Passengers
will be permitted to receive and make in-flight
calls on mobile phones under new rules from
the European Commission. Following months of
regulatory consultation, plus testing in
countries including France and Australia, a
number of telecom operators and airlines are
planning to offer the service this year. The
Commission has set out technical requirements
for the use of mobiles once aircraft are flying,
but the European Aviation Safety Agency will
still need to approve the on-board equipment
which makes this possible. Costs will be down to
the service providers then, but these will be
closely monitored. She said the Commission was
responding to demand from air travellers for
in-flight mobile usage, acknowledging it would
be particularly advantageous for "business
travellers who need to be ready to communicate
wherever they are." However, she added that
"airlines and operators [should] create
the right conditions on-board aircraft to ensure
that those who want to use in-flight
communication services do not disturb other
passengers." Passengers' phones will be linked
to an on-board cellular network connected via
satellite to whomever they call &endash; and
preventing mobiles linking directly to networks
on the ground, ensuring transmission powers are
kept low, so as not to affect aircraft
equipment. The Commission's measures also
harmonise licensing requirements, promoting
mutual recognition throughout the EU of
nationally-granted licenses. Apr 8,
2008
Amadeus
Amadeus has
created a new unit to provide tools for
international leisure distribution called
TravelTainment-The Amadeus Leisure Group. The
move combines three Amadeus leisure technology
businesses: TravelTainment, Amadeus Tours, and
the product management and development for TOMA,
a tour package distribution solution. Apr 11,
2008
The Amadeus
Leisure Group will initially focus on
Amadeusí existing market portfolios in
Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Holland,
Belgium, Poland and the UK and other markets
beyond Europe such as North America and Canada.
The combined leisure offering of
TravelTainment-The Amadeus Leisure Group is the
only multi-market, multi-channel, community
distribution system for selling leisure content
of all types, Amadeus says. This includes
alternative packages, hotels, charters, low cost
options and cruises. Leisure customers have
access to a unique database of 470 destinations
covering over 80 percent of the world's leisure
destinations. Visit www.amadesus.com Apr 11,
2008
Silverjet
All-business
class carrier Silverjet April 7 launched a
mobile website which means travellers can book
flights, see schedules, select seats and choose
meals from their telephones. Developed by Mobile
Travel Technologies, the airline says 'Silverjet
Mobile' is accessed by entering the usual
website address - www.flysilverjet.com - into
their mobile phone browser. Customers in the UK
can also text 'Silverjet' to 60767 to receive a
link via SMS. The technology will recognise a
wide range of mobile devices, says the airline,
and optimise the display and adapt functionality
accordingly. Recent research by the carrier
revealed that more than a third (36%) of
business travellers now regularly use mobile
internet services for work, with nearly half
(47%) requesting the benefits mobile technology
can now offer airline passengers. Various
airlines have introduced similar mobile
services, including American, Continental and
Air Asia. Apr 7, 2008
SITA, Beijing
Capital
SITA announced
completion of 700 workstations at Beijing
Capital's Terminal 3 to support Olympic Games
traffic this summer including check-in, boarding
and transfers. A $3 billion addition, the
terminal is expected to boost annual capacity by
30 million passengers (ATWOnline, March 3). SITA
projects that 50 of its self-service check-in
kiosks will be ready to go live for the
Olympics. Apr 7, 200
Apr 14,
2008