Jaunted - Tag: Heathrow

London: Olympic Athletes to Get a 'Fast Pass' Lane at LHR for London 2012

Heidi Atwal — 2012-01-03T14:39:10-05:00

There are 206 days to go until the 2012 Olympics in London, so trust that our U.K.-based sources will be bringing you all the latest as we continue ground coverage leading up to the Games: the touristy swarms clogging up Westminster and the Southbank, the Cultural Olympiad, the general excuse for even more drunken revelry than usual, the works.

To kick off 2012, a word to the wise among summer travelers set to pass through Heathrow around the Games: you might have to face even more unbearable lines at airport immigration owing to a VIP passport lane being established strictly for athletes. The U.K. Border Agency will be taking and checking biometric data (translation: fingerprints) from visiting athletes, with lanes at immigration dedicated solely to the task of checking said data.

London: Second SAA Flight Crew Accused of Drug Smuggling

BS — 2009-02-17T09:26:06-05:00

We know it's a tough time for everyone working in the travel industry, but have things really sunk this low for South African Airways employees?

For the second time in a month, the entire crew of an SAA flight from Johannesburg to London Heathrow was arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling. The first incident took place January 21, when 15 crew members were arrested at customs and £310,000 pounds of cocaine and cannabis were seized. Apparently Heathrow cops were not all that concerned, because the crew was released on bail, with a hearing set for March 23.

Then this weekend, the entire 15-person crew of another SAA flight was arrested at Heathrow, this time with £250,000 of the white stuff. Makes us wonder how many flight crews have gotten away with this sort of thing!

· Airline crew held over 'cocaine haul' [Telegraph]
· Drug smuggling coverage [Jaunted]
· Drug travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: worlddiscoverer]

Branson to U.S. Presidential Candidates: BA & AA Alliance Spells Bad News for Competition

Victor Ozols — 2008-08-10T12:50:07-05:00

Sir Richard Branson, a groovy rich guy from England who owns Virgin Atlantic airlines and enjoys doing fun, crazy stuff, sent a letter to U.S. presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama on Sunday warning that the proposed British Airways/American Airlines alliance would stifle competition and hurt consumers.

Not one for understatement, Branson also plans a nearly $6 million advertising and lobbying campaign intended to derail the pending deal.

Even though Branson has his own financial reasons to hope a deal doesn't go down, his complaints may well resonate with the candidates and consumers, as rising fares, disappearing routes, and lackluster service combine to make air travel a much bigger hassle than it ought to be.