Yes ladies! After many, many, many airline PR stunts only involving the female flight crew, Air New Zealand have finally made a video showing mainly male employees. The employees are all stripped down, and bodypainted to let you know that their fares have nothing to hide – with no unexpected surprises or additional fees.
Kudos Air New Zealand, and thanks for the catchy tune (sung by New Zealand native Gin Wigmore)!
Here Phil takes viewers on a tour of first class of Air New Zealand’s 747-400 at the Air New Zealand hanger at Los Angeles Airport. The plane was part of an Amazing Race publicity photo shoot. Here was Phil’s chance to look sort of James Bondish. Because Phil has flown to New Zealand on one of these planes twelve times this past year, he knows all the bells and whistles. The video is number one of Amazing Race 14’s “Phil’s Diary.” The videos are posted on the Amazing Race website and give a bit of back story as to what it takes to film the TV show.
Boeing has announced that it will carry out tests of a new “2nd generation” biofuel using one of its 747s. The plane,owned by Air New Zealand will take off on December 13th. Because it is the first live test, only one of the plane’s 4 engines will use the fuel, made from the nuts of jatropha plants (pictured).
Jatropha is an inedible plant that is indigenous to Central America and the Caribbean, but grows in most of the warm weather regions of the world. Unlike earlier biofuel sources, which were grown on arable farmland, jatropha grows well in areas that cannot be used for agriculture. Its use, therefore, will not affect food prices or food supply.
The fuel is made by extracting the oil from the nuts of the plant. UOP, whose parent company is Honeywell, is responsible for producing the jatropha-fuel. According to Boeing, UOP’s production was “the world’s first large-scale production run of a commercially viable and sustainable biofuel for aviation use.” The biofuel will be mixed with regular jet fuel for the December 13th test.
[Via The Register]
Air New Zealand knows that when you go to the airport, you’re going to be spending a lot of time in line, staring at the back of the head of the guy in front of you — so they want to give you something useful to read. The airline is holding open auditions next week for folks willing to shave their heads and become “Cranial Billboards.”
Seriously. Hopefuls can attend casting calls with free BBQ, refreshments, and entertainment, and those selected will be shaved on the spot and given a two-week temporary tattoo, which will alert customers to changes in the airline’s check-in system and direct them to the company’s website. Each person selected as a cranial billboard will also receive $1000 cash compensation.
If you think you’ve got the ideal skull shape for this job, find more info about the casting calls here.
These days, airline passengers expect the worst when they embark on a flight. Yes, they will still get a free bag of salted peanuts, but often have to pay $5 for a beverage to wash them down.
Not all airlines are toning down the in-flight offerings, however. Air New Zealand is doing just the opposite by introducing a new breed of air service personnel, the airborne concierge.
According to Scott Carr, ANZ’s GM in Europe, the airline thinks the new service will add to their customers’ travel experience.
“The concierge service is about adding a personal touch to the whole flight experience, from booking, to check-in, to arrival and beyond.”
The concierge on duty is charged with aiding passengers with everything from check-in to finding the appropriate gate to booking hotels and finding connecting flights.
Will this become a new trend in the often impersonal world of airline travel? Surely other airlines will be watching closely to see if the service is well-received of if it seems redundant. Concierge workers take to the sky on the London to L.A. route this week. Their Auckland-based peers will work flights between L.A, and Auckland. Eventually, the service will be offered for the airline’s London to Hong Kong route as well.
Photo: Flickr user Chris&Steve