August 2011

AA signs world's largest aircraft order 

American Airlines (AA) has signed a firm order for 200 new planes from Boeing, plus 260 new aircraft from Airbus. The airline, which plans to take delivery of the new single-aisle aircraft within the next five years, currently operates an all-Boeing fleet of some 600 aircraft.  From Boeing, AA has ordered 200 single-aisle Boeing 737s, with the option to purchase 100 more.  The aircraft manufacturer has committed to creating an as yet unnamed new model for the order, with more fuel efficient engines.

IHG launches Priority Club Rewards Windows Phone app 

IHG has announced the global launch of its Priority Club Rewards app for Windows Phone, which provides travellers with the functionality to find and book hotel rooms, check rates and view or cancel reservations across all seven brands. 

Gulf Air is introducing a Falcon Corporate Plus programme offering exclusive privileges that can be tailor-made for each customer.  Benefits include price discounts, free upgrades from economy to Falcon Gold class, free lounge access for economy class passengers, and free parking and chauffeur service to and from the  Bahrain International Airport.  The services are part of a wide-ranging commercial revamp, which also cover government, family, youth and pensioner sectors, designed to boost business through Bahrain.

Lufthansa to equip all longhaul aircraft with wifi 

Lufthansa announced it will complete the roll out of onboard wifi across its intercontinental network by the end of this year. Currently, 17 of Lufthansa’s long-haul aircraft are wired with the high-speed FlyNet service with download speeds reaching 5Mbps, ensuring downloads, uploads and streaming videos, surfing the web or Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VOIP) Skype calls all function smoothly.  The service will be available throughout all classes and will run on any wifi-enabled device including tablets and smartphones.

ANA to sell seats on its Dreamliner inaugural flight

All Nippon Airways has announced that the Boeing B787 Dreamliner’s inaugural flight will be an international charter between Tokyo Narita and Hong Kong.  The inaugural flight is scheduled to take place a month after the aircraft is delivered in September. Passengers can experience the maiden flight by purchasing ANA’s special package tour. Further details of prices and dates will be released in due course.  After this inaugural flight, the aircraft will be used on commercial domestic routes between Haneda and either Okayama or Hiroshima