Aviation with Style

After a torrid year, Alan Joyce can finally take a break on the Gold Coast with family from Ireland. But amid trips to amusement parks, the Qantas chief executive will know that in the volatile world of aviation, such downtime is usually the calm before another storm. Following the competition regulator’s nod of approval to Qantas’s alliance with Emirates, the 46-year-old Irishman will have to oversee a complex shift of his airline’s hub in Singapore to Dubai, and an alignment of systems and products with its new Middle Eastern bedfellow. With the Emirates deal almost in the bag, attention is set to turn quickly to Qantas’s plans for Asia. The region has not been a happy hunting ground for the Flying Kangaroo in recent years. Remember Qantas’s ambitious plans for RedQ, the start-up premium airline to be based in Singapore and later Kuala Lumpur? Those plans have been shelved indefinitely. But the pressing issue remains finding a suitable dance partner in Asia, which is vital...

Emirates Airline flight EK425 from Perth has just landed in Dubai. It is not yet lunch time but already EK123 Emirates passenger jets have touched down at Terminal 3 Margaret Peterson and Rod Cardinal are looking forward to a city tour and desert safari on their two-day stopover. The Australians expect to spend about A$1,000 (Dh3,821) on their first visit to the city, breaking their onward journey to London. "We've heard lots of good things about Dubai," says Mr Cardinal. "We also now get to use the points with Qantas." Such stopover visitors are helping Dubai fly its way out of four years of economic turbulence with some 57 million people expected to have passed through the airport this year. The city's burgeoning aviation sector is filling hotels, shopping malls and housing developments as the economy keeps course to expand at the fastest rate since its 2009 recession. Emirates Airline is driving that growth, shuttling millions of p...

Flight Attendants On Singapore Airlines Must Deal With Some Strict Grooming Rules: Travel blog Jaunted has a great miniseries on Singapore Airline's new A380 planes, and on Friday looked at the routines of its flight attendants, who are notoriously good looking . But beauty isn't the only thing these women, known as Singapore Girls, have going for them. They train for up to 3.5 months before joining a flight crew--nearly twice the industry standard, according to Jaunted. And their education includes everything from wine-tasting classes to how to "gracefully glide-walk" through the aircraft, Jaunted says. Singapore Girls are also subject to some strict grooming rules: ·          They are required to wear a distinctive sarong that's been a hallmark of the airline since the 1970s ·          There are only three approved nailpolish colors ·          They...

T hese secrets about air travel will make flying a happier, safer experience for all. 1. Want to start off on the wrong foot with me? Put your carry-on in a full overhead bin, leave it sticking out six inches, then take your seat at the window and wait for someone else (me!) to come along and solve the physics problem you just created.   2 . Yes, passengers are incredibly rude... but stealing a beer, cursing out passengers, and jumping out of a plane is not the way to handle it. You disarm an unruly passenger by introducing yourself, asking his name, and saying something like ‘I’ve been incredibly nice to you for three hours. Why are you treating me like this?’ Generally that gets the other passengers on your side—and sometimes they’ll even applaud. but stealing a beer, cursing out passengers, and jumping out of a plane isn’t the way to handle it. You disarm as unruly passenger by introducing yourself, asking his name and saying something like “l has been incredibly ni...

W hich are the world's best airlines? Travel + Leisure magazine conducted a poll of 76 global airlines on various parameters: cabin comfort, in-flight service, customer service, value, and food. S ingapore Airlines (Rank 1) Singapore Airlines bagged the first position for 17th year in a row. The airline is a favourite among flyers topping in every category of cabin comfort, in-flight service and food. The impressive A380 first-class suites with sliding doors, 23-inch TVs are added attractions   A ir New Zealand (Rank 2)   Air New Zealand scores on cabin comfort, food, and improved in-flight service. The airline also offers cuddle class, a row of three seats that can be converted to a bed   E mirates (Rank 3) Emirates slipped to the third position this year though it continues to score high on  cabin comfort, in-flight service, and food. Airline's customer service and value scores fell this year. K orean Air (Rank 4)   Korean Air rose to the...