Traveller – Page 59 – The News Desk

EasyJet cancels 1,700 summer flights from Gatwick – Business Traveller

10Jul

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EasyJet cancels 1,700 summer flights from Gatwick – Business Traveller

EasyJet has cut around 1,700 flights from its Gatwick summer schedules, as a result of “challenging conditions” due to ATC strikes and the ongoing war in Ukraine. The cancellations cover the months of July, August and September, when many customers will be heading off on their summer holidays. The airline said that 95 per cent of customers affected by the cancellations had been rebooked onto alternative flights, and all affected passengers have been provided with the option to rebook or receive a refund. Last summer easyJet was also forced to cancel services as the airline industry struggled to cope with the sudden ramping up in demand, following the relaxation of Covid-19 travel restrictions. Easyjet to cut more summer flights following airport capacity caps At the time the carrier sai...

Virgin Australia unveils new cabins in fleet-wide upgrade – Business Traveller

10Jul

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Virgin Australia unveils new cabins in fleet-wide upgrade – Business Traveller

More than 3,000 Virgin Australia team members and their families last weekend celebrated the arrival of the airline’s first fuel-efficient Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft. Fresh from the Boeing factory in Seattle and featuring that new plane smell, the Max 8 aircraft marks an important milestone in the transformation of Virgin Australia with its fleet renewal programme well underway. The first Boeing 737 Max aircraft is one of 33 fuel-efficient Max 8 and larger Max 10 aircraft Virgin Australia has on order. With the arrival of the 737 Max, Virgin Australia has also revealed its new business class and economy cabin interior, as well as confirming plans to refresh the interior cabins on the airline’s remaining Boeing fleet, as part of an investment of approximately A$110 million to improve th...

Amsterdam Schiphol extends pre-booked security check time slots to all destinations – Business Traveller

10Jul

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Amsterdam Schiphol extends pre-booked security check time slots to all destinations – Business Traveller

Amsterdam Schiphol has expended its service enabling customers to pre-book time slots for their departure security checks. The initiative was launched earlier this year for departures to Schengen destinations, and has now been extended to include non-Schengen routes. The service is free of charge, with passengers able to reserve slots up to three days before departure on the Schiphol website or app. They will then receive a confirmation email containing a QR code, which can be scanned at the airport by a member of staff, who will direct the customer to the correct security check entry point. Time slots are open for 15 minutes, and travellers are advised to wait at Plaza area if they arrive early as it may not yet be active. Those that are late, however, may have to use the regular route ...

Priority Pass adds 13 lounges in Indonesia – Business Traveller

9Jul

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Priority Pass adds 13 lounges in Indonesia – Business Traveller

Priority Pass members now have access to 13 new lounges across Indonesia, thanks to an agreement between owner Collinson and hospitality provider Blue Sky Group. The additional options include lounges at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International, Sultan Aji Muhammad Sulaiman Sepinggan International in Balikpapan, and Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II International in Palembang. Collinson said that access to eight of the lounges would be exclusive to Priority Pass members. Facilities include complimentary buggy services from the lounge to immigration at Muhammad Sulaiman Sepinggan International and Soekarno-Hatta International’s Terminal 2, as well as coffee from Blue Sky’s in-house brand Ippolito, and local dishes such as Pisang Goreng and Jajanan Pasar. Commenting on the news Todd Handcock, glob...

Billy Bishop Toronto City airport to gain US preclearance facility – Business Traveller

9Jul

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Billy Bishop Toronto City airport to gain US preclearance facility – Business Traveller

Billy Bishop Toronto City airport is to become the ninth Canadian airport to have US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) preclearance facilities. Owner PortsToronto confirmed that up to $30 million in funding for the facility at the city’s downtown airport will be provided by the federal government, with construction expected to take between 18 and 24 months. Once the preclearance facility opens in 2025, passengers will be able to clear customs before departure from the airport, rather than upon landing in the US. It will also open up new US markets from Billy Bishop Toronto City airport, as some smaller airports in the US do not have US CBP, and so cannot accept travellers who have not been precleared. The airport will join Canada’s Calgary International, Edmonton International, Stanfie...

COMO Metropolitan Singapore to open in September – Business Traveller

8Jul

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COMO Metropolitan Singapore to open in September – Business Traveller

COMO Hotels and Resorts is set to launch its first hotel in its home country of Singapore this autumn. COMO Metropolitan Singapore will open in phases from September and occupy 11 floors of the 19-floor mixed-use COMO Orchard building, located at 30 Bideford Road. The hotel will be the first of the spaces in the building to launch and will include 156 rooms and suites, along with a rooftop pool bar for guests. The building will also house three dining venues, including the international debut of the Michelin-starred steakhouse COTE by restaurateur Simon Kim. All-day fare will be served at COMO Cuisine, and French pastry chef Cédric Grolet will also make his debut in Asia with a pastry shop on the first floor. Two floors will be dedicated to fashion retail curated by the multi-label bouti...

8Jul

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Wizz Air adds free tier to Discount Club loyalty programme – Business Traveller

Wizz Air has added a new entry level tier to its existing WIZZ Discount Club loyalty programme. The Discount Club was launched over a decade ago, and currently offers members a €10 discount on fares above €19.99, and €5 off 20kg and 32kg checked baggage options, in return for a €39.99 yearly fee. A group membership for up to six people is also available for €69.99 per year. The carrier said that the new WIZZ Discount Club Light had been added “to increase engagement from customers”, and will offer members “exclusive in-flight discounts”, including coupons and promotions for the WIZZ Café and Boutique. Existing Discount Club members will automatically receive the new offers as part of their paid-for membership, and Wizz said it would “continue to extend the benefits”. Commenting on the ne...

Qatar Airways Group posts net profit of US$1.21 billion for FY 2022-2023 – Business Traveller

7Jul

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Qatar Airways Group posts net profit of US$1.21 billion for FY 2022-2023 – Business Traveller

Qatar Airways Group reported a net profit of US$1.21 billion during the fiscal year 2022-2023. Overall revenue increased to US$21 billion, up 45 per cent compared to the previous year. It added that passenger revenue also increased by 100 per cent year-on-year, on a capacity increase of 31 per cent driven by nine per cent higher yields and a load factor of 80 per cent – both highest in the airline’s history. Qatar Airways carried 31.7 million passengers, an increase of 71 per cent over last year. The airline transported 1.4 million passengers and operated around 14,000 flights for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 event alone which was held towards the end of last year. The group generated an EBITDA margin of 23 per cent at US$4.9 billion. Its EBITDA was US$30.2 million higher compared to th...

FIVE obtained 100 per cent renewable electricity for Dubai hotels in 2022 – Business Traveller

7Jul

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FIVE obtained 100 per cent renewable electricity for Dubai hotels in 2022 – Business Traveller

FIVE Hotels and Resorts has said that 100 per cent of its electricity used in 2022 at its two properties in Dubai – FIVE Palm Jumeirah and FIVE Jumeirah Village – was derived from solar energy. To that end, it says that it has become the only hotel operator in the UAE to obtain the International Renewable Energy Certificates (I-REC) confirming that it has achieved 100 per cent renewable electricity for 2022. These certificates were received from the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, which is under the purview of the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA). FIVE’s single delivery I-REC agreement was subsequently verified through the International Renewable Energy Certification Foundation. Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, managing director and CEO of DEWA said, “FIVE’s commitment to ...