There are set to be further delays for the first delivery of the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner due to more technical problems with the aircraft, mostly with the new Rolls Royce engines. Boeing has already sold many of the new aircraft pre-production, but the project has, nonetheless, been plagued with problems from the beginning. The Dreamliner is well known for its fuel efficiency and relatively environmentally friendly construction and interest in the project has, and still is very high. Due to the new delays, however, it seems that the 787 will not be released until the middle of February next year, coming into service sometime in the middle of 2011. The plane uses the new Rolls Royce Trent 100 engines which are currently going through the required flight tests, though some 787s will be using General Electric’s engines.

Earlier this month there was an uncontained failure with one of the Rolls Royce engines but Boeing and Rolls Royce have both stated that this has nothing to do with the lack of availability of the engines. The failure involved the engine’s fan blades which broke and exploded through the side of the nacelle. A test on the second of August went badly wrong when the engine, blowing apart, caused considerable damage to the testing facility as well. Due to this and other problems, it is expected to take a while before the plane is ready and safe enough to come into service. Though these sorts of failures are very rare, they can, unsurprisingly, be fatal for the aircraft.

There have also been various other problems with quality control, specifically with parts constructed by the Italian subcontractor, Alenia. Last year, Boeing purchased facilities in South Caronina, reversing its plan to build the 787 through subcontracting a lot of the work for the required components to other companies or, as Boeing called them, risk-sharing partners. Currently, flight testing is more than three months behind the schedule. Many people are extremely disappointed by news of yet another delay announcement as the final delivery of the aircraft is much anticipated. In spite of another delay, however, Boeing’s share price was not affected.

The Dreamliner made its first test flight on December 15^th 2009. The aircraft is a mid-sized, wide-bodies twin engine jet airliner with seating for up to 330 passengers or less, depending on the particular variant used. It is Boeing’s most fuel efficient airliner and the first major airliner in the world to use composite materials in almost all of its construction. It was first supposed to enter service in the middle of 2008 but it is expected to be at least three years late

Travel Topics: aircraft, Airlines, Boeing, Dreamliner

The last year of economic depression has not been kind to the British travel industry and the latest travel company to fold, Kiss Flights, is the thirteenth to fold this year. Tens of thousands of vacationers have now had to make changes to their holiday plans, some at the very last minute after the collapse of the travel company on August 17. The folding of Kiss Flights has also left its customers stranded in various countries including Turkey, Egypt and Greece. With the global financial crisis, this is, however, nothing particularly new. It is something that the travel industry is all too familiar with after a highly troubled period to which there does not seem to be any end to in site.

It is not just the current economic climate that can be blamed for the latest woes in the travel industry, however. The volcanic ash cloud from Iceland has also caused many problems, ruining many people’s holidays and causing travel companies and airlines alike to lose enormous amounts of money in times that were already hard enough. Strike action amongst the BAA ground staff has also been another major blow, coming at the worst time possible for both the airline industry and its customers. Holiday makers are, as a result, urged to be highly cautious when it comes to booking a holiday, especially for those with more expensive plans going to exotic, faraway destinations. The collapse of Kiss Flights will likely not be the last event of its kind.

However, approximately 1,500 of Kiss Flight’s customers did manage to take their flights on Wednesday. Though the company ended trading early that evening, the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) managed to take over do a degree and make alternative arrangements for the former customers of the defunct travel company. However, there were also more than 13,000 people stuck abroad, some having to find their own ways to get home. Another 60,000 people who already had bookings with Kiss Flights will have to make their own arrangements and plan their holidays again. Those who are stranded abroad should be aided by the CAA which is currently trying to make arrangements to bring the stranded holidaymakers home.

The fall of Kiss Flights has been particularly disappointing for many as it comes only one month after the folding of its main competitor, Goldtrail. Goldtrail operated tours to the same destinations and after its fall, some of its customers turned to Kiss Flights only to find that a month later, that company would also go under, leaving them with far fewer choices. Whether the current trends of the faltering British travel industry will be reversed any time soon remains to be seen, but the chances are not looking too positive at present.

Travel Topics: Airlines, Kiss flights, travel company, travel industry

Passengers departing UK airports could face major disruption if travelling this August. Millions of passengers could be effected should the Unite trade union go ahead with another strike. The strike ballot at BAA airports has been announced to take place on the August bank holiday, one of the busiest times of the year. Six-thousand workers are expected to vote for a strike regarding pay. The workers include security guards, engineers, firemen and more, which is expected to cause severe problems for anyone planning to travel at this busy time of the summer. The ballot is set to close on August 12 and if it will go ahead, it will lead to the workers walking out on the bank holiday weekend for at least three days.

BAA is the owner of most of the airports in the United Kingdom, including the country’s biggest airports and virtually all the international ones. The airports expected to be effected include London’s largest airport, Heathrow along with Stansted, Edinburgh and Glasgow. These airports have been for some time, involved in a dispute over pay with the largest air-travel trade union in the UK. Unite, the trade union calling for the strike, represents almost two thirds of BAA’s entire workforce. After a one percent pay rise was rejected by the trade union for being extremely low, the union is confident that action will be taking place as nine out of ten members in the ballot have made way for a formal strike ballot.

The BAA, the British Airports Authority, is the largest owner of airports in the UK and the terminals handle well over 300,000 people per day. It was officially admitted that it will be virtually unable to continue operating through the bank holiday if the strike should go through. It would literally have to close down Heathrow airport as well as Stansted, Aberdeen, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Southampton.  Unite, the trade union which was also behind the British Airways cabin crew strike, has stated that it is not at all satisfied with the tiny one percent pay rise offered by BAA. The paltry pay rise was offered last year after a payment freeze during the height of the current economic downturn.  The aviation officer of Unite, Brian Boyd, has described the one percent pay rise offer as confrontational and offensively small.  The BAA has, on the other hand, described the pay rise as reasonable considering the decline in passenger numbers that the aviation industry has been seeing in the past year. While staff originally accepted last year’s pay freeze, the BAA did not offer any bonus later on and the one percent pay rise was considered worse than unsatisfactory considering that inflation is currently at five percent. Following this sequence of events, six-thousand staff will now receive ballot papers which will ask them if they are prepared to take strike action on the upcoming bank holiday.

The secretary of transport, meanwhile, has urged both sides to find a resolution, since another strike will be disastrous for passengers who are hoping to enjoy their summer holidays.

Travel Topics: BAA, BAA Strike, Heathrow, Stansted, Strike, Unite

If you’re one of those tourists whose greatest fear is to get lost in a place whose local language you know nothing about, then you need to have all the tools at your disposal so that you can have an enjoyable journey without actually being lost.

This is the benefit that you will get as you check out this website which allows you to hear the on-train announcement which corresponds with the stations in both Japanese and English – for the Yamanote Line in Japan.

The Yamanote Line in Tokyo is popular as being one of the busiest subway/commuter rail lines on the planet. It’s also one of the most important, which is ran by the East Japan Railway Company.

Running in a loop, the Yamanote Line was opened in 1885 and as of 2008, it has been serving more than 3.2 million passengers on a daily basis. It is a heavy rail type of train line which runs on a loop with a total length of 21.44 miles, at a speed of 56mph.

First time and return visitors to Tokyo should definitely experience how it is to ride the Yamanote train as they get from one Japanese city and town to another.

How the Yamanote Line Sound Map can Help You

Basically, the Yamanote Line is made up of several stops and stations including the following:
-    Shinagawa
-    Osaki
-    Gotanda
-    Meguro
-    Ebisu
-    Shibuya
-    Harajuku
-    Yoyogi
-    Shinjuku
-    Shin-Okubo
-    Takadanobaba
-    Mejiro
-    Ikebukuro
-    Otsuka
-    Sugamo
-    Komagome
-    Tabata
-    Nishi-Nippori
-    Nippori
-    Uguisudani
-    Ueno
-    Okachimachi
-    Kanda
-    Tokyo
-    Yurakucho
-    Shimbashi
-    Hamamatsucho
-    Tamachi
-    Shinagawa

These stations are divided into three main lines including the Yamanote, Tohuku and Tokaido main lines. If you’re a first-time Tokyo visitor who has fears of getting lost in the streets of Japan’s capital, all you need to do is trace your steps back to where you started using the Yamanote train line – and you should be able to get back to your bearings again.

Now, how does a blog like Friday Jams help tourists out by including a sound map of one of the most famous train lines in the world? When you visit the link, you will see an illustration of all the stops made by the train which centers on the Nippori Station. When you click on each individual station, you will hear the music as well as the Japanese and English announcements broadcast for each stop.

For example, when you click on the link for the Yoyogi Station, you will first hear the Japanese announcement.  The English translation will tell you which side the door opens to, as well as the other pertinent information for those who are making a stop to such station.

With the help of tools like the one provided by Friday Jams, you can have a convenient commuting tool which allows you to learn in advance whether the left or right doors open at certain stations – so that you can beat the crowd, get your bearings while riding the Yamanote Line and exploring all the wonderful places that Japan has to offer.

Travel Topics: japan railway, japan travel, tokyo, tokyo japan, tokyo travel, Yamanote Line

Volcanic ash from Iceland’s Eyjafjallaj ökull volcano continues to effect air travel in Iceland and the surrounding areas of Europe.  The Iceland volcano started spewing ash in March, with no end in site, halting air travel in many areas in Europe.  Many airlines have canceled flights worried that the volcanic ash in the air will cause mechanical problems  in airplanes when the ash gets caught inside the engine of the airplanes.

Travel Topics: europe air travel, eyjafjallaj ökull, iceland volcano