British Airways has started flights on a new route from Heathrow Airport to the Italian city of Bologna.
The new daily service left Heathrow for the first time at 9.30am on April 29, and will depart for northern Italy at that time throughout the year.
It is hoped the route will help ease the burden on Gatwick Airport, which currently has 20 Bologna-bound British Airways’ flights per day.
Situated in the Emilia-Romagna region of the country, Bologna is one of the most picturesque cities in northern Italy.
Holidaymakers can sample coffee shops, bars, or even some authentic Bolognese sauce at one of the restaurants on the Piazza Maggiore, which is one of the largest squares in the old part of the city.
The Piazza Maggiore and the surrounding area is inspired by the Renaissance period, with its legacy in plain sight at Palazzo D’Accursio situated nearby.
Just around the corner is the iconic town hall, which boasts a large collection of art produced by a variety of famous Italian painters.
If you prefer the countryside, then why not venture slightly outside town to the medieval town of Dozza.
The small cobbled streets and brightly decorated buildings make the sleepy town of Dozza the perfect option for a day trip.
Copyright Press Association 2012
An environmentally friendly Boeing jet has been given the once over by representatives from airlines that have placed an order for their own models.
The “green” 787 Dreamliner has been shown off at Heathrow Airport, with Thomson Airways, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic sending reps in to check out the plane before they add them to the fleets.
The new craft will be added by the airlines over the coming months, meaning that holidaymakers can worry less about the environmental impact of their flights. However, there are still many things to arrange before jetting off, and sorting out airport transfers in advance is one less thing to fret over.
The Heathrow visit was the first UK stop on a global tour for the new Boeing plane, which began carrying passengers late last year. It will also make appearances at Gatwick and Manchester.
Both Thomson and British Airways take delivery of the new planes next year, meaning holidaymakers flying via the airlines can look forward to a green journey.
Chris Browne, managing director of Thomson Airways, said: “As the UK’s third largest airline, it is a major coup for Thomson Airways to be the first UK airline to fly the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
“We will be flying the aircraft in our summer 2013 programme from four UK airports – giving holidaymakers from across the country the chance to travel on this amazing new aircraft.”
An airline has become the first to operate direct flights from Hong Kong to Gatwick Airport near London.
Hong Kong Airlines flew its first plane on March 7 and will run daily flights to and from the administrative region of China.
Passengers on the route are flown during the night on a 116-seater plane, which includes 34 flat-bed seats and 82 business-class seats.
The new service can also be linked to Stansted Airport for connecting flights elsewhere, by catching the London to Stansted bus.
Although Hong Kong Airlines is the only company to fly direct to Gatwick, five other companies operate flights direct from Hong Kong to nearby Heathrow Airport in west London, providing some indirect competition.
Six flights are run every day from Heathrow to Hong Kong by Qantas, five by Air New Zealand, four by Cathay Pacific, two by British Airways and one by Virgin Atlantic.
Qantas however will be stopping its Hong Kong-Heathrow flights there at the end of March.
Hong Kong Airlines spokesman Gerard Clarke said: “We have gained a reputation for outstanding service over the past five years and we look forward to extending this to our new flagship route, connecting two global business capitals of the world.
“The concept for the all club-class aircraft will provide passengers with a private jet-style ambience and an exceptional crew-to-guest ratio.
“And we are confident that we have the right knowledge and experience to make a success of the new all-club-class daily service.”
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Travellers heading to Mumbai will once again be able to travel on Virgin Atlantic after the airline announced it was restarting its service to the Indian city.
Sir Richard Branson’s carrier will begin flights from Heathrow Airport to Mumbai from October 28, three years after suspending its service due to falling interest and ever increasing competition from rival airlines.
However, demand has flourished in the intervening years to make the destination Heathrow’s 12th busiest route, seeing as many as one million people head to the commercial and entertainment centre every year. Air India and British Airways already serve the Heathrow to Mumbai route.
The Airbus A330 aircraft will fly daily along the route for Virgin, and the new move is expected to create around 100 jobs both in India and the UK.
“We are proud to be flying to Mumbai again, linking this wonderful city to our key destinations of London, New York, Boston, Washington and Chicago,” said Virgin Atlantic chief executive Steve Ridgway.
“India’s phenomenal growth continues to drive travel to the UK and the USA and we know our passengers are going to love the connections the new flight offers.”
Those flying on the aircraft will be able to enjoy Panasonic’s latest in-flight entertainment system, which includes easy-to-use touchscreen technology and over 300 hours of content.
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A survey has revealed that Britons tend to err on the side of caution and pack more than they need when going on holiday.
British Airways discovered that a whopping nine in 10 holidaymakers do not use up to 30% of items they take on holiday, while 40% take three or more pairs of shoes.
A fifth of people take 10 or more pairs of underwear, while an eighth take three or more towels away with them on a one-week holiday.
Scottish people and those from the east of England are more likely to pack too many things and therefore have to dig deep in their pockets to pay excess baggage surcharges.
If you do have a lot of baggage, airport transfers can be a quick and stress-free way to get between airports.
The survey went on to reveal that many Britons pack foods in their suitcases to take with them on holiday. Popular items include tomatoes, sardines, peanut butter, Super Noodles, Marmite and potato peelers.
Fancy dress items, such as angel wings and nun’s outfits, were also popular items to take abroad.
Abigail Comber, BA’s head of brands and marketing, said: “We don’t really want to have to choose between books, toiletries or tea-bags, or to dress kids in half their holiday clothes just to avoid excess baggage fees. Something as basic as checking what your baggage limit is on your chosen airline will help.”
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The British Airways Galleries Lounge at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is to be jointly run by British Airways and American Airlines.
The aim of the move is to further strengthen the joint business relationship between the two carriers.
This development means the lounge will be the second to be run by American and British Airways. The first one, the Denver Admirals Club, opened in November last year.
With the PHL lounge, which is situated at Terminal A-West, American Airlines Admirals Club customers will have a lounge within the security checkpoint. This is a big enhancement for American Airlines passengers who will be departing from Philadelphia.
The lounge co-location, which lies next to the A-East security entrance on the second level at the airport, is another instance of the two airlines’ shared efforts to provide passengers with a more seamless and enhanced travel experience as a result of the joint business agreement, said Nancy Knipp, American’s president – Admirals Club.
She said that moving into the lounge brought their guests closer to American’s gates, and offered state-of-the-art amenities and relaxing lounge experience which they have come to expect and enjoy in the Admirals Clubs.
American Airlines and British Airways premium-service representatives will together staff the jointly operated lounge at Philadelphia International.
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UK airlines have been laying on extra flights to help Britons stranded in New York.
A number of flights had to be cancelled over the weekend as Hurricane Irene struck the east coast of America, leaving some passengers waiting for flights out of the New York area.
British Airways, which flies to New York from London airports including Heathrow, put on extra services from Newark in New Jersey to help its passengers get home.
The airline also offered an extra flight back to London from JF Kennedy airport in New York.
Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic laid on two extra flights from New York to London in a bid to help its stranded passengers.
Passengers at major UK airports such as Gatwick and Stansted were left facing the possibility of disruption over the weekend as operators anticipated the effects of Hurricane Irene.
A BA spokesman said: “Quite a few people have been on to us, or gone online, to rebook. We are allowing people affected by the cancellations to rebook to a later date.”
Virgin and BA were both able to resume their normal New York and Newark flight schedules by Monday.
BA normally offers seven return flights a day from London to New York, and three returns a day between London and Newark.
Virgin runs five return flights a day to both airports.
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A British Airways flight will set off from Stansted to take supplies to crisis hit East Africans on Friday.
The plane, a Boeing 747, will be carrying aid heading for Ethiopia.
It will be capable of taking more than 100 tonnes of cargo, and the aid will be provided by Oxfam and Unicef.
The mercy mission will be transporting the aid to those suffering from the effects of disease, drought and famine in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.
Oxfam will be sending 5,000 metres of pipe on the flight from Stansted Airport to Addis Ababa, which will be used to get water to the Ethiopian refugee camp Dolo Ado.
Unicef will be loading the plane with vital emergency food and medication.
As well as supplying the plane for this mercy mission, British Airways will pass on all donations from its flights since August 1 to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) appeal for East Africa.
BA chief executive Keith Williams said: “The worst drought in 50 years means the lives of millions of people hang in the balance.
“The generosity of our customers will make a real and tangible difference to those in desperate need.”
The DEC has said more than 10 million people have been hit by the worst droughts in 60 years and that hundreds of thousands of people are in desperate need of of food, water and emergency healthcare.
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While holidays abroad can be great fun for all the family, the journey there and back can sometimes be fraught with stress.
But British Airways (BA) is working alongside Gatwick Airport to keep the stress of travelling with little ones to an absolute minimum and is providing mums and dads with useful travel tips on travelling overseas with children.
The airline advises parents to substitute large and impractical strollers and pushchairs with compact travel prams that can be easily stored in the overhead luggage during the course of a flight.
It also recommends parents keeping a number of items close at hand with which they can distract their children with and keep them occupied while waiting in the departure lounge. BA also says that it’s vital to remember to take a child’s comfort blanket, teddy or pillow with you before embarking on a journey as these can reassure children and help them to sleep on long flights.
The airline, which flies to a number of family-friendly destinations from Gatwick such as Cancun, Malaga, Paphos and Orlando, also provides children with entertainment packs on flights as well as having a separate child-friendly menu.
Mother-of-two and BA senior first officer Carley Lear said: “We sometimes have stickers and postcards for children and will be more than happy to talk about flying and what all the controls and buttons on the flight deck do.”
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British Airways cabin crew have accepted a peace deal to end their long-running conflict with the company.
Unite announced that the 18-month dispute was over after 92% of its members voted to accept an “honourable settlement” offered by BA.
Just 8% of almost 10,000 union members voted against the move in a turnout of 72%.
The deal ends one of the longest industrial disputes in recent history, with the bitter row threatening flights from UK airports including Stansted and Luton last summer.
Under the terms of the agreement, travel concessions will be returned to the BA crew who had the facility removed when they went on strike last year, Unite said.
The union added that agreement had also been reached on a new pay deal, as well as the safeguarding of routes and working arrangements as BA introduces a new fleet of crew.
There will also be a third party binding arbitration process established to consider the cases of crew disciplined by the airline during the dispute.
Len McCluskey, Unite’s general secretary, who drew up the deal with BA’s chief executive Keith Williams, said: “Unite always firmly believed that this dispute would be solved not through conflict but through negotiation. Thankfully we have reached an honourable agreement with BA.
“The overwhelming acceptance of this deal by cabin crew means that both parties can now move forward together on securing a bright future for the airline.”
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