Security Airline Routes and Route Changes

Jamaica and Colombia have imposed entry restrictions on passengers who live in, or have recently traveled to, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

 

New Airline Routes and Route Changes

South America

TAM will launch weekly service between São Paulo-Guarulhos and Cancun, Mexico on December 6.

Azul airlines

 

Brazil's Azul airlines is launching international flights to the U.S., complete with lie-flat business class seats and Skycouches in economy plus. Service will launch in December between São Paulo's Viracopos-Campinas and the Florida (U.S.) cities of Fort Lauderdale and Orlando. In the middle of next year, Azul plans to add service to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.

 

Korean Air will increase its Seoul Incheon - Los Angeles - São Paulo operations to five weekly flights from December 14 through January 12, 2015.

 

Air Canada will introduce weekly Thursday service between Montreal, Canada and Curacao on of January 1, 2015.

 

Mexico

LAN will expand its Boeing 787 operations with a new Santiago de Chile - Mexico City route. The aircraft will operate on alternating days with the Boeing 767.

 

Delta Air Lines will begin daily nonstop service between Los Angeles International Airport (California, U.S.) and Mazatlan International Airport in Sinaloa, Mexico on December 20.

 

CanJet will offer seasonal Saturday-only service between Ontario, Canada's Hamilton International Airport and San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos in Mexico beginning December 13.

 

United will launch seasonal Saturday service between Washington, D.C.'s Dulles International Airport and San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos, Mexico, running from December 20 through May 2, 2015.

 

Central America

United Airlines will add nonstop service between Denver, Colorado (U.S.) and Panama City, Panama on December 3. The flights will operate daily from November through August and then five times weekly during September and October 2015.

 

United Airlines will increase its schedule to Costa Rica by almost 10% between December 19 and January 4, 2015. The airline will add four additional weekly flights between San Jose's Juan Santamaría International Airport and Houston, Texas' George Bush Intercontinental Airport,and two additional weekly flights between San Jose and New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport (New York City area).

 

International Connections

Lufthansa will resume service between Munich, Germany and Miami with a seasonal route running from December 2 through April 20, 2015.

 

Finnair will resume nonstop flights between Helsinki and Miami International Airport. The seasonal service will run from December 16 through March 21, 2015.

 

United Airlines will launch two new daily United Express routes on October 26, connecting Newark, New Jersey (New York City area) with London, Ontario (Canada) and South Bend, Indiana (U.S.).

 

Airline Alliance News

Air Canada will expand codeshare operation with SWISS on October 27, adding four new routes between Zurich, Switzerland and the cities of Nuremberg and Stuttgart, Germany; Valencia, Spain; and Vienna, Austria.

 

ANA has begun codeshare operations with Ethiopian Airlines, adding seven ET-operated routes from the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa as well as ANA-operated routes between Tokyo-Haneda (Japan) and Bangkok, Thailand and between Tokyo-Narita (Japan) and Hong Kong.

 

Other Airline News

Lufthansa's pilot strike has forced the carrier to ground more than 1,500 flights, with its pilots union threatening to disrupt even more flights as the week progresses.

 

Delta Air Lines will implement several changes to its Basic Economy fares, as of February 1, 2015. New restrictions include no refunds or changes to Basic Economy purchases, no advance seat selection, no same-day confirmed or standby fares, no Preferred Seating or Economy Comfort option, no paid upgrades and the elimination of complimentary Medallion upgrades.

Aeromexico's Salon Premier Airport Lounge at Chihuahua International Airport

 

Airport News

Flights to and from Mexico's Los Cabos International Airport have largely resumed, with all departures leaving out of Terminal 2. International flights are landing and arriving via Terminal 2, with domestic passengers arriving there as well, but being transported to Terminal 1 for luggage pickup. However, airport facilities remain limited and passengers are warned to arrive early to avoid security bottlenecks.

 

Aeromexico opened its Salon Premier Airport Lounge at Chihuahua International Airport. The lounge includes an iPad business center, Wi-Fi, complimentary snacks and beverages and direct check-in for connecting passengers with carry-on luggage.

 

A new private sector-built airport has been approved for Portão, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The airport is expected to handle more than 40 million passengers per year once completed, and will replace the Porto Alegre airport.

 

Loyalty Program News

Southwest's Rapid Rewards Premier credit card increased its sign-up bonus to 50,000 points. The points are received once the cardholder has charged more than $2,000 in three months.

 

Delta SkyMiles will stop issuing Round-the-World SkyMiles award tickets as of January 1, 2015. All tickets purchased before that date will be honored - including changes and reissues. Delta will also eliminate complimentary upgrades on domestic Basic Economy fares for SkyMiles Medallion members after February 1, 2015.

 

Southwest Rapid Rewards members can earn double points for stays at all La Quinta hotels through December 21. Guests must also be members of the La Quinta Returns program.

 

Hotel News

Hilton Worldwide will launch Canopy by Hilton, a new lifestyle brand, early in 2015. The hotelier has plans for 11 hotels in the U.S., including locations in Miami and the Washington, D.C. area.

 

Wyndham group announced plans to open 120 additional hotels in Latin America and the Caribbean by 2022, focusing the expansion on Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and Peru.

 

Marriott will begin offering guests wireless charging stations in 29 of its properties' lobbies at the end of October. The stations can charge up to six mobile devices at a time and will be equipped with Apple Lightning and micro-USB cables for devices not compatible with the wireless option.

 

InterContinental Hotels Group is expanding its partnership with Mexico-based hotel manager and owner Grupo Presidente, with plans to grow Presidente's portfolio of IHG-branded hotels within Mexico. Grupo Presidente is currently renovating several of its existing Presidente InterContinental hotels and resorts.

 

Miami Beach, Florida's SLS South Beach opened a new meeting and event space called Clyde, with more than 1,500 square feet of meeting and reception space for up to 70 guests, plus pre-function and breakout spaces. Clyde also has culinary creations from famed chef Jose Andres and full-scale audiovisual offerings.