Nicaragua Canal Set To One-Up Panama Canal

by Adam Hodge on

Today, the Nicaraguan National Assembly is expected to rubber-stamp a $40 billion proposal by a Chinese consortium to build a canal across the country. The new canal will be over 150 miles long, dwarfing the famous Panama Canal.

The idea of a canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans through Nicaragua has been around since colonial times, and up until 1970, the United States held rights to build it. However, the current proposal will see a newly formed Hong Kong-registered company, HKDN, build the waterway.

Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in Central America. The construction of the new canal will see the country’s GDP double and employment triple in only five years, according to The Guardian.

Of the more than half-dozen proposed routes for the canal, at least five will run through the freshwater Lake Nicaragua, the largest lake in Central America. Any land-only route would have to make a considerable detour to get around the lake.

Though the proposal has met with little resistance in parliament because of the large ruling party majority, no studies on the environmental or social impact of the project have been completed as yet.

Plane Took Seven Flights With Dead Stowaway In Wheel Well

by Libby Zay on

A plane operated by Russian-based charter airline I-Fly completed seven flights before maintenance workers finally noticed a dead stowaway in the wheel well, the Aviation Herald is reporting.

The industry watchdog reports that after an otherwise uneventful flight from Rimini, Italy, to Moscow, Russia, maintenance workers found bloodstains on one of the main landing gear struts. After inspecting the wheel well, the crew found the remains of a male carrying a Georgian passport, who was later identified as 22-year-old Giorgio Abduladze. An autopsy revealed the man, who was wearing only a T-shirt and shorts, had frozen to death four days prior to being found, during which the aircraft had completed at least seven flights.

“Apparently the man died from exposure to cold; we suspect that he was a stowaway,” a spokesperson for the investigation told RT.com.

Experts are fiercely debating whether or not maintenance crews should have noticed the body sooner. Some say the inner gear doors only get opened during a weekly check. Either way, sneaking into the undercarriage of a plane comes with an extremely low survival rate. In fact, a recent BBC article noted that from 1947 until September 2012, there were 96 known stowaway attempts that resulted in 73 deaths.

[via news.com.au]

Path To Grand Canyon Skywalk Reopens After Tense Week

by Libby Zay on

A week after battle lines were drawn over the main route to the Grand Canyon Skywalk, tourists can once again visit the attraction – and they’ll soon have not one but two ways to get there.

The Associated Press reports things around the Grand Canyon’s West Rim got tense last week when Nigel Turner, who owns a 100,000-acre ranch in the middle of the path to the Skywalk, closed his portion of the road to traffic and hired security guards that denied access to thousands of tourists. The Hualapai Tribe, who operates the Skywalk and owns 106 miles of the canyon, quickly took action and were granted a federal permit to create a paved bypass route that will be completed in the spring.

As for Turner, it looks like his standoff did more harm than good to his wallet. According to the news outlet, he has since revoked his roadblock and has lowered the fee to cross his land from $20 per person to $5 per car. But now, the Hualapai Tribe’s new road will ensure they are the only ones who cash in on the millions of yearly visitors who come to the Skywalk, which is just about two-and-a-half hours by car from Las Vegas.

Spirit Airlines Cuts Corners With Canned Wine

by Libby Zay on

Spirit Airlines will soon begin pouring wine out of aluminum cans, one again lowering the bar for in-flight beverages.

Associated Press broke the story about the airline’s new cost-saving move, which will have flight attendants serving white moscato and strawberry moscato wine from Aventura, Fla.-based Friends Fun Wine. The cans are 6 percent alcohol by volume, putting the vino in the category of wine coolers (typically 4-7 percent). Spirit told the news outlet they prefer the cans because they’re easy to stack and store on airplanes, but we’re willing to bet it has something to do with the fact that the cans weigh less and will help the airline save on fuel.

Spirit is famous for tacking on a variety of extra fees, including $35 to place a bag in the overhead bin. We suggest you stick with the Sutter Home wine the airline will continue to offer. Although it’s served in a smaller container, the wine is 13 percent alcohol by volume – and it won’t leave a metallic taste in your mouth.

[via Consumerist.com]

Airbus Will Introduce Self-Tracking Baggage Line

by Libby Zay on

Airplane manufacturer Airbus has been cooking up another innovation: a “smart bag” that allows travelers to check in and track their luggage from their phone.

The tech-infused piece of luggage, Bag2Go, contains sensors and an RFID chip that communicates with airlines systems – including check-in and security – and relays the information to an iPhone app. For packing and check-in purposes, the luggage will be able to automatically weigh the contents of suitcases, and users will be able to track their bag as it makes its way onto the plane. It will also alert travelers if their baggage has been opened, saving travelers the trouble of getting caught in a baggage theft scam, like the one in Italy earlier this year that ended in nearly 50 arrests.

The bag is still in the development stages, but in a promotional video Airbus is saying travelers will either be able to buy a Bag2Go suitcase or rent them trip-by-trip. Although the baggage doesn’t seem to help solve the mystery of what to do if your luggage accidentally gets sent to Timbuktu, we’re glad it’ll save us from milling around baggage carousels as we impatiently wait for our suitcase to materialize.

[via Wired]