Latest news with #domesticflights
The Australian
18 hours ago
- The Australian
Virgin Australia wins approval to carry pets on flights
In an Australian first your flight is set to soon become a little bit furrier with the regulatory green light flashing to bring one small pet dog or cat on Virgin Australia domestic flights. A previous regulatory loophole that classed aeroplanes as restaurants, prohibited food and drink from being served when pet cats and dogs were present in the cabin. However last month Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) approved Virgin's amendment to allow for pets. 'We assessed the microbiological food safety risks and found that, with appropriate risk management controls in place, the presence of pet cats and dogs in aircraft cabins presents a low risk to passengers,' a FSANZ statement read. Virgin Australia wants to become the country's first airline to operate domestic flights with pets in the cabin from next year. Pic Alex Coppel 'The amendment to the Code gives airlines operating in Australia and serving food in-flight the discretion to allow pet cats and dogs in aircraft cabins, provided all relevant food safety requirements are met.' The service is expected to launch by the end of this year. Two rows will be designated on select flights for flyers travelling with pets. Pets will be required to fit within a pet carrier which with the pet in it must weigh less than 8 kgs and fit under the plane seat in front. A Virgin spokesperson said they were 'excited to have reached an important milestone' in the journey to offering a pets in cabin service. Brisbane food and travel influencer Jacqui Toumbas and Basil, who are waiting eagerly for Virgin Australia to allow pets in the cabin on domestic flights. Picture: Callie Marshall 'With this approval now in place, we are a step closer to welcoming pets on board select Virgin Australia flights, and we look forward to sharing more details with travellers about our trial flights in the coming months.' In Australia, major carriers have never allowed leisure travel with pets before. Travellers will need to book the pets trip in advance through Virgin's Guest Contact Centre and animals will need to stay inside their carrier for the duration of the flight. Despite the amendment the ultimate authority to permit animals on a specific flight remains with the pilot in command. According to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), pilots are accountable for the safety of all on-board and hold wide-ranging authority over passengers and cargo. The ambiguity in the rules effectively grants captains the discretion to decline pets on a case-by-case basis including the ability to refuse the transport of animals – even certified assistance animals – in exceptional circumstances where safety or flight operations may be compromised. Read related topics: Virgin Australia Robert White Cadet Robert got his start as an Editorial Assistant at the Daily Telegraph in 2024 before entering the Newscorp cadet program. With a background in history and law Robert has a passion for politics and crime reporting as well as telling meaningful stories. @white_robb73416 Robert White
CBS News
21 hours ago
- Business
- CBS News
Delta plans to use AI in ticket pricing. Here's how it could impact the cost to fly
Artificial intelligence could set the price of your next flight. One of the nation's biggest airlines, Delta, is making headlines after its president revealed plans to double down on using AI to dynamically set ticket pricing. The airline plans to use AI to set prices for up to 20% of its domestic flights by the end of the year, up from its current 3%. "We like what we see, we like it a lot, and we're continuing to roll it out," Delta's president said during a recent investor call. Clint Henderson with the travel website says integrating artificial intelligence takes the dynamic pricing model airlines already use and puts it on steroids. "Airlines already have a huge team of revenue managers who are looking to see what demand is like in different markets, what days of the week they should raise, when they should lower prices, how fare buckets are selling or not selling, and adjusting prices accordingly," Henderson said. "So instead of having 10 humans doing pricing, they'll have a machine doing it for them." But Delta's plan is hitting turbulence. Three U.S. senators sent a letter to the airline raising privacy concerns, accusing Delta of using personal data to set individualized prices. We asked Delta for comment, and a spokesperson said the airline isn't using personal data to charge customers different fares. "There is no fare product Delta has ever used, is testing or plans to use that targets customers with individualized offers based on personal information or otherwise," a Delta spokesperson said in an emailed statement. "A variety of market forces drive the dynamic pricing model that's been used in the global industry for decades, with new tech simply streamlining this process. Delta always complies with regulations around pricing and disclosures." However, Delta executives previously said to investors that the technology is capable of setting fares based on what it predicts someone would be willing to pay for that ticket. Fetcherr, the company providing the technology to Delta, previously bragged about "hyper-personalization" of prices before scrubbing it from its site, travel site Thrifty Traveler first reported. Frequent flyer Rebecca Perschon says she worries the high-tech approach could make it harder to know whether you're getting a good deal. "I think we'd be at a disadvantage," Perschon said, noting she and her husband are usually limited to traveling at peak times on weekends and during holidays due to their work schedules. "We just kind of have to build that into our travel budget every year, sadly." Henderson said as more airlines use more data to set prices, inevitably, what you pay will become more personal and less predictable. "Machines are better than humans at setting prices, so prices overall could trend higher," he said. "That's why airlines are investing in this."
Telegraph
7 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Foreign Office staff take three domestic flights a day
Foreign Office staff took the equivalent of three domestic flights every day last year, amassing enough air miles to take 20 round trips to Australia. New figures obtained by The Telegraph show civil servants in David Lammy's department took more than 1,000 flights within the UK in 2024-25, despite a bid to shift towards more 'sustainable travel options'. The flights covered a distance of 708,551km, enough to fly to Sydney and back 20 times, and generated 114 tonnes of carbon. The revelations have prompted questions about Labour's green credentials after it emerged that Angela Rayner's department amassed enough international air miles last year to jet around the world 13 times. Climate commitments into question The number of domestic flights taken by the Foreign Office in the year to April 2025 came in at 1,027, down from 1,739 in 2023-24 and 2,112 in 2022-23. However, the distance covered was still more than the 514,785km that Ms Rayner's department racked up on international trips last year. The Green Party said the figures called the Government's climate commitments into question and urged Labour to ban all domestic flights for official trips that can be easily taken by train. 'Setting an example' Sian Berry, the Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, said: 'Government departments should be setting an example and using trains whenever possible for domestic travel. 'Taking three domestic flights every day flies in the face of climate science and government ministers' commitments to taking the climate crisis seriously. 'This Labour Government should ban domestic flights for official trips that can be done by train in just a few hours – this has already happened in France. 'They must also urgently implement a 'frequent flyer levy' to disincentivise those who take the vast majority of flights. This is what taking the climate crisis seriously looks like.' 'By default' The Telegraph obtained the number of domestic flights taken by the Foreign Office after the department published the distance travelled and carbon emissions produced in its annual report for 2024-25. It set out the department's commitment to 'reducing the number of UK domestic flights and increasing sustainable travel options as operations embed hybrid working practices'. 'Our duty travel policy requires all staff travelling within the UK and between England and Eurostar destinations to travel by train by default,' it said. 'This policy and increased use of technology to collaborate without the necessity for travel will help the FCDO reduce emissions.' The report confirmed that the Foreign Office has met Labour's target to reduce emissions from domestic flights by 30 per cent compared to 2017-18. Carbon produced However, the 114 tonnes of carbon produced in the year to April were still higher than the 92 tonnes emitted by Ms Rayner's Ministry of Housing. The flight records for the Deputy Prime Minister's department caused a stir when they were published earlier this week, revealing a huge rise in air miles compared to the previous year. In its annual report, the Ministry of Housing revealed that its staff took foreign flights totalling 514,785km in 2024-25, almost five times the 108,060km amassed in 2023-24. The department blamed the rise partly on an increase in 'significant international conferences' attended by staff at Homes England, the housing quango. It is unclear whether the 1,027 domestic flights taken by the Foreign Office last year accounted for separate plane trips or journeys by individuals who may have travelled on the same plane.
News24
21-07-2025
- Business
- News24
30% of FlySafair flights already cut; no further cancellations expected Tuesday
• For more financial news, go to the News24 Business front page. No-frills carrier FlySafair said it expects all scheduled flights to depart as planned from Tuesday after it trimmed its operations and cancelled 12% of Monday journeys in preparation for a pilots' strike. South Africa's largest airline and labour union Solidarity have subsequently agreed to start mediation talks on Wednesday. The company is not expecting any additional disruption to services after reducing the number of daily flights it operates by about 30% to ensure that it had sufficient pilots for each trip, said Kirby Gordon, the airline's chief marketing officer. FlySafair accounts for about 60% of domestic seat capacity in South Africa and carries an average of 30 000 passengers across 174 flights daily, so prolonged industrial actions could have significant implications for travellers and businesses. The airline employs around 310 pilots, of whom about 200 are represented by the union, Gordon said. 'Solidarity gave FlySafair notice of a one-day strike, but FlySafair hit back with a notice that it would lock out the pilots for seven days, which could last for another seven days,' the union said in a statement. 'This forced Solidarity to extend its strike notice to 14 days as well.' It separately said that the company was underestimating how disruptive the lockout will be for the company and its passengers. Solidarity spokesperson Helgard Cronje said that the airline's lockout of its pilots, as well as the strike, would remain in place even as talks at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration got under way.
Arab News
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Iraq PM reopens Mosul airport years after Daesh devastation
MOSUL, Iraq: Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani inaugurated Wednesday the city of Mosul's newly restored airport, years after it was destroyed in the battle to dislodge the Daesh group. Sudani's flight landed at the airport, which is expected to become fully operational for domestic and international flights in two months. 'The airport will serve as an additional link between Mosul and other Iraqi cities and regional destinations,' the media office of the PM said in a statement. In June 2014, the Daesh group seized Mosul, declaring its 'caliphate' from the city after capturing large swathes of Iraq and neighboring Syria. After years of fierce battles, Iraqi forces backed by a US-led international coalition dislodged the group from the city in July 2017, before declaring its defeat across the country at the end of that year. The airport, which was heavily damaged in the battle, has not been operational since the militants seized Mosul. In August 2022, then-prime minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi laid the foundation stone for the airport's reconstruction. Airport director Amar Al-Bayati told AFP that the 'airport is now ready for domestic and international flights,' but no date has been announced for their resumption. He added that the airport previously offered international flights, mostly to Turkiye and Jordan. The airport now includes a main terminal, a VIP lounge and an advanced radar surveillance system, Sudani's office said. It's expected to handle 630,000 passengers annually.
