Jaunted

Richard Branson / Air Asia X / Tony Fernandes / Flight Attendants / STN / KUL / → All Tags

We'll Be Waiting a Bit Longer to See Richard Branson in Flight Attendant Drag

We were all excited for February 21, as that was the day that Richard Branson was supposed to dress in full drag aboard an Air Asia X flight. You might remember that Branson lost a bet to Tony Fernandes, the head honcho over at the Malaysian low cost carrier, over whose F1 racing team would have the better record.

Apparently Branson has a little bit of a knee injury, so it looks like wearing high heels up in the air for a long haul flight might aggravate things a little too much. Over the holidays, another skier ran into him on the ski slopes in Switzerland, and he was forced into the hospital to undergo surgery on his knee.

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Richard Branson / Air Asia X / Tony Fernandes / Flight Attendants / STN / KUL / → All Tags

Richard Branson, Loser of a Bet, Will Dress in Flight Attendant Drag for Charity Flight

February 21. Mark your calendars now, as that's the date Virgin head honcho Richard Branson is due to dress in drag as a flight attendant for Malaysian low-cost carrier Air Asia X. It's all the result of losing a bet he made with buddy, former colleague and fellow multi-millionaire Tony Fernandes, the CEO of Air Asia X.

You see, Branson and Fernandes also both have Formula One racing teams, and the bet had it that whoever had the poorer performing team of the season would be dressing up to work the other's airline on a flight as a regular flight attendant. Since Fernandes' Lotus team ranked higher than Virgin's it's Branson who'll be shaving his legs and donning his Air Asia wings for a February 21st London Stansted - Kuala Lumpur flight on Air Asia X.

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In-Flight Meals / Airport News / LHR / LGW / LCY / LTN / STN / London Travel / First Class Travel / Private Jets / → All Tags

Private Jets Get All the Good Stuff, Like Ladurée Macarons

Attention: people who fly private jets and those who drool thinking about doing so. There is something very important you need to know regarding in-flight meals onboard your jet, and it's that the French macaron house Ladurée has opened an airplane catering business, servicing all five airports. This means you're no longer stuck with club sandwiches or filet mignon; you can order a "Club Champs-Elysées" (dried tomato, aubergine, courgette, black olive, riquette salad, mozzarella, parmesan cheese with pine nut, rosemary and basil dressing) or Duck foie gras with a seasonal macaroon and kugelhopf brioche instead!

We knew you'd love it. If you are lucky enough to fly a private or business jet and order the Ladurée service, your options aren't just limited to their printed menu [pdf]. The Ladurée delivered to the tarmac comes straight from their kitchen in the Harrod's Food Halls, so feel free to order up anything else you know could be down there as well. Perhaps a chocolate shaped like a shoe? Can do; we've actually seen those there.

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Britain Travel / Airports / Airline Industry / LHR / STN / London Stansted / Airline Strikes / Airport Hell / → All Tags

UK Airport Worker Strike to Shut Down Most British Airports

The last Monday of August is a Bank Holiday in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and roughly a million Brits accordingly use the extended weekend to vacation out of the country. If the BAA employees at London-Heathrow, London-Stansted, Glasgow, Southampton, Edinburgh and Aberdeen make good on their threat to walk out, the loss of firefighters and security staff would force the airports to close, functionally stranding anyone who wants to get in or out of Britain (with the exception of London-Gatwick, London-City airports).

When British Airways employees tried this stunt last year they got slapped down by a judge, because timing your strike to wreck the UK economy violates British fair play or something. Nice to see that the Unite union, which represents both the BA employees and the airport employees who are threatening to strike at the end of the month, is willing to trot out the same routine again. To their friends and family it probably demonstrates admirable spunk. To the rest of the UK, to anyone who needs to fly through the UK, and to anyone at any airport anywhere in the world that will be affected by UK cancellations, it's just obnoxious.

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Food Travel / London Travel / London Field Trip / Open Thread / STN / → All Tags

What Weird Food Keeps You Coming Back To A Country?

One night, we were stuck sleeping underneath the departures board at London-Stansted airport, and we had very few pound coins left and a rumbling tummy, begging for food. So we went scrounging around, and that's when we saw them, our future obsession: potato chips in elaborate flavors. There was "Italian Sausage," "Prawn Cocktail," and even "Angus Steak."

Ever since then, we've always attempted to track down the craziest flavor crisps on subsequent trips to Britain. So it makes us wonder what special food items you look forward to purchasing on trips...are you partial to the interesting cereals of Italy? How about the cheeses of Mexico?

Or maybe you just have a great flavor of potato chips to recommend to us? We've already exhausted the offerings at Tesco and Marks & Spencer, so we're in your hands. So...what food items do you look forward to buying when you're abroad?

Related Stories:
· Food Travel [Jaunted]

[Photo: Jaunted]

Weather / Snow Travel / London Travel / Airports / LHR / LGW / STN / LTN / LCY / British Airways / Travel Delays / → All Tags

British Airways Passengers Will Now Face Snow Delays Instead of Strike

So it turns out the biggest issue impacting travel to and from London over the Christmas holiday will be the arrival of fresh snow, instead of the now-averted British Airways Strike. After eight inches of snow fell in Kent, Sussex and Essex, and a few inches in London, flights from London's Gatwick, Luton, City and Heathrow airports have met with a rash of cancellations and delays.

But because of the panic of the British Airways strike threats earlier this week, many travelers opted to grab earlier flights, the ones which are now affected by the snow. To hear the worst of it, we swung by BusinessTraveller and found that flights to Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted are severely affected, Gatwick had their runway closed earlier, London City Airport was completely closed but just reopened, and easyJet cancelled a slew of flights, which you can see a list of here.

If you're trying to fly to or from the London area, keep your web browser tuned to your airline's website, and it would be pretty smart to install FlightStats' mobile apps on your smartphone, where you can keep up to date with your flight delays and information on the go.

Related Stories:
· Snow causes disruption at UK airports [Business Traveller]
· More Travel Chaos as Big Freeze Continues [Sky News]
· Weather Travel [Jaunted]

[Photo: Na :-/]

Airline Fees / Ryanair / British Airways / LCCs / Iberia / EasyJet / LHW / STN / BCN / GRO / Low Cost Carriers / → All Tags

What It Really Costs To Fly on Ryanair

Low Cost Carriers are notorious for their confusing and forever changing pricing schemes, and none mess with our common sense more than the European breeds.

With Ryanair releasing new fees left and right, it's become apparent that you can't take their bargain basement ticket prices at face value anymore. While a trip to Barcelona from London may only cost 53.39 pounds (including taxes), there are a host of dreaded extra fees which you must consider before clicking to purchase.

Here, we've done some sniffing around the websites of Ryanair, EasyJet, Iberia and British Airways to discover if opting for the hassle of an LCC remains worthwhile. Choosing the lowest fares for a random round-trip in April, we'll walk you through each carrier's potential fees and tell you what that cheap ticket really ends up costing.

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Awful Trends / Airport Hell / London Stansted / STN / Ryanair / → All Tags

Stansted The Latest Victim Of Airport Protests

Thailand apparently isn't the only place protesters can shut down airports: London Stansted was closed for three hours this morning after 57 protesters cut their way through a fence and attempted to stage a sit in on the airport's only runway. While it's unclear whether they actually reached the tarmac, the group still created quite a scene, with at least 52 flights canceled and further delays likely.

The protest group, Plane Stupid, claims short-haul flights are the fastest growing source of carbon emissions in Britain; Stansted is a hub for Ryanair and EasyJet. And recently approved plans call for more passenger facilities and a second runway to be built; long-haul international service will get a boost in March 2009 when AirAsia X touches down at Stansted. The planned expansion has predictably spawned at least one anti-growth group besides Plane Stupid.

Ryanair, which was forced to deal with more angry passengers than usual after canceling dozens of flights, has been blaming BAA, the agency that runs Stansted, for its lax security oversight. Pointing fingers won't get delayed fliers home any faster, but Ryanair makes a decent point: At least the people who broke into the airport overnight were peacefully trying to raise awareness about climate change--not attempting something much more sinister.

Related Stories:
· Plane Stupid Shuts Stansted Airport [Official Site]
· Runway Protest Strands Passengers [BBC]
· Airport Hell coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Plane Stupid]