Britain has the most expensive airport parking in the world with huge peak-time charges.

Peak-time parking at Heathrow’s Terminal 4 is £12 for between one and two hours with a two hour stay costing £10 at Gatwick and Stansted, and £11 at Luton, reports the Mirror.

While short-term parking can be found at New York’s JFK airport for £5.50 and £6.60 at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle.

The only major international airport close to British prices is Sydney, where a stay of between one and two hours costs £11.

Glasgow and Edinburgh airports are also high with the price of a two-hour stay costing £9 and £8.90 respectively.

Heathrow Airport said it was trialling these peak tariffs to improve the journey for passengers travelling to Terminal 4 specifically at peak times.

A spokeswoman said: “In November last year, we increased the price of parking in Terminal 4 between the hours of 0600 – 0800 and 1830 – 2030.

“At this same time, we made the decision to make the long stay car park just a few meters across the road from Terminal 4 free for the first two hours with a bus connecting to the terminal every 10 minutes.

“The reason for this change is because Terminal 4 has been reaching over capacity during these hours with the volume of friends and family being brought to meet arriving and departing passengers – this is specific to Terminal 4 only.

“Without our intervention, the vehicle queue to the car park reaches back to the motorway, putting passengers at risk of missing their flight while impacting the safe flow of traffic.”

At many airports, including Athens and Berlin, the first 20 minutes of parking are free in order to allow the unhurried picking up and dropping off of passengers.

FLIGHT operator Eastern Airways is increasing the frequency of its services from Hampshire’s only airport.

The operator says increasing its Aberdeen service from Southampton Airport will benefit both business travellers and those who work offshore.

From January 20, the UK’s second largest regional airline will increase scheduled services to two flights each weekday, Mondays to Thursdays, offering additional choice with morning and afternoon departures.

This latest announcement follows on from the recent news that Eastern Airways will start services from Southampton to Leeds Bradford – also on January 20.

The airport’s Jan Halliday said: ‘The addition of extra flights will be welcomed by the business community, as well as people in Aberdeen who can use the service to join the cruise ships departing from Southampton.’

Industry analysts announced their predictions and analysis after the massive flight delays and cancellations this month due to the winter storms in United States.

masFlight, an airline consulting firm, analyzed of the 95,000 industry flight delays and cancellations between 1 and 6 January. masFlight estimated the bitter cold have cost the airlines and passengers $1.4 billion and to passengers $37.60 per hour, or nearly a billion dollars, with an additional cost to airlines of $4,690 per hour, or $452 million.

On the other hand, an analyst from Planalytics Inc. estimated that last week’s storm and cold weather will likely cost the nation $5 billion in lost revenue. “We’re looking at probably a $5 billion impact” that will shave 0.2 percent off the first-quarter gross domestic product, Planalytics Inc. Client Services Account Manager Kristin Drake told CBS News.

Helane Becker, airline analyst with Cowen and Co., said to CNN that the weather would cost U.S. airlines between $50 million and $100 million. Becker said the weather caused about 20,000 flights cancellations nationwide, which she said is 5,000 more flights than were canceled in due to Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

As stories of frustrated and weary airline passengers dominate the news due to a combination of crowded flights and exceedingly bad weather, it seems clear that many don’t know much about what rights they can demand of the airline that left them stranded.

Airlines are federally regulated but the same government that is attacking telecommunications companies over cellphone charges and billing plans has resisted two NDP private members’ bills on an airline passenger bill of rights.

Gabor Lukacs, a Halifax mathematician and an airline passenger rights advocate, says most Canadian airline passengers simply aren’t aware of the rights they have when they’re bumped from overbooked flights, or when their flights are cancelled or their luggage lost.

Lukacs has taken on airlines several times in cases that resulted in important new rights for passengers. He estimates he has about two dozen cases filed with the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA), an independent quasi-judicial tribunal that adjudicates passenger complaints on a case by case basis.

Consumer rights advocate Gabor Lukacs often helps airline passengers take their demands for compensation for delayed or cancelled flights to the Canadian Transportation Agency. (CBC)

When Lukacs was bumped from an overbooked Air Canada flight, he took his complaint to the CTA. The result was that the compensation Air Canada must pay bumped passengers was increased to amounts ranging from $200 to $800 depending on the length of the delay, a significant jump from the $100 in cash or $200 in vouchers previously offered.

He also helps passengers fight their own cases, and if complaints end up in the courts, he sometimes works as a clerk for lawyers representing aggrieved passengers.

Stranded in Paris

One of the passengers Lukacs advised was Rob Tonus, whose return flight to Toronto from Paris was cancelled in August 2012.

In a phone interview, Tonus explained he didn’t know his flight was cancelled until he checked Air Canada’s website the day before his scheduled departure. When he rebooked his flight for the day after he was supposed to fly home, he asked about hotel rooms and meals for him and his wife and two children. “It’s Paris, after all,” he said.

He said an Air Canada agent at a call centre told him there were no limits to what he could spend, something he asked her to confirm with a manager.

Tonus was initially told his flight was delayed due to a mechanical problem, although Air Canada later said the delay was because of a medical emergency on the incoming flight.

When he sent his receipts to Air Canada for a refund he was offered only $150 for each hotel room and $30 a day per person for meals, for a total of $420. (Later, the airline also offered him a 25 per cent discount for four future tickets, which he hasn’t used).

“I could have gone to the Ritz,” he said. He didn’t, but ended up spending over $1,200 for two hotel rooms and meals for his family in Paris, almost twice the amount Air Canada was willing to pay.

“We were staying at a Best Western. We’d been there for a couple of days already,” he said. He booked two rooms at the same hotel for another day but couldn’t get the same rate. “It’s not like we went whole hog.”

After hearing Lukacs talking about air passenger rights on CBC Radio, he phoned him.

Lukacs told him since his cancelled flight was departing from Paris, the European Union’s passenger rights policy applied to his case. He supplied Tonus with European case law backing up this position.

Tonus wrote to the French transport ministry, and on January 6, 16 months after his cancelled flight, he received an email from Air Canada promising to reimburse him for the full cost of his hotel rooms and meals for his family for the extra day he stayed in Paris.

Unlike Canada, the EU has a consumer friendly website that clearly and simply explains airline passenger rights. Lukacs said the rules are also prominently displayed in European airports.

Weather delays

Lukacs said that both in Europe and in Canada airlines do not have to compensate passengers for long delays or cancellations due to extraordinary circumstances such as bad weather.

“They have to fly you out at the next earliest opportunity … If we’re talking about two, three, four, five days after the storm and they still haven’t cleared their backlog, that means they’re doing something wrong and that will trigger liability,” he said

But bad weather doesn’t get airlines off the hook for compensating passengers for lost or displaced luggage.

“If the plane can’t fly, the baggage should be where the passenger is,” Lukacs said.

Air Canada couldn’t respond to questions from CBC News about Tonus’ cancelled flight in time for publication. The airline has been dealing with a host of media inquiries this week following a shutdown of Canada’s largest airport — Pearson International Airport in Toronto — due to cold and snow.

In an email to CBC News, the Canadian Transportation Agency detailed its efforts to make passengers more aware of their rights. It publishes a Fly Smart guide that urges passengers to consult each airline’s tariffs or conditions of carriage, available on their websites.

The tariffs, which must be compliant with the Canadian Transportation Act and the Montreal Convention, an international treaty that sets out passenger rights, can run to hundreds of pages.

”The Canadian Transportation Agency thinks passengers should read a long legal document and know that it’s your contract,” Lukacs said.

Tonus would like it to be easier for passengers to find out about their rights, which is why he’s eager to talk about his own experience. “Because that was a full plane. And I don’t think anybody has had the kind of success that I’ve had.”

NEW YORK, January 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ –

Today, Analysts’ Corner announced new research reports highlighting Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL), American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ: AAL), United Continental Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: UAL), Copa Holdings SA (NYSE: CPA) and AAR Corp. (NYSE: AIR). Today’s readers may access these reports free of charge – including full price targets, industry analysis and analyst ratings – via the links below.

Delta Air Lines Inc. Research Report

On January 3, 2014, Delta Air Lines Inc. (Delta Air Lines) released its financial and operating performance report for December 2013. The Company informed that the consolidated passenger unit revenue (PRASM) for December 2013 increased 10.0% YoY, driven by continuing strong demand and benefits from the timing of the Thanksgiving holiday. According to the Company, Delta completed 99.6% of its flights in December 2013 and ran an on-time arrival rate of 79.5%. The Full Research Report on Delta Air Lines Inc. – including full detailed breakdown, analyst ratings and price targets – is available to download free of charge at:

http://www.analystscorner.com/r/full_research_report/2ea3_DAL

–

American Airlines Group Inc. Research Report

On January 3, 2014, American Airlines Group Inc.’s (American Airlines) stock rose 4.65%, ending the day’s trading session at $26.54. Over the previous three trading sessions, shares of American Airlines climbed 7.10%, compared to the Nasdaq Composite Index, which declined 0.54% during the same period. The Full Research Report on American Airlines Group Inc. – including full detailed breakdown, analyst ratings and price targets – is available to download free of charge at:

http://www.analystscorner.com/r/full_research_report/fbd8_AAL

–

United Continental Holdings, Inc. Research Report

On January 2, 2014, United Continental Holdings, Inc.’s wholly owned subsidiary, United Airlines  reported the introduction of a special edition amenity kits, effective January 3, 2013, featuring the airline’s brand campaign, “Flyer Friendly.” According to the Company, the commemorative amenity kits are available for customers in United BusinessFirst on long-haul international flights departing from the United States, highlighting each of United Airlines’s eight North America hubs. According to the Company, each customer in BusinessFirst will receive one of the eight tin designs, which feature distinctive imagery that United Airlines commissioned specifically for the brand campaign. The Full Research Report on United Continental Holdings, Inc. – including full detailed breakdown, analyst ratings and price targets – is available to download free of charge at:

http://www.analystscorner.com/r/full_research_report/1486_UAL

–

Copa Holdings SA Research Report

On January 3, 2014, Copa Holdings SA’s (Copa) stock rose 1.16%, ending the day’s trading session at $160.20. Over the previous three trading sessions, shares of Copa climbed 1.11% compared to the Dow Jones industrial average Index, which declined 0.21% during the same period. The Full Research Report on Copa Holdings SA – including full detailed breakdown, analyst ratings and price targets – is available to download free of charge at:

http://www.analystscorner.com/r/full_research_report/97d2_CPA

–

AAR Corp. Research Report

On December 18, 2013, AAR Corp. (AAR) announced that it has been appointed by power management company, Eaton as the exclusive distributor to supply a variety of fluid distribution products to the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). The Company informed that the aforesaid new five-year agreement has a five-year renewal option and will strengthen service and support for America’s military aircraft fleets by providing rapid-response capabilities for all branches of the US armed forces. According to the Company, under its distribution agreement, Eaton will supply AAR a variety of products that support aircraft fluid distribution including, Teflon hose assemblies, quick disconnect couplings, debris-monitoring devices, pressure switches and transducers, pneumatic ducting systems, clamps and flanges. John Holmes, Aviation Services Group Vice President – Aviation Supply Chain for AAR, said, “We value our expanding relationship with Eaton and are confident that this distributorship will provide a streamlined and efficient supply chain while offering a more centralized sourcing solution for the DLA.” The Full Research Report on AAR Corp. – including full detailed breakdown, analyst ratings and price targets – is available to download free of charge at:

http://www.analystscorner.com/r/full_research_report/6223_AIR

—-

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SOURCE AAA Research Reports

Thousands of flights have been cancelled as a winter storm sweeps the US.

Nearly 1,500 flights have been cancelled today and more than 2,300 were cancelled yesterday, according to FlightAware.com. Thousands more flights were delayed.

Chicago O’Hare and airports in New York were badly affected, with New York’s JFK airport temporarily closed for snow removal.

Boston’s Logan Airport was forced to shut overnight and is expected to stay closed until midday local time.

Governors in New York and New Jersey have declared a state of emergency, urging people to stay indoors.

In New York City, contingency plans are in effect with NY governor Andrew Cuomo warning that some highways may have to close and the National Weather Service has issued a Coastal Flood Watch for New York Harbor and South Shore Back Bays of Long Island.

Yesterday, the National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island and parts of Massachusetts.

The forecast was for strong winds of up to 45 miles per hour, dumping as much as 14 inches of snow.

According to the blizzard warning, visibility on Long Island could be down to less than a quarter mile.

“Falling and blowing snow with strong winds and poor visibility are likely. This will lead to whiteout conditions making travel extremely dangerous. Do not travel,” said the warning.

Flight delays had a knock-on effect at airports nationwide with some delays occurring at airports as far apart as the West Coast and Florida.

Friday, January 3, 2014

Gatwick Airport has a team of emergency volunteers lined up to help out this weekend as more bad weather is expected to hit the UK.

At a conference call yesterday, airlines, handling agents and terminal staff were briefed on the contingency plans put in place to cope with more wind and rain.

The airport’s North Terminal experienced major problems on Christmas Eve when flooding caused power cuts. As a result, thousands of passengers suffered delays and cancellations.

But today a spokesman for the airport said mountains of sandbags and a water pump system have now been put in place to protect the power sub stations from flooding.

Strong winds and around 5-10mm rain are forecast this afternoon and again tomorrow, and up to 20mm of rain is expected to fall on Sunday.

On Christmas Eve, around 70mm of rain fell in under 24 hours.

“The main problem last time was that the nearby River Mole burst its banks, but the river is currently running at a low level,” said a Gatwick spokesman.

The airport is holding another conference call this afternoon to update staff and airlines.

At present flights are operating as normal.

No major disruption has been reported at other UK airports, but Ryanair said high winds were causing a few problems to its Ireland flights.

The Environment Agency has issued 21 severe flood warnings, which means ‘danger to life’ in south-west England, Gloucestershire and Wales.

Many of the warnings are along the coastlines of Devon and Cornwall.

Waves more than 30ft high are forecast to hit Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly today.

The Met Office has warned of flooding in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Ferry services are being disrupted. See separate story.
Friday, January 3, 2014