Skyteam boosts RTW offering
The Skyteam alliance has increased the attractiveness of its Round the World (RTW) and Europe Pass tickets following the inclusion of three more carriers.
Current members of Skyteam that participate in the RTW offering include Air France, Korean Air and Delta. Now they've been joined by Northwest, KLM and Continental, adding 141 destinations in the US, Canada, Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa to the 658 destinations previously available to RTW passengers.
The RTW tickets allow customers to opt for one of four packages that includes between three and 15 stops for a trip ranging from 10 days to one year. They cost from E2000, for the package starting in Amsterdam. Rules governing the RTW ticket mean travellers must start and finish in the same country, cross both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and can backtrack
only within the same continent.
The Europe Pass is for alliance passengers who do not reside in Europe, have made a transatlantic or transpacific flight and want to buy three or more single tickets around Europe at a reduced rate. Airlines offering these European routes are Air France, Alitalia, CSA Czech Airlines and now KLM.
Passengers travelling on either the RTW or Europe Pass tickets can earn and redeem frequent flyer points with all Skyteam airlines. The alliance is expected to make additions to its America Pass ticket later this year following the inclusion of Northwest, KLM and Continental.
Skyteam's alliance rivals, One World and Star Alliance, also offer RTW ticket options utilising the network strengths of their member airlines. Go to
Skyteam UK website
Icelandair eyes San Francisco
An airline launching flights between the UK and San Francisco hopes to lure economy class passengers further up the plane with its competitive business class fares.
Icelandair will operate flights from Heathrow and Glasgow via Reykjavik to San Francisco from May 18 until October 15. It is offering business class fares from around £1,000, which compare to usual business class fares upwards of £2,000 for an indirect flight and £5,000 for a direct flight between the UK and San Francisco, although airline sales can bring direct fares down to £2,000.
The only drawback of the Icelandair flights is that flights are not operated daily – it will operate twice a week during May and September, rising to four times a week during the peak months of June, July and August.
The flight will be operated by a wide-bodied Boeing 767 with 230 seats in economy and 30 in business class. It will leave Heathrow at 1pm on Wednesdays and Saturdays (plus Monday and Thursday during peak season) and arrive in San Francisco at 6.35pm. The return flight leaves at 11.35pm and arrives in London at 8.10pm the following day.
Icelandair also operates flights from the UK via Reykjavik to Boston, New York, Washington Baltimore, Minneapolis St Paul and Orlando. In anticipation of increased traffic to the US the carrier has upgraded its business class Lounge. The extended lounge has room for 130 passengers and offers free wireless internet access, workstations and computers with free internet access and meeting facilities for up to 10.
For passengers not wishing to work, there's a relaxation area offering soothing music, all decked out in a modern Scandinavian design with plenty of wood, leather and a homely fireplace. Go to
Icelandair UK web site
India flights on the up
Flights between the UK and India are set to increase again next year, with Mumbai the focus of expansion plans.
Following an agreement between the British and Indian governments, 21 more flights will be allocated from winter next year. The flights are likely to be distributed between British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Bmi, all of which have announced their desire to boost frequency to Mumbai.
British Airways wants to take its Delhi and Mumbai flights from daily to double daily, while Bmi has announced an intention to serve Mumbai daily, up from four flights a week. Virgin Atlantic also wants a daily service to Mumbai by the end of the year from three per week.
All three carriers have also expressed interest in other Indian destinations, which under the new agreement between the UK and Indian authorities could include destinations such as Amritsar, Hyderabad and Cochin.
An earlier agreement between the UK and India enabled the launch of 21 more flights per week over the course of 2005. The 21 extra services were allocated between BA, Virgin Atlantic and Bmi. Previously the only UK airline to fly to India was British Airways with 19 flights per week.
The first flights to launch were daily services to Delhi with Virgin Atlantic in time for winter 2004. At the end of March Bmi launched four flights per week to Mumbai, competing head-to-head with three flights per week from Virgin Atlantic to the city and a daily service from BA. Finally for the winter 2005 schedule launching at the end of October will be four flights per week to Chennai and three per week to Bangalore with British Airways. Go to
BA website,
Bmi website and
Virgin Atlantic website
Inflight meals go gourmet
An inflight meal of smoked salmon or lobster, once the staple of business and first class passengers, is now available to all passengers to pick up before boarding.
The take-away meals are on sale at Caviar House Seafood Bars, the luxurious enclaves serving champagne and seafood that have become a well-known fixture in London's Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports.
Passengers can select their meal from the range of seafood on offer. Prices start at £11.50 for a smoked salmon platter and rise to £30 for a lobster salad. Meals come with bread and butter, napkins and cutlery.
The take-away boxes are the same size as regular airline meal trays and come in a cool bag, keeping the contents chilled for up to five hours. Go to
Caviar House web site