As if you needed another reason to not check your bag: New York's Department of Consumer Affairs has cited American Airlines for using inaccurate scales at its check-in counters--after the agency told the carrier to take the faulty machinery out of service.

The DCA checked all 810 scales at JFK and LGA and found 102 of them to be improperly calibrated, though inspectors wouldn't say if displays were reading heavier or lighter. Though every other airline told of a scale problem immediately remedied the situation, American didn't, said one DCA employee:

American Airlines is the biggest violator, and they continued to use 10 scales after they were issued a stop-use order. It's kind of curious that all 10 were only with one airline. We are going to check on them regularly.

The Department of Consumer Affairs says all scales--except the 10 it's condemned--are now accurate. Still, passengers transiting NYC airports would be wise to look closely when checking bags: If you spot a red "condemned" sticker, demand a different scale and file a report with the DCA.

Related Stories:
· Airport Scales Enforcement Sweep [NYC DCA]
· JFK Scales of Injustice [AP, via NYP]
· Airport Hell coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Noël Zia Lee]]]> pbb 2008-11-24T11:13:25-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/22/124933/90

Virgin America launches its first WiFi flight today, and God-willing we'll be on-board to get all the juicy details. So it's especially timely that we've come across yet another review of Aircell's in-flight wireless service Gogo. What's it like to be online for the entirety of a six-hour transcon? Ben from the B-Side Blog has just posted another of his famous flight live blogs:

2:45 pm
I've just flown by Chicago. I tried to take a pic, but the lighting was such that there's really not enough contrast to see it. You can just barely make out the outline of Lake Michigan. In other news, LADY, STOP KICKING MY CHAIR!

3:15 pm
Here's a strange twist. Doug from "The Hills" just added me as a friend on MySpace. I'm suspicious of this as I feel like if he ever met me, he'd want to punch me in the face, but who knows what his motives are. I approved his friendship and will let you all know what happens...

3:32 pm
Meanwhile, poor Leslie the flight attendant is positively intent on getting me a drink. ... What can I say? I'M JUST NOT VERY THIRSTY TODAY! ... If it's any consolation, you are probably the VERY BEST FLIGHT ATTENDANT I HAVE EVER HAD. And I've flown on Lufthansa!

In-flight WiFi: Allowing up-to-the-second passenger critiques since 2008!

Related Stories:
· Flight Live Blog: Ugh Edition [B-Side Blog]
· Liveblogging an American WiFi Flight [Jaunted]
· Gogo WiFi on American Is "Totally Worth It" [Jaunted]]]> pbb 2008-11-22T13:00:17-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/7/135727/722

HotelChatter's assistant editor Jenna hopped an American Airlines flight the other day--and found herself on a Gogo WiFi-equipped 767. How was it?

I used Gogo on AA Flight 15 from JFK to SFO on Wednesday morning. You can't access the wireless on the ground, but once we were at cruising altitude, the signal was strong, fast and consistent.

I had some issues with the connection at first: Turns out, having more than one tab open in Firefox kinda screws with the system when you're purchasing the service. I put in payment info and hit purchase three times and kept getting an activation error message, so I went onto the customer service chat where a lovely staffer (or computerized staffer) told me to either restart Firefox or try my purchase in another browser. Voila, one quick purchasing attempt with Safari and $12.95 later, I was in.

The connection was impressive; I think I was only disconnected once during the flight. And I was even streaming some videos off of Hulu for a bit. It stalled three or four times when I was doing that, but I'd say everything was about the speed of Starbucks' AT&T WiFi.

Verdict: For the six-ish hour flight, it's totally worth the $12.95.

Related Stories:
· Virgin America Launching WiFi on November 22 [Jaunted]
· Delta Gearing Up Its WiFi Fleet [Jaunted]
· Liveblogging an American WiFi Flight [Jaunted]]]> pbb 2008-11-07T14:01:02-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/10/15/8464/0906

More carriers are joining the ranks of Air Canada, WestJet and Bangkok Airways, cutting fuel surcharges as the price of oil continues to decline. American, Delta, United and Virgin Atlantic have all trimmed their extra fees in the past few days.

Richard Branson's carrier is lowering the round-trip surcharge by an average of $40 depending on destination, but most tickets will still include a three-figure fee for fuel. A spokesman explains why:

Oil remains our largest cost and now represents about 35 percent of our cost base. Just five years ago it was nearer [to] 10 percent.

American and United both reduced some surcharges on flights to Europe by about 15 percent, but as with Virgin's cuts, the lower fee only applies on certain economy-class tickets.

Delta meanwhile has cut its charge on round trips to Asia by an average of $74 to $305.

Related Stories:
· Virgin Atlantic Cuts Fuel Surcharges [The Telegraph]
· US Airlines Reduce Fuel Fees [Canadian Press]
· Bangkok Airways Cut Fuel Surcharges [Jaunted]

[Photo: striatic]]]> pbb 2008-10-15T08:50:45-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/9/30/7502/51963

American Airlines, which provides the only nonstop flights to Bolivia from the US, announced it has halted flights between the countries. Service is expected to resume October 2, but we're not counting on it.

It all depends on the worsening political situation in one of South America's poorest countries. After unprecedented support during his first three years in office, Bolivia's first indigenous president is experiencing fierce reprisals from the European-descendant minority opposing plans to nationalize the country's use of natural resources.

We can't blame AA for being skittish, but at least Morales hasn't been calling tourists "Shithead Yankees!"

Related Stories:
· American Airlines Suspends Bolivia Flights [IHT]
· American Airlines coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: alainbachellier]]]> ced138 2008-09-30T11:30:36-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/9/23/13820/8267

This is the path for American Airlines Flight 268 yesterday. Normally wouldn't be a big deal--except that flight is supposed to go to JFK. It made an unscheduled stop at ORD after an "electrical system issue." Because pilots couldn't rely on their gauges for the landing, the 757 ended up off the runway with a blown tire.

Blogger Pam Mandel was on the flight, and wrote up a pretty riveting account of what it's like to be on a plane greeted by a phalanx of emergency personnel at the airport:

The flight attendents were like angels, perfectly calm and in good humor. The passengers sat and joked, I snapped pictures of the fire crew out the window and as they boarded the plane. Finally the left engined whirled to a halt and a cheer went up in the cabin....

I managed not to fall down the stairs--I was a little jittery--and I stepped on the grass. A woman in full secrurity gear looked at me and smiled. "Welcome to Chicago O'Hare!" she said, and I laughed.

Not as crazy as a mid-air collision--but that's a good thing!

Related Stories:
· AA 268 [FlightAware]
· "Unscheduled Landing" [NEV]
· Plane Diverted to ORD Blows Tire [CT]]]> pbb 2008-09-23T13:09:30-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/9/20/133737/683

Oh, airline travel. You used to be so cool. Flights were affordable, on-time, and featured amenities like meals, blankets, and a selection of current magazines and newspapers. Now, despite rising fares, fliers are lucky to get a bag of pretzels to munch on and a SkyMall catalog to read, and when it comes to making connecting flights and getting reunited with luggage, it's a crapshoot. What happened?

A recent AP item reports that as airline satisfaction rates have declined, customers have begun to push back, demanding improved service to justify the wave of extra fees for things that were once included in the ticket price. Airlines are responding with new initiatives to improve punctuality and baggage handling, as well as upgrades for business and first class passengers.]]> Victor Ozols 2008-09-20T13:37:37-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/