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Air Canada, US Airways and JetBlue Do This Week's New Route Thing

Sometimes it’s hard to stay on top of all the new route announcements that come our way, so we’ve complied a little bit of a rundown below. As long as you can afford the fares, this should definitely help add to your passport stamp collection.

· US Airways:
If there’s one international destination easily accessible from the United States it’s got to be London, and it’s soon going to be even easier thanks to US Airways. The carrier is getting ready to link Charlotte with London-Heathrow, and the flying fun will be done thanks to some of the airline’s Airbus A330s.

US Airways already flies nonstop between Charlotte and London, but the flights are less convenient for some as the flights land over at London-Gatwick. We kind of have a hunch that the Gatwick flights will eventually be dropped in favor of the new Heathrow options, but for now it sounds like nothing has become official. The new flights between Charlotte and London-Heathrow are set to start this spring.

· Southwest:
Southwest isn’t quite yet ready to head south of the border, but thanks to their buddies over at AirTran they’re one step closer. It sounds like Southwest—through AirTran—has their eyes set on another international destination, and this time they’re planning to connect Denver with Los Cabos.

Nothing is official as of yet, but the airline has sent an email over to Uncle Sam asking for permission to start linking the two cities. The thing is that only a certain amount of flights can head back and forth—and they’re already at the limit. However, Southwest is kind of mad that Frontier and Republic are hogging one too many of the options, so they’re ready to add their blue-bellied planes into the mix.

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Southwest Flies the Furriest Victims of Hurricane Sandy

The last time we heard from Southwest Airlines they were busy rescuing a beautiful little butterfly that missed the memo to head to warmer weather for the winter. Well now the airline that provides plenty of LUV to all creatures and critters is at it again, but this time the helping out furry friends displaced due to Hurricane Sandy.

Over the weekend Southwest organized a special charter flight and around 60 dogs and cats from the Save A Pet organization on Long Island as well as Delco SPCA to send these little guys towards a better home. There was a special onboard crew, as animal rescue experts from SeaWorld were caring for the animals.

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Shake Your Moneymaker to Win Southwest Airlines Flights

Southwest Airlines is getting ready for yet another travel contest, and this time they’re calling on you to show off your hidden talent. Thankfully there will be no reality show competition involved, but you will need to perform for the judges thanks to the magic of the internet.

All the fun and games are to celebrate Southwest’s recent arrival down in Key West, Florida, as they’re clearly ready to share the love for the fun and sun with travelers from across the country. As far as new routes are concerned it's a pair of daily flights from both Tampa and Orlando to the top of the country, so after you are done visit the theme parks—or Grandma—you’ll be able to head down to the Keys.

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Why Southwest Airlines is Helping a Little Butterfly Take Flight

We already knew that Southwest Airlines had a thing for flying animals around the country because, after all, they were the ones doing their best to create a modern day pegasus. Now that the pony is safely back on the ground the carrier is turning their attention to other animals, but this time the critter in question is a little bit smaller.

Butterflies—as their name implies—usually don’t have a problem taking to the skies, but unfortunately one monarch butterfly kind of missed the message about needing to head south for the winter. Thankfully that’s no longer a problem, as Southwest is coming to the rescue to lend its wings to the little bugger.

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Southwest Shuts Down Automatic Online Check-In Site 'checkintomyflight.com'

If you’ve ever flown with Southwest Airlines you probably know how important it is to be near your computer or phone 24 hours before your flight. That’s when online check-in opens, as you want to get yourself a chance at the best available boarding pass. With free-for-all boarding you don’t want to be stuck in a middle seat with a “C” boarding pass when a little work might help you score an exit row thanks to an “A” boarding pass.

Earlier this month someone was clever enough to use their programming skills to establish a snazzy site that would do all the check-in work on your behalf. In theory you would just enter a few bits and pieces of your travel information and then, like magic, you’d be automatically checked-in for your flight. If all went according to plan you’d get one of the coveted A boarding passes for the first wave, and you wouldn’t have to worry.

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AeroMexico, Lufthansa and easyJet Start This Week's New Routes Party

Sometimes it’s hard to stay on top of all the new route announcements that come our way, so we’ve complied a little bit of a rundown below. As long as you can afford the fares, this should definitely help add to your passport stamp collection.

· AeroMexico:
You’ve had enough of the beach, and now you’re looking for something with a little European flair—we’ve all been there. Well thanks to AeroMexico that’s now possible, as the carrier is getting ready to fly between Mexico City and London-Heathrow.

Flights are scheduled to depart from Mexico on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, as the new flights are ready to start doing their thing on December 14. It sounds like this is nonstop option number three over to Europe from the folks at AeroMexico, and we’ve got to say that we are already looking for more—the more the merrier when it comes to new routes.

· Southwest Airlines:
As part of the overall merger between Southwest Airlines and AirTran there’s been all kinds of moving and shaking with Southwest’s routes. This week brings some new options and new changes, as they’re changing things up at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

AirTran will now be flying down to the Dominican Republic each and every day of the week beginning in April of next year, as long as the government is cool with their plans. As for Southwest it looks like they’re kicking the new route excitement into overdrive with their plans for Flint, Michigan. We kid because we love—the three daily nonstop flights between Flint and Baltimore will start on April 14.

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Southwest Combines Love of Pumpkins and Planes for Carving Contest

Time is running out to head to the farm stand—or Whole Foods Market—to pick up your pumpkin. There’s definitely a little pressure to select a good one this year, as it looks like Southwest Airlines is eager to judge your work.

Southwest Airlines loves Halloween, and this year their seasonal theme is “Jack-o’-lanterns are burning bright; time to take a Southwest or AirTran Flight!” Unfortunately their holiday contest is now over, as they've invited some expert pumpkin carvers to celebrate the season in person at their annual Halloween party down in Dallas. It may be too late to win that chance, but it's not too late to use some pumpkin carving resources the airline has made available.

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New Uniforms and (Maybe) New Routes Keep Southwest Flight Attendants Smiling

It’s a good week to be a flight attendant aboard Southwest Airlines, and it's not just because there's less stress during the boarding process—bags fly free of course. Flight attendants—at least the ladies—are scoring some new uniforms.

The days of hot pants and go-go boots are long gone, but it also looks like the khaki shorts might be taking a hike as well. Southwest Airlines just announced that they’re phasing in some navy blue dresses, as well as some cardigans and a snazzy new scarf. It doesn’t appear that Southwest went out and collaborated with a name brand designer like some other carriers, but we can’t fault them for their choice of trench coat, blazer, or black boots. Check out the new look right here.

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If You've Just Gotta Have an Airplane-Shaped Cookie Jar...

Last week we took an in-depth look at fabulous duty-free finds in the air, but now there are more shopping options on the ground. The week also marked a milestone for America's favorite budget carrier, Southwest, with the launch of their new website selling all things airline-branded. From clothing to Christmas ornaments and pet stuff to planes, SWA offers plenty of options for passengers that LUV flying the brightly colored jets.

The "SWA Freedom Shop" is kind of an #avgeek shop-a-holic's dream. There's even some cool vintage airline stuff...if that's what you're into. Hey, remember, those special paint jobs? They've got six of them as models.

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Spot Them All: Southwest Has Nine Specially Painted State Planes

Everyone enjoys a good airplane livery—especially us—so we were pretty excited to hear that Southwest Airlines was busy gussying up another plane to add to its collection. In the past Southwest has painted planes to look like Shamu and even a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model, but this month they’re celebrating yet another state with the special design.

As the airline says, they’re now showing off their “LUV” for Colorado. The plane is one of their Boeing 737-700s done up in a creative version—and interpretation—of the Colorado state flag. The plane was shown off for the first time last week, and even the governor of the state and the mayor of Denver were on hand to check out the big bird for the first time.

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It's Allegiant, Frontier and Southwest Leading This Week's New Route News

Sometimes it’s hard to stay on top of all the new route announcements that come our way, so we’ve complied a little bit of a rundown below. As long as you can afford the fares, this should definitely help add to your passport stamp collection.

· Southwest:
If you’re someone who just is in LUV with Southwest Airlines, then we have some good news for you. The carrier is prepping its planes to launch a new nonstop option between Washington-National and St. Louis beginning on September 30.

The new flights will do their thing a couple times per week, so things are probably a little better for leisure rather than business travelers. Also—just in case we didn’t mention it earlier—Southwest is also planning to link St. Louis with spots like New York-LaGuardia and San Antonio as soon as this weekend.

· Frontier:
We haven’t heard from Frontier Airlines lately, but that’s fine as they are filling us up with some new routes news this week. Beginning in November, the furry-tailed carrier is starting nonstop service between Trenton, New Jersey and Greensboro, North Carolina down to Orlando.

It’ll be twice weekly for the New Jersey flights, and three times per week for those looking to hitch a ride back and forth between North Carolina. If these sound good to you there’s some decent fares available to welcome the new options. For the next couple days or so one-way fares are around $59 or $69 depending on the city you need to visit.

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Southwest's Big Bonanza Sale Turns Facebook Fare Fail

Last week—August 3 to be specific—Southwest Airlines held a flash sale only advertised within their Facebook page. To celebrate reaching three million Facebook fans, those fans could book for up to 50% off certain flights on certain dates in September, October, and November. Depending on when you booked and where you wanted to go, there were some decent deals, and even a transcontinental flight could be had for well under $200.

Unfortunately things didn’t go as smoothly as they thought, and there was a little bit of a snafu. Thankfully tickets are still to be honored and all the deals and discounts stand, but billing issues linger into this week. Some customers were double billed or more, and those paying with their debit cards might even have been hit with overdraft fees—yuck.

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