Heathrow Airport has launched a “winter resilience programme” in anticipation of harsh weather, under which more than 1,400 staff and nearly 200 snow clearance vehicles will be on hand.

The strategy, put in place by Heathrow operator BAA, aims to ensure the airport is better prepared for a potential repeat of last year’s snow, which left thousands of Christmas travellers stranded. 

Last year the airport ground to a halt after snow fell in thick, enduring sheets in the run-up to Christmas. Many passengers trying to get home to their families were stuck for several days, sparking vehement criticism towards the operator.

Under its new plans, 468 staff per shift will be available for snow clearance – up from 117 last year. The number of vehicles ready to clear snow have been tripled – a fleet of 185 will be available. 

Up to 950 non-operational staff will be positioned in terminals to help passengers during disruption, as part of BAA’s new “reservist” role.

Unlike last year, when breakdowns in communication meant many passengers were unsure of the status of their flight, a new process for managing flight cancellations during disruption will provide passengers with more up-to-date information. 

This will require collaboration between airlines, air traffic control company Nats and ACL, the body which allocates take-off and landing slots at Heathrow.

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Air passengers can now travel direct from Luton Airport to Lodz in Poland.

Travellers have been taking advantage of the one-way flight with low cost airline Wizz Air since the route was launched on September 13. It runs three times a week.

The airline is currently celebrating an historic landmark after carrying its eight millionth passenger from Luton Airport in the summer. It has taken just over seven years to reach this milestone after the it started operating flights from the airport in May 2004.

The carrier has proved increasingly popular with travellers and it seems to have carved out a niche for itself, serving 20 destinations in central and eastern Europe.

Simon Harley, business development manager at Luton London Airport, said he was delighted that the airport has been able to expand its services to now include 23 routes from Wizz Air.

He added that the airline has become a key partner to the airport as a result of its rapid expansion of low cost flights offered to travellers.

Lodz is Poland’s second largest city and has a wide variety of attractions from interesting architecture in Art Nouveau style to a vibrant night life. It is also home to the longest pedestrian street in Europe. At just under five kilometres long, Ulica Piotrkowska stretches through the city centre with a diverse range of restaurants and bars running alongside.

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Long-haul trips are proving attractive cost-wise, with Sri Lanka out on top as British holidaymakers struggle to cope with poor euro exchange rates, a survey said.

Sri Lanka, which easily topped a holiday cost-of-living index of long-haul destinations, was 38% cheaper than nearest rival Thailand when it came to 10 categories including a meal out, drinks and sun cream.

Vietnam, which welcomes more and more UK visitors each year, was the third least expensive country in the list.

Hong Kong was the most expensive destination overall, although China showed the biggest price rise in the last year, said the study compiled by Post Office Travel Money. Meanwhile in South Africa, prices fell 27% as the nation has become easier on tourists’ wallets and cards after the 2010 World Cup price hikes.

In the Caribbean, Barbados was the most expensive destination and the Dominican Republic the cheapest.

So tourists going from airports such as Stansted and Heathrow to far-flung spots for winter breaks will mostly see their pounds stretch further, said Post Office Travel Money head Sarah Munro.

She said resort prices dropped in two-thirds of countries surveyed a year ago and sterling strengthened against 15 of 26 long-haul country currencies.

“For example, the UK pound will buy over 19% more Kenyan shillings than a year ago and is also stronger against Caribbean and Latin-American currencies. Holidaymakers visiting the USA, Dubai and Egypt will be quids in too,” said Ms Munro.

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Boeing’s new “green” plane has moved a step closer to UK airports after the first 787 Dreamliner was delivered to Japan.

Production of the fuel-efficient plane has been delayed by three years, but it has now been delivered to a Japanese airport ahead of its first passenger flight next month. 

The Dreamliner joined the fleet of Japanese airline ANA after being dispatched from Boeing’s Seattle headquarters in the US. It will set off on its first commercial flight from Tokyo to Hong Kong at the end of October. 

The Dreamliner has been designed to consume less fuel than previous Boeing models, and it even features an on-board atmosphere designed to reduce jetlag for long-haul passengers. 

Several UK airlines have ordered the new hi-tech planes, which could be available for passenger flights from major airports such as Luton and Stansted in a few years’ time. 

The first UK airline to offer Dreamliner flights will be Thomson Holidays, which will receive the first of its 11 Dreamliners next year.

British Airways is set to take delivery of 24 Dreamliners from 2013, while Virgin Atlantic has ordered 15 of the planes to arrive in spring 2014.

BA, which has ordered six new Boeing 777-300s during the wait for the Dreamliner, sees the plane as a replacement for its Boeing 767s.

Boeing claims the Dreamliner is “more fuel-efficient and provides lower operating costs”.

It said: “Passengers will appreciate the cleaner cabin air, higher humidity and lower cabin altitude that combine to help them feel more refreshed after flying on the 787.”

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Many air passengers are unaware of the rules against carrying liquids in hand luggage, a survey suggests.

Research indicates that travellers throw out liquid products worth a total of £143 million a year at airports.

More than half (51%) of those who have travelled on a plane in the last 12 months said they had discarded bottles of liquid at airport security before boarding their flight.

Travel company sunshine, which carried out the poll, said passengers threw away an average of £6.50 worth of items each.

The discarded products included drinks, sun cream, perfume and hair products.

The findings suggest that packing should be planned in advance, alongside other preparations such as booking airport transfers, to save time and money at the airport.

But despite the cost and an apparent lack of knowledge about security restrictions on hand luggage, the poll found that there is a great deal of support for the measures.

Some 81% of respondents said they were glad the rules were in place.

Chris Brown, co-founder of Sunshine, said: “I was surprised to find that so many people had to get rid of liquid-based items before getting on flights in the past year.

“The new restrictions mean you really need to be careful when packing. Don’t put any toiletries over 100ml in your hand luggage, because it’ll just have to be binned before you go through security.”

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An airport is hoping to find out  exactly what passengers think of it after creating a panel made up of customers.

Gatwick Airport took the step of establishing the Airport Passenger Panel to find out what passengers really think about the airport and its facilities.

The panel will be made up of five members who will be specially selected to ensure the needs and challenges of all passengers are covered.

Gatwick bosses hope the panel will deliver an honest picture of the airport from the view of passengers, which will enable the airport and others throughout the UK to improve their facilities and infrastructure.

Gatwick Airport’s chief executive Stewart Wingate said: “In bringing together the Airport Passenger Panel our mission is simple: to improve the experience for every passenger. 

“Passengers are the lifeblood of any airport and our position as an independent airport allows us to take a new approach to solving long-standing issues. 

“We are 100% committed to making sure that from the moment passengers step though our doors to the moment they leave, their time is as enjoyable and as stress-free as possible.”

Gatwick Airport is the second busiest airport in Britain, handling more than 31 million passengers during 2010. It also boasts the world’s busiest single-use runway, which averages 52 aircraft movements every hour.

Gatwick is one of five major commercial airports in the London area, along with London Heathrow, London City, London Luton and London Stansted.

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British Airways (BA) has launched a new 90-minute television advert in the biggest brand campaign by an airline in the last 10 years. 

The commercial will be premièred online on BA’s Facebook page before it makes its small screen debut on Channel 4. 

Promoting the airline’s motto To Fly, To Serve, the airline’s new multimillion-pound marketing drive will also appear in the print media. 

In addition, BA will invest more than £5 billion in services and costumer products over the next five years. 

These will include things such as better catering, a refurbished first-class section, new aircraft and improvements to services at London’s Gatwick Airport.

Managing director of brands and customer experience, Frank van der Post, said: “This campaign marks out territory that other airlines can’t claim.

“BA is a world-renowned airline. We do not need to reinvent ourselves, but it’s time to turn up the volume. ‘To fly, To serve’ is not a slogan. It is not the invention of an advertising copy writer. It is on the uniform of our crew. It’s what we do.”

Mr Van der Post, who joined BA from the luxury hotel industry, added: “The ad puts a stake in the ground. It will be shown many times and supported by print and online campaigns.”

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Long-haul air passengers looking to take the stress out of their journey can do so by staying in an airport hotel.

An overnight stay at a hotel located at an airport can eliminate the stress of having to get up at the crack of dawn to catch an early morning flight and can make the travel experience so much more relaxing.

And while airport transfers are a safe and inexpensive way to travel from an airport to a hotel, staying in a hotel at an airport is an ideal way for people on long-haul connecting flights to the other side of the world to experience the comfort of a hotel and still have the convenience of being close to the airport.

Kathrin Cockhill, director of sales and marketing at the Radisson Blu Hotels & Resorts at Stansted Airport, said: ”The main advantage is that you are on site, ready to go and you can start your holiday the night before – which adds to the whole relaxing experience of going on a break.”

And airport staff at hotels around the world are more than capable of dealing with even the most stressful of travel difficulties. One recent example of this was when a 32-year-old woman staying as a guest at a hotel in Gatwick Airport went into labour.

Quick-thinking staff members at the Sofitel Hotel at the airport’s north terminal organised for an ambulance to take Shan Joseph, from St Lucia, to East Surrey Hospital after she went into labour five weeks early.

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Small groups of passengers are now able to travel with their luggage between terminals in Heathrow Airport on small battery-powered pods.

There are 21 low-energy, zero emission pods available to use on demand at the airport, which can carry up to four passengers and their luggage along a dedicated 3.8km guide way.

It is predicted that 500,000 travellers will use the pods each year for the smooth and silent five-minute journey between the Terminal 5 Business Car Park and the main terminal. Passengers can order one of the vehicles by using one of the computer screens located around the airport.

The pods were developed with comfort and privacy in mind and enable passengers to choose their own direct place to travel to. There is no waiting around for pods to arrive because there are no timetables and a central computer ensures that pods are distributed at each station according to passenger demand.

Pods charge themselves up at battery points around the travel hub, meaning that they are always ready to go at any time.

The scheme, which was initially a project developed at Bristol University, is on top of Heathrow Airport’s existing commitment to improve passenger experience and cut the overall environmental impact of its operation by investing £4.8 billion.

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Airbus has estimated that the coming two decades will see the passenger plane fleets of world airlines more than double.

The firm made the call during a London briefing, saying that the number of planes with more than 100 seats will reach 31,000-plus by 2030, compared with the 15,000 recorded in January.

The call suggests that in the coming years more passengers could be travelling from Luton Airport to London after flying in the bigger crafts.

However the biggest demand for passenger aircraft will come from China, the US and Germany, the firm said.

Europe is expected to receive 22% of the total number of new planes, with the USA taking 22% and the Asia-Pacific region 34%

It was also forecast that airlines need some 5,000 smaller planes, seating 19-100 people, to cope with regional demand.

By 2020 domestic flights in the US are likely to account for the biggest percentage of passenger aircraft movement, according to the firm.

The firm also predicted that by 2030 the world’s middle class will swell to 4.9 billion. It said this would grow from last year’s figure of 1.84 billion to 3.25 billion in 2020 and onwards.

And it claimed that by 2020 low-cost airlines will account for 19% of all air traffic, underpinning a trend which has seen surging numbers of people flock to airports like Stansted and Gatwick before jetting off on cheap flights.

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