Can other airlines learn from Virgin America?

by Brenda Yun on

In my mind, there is nothing worse than flying. I think it’s a waste of time (I’ve probably wasted, cumulatively, half a year of my life in the air). Ever since I had to take off my shoes and undo my belt, I’ve hated checking through security. And there’s something really gross about sharing oxygen with over a hundred other travelers on a plane. I feel like I’m bound to catch the flu.

The one saving grace in flying is the entertainment on the plane, and even that has been lackluster these days (aside from “Slumdog Millionaire,” “Milk,” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” there really is nothing out in theaters worth shouting about).

That is until Virgin America came along. This upscale carrier somehow found a way to make flying really comfortable and fun — starting with its safety video, which is just awesome.

With regard to the video, I love the wry narrative voice and the innovative shots and character sketches (a matador and bull buckling up? Brilliant!). The video was produced by Anomaly and animated by Wildbrain, who also creates imaginative commercials for Nike, Coca Cola, and Honda.

I think it would be a great idea if every airline carrier revamped the image of the airline safety video. Traveling would be that much more enjoyable, wouldn’t it? And while they’re at it, they could maybe learn a thing or two more from Virgin, such as installing comfy black leather seats perhaps, or offering personalized entertainment like “Red.” Every passenger gets to tap on a touch screen and select from dozens of music and real-time television (like CNN and USA) options. Even its latest unbeatable fares between California and Boston are a godsend from bi-coastal travelers like myself.

Once United, America, and Delta Airlines in particular take some notes and finally understand we’re no longer living in the 20th century, maybe — just maybe — people in the air will be far more happy flying the “friendly skies.”

Smoking hurts on Saudi airline

by Tom Johansmeyer on

For a smoker, nothing is more miserable than staring down a long flight without being able to light up. As if air travel isn’t enough of a chore, various regulations and health nuts have taken away our preferred coping mechanism. A Sudanese man fought back … and paid dearly.

According to the Daily Mail, the passenger lit a cigarette on a Saudi Arabian Airlines flight from Qurayyat to Jeddah. The cabin crew repeatedly asked that he put out the coffin nail, and he refused. So, when the plane touched down, he was arrested.

Saying sorry wasn’t enough.

Though he apologized in court and presented evidence that he was in a smoking cessation program, the perp was sentenced to 30 lashes. Hey, the judge wanted to prove a point. And, it could have been worse. Last April, another in-flight smoker was sentenced to 50.

Not only does smoking kill … it hurts like hell.

Though many human rights organizations condemn this form of punishment, it is quite common for a number of offenses, from adultery to being alone with a non-relative of the opposite sex. Some crimes can lead to thousands of lashes, but they are meted out in batches of 50 over a period of months.

What gets you 1,000 lashes? I don’t know, but I suspect a post-coital cig after joining the mile-high club would put you in the running.

[Via Daily Mail]

What strange things have been found on planes?


Separation of the airline classes made clear in a photo

by Scott Carmichael on

This is the kind of photo I could probably post without wasting too many words on. If you ever wondered what kind of perks a first class ticket will get you, then think about the coach class passengers up to their knees in freezing cold water, watching the first class passengers take a comfortable seat in the raft.

I wonder whether any of the first class passengers demanded some hot nuts and a drink?

(Photo from Calacanis.com)

Passengers revolt and refuse to fly without a new pilot

by Jamie Rhein on

Last month, two passengers heading through airport security thought a pilot was drunk and called the authorities. Last May, a pilot was found drunk and naked in the woods. In this latest what-is-wrong-with-the-pilot episode, more than 100 passengers on a Boeing 767 jet bound for New York from Moscow signed a paper saying they thought the pilot was three sheets to the wind.

This happened after the pilot sounded inebriated when he slurred the preflight announcements. According to this article in The Moscow Times, when he switched to English, the passengers had enough and refused to allow Aeroflot Flight 315 to take off.

It didn’t matter one bit that the flight attendants told the passengers to “stop making trouble,” and if the passengers didn’t like it, they could get off the plane. The passengers called for reinforcement from Aeroflot’s home office, but the talking heads wouldn’t pay any attention to the passengers either–at least not until a Russian TV personality and socialite, who happened to be on the plane, stepped in.

Finally, the pilot, along with the other three pilots on board, were switched out so new pilots could get the passengers air bound.

As absurd as this story sounds, consider this. An Aeroflot representative later said that it wasn’t that big a deal if a pilot is drunk because the plane flies itself with a press of a button. Kent?

Yapta alerts travelers of fare drops — over Twitter

by Grant Martin on

Remember Yapta? They’re the scrappy airline website that keeps travelers informed in case their fare drops.

All that you used to have to do was log onto yapta.com, register your itinerary and watch the progress as the site automatically checked your ticket every day to let you know if changes occurred. If the price went down? You’d get an email, book your ticket and everyone would have a beer.

Now, Yapta has added the feature where they’ll Twitter you if your fare drops. Which means that if you have Twitter linked to your mobile phone, you’ll get the note immediately, dive into a cyber cafe, book your ticket on the spot and then get a beer.

But what if you have a web enabled phone and can check your emails on the road? Or what if you don’t use Twitter? Well, in that case it might not be as useful. But for the surprising number of us who do have Twitter SMS messages enabled, this service could save us a bundle. Give it a try at yapta.com.