Week in Review
London City Airport flights were cancelled earlier this week after a stint by protesters on the runway. According to Buying Business Travel, nine protesters from the Black Lives Matter campaign group locked themselves together on the runway early Tuesday morning. Gatwick Airport set a new passenger traffic record by welcoming over 42 million passengers over a 12-month period from September 2015 to August 2016. According to Business Traveller, officials are using the news to push for further expansion of the airport.
In other airport news, New York JFK Airport, San Diego Airport, and Brussels Airport are taking a new approach to managing taxi lines. The airports are using a new platform that is able to monitor movements by tracking mobile devices that are connected to Wi-Fi or have Bluetooth enabled. According to Tnooz, airport operators will have the ability to better monitor passenger flows and manage wait times accordingly.
ABC News reports the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is officially warning airline passengers to refrain from turning on or charging Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphones during flights. Science Alert claims Samsung announced a global recall of 2.5 million devices after reports of exploding batteries and devices catching fire. Lufthansa has just become the first European airline to offer TSA PreCheck privileges to its passengers, sweetening the deal for those looking to enroll in the program. Condé Nast Traveler shares Etihad Airways is the only other foreign carrier outside of North America to offer the service.
Business Traveller reports India and Greece have just entered an Open Skies agreement. From here on out, there will be no restrictions on the amount of flights and seats flown between the two countries. Per the agreement, Indian airlines will have no restrictions on airport access, while Greek airlines will only be able to schedule flights to six Indian airports. American Airlines has just launched regularly scheduled service to Cuba, making it the third biggest airline to do so. USA TODAY notes the announcement comes shortly after JetBlue’s launch on August 31.
A recent report from GBTA, sponsored by Best Western, finds business travelers want free hotel Wi-Fi and smart power outlets above all. Skift reports between 64 and 69 percent of business travelers surveyed would book a room directly with a hotel if it meant they would get free Wi-Fi or high-speed Internet. The study primarily investigates hotel technology from the business traveler’s perspective and looks into the adoption of hotel mobile apps, use of mobile check-in, and more. Another study by GBTA, in partnership with American Express Global Business Travel, takes a look at business traveler satisfaction and finds 88 percent of business travelers are satisfied with their business travel experiences, with 84 percent wanting to travel either the same amount or more frequently than they currently do.
Although TV, print, and offline advertisements remain the largest advertising mediums for travel brands, nearly 46 percent are advertising on social media this year. According to Skift, travel brands are increasingly turning to social media advertising, which saw a 12.1 percent increase over 2015. The same source reports Expedia is now helping Marriott sell hotels on the chain’s website. The interesting agreement comes in hopes that direct-booking issues with the chains will subside in due time.
This week’s list comes from USA TODAY:
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