machines that scan our carry-on bags can detect bombs hidden in shoes -the implication being that walk-through scanners cannot detect such things - though it’s never stated.

Another video attempts to answer this question: Why we are limited to just 3 ounces of liquid? The response is less satisfying: the TSA “worked with scientists…to develop a formula that made it safe to bring liquids onboard in limited quantities.” Doesn’t tell you a whole, whole lot.

This is a step in the right direction, I think — and I applaud this effort at trying to demystify the security process - but I’d clap a little louder if the TSA could be a bit more transparent.

Something doesn’t quite compute here.

The president of the “new” Delta (new and huge, since its merger with Northwest) says, yes, it will keep all seven of its hubs — Detroit, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Memphis, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York JFK and Salt Lake City.

And the Detroit Free Press goes on to quote Ed Bastian as saying, “We’ve already paid for [the hubs]; they are ours.”

But at the same time, over at the Dallas Morning News, reporter Terry Maxon points out that Delta is still cutting capacity - and may well do more in 2009 than the airline had previously planned.

It will be interesting to see if in fact they can hang on to all those hubs.

Looking further ahead: Delta plans to make 50% of its routes international flights - by the year 2010. In the meantime, there’s still 2009 to get through.

Yes, it probably will be a little less congested in the nation’s airports this year - but face it, a crowd is still a crowd - and Thanksgiving is always the busiest air travel time of the year, so it will be mobbed.

And you have to plan accordingly.

I’ve listed five “do’s and don’ts” that will make your airport experience as smooth as possible. And yes, some of these are golden-oldies - you’ve heard them before - but this time, follow the advice. Trust me, you’ll be glad you did.

Five DO’S and DON’TS for Thanksgiving Airport SURVIVAL

1. DO - Get to the Airport Early. This is especially important if you’re flying out the Friday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving - or the Sunday after.

• SURVIVAL TACTIC: Arrive 2 hours before domestic flights, and 3 hours before international flights during “peak travel times”: 6am to 9 am, 11am to 2pm, and 7pm to 10pm.

2. DON’T - Drive Yourself to the Airport. It’s not about saving gas, it’s about finding a parking space - don’t waste valuable time looking for one in that huge long-term lot.

• SURVIVAL TACTIC: Take mass transit, carpool, taxi, or bribe a neighbor to drive you.

3. DO - Bring the Fun Stuff. If you arrive in plenty of time or run into delays, you (and especially the kids) will need a diversion; think movies on laptops, electronic games, and best of all - a good book.

• SURVIVAL TACTIC: Be sure to charge all batteries completely the night before (and that goes for your cell phone battery, too).

4. DON’T - Break the TSA Rules. You know all this - no liquids or gels larger than 3oz - don’t delay yourself and others by forgetting at such a crucial time.

• SURVIVAL TACTIC: Use the new “family lanes” at security checkpoints if you’re traveling with your tribe.

5. DO - Set Airline Alerts Before You Leave. Go on your airline’s website and sign up for “alerts” so you’ll be notified of any delays. NOTE: Even if you’ve been notified of a 3 hour delay, get to the airport at the scheduled departure time anyway; if the delay only lasts an hour, that plane will take off - with you or without you. And if there is a long delay, at least you’ll be psychologically prepared for it.

• SURVIVAL TACTIC: Be sure the person picking you up is also signed up for these alerts; no sense having Grandpa waiting around the airport for hours.

As you know, an estimated 4 million people are expected to descend on Washington for the inauguration of Barack Obama.

Now Southwest has announced it’s adding 26 flights in and out of Washington Dulles and Baltimore airports. The new flights will be taking off between Jan.17 and Jan. 23.

According to a Southwest spokesman, their flights were filling up, so they decided to pile a few more on - to satisfy customer demand.

Keep reading for a list of the new flights…

I guess they got tired of all the screaming.

However, a US Airways official says the decision to reverse themselves and restore its bonus miles as well as the “500 mile minimum” for short hops - was merely prompted by “customer feedback”.

And mind you, it’s only being restored to the airline’s top-tier frequent fliers - though it is retroactive - which is a nice touch.

This announcement comes in the wake of first Continental’s, then United’s decision to restore that 500 mile minimum perk.

This just in from CTV: The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that airline passengers who are obese or disabled and need another seat can get that second seat for free.

The court effectively upholds Canada’s “one-person, one-fare” policy. In practical terms, it means that if a disabled person requires an attendant, that attendant gets a seat for free — and an obese person who needs extra room is allowed a second seat at no additional cost.

Air Canada and WestJet had appealed a lower Canadian court’s ruling, which was rejected today.

It should be pointed out that this continuation of the “one-person, one-fare” policy applies only to Canadian domestic flights, and will not apply to the domestic portion of an international flight.

I’m sure we’ll get some comments on this post - who’s first?

I love a good fight. But this one’s getting nasty.

It all began as I perused a press release on the decline of global business travel. It seems, passengers buying first class or business travel airfare fell 8% in September, compared to September 2007. And it was worse in the Middle East, where the high-end airfare was off 14%.

But what really struck me were the comments - from both road warriors and family travelers - that showed an incredible degree of animosity on both sides.

For example, one commenter accused the “arrogant airlines” of treating his family as “second class citizens” adding that, “We EXPECT you to transport a suitcase with every traveler! Quit nickel and diming travelers to death!” Where have I heard that one before?

In response, a road warrior pointed out that business travelers often don’t pay for bags partly because they pay so much more for their tickets - and then it got uglier: “Passengers should STOP whining for things they can’t afford…YOU are NOT entitled to fly CHEAP. Stay home!”

My goodness, all that shouting. It’s almost like watching a class war unfold - which I suppose is exactly what it is.

Any comments?

Three airports are opening up new and much needed runways - Washington Dulles, Chicago’s O’Hare and Seattle-Tacoma. Millions were spent, and officials say the runways will eventually make these airports safer, more efficient - and may even cut down on delays.

But where are the new runways where they’re really needed? I speak, of course, of the greater metropolitan New York City airports - LaGuardia, JFK and Newark.

The problem is, the realities of real estate - there just isn’t room for much expansion.

Then there’s what a CNN report called, “local opposition”. Tough to beat in New York. Just like the delays at all the airports…

This almost sounds like something out of one of the old “Airport” movies. Except the “real life” flight attendant in this incident didn’t fall apart.

The story took place last January. It seems, somewhere over the Atlantic, the co-pilot of an Air Canada jet heading from Toronto to London, apparently had a breakdown of some kind - and had to be “forcibly” removed from the cockpit.

Fortunately, one of the flight attendants had a pilot’s license and stepped in to fill the breach. And helped land the plane safely in Shannon

There are a lot more details in our sister blog, StandardUprightPosition - just click here.

Here’s a stunner - this, from Southwest’s blog:

“Brace yourselves. Today Southwest Airlines announced our intention to bid to begin service to New York City’s LaGuardia Airport.”

Southwest is seeking to buy 14 take-off and landing sites at LaGuardia that had been owned by the now bankrupt ATA. According to Dow Jones/CNN, Southwest “submitted a $7.5 million bid to the Indianapolis bankruptcy court that’s overseeing the sale of assets owned by Southwest’s former business partner, ATA Airlines.”

The Southwest blog cautions that this is not a done deal - and it’s not even clear where or when Southwest would fly to and from New York City if they get the slots — perhaps next year - but there’s an undeniable sense of excitement in the air, which we haven’t seen much of in this bleak economic climate. Here’s Southwest’s CEO:

“Even in this volatile environment, we have said we must monitor the competitive landscape and take advantage of prudent market opportunity.” –Gary Kelly, Southwest

So far, the closest Southwest has come to cracking the Big Apple has been Long Island’s MacArthur Airport which is about 50 miles away. If they get the ATA slots, they will have really hit the big time.

Small groups of American Airlines flight attendants picked up their protest signs and marched at the Dallas/Ft. Worth, JFK and Reagan airports yesterday. Their message: raise our pay - or else.

The flight attendants are in the midst of negotiations with American for a new contract; what they’d like to see are raises that in effect restore what they lost when they agreed to concessions back in 2003 - when it looked like the airline might go bankrupt.

“There is a lot of anger and frustration.” -Laura Glading, Assn. of Professional Flight Attendants

American Airlines, for its part, told the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram that ” American attendants are among the industry’s highest paid and still have pensions and retiree health benefits.”

According to a flight attendant union rep, the situation is very close to what happened in 1993 - when flight attendants walked off the job for 5 days - an action that reportedly cost the carrier about $20 million dollars a day.

Want to be part of history? If you are going to be in D.C. this January 20^th for the swearing in of our 44^th President - you will not be alone.

The figures keep rising, even as I write this - but last I heard, officials in Washington are now expecting - four million people!

I’ve already explained that airfares will be up sharply for flights heading to the nation’s capital [see my chart that shows the price hikes] but now it seems, accommodations are going to be in extremely short supply - and the best rooms will come with presidential price tags - including a special package at the Mandarin Oriental that goes for more than $200,00 (to be fair, that’s for 4 nights - plus, you get a chauffeur-driven Maserati, as well).

If you’d like to see more fun facts (how big was that snowfall for JFK’s inaugural?), check out my latest ABCNews.com column - there’s a new one out every Wednesday.

Last year, the President opened up military airspace along the Eastern Seaboard to Thanksgiving travelers.

Today, as expected, Mr. Bush did it again - only on a much broader basis - by expanding the effort to include the Midwest, Southwest and the West Coast of the U.S.

These extra lanes allow aircraft more room to maneuver in order to avoid bad weather, and subsequent delays. However, a spokesperson for the air traffic controllers’ union said this is nowhere near what is needed:

“It is all for show and, frankly, this show is getting quite tiresome to the American traveling public that has gotten fed up with mounting delays and FAA mismanagement that has degraded the system during the current administration.” –Doug Church, National Air Traffic Controllers Association

Ah, but here’s something everyone will like: starting in December, the federal government is increasing the compensation airlines must pay passengers when an airline loses a bag - the amount jumps from “up to $3,000″ to “up to $3,300″.

Great news for travelers heading to the U.S. from Ireland.

U.S. and Irish officials will sign an agreement next week that will allow U.S. Customs screenings and immigration checkpoints to be set up in two Irish airports, Dublin and Shannon.

What this means is, travelers can get through the often hectic process of going through U.S. customs in these quiet airports (as opposed to say, JFK - or massive European airports like London’s Heathrow) - and the travelers will be done with all that fuss and bother before ever setting foot on U.S. soil. Another plus: this means the planes can fly to U.S. domestic terminals.

Shannon will begin offering the service starting this summer; Dublin’s airport will see it sometime in 2010.

This should be a real boon to the Irish airports and the airlines that serve them, and could prove a tremendous boost to Ryanair - which has said it will begin trans-Atlantic service to the U.S. sometime this coming year - for as little as 10 Euros, one-way.

An enthusiastic hat tip to Gadling.