Please note that the flooding in Austria, the Czech Republic, parts of Germany and Slovakia has forced the evacuation of thousands of people from their homes.
Should you be due to travel in the near future to any of these countries, please check with your local contacts before travelling.
Heavy rains have swelled the Elbe, Danube and Vltava rivers resulting in the worst floods since those of 2002.
The Hungarian Government has declared a State of Emergency due to anticipated flooding of the Danube River.
The Danube is expected to reach near-record levels and could create disruptions in low-lying areas of Budapest– especially areas in District III.
On June 4 Margaret Island closed until further notice; water traffic is also suspended. Expect traffic disruptions on roads adjacent to the Danube River. Local and national media are providing updates on the water levels.
Tales of woe involving passengers on Ryanair have become familiar over the years. Nonetheless, it is good to be reminded of the fairly harsh financial penalties which the airline imposes on it’s customers who forget to print out their boarding passes and the like.
Former Westlife star Brian McFadden has Tweeted about his recent experience when flying with Ryanair…and he wasn’t impressed. McFadden forgot to print out his boarding pass and was charged £70 by the airline for doing so. He was also charged £80 for going 4 kilos over weight with his golf bag!
Instead of paying up the singer-songwriter chose to take the train instead. Ryanair hit back with the following comments from their spokeman Robin Kiely “We’re surprised that Mr McFadden, having agreed to print his boarding card, couldn’t manage this super-complex task, which is accomplished daily by over 80 million passengers annually.” Ouch!
So don’t forget your baording pass if flying with Ryanair.
Belfast International Airport has issued a warning to passengers to leave extra time to catch their flight during the G8 Summit, which is being held in Northern Ireland on June 17 and 18.
The airport said there will be increased security and delays on all roads around the airport, in the days leading up to, and until the event. “It is not possible to say how much extra time to allow for when catching a flight, but there will be heightened security on the roads round
the airport and in the airport terminal itself,” said spokeswoman Deborah Harris.
“Passengers leaving Belfast International, and indeed arriving, will see the increased security levels in the terminal as well as on the roads, but they should not be alarmed.
Belfast International will be the airport used by all the official G8 delegations, but George Best Belfast City Airport is also expected to be very busy. City Airport officials expect the airport’s Heathrow services to be especially heavily booked with back-up teams to the official delegations.
Heathrow Airport now offers all passengers free wifi. The London hub will offer online access without charge for 45 minutes per calendar day across all five terminals.
Heathrow Rewards cardholders will receive 90 minutes of free browsing. Passengers who want to surf the web for longer can do so, but will then have to select one of a range of pay-as-you-go options for continued access.
Bloomberg News reported pilots of Air Dolomiti, an Italian regional airline and partner of Lufthansa, are planning a four-hour strike on 29 May, to protest the dismissal of four crew members and to express concern for the future of the airline.
Air Dolomiti, which provides services from Frankfurt, Munich and Moscow mostly to cities in northern Italy, faces a work stoppage of pilots who are members of the UGL Trasporti Union from noon to 4 pm, local time, on Wednesday, for all flights departing from Italy.
Some connections may experience delays or cancellations.
A strike by workers at three Italian airports has caused flights to be cancelled on Wednesday, 29 May. EasyJet, the British-based budget airline, has cancelled dozens of flights into Milan’s Linate and Malpensa airports and Naples Capodichino airport.
A statement by the Naples airport warned passengers of delays to flights departing on Wednesday due to a strike by GESAC airport management staff.
Not all airlines have cancelled flights. Delta, which operates one flight daily from New York to Milan, and connecting services from the U.S. to Naples, has not altered its schedule.
Passengers planning to fly into or out of the affected airports on Wednesday should contact their airline well in advance of departure to confirm flight status
Swiss regional carrier, Darwin Airline, is set to start four new services from Cambridge Airport this September.
The airline will operate fifty flights a week, starting 2nd September, to Amsterdam, Geneva, Milan & Paris.
Darwin Airline offers economy and Premium Economy cabins on board their aircraft, plus online check in and in-flight catering.
Effective 2nd July 2013, easyJet is introducing a new cabin bag guarantee in order to try and alleviate the problem of a lack of cabin space on board their aircraft – and good luck to them!
Provided a passenger has a cabin bag which measures no more than, 50 x 40 x 20 cm, including wheels and handles, easyJet will guarantee that it will always travel on board their aircraft, either in an overhead locker, or under the seat in front of them.
Passengers may still bring one slightly larger cabin bag on board (up to the existing maximum size of 56 x 45 x 25 cm including wheels and handles), however, on busy flights the crew may have to put bags of this size into the aircraft’s hold.
As always, there are some exceptions, easyJet Plus card holders, Flexi Fare and Upfront and Extra Legroom passengers may still bring one piece of cabin baggage up to 56 x 45 x 25. HOWEVER, they must use easyJet Plus Speedy Boarding to board the aircraft first in order to secure an overhead locker!
We (GTM) will be interested to hear from customers about how they get on with this new policy.
Please note that due to industrial action currently being taken by employees of the airline handling agent Swissport, many airlines and their passengers are experiencing delays in having their hold luggage returned to the carousel/belt within the airport terminal.
For further information, please visit http://www.brusselsairport.be/en/alarm/36274/ or ensure you check in online prior to departure.
