Air Canada has been busy spending lots of cash on stuff like iPhone Apps, in-flight WiFi, and snazzy software for your Blackberry. This stuff all costs money, and like all other airlines, the money probably isn’t just pouring in up in Canada. So the country’s flagship carrier is opening up the fee and charge toolbox in hopes of finding a good way to boost revenue.

The airline will begin to charge for seats with more room to stretch out your legs. That means scoring an exit row or bulkhead seat with the online seat selector has become a thing of the past. It will set you back at least $14 each way to reserve one of those seats. We do love getting an exit seat, but it’s kind of sad that we are willing to pay for an upgrade—after all, it’s still coach. ]]> kjb 2009-11-19T08:39:29-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/18/8915/4211

Like it or not the holiday season has arrived, and chances are you’ll be spending some time at the airport. We’ve jotted down a few of our experiences that have helped make the whole getting there process a little better, even if it’s just as simple as getting out of the middle seat. We can't promise that these will work, but they have worked in the past, and it never hurts to ask!

· Pick Out Your Seat:
If you didn’t pick out your seat when you booked your ticket, it’s time to check and select one right now. Enter your confirmation number at the airline’s website and it should be fairly simple to select your own seat—assuming the airline still allows you to book a seat without a fee. Use SeatGuru and SeatExpert to determine which coach seats are better than others, and maybe you’ll even learn that your seat has power underneath.

More tips and hints after the break ]]> kjb 2009-11-18T09:29:29-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/6/135322/843

Nobody likes the aisle. That's what we discovered when we asked Jaunted readers what seat they preferred on a plane, and we weren't surprised at all. Given the opportunity to be penned in by two strangers, most people say "pass." Yet, ending up in the middle seat happens to all of us sometimes, and sometimes it's even by choice.

Maybe you're a lot nicer person than we are and you switch seats without complaining or even looking at your fellow traveler. In which case, we salute you and hope we can sit next to you soon. But even you, Nice Traveler, probably have your secret rules as to for whom you will make the move. We'll automatically switch without complaining if you... ]]> egw 2009-11-06T16:09:23-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/4/21471/3052

We might be a little premature in declaring a new travel trend, but it appears that selling empty middle seats is the new checked baggage fee. WestJet recently shed a little light on plans to make passengers a little more comfy while cashing in at the same time. Now Air New Zealand, the airline that loves wacky stuff like in-flight dating and body paint, is looking to do the same thing.

As part of a total makeover of the airline—they’re looking to change up their livery and uniforms among other things—they want to sell empty middle seats to coach passengers. If the seat next to you is empty it will be yours as long as you are willing to part with $150. You’ll even be allowed to fully stretch out, as apparently the two seats will slide forward to make some sort of economy bed. They are still hush hush about all the details, and they want to wait until next year before revealing all the secrets about the new seating configurations. ]]> kjb 2009-11-05T08:39:22-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/22/73239/2900

Sorry US Airways, but when we hear your name the first thing that comes to mind is how you guys were the airline that first decided to charge for drinks up in the sky. To be fair, the policy was only temporary, but we don’t really associate your business model with cool, comfortable, or classy. That’s why we were pleased and surprised to hear that US Airways is equipping part of their fleet with a new business class seat known as the Envoy Suite.

This new Envoy Suite will be able to recline 180 degrees—AKA totally flat—which will definitely help us catch a few winks on a long haul flight. Also noteworthy is that the total bed length will between 6’4” and 6’8” depending on the cabin, so there will be no need to curl up to fit in this seat. ]]> kjb 2009-09-22T08:58:57-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/18/42951/2212

The Aussie part of Richard Branson's vast empire, low-cost carrier Virgin Blue, has a plan that doesn't sound good for tall or large people. Or anyone one wants to sit reasonably comfortably in a plane, in fact.

Like many airline proposals these days, the new project centers on getting more passengers into the same space. The ideas include putting in extra seats after the emergency exit at the back (apparently that alone would decrease their costs by 3%, presuming people buy those seats) and trying to find other ways to alter the mix of premium, economy and "third class" seats.]]> amandak 2009-09-18T08:43:55-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/9/8/134423/0616

If British design company Design Q gets its way, airplanes of the future will seat passengers in an innovative—dare we say interactive—high-density configuration. More specifically, they intend to essentially seat passengers face to face for the entire trip:

A British design company says it is working on plans for new sideways, staggered seating on airplanes as a cost-cutting option for airlines to maximize the number of passengers on board. Design Q released images of the concept, which has a row of seats facing inward on each side of the plane and two rows running back-to-back down the middle of the aircraft.

Listen. We know that sometimes we can be a little harsh about the so-called "innovations" that so-called "experts" bring to the table. We've even been known to inappropriately dismiss a good idea or two, an overreaction we put down to years of travel having made us jaded. So we want to be very clear about this:]]> Omri 2009-09-08T15:04:48-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/