Airbus reveals super future fancyplane concept

by Grant Martin on

Part of the fun in each year’s leading air shows comes in the showboating. Whether it’s the newest, best window technology from PPG, the sexiest landing gear from Goodrich or the quietest, most efficient jet engine from Pratt and Whitney, people love seeing new products and the way that our future might look.

And just like auto shows around the planet, where concept cars with futuristic designs are displayed in front of lush, velvet curtains, the airframe manufacturers of 2010 have concept planes. Instead of building a $50m prototype, however, Airbus and Boeing just use a healthy dose of computer graphics with a heaping spoonful of marketing on top.

This year’s concept fluff comes from the Farnborough Airshow where Airbus, Europe’s largest airframe manufacturer and fierce competitor to Boeing is showing of it’s latest aircraft of the future.

Chock full of engineering marvels such as a “U” shaped tail and a streamlined engine profile, Airbus says that the passenger airplane of the future will feature marvelous new materials, from transparency-shifting windows to comfy, form fitting seats. You can check out all of the details over at The Daily Mail.

Don’t plan on seeing this aircraft anytime soon though, this uber concept model could only be ready by 2030 or 2050 — and by then, we’ll probably all be flying around in our own personal jetcars instead.

Breaking: Virgin America set to enter Chicago in 2011

by Scott Carmichael on

Right after the announcement of a massive order of new planes, Virgin America has confirmed to the Chicago Tribune that they want to start flying to Chicago in 2011.

The airline had originally planned to start O’Hare routes back in 2008, but a gate shortage forced them to shelve those plans.

According to Chicago Breaking Business news, they are negotiating terms with the city of Chicago for a “economically Viable” deal which could mean flights in early 2011.

Speaking from his Caribbean island, Sir Richard Branson said he was happy to celebrate his 60th birthday with an order of 60 new planes – and it isn’t often that you treat yourself to a $3.3 Billion birthday present. Happy birthday Sir Richard, fingers crossed you make it O’Hare to launch your new routes next year!

Update: We reached out to Virgin America for confirmation, and have been told that they are indeed “hoping to bring their unique, low fare service there in the first half of 2011.”

Spokeswoman Abby Lunardini added one other piece of interesting information – Chicago is top of the list of requested destinations by members of the Elevate Frequent Flyer program.

Top five reasons passengers are getting nastier

by Tom Johansmeyer on

As much as passengers complain about airline employees (and we do), we give them reason to complain about us. And, we complain about each other. There’s clearly no risk of a love-fest breaking out in the gate area, and if you look closely, you can see how the situation will only get worse. There are all kinds of conditions set to make air travel miserable (well … more so), and that means everyone involved will wind up getting a little nastier. Here are the top five reasons why:

1. We have no space, and there will be more of us on the plane: the lack of legroom isn’t exactly new, but everything around it is going to get worse. In the wake of the financial crisis, airlines cut flights to shave expenses and boost revenue per available seat-mile (RASM). This means the odds of having an empty next to you have dropped.

2. There will be more of us in the air, too: the economy is turning the corner, and businesses are starting to spend some money again. Look for more business travelers on the road, which will make flights even more crowded.3. We’re thinking about value: because of economic conditions (including high unemployment), we’re now acutely aware of what every dollar we spend means. A reclining passenger translates to the erosion of a purchase – “That’s my space!” We want as much for our money as possible. So do the people next to us, in front of us and behind us. Elbow room is a zero-sum game: there will be losers.

Want to make the situation worse? The coming increase in passengers will likely bring with it an increase in fares. So, an economic recovery means we’ll effectively be paying more for less. I don’t know who fails to crack a smile over that!

4. Let’s not forget about the service: beyond economic conditions and market drivers (e.g., RASM), there is another airline factor at play. We need to be realistic, here: this industry has a long-standing reputation for delivering abysmal service. Passengers know this and expect an uncomfortable experience, so they get primed for it. Remedying this will take concerted effort by airlines – and it will require years of unrequited love.

5. There’s no shortage of blame, and it’s everywhere: airline employees think passengers are unreasonable, demanding and often inappropriate. Passengers think airline employees feel (and act like they’re) entitled, self-obsessed and controlling to an unwarranted degree. Our zeal to point fingers only makes the situation worse for everyone. Passengers are getting nastier because we expect the worst, and crews expect nastier passengers. We’d all rather win than fix the situation.

[photo by Pink Sherbet Photography via Flickr]

Virgin America’s next destination…

by Melanie Nayer on

Well, we actually don’t know where Virgin America’s next destination will be, but we do know the airline just purchased 40 new Airbus A320 aircraft, with options for 20 additional aircraft. What’s this mean? Well, more planes mean more flights; more flights mean new routes; new routes means… well, you get the point.

So far this year Virgin America announced new routes into Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Toronto. Rumors are still flying high about the airlines’ potential entry into Mexico, and the Midwest is still hopeful the big red planes will land in Chicago but for now, we just have additional planes… no additional destination confirmations.

From Virgin America:

The new aircraft would be delivered from 2013 through 2016 – with 10 firm orders per year on average, and options for 20 additional aircraft in 2017-2018. With today’s order of 40 new aircraft and growth from other sources, Virgin America’s fleet is projected to grow from its current 28 aircraft to 90 aircraft by 2016.

The beauty of these news planes is the fuel-saving “Sharklet” option that is available beginning in late 2012 on A320 aircraft. These sharklets were designed to enhance the “eco-efficiency and payload-range performance of the A320 aircraft,” which Airbus says will reduce fuel burn at least 3.5 percent on long hauls.

Virgin America has operated via the Airbus A320 since its launch. So, with the addition of 40 new aircraft coming in, where do you think Virgin America’s next destination should be?

Ryanair passenger arrested over “rubber sandwich” complaint

by Scott Carmichael on

When 52 year old Henrik Ulven ordered a “fresh made premium sandwich” on his Ryanair flight, he fully expected to receive just that. Instead, he described the food as inedible and “tasting like rubber” – so asked a flight attendant for something different.

According to Ulven, his request did not go down too well, and the flight attendant told him that if he didn’t stop complaining, she’d report him to the authorities.

Ulven thought she was kidding, but upon landing at Norway’s Rygge airport, local police boarded the plane and escorted him off. According to the police, he had given the cabin crew “a mouthful.”

So there you have it – if you fly Ryanair, you’ll eat what you are given, keep your mouth shut and refrain from complaining. Obviously there are always two sides to a story, but to have one of your customers arrested because he did not approve of the quality of your food takes “low cost carrier” to a whole new level.

[Image from: Corbis]