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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS);faqs.134 Aeromexico 800-237-6639 (except Houston) Air Canada 800-776-3000 (for most areas of the lower 48 states) Alaska Air 800-426-0333 (also Puerto Rico, USVI and Canada) America West 800-247-5692 (also Puerto Rico, USVI and Canada) American 800-433-7300 Canadian Air 800-426-7000 (lower 48, Hawaii and Puerto Rico) Continental 800-525-0280 Delta 800-221-1212 Northwest 800-225-2525 TWA 800-221-2000 United 800-241-6522 USAir 800-428-4322 3. HOW DO I FIND A GOOD TRAVEL AGENT? Ask your friends for recommendations or look in the phone book. Choose one for convenient location, as it is preferable to visit the agent in person rather than to make lengthy inquiries over the phone. Many agents will get to know you and create a travel profile for you and record your preferences for seat selection, meals, etc. so that you do not have to remember to ask for these each time. If you do not like the service you are receiving, try another agent. Do not blame the travel agent for fare and schedule craziness -- blame the airlines. And please do not take up the travel agent's time with lengthy inquiries, only to buy the ticket direct from the airline. This does not benefit you in any way, and hurts the travel agent. The job may seem glamorous, but there are so many agents that most do not make a fortune in their jobs (witness the sometimes shabby offices). 4. WHAT ARE TICKET CONSOLIDATORS AND BUCKET SHOPS? Ticket consolidators buy up blocks of unsold seats and sell them at a discount. They are not the same as travel agents and these tickets will not usually be available through travel agents. The tickets are usually on regularly scheduled airlines. Many consolidators will not take credit cards, since their profit margins are presumably slim. Most consolidators are located on the coasts. If you buy a Sunday New York Times or San Francisco Chronicle you can probably find a few addresses in the travel section. Providing addresses here is of limited use since shops can go out of business. Asking people on the net for the names of shops they have dealt with personally is more reasonable. There is a companion monthly posting on bucket shops that contains a detailed description of how consolidators and bucket shops work. Read this before you buy your next international ticket. 5. WHAT OTHER KINDS OF AIRLINE "GOOD DEALS" EXIST? Discount travel passes good within small regions: In general, passes must be purchased before departure, and usually in conjunc- tion with an international roundtrip ticket on the carrier (or one of its marketing partners) offering the pass. Almost all carriers refund completely unused airpasses, but most airpasses are nonrefundable after the first segment has been flown. The following information is as of April 1992 and is subject to change. Visit Hawaii- Hawaiian Airlines program is called Commuter Airpass. For $499 (or $899 including a first class roundtrip to the West Coast), the airpass offers unlimited interisland flying for one calendar month. Includes guaranteed interisland reservations when booked up to 24 hours before departure, a month's Premier Club membership, a pair of one way upgrades between islands and a Hawaiian West Coast destination, an enrollment bonus in Hawaiian's FF program, and one day's free car rental. Aloha Airlines has the $489 AlohaPass Commuter, which allows unlimited interisland travel on Aloha and Aloha IslandAir for one calendar month. Reservations guaranteed when made at least 48 hours in advance. Other perks include priority check in, use of Aloha's first class lounges, 4 one way first class upgrades, pre-boarding privileges, and a bonus credit in Aloha's FF program. Visit USA- The major U.S. airlines have air pass fares, but since conditions probably change quickly, I won't give specifics for each airline. There are two types, both of which typically require foreign residency and a return ticket to somewhere outside North America. One is a standby pass good for (usually) unlimited travel on the given airline; in some cases there may, however, be a restriction on the number of times one may pass through a given city. The other kind of airpass is a sequence of coupons for reserved segments at a fixed cost per segment. One needs to buy a minimum number of segments, typically three or four. Most airlines consider each flight number a different segment, while some allow one free transfer per book. When I used the service, one airline (USAir), counted any published one-way fare as a single segment, regardless of the number of transfers. Some airlines may have two different fare structures for this kind of airpass, depending on whether the traveler's return ticket outside North America is or is not on the same or an affiliated airline. Fares may also differ widely depending on the country in which the air pass is purchased. The above is from David Rabson <davidra@dionysos.thphys.ox.ac.uk> May 6, 1992 Visit Italy- These vouchers are from Alitalia and allows travelers to fly two one way segments within Italy for $100. A standard Rome-Milan coach trip can cost $349. Visit Scandinavia- This fare from SAS can save travelers up to 70% over standard unrestricted coach fares within Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. Each flight segment costs $80, and travelers can purchase up to six coupons. Discover Thailand- These passes from Thai Airways cost $239 and are valid for four flight segments within Thailand. Travelers need not fly Thai internationally to qualify for the airpass. Visit Brazil- These passes, priced at $440 for five coupons, are sold by Varig, VASP, and Transbrasil. They're a great deal for long haul intra-Brazil flyers, but less of a bargain for those whose travel is limited to the short haul "air bridge" between Sao Paulo and Rio De Janiero. Visit UK- British Airways UK Air Pass requires users to book destinations and travel dates seven days before departure. Dates cannot be changed. Pass holders must book at least 3 flight segments, which cost $67 or $84 each. The United-British Midland pass is nearly identical, but flight dates can be more freely changed. Visit France- Air France's "France Pass" which costs $250 for unlimited flights within France, must be used on seven consecutive days within a month, and it is not valid on certain peak-hour flights. Visit Australia- According to Frequent Flyer, basic excursion fares may cost less than airpass pricing. 5. WHAT ARE AIR COURIER SERVICES? In a courier flight, a courier company sells you a low priced ticket. In exchange for this, you let them use the baggage allowance for their freight. Here is a description of how the process works: There are no refunds if you cancel and advance notice is generally short - less than two weeks. Couriers don't get an airline ticket till arriving at the airport. A representative of the freight company which has bought the ticket checks in the items to be escorted as the courier's personal luggage and gives the claim check, ticket and boarding pass to the courier. On arrival, the courier turns over the claim check to a representative of the courier company. He or she does not normally touch the freight. "The Air Courier's Handbook" ($10 to Big City Books, P.O. Box 19667, Sacramento, CA, 95819) "A Simple Guide to Courier Travel" (ordered by calling 1-800-344-9375, or by writing to Guide, P.O. Box 2394, Lake Oswego, OR 97035. Cost: $15.95) What follows is information posted to the net in the month of July 1992, by "W. K. Gorman", apparently from "CMICH.EDU". The information is written in the first person and appeared to be a "re-post". Attribution is not available. "W. K. Gorman" stated when he posted this that he could not answer inquiries personally, so I removed his e-mail address from the article. The only editing I did was minor to enhance the ability to scan the data. ==================Beginning of Original Message============================ Courier agencies in NY ----------------------- Courier Travel Service 800) 922-2359 516) 791-4600 Offers flights worldwide; I believe mainly to Europe. - Now Voyager, Inc. 212) 431-1616 11:30am - 6pm. Recorded message at other times. Seemed to be the most extensive one in terms of flights. Offered numerous flights all over Europe for as late as Thanksgiving. They also offer excellent "last minute" flights. You go for either 1 or 2 weeks most of the times, and you "bring" the company's luggage for both ways (i.e. going to, and returning from Europe) - Halbart 718) 656-8189 10am-3pm only - East-West Express 516) 561-2360 Flies only to Singapore - World Courier 718) 978-9400 9am-noon only requires personal interview in NY does not fly to Paris. - Jupiter Air 718) 341-2095 Only to Hong Kong - Dworkin Cosell 212) 213-0036 Israel only ========================= In Miami ---------------- A-1 International 305) 594-1184 Air Facilities 305) 477-8300 ========================= Agencies in Chicago --------------------- TNT Chicago 312) 453-7300 ========================= Agencies in L.A. ------------------- IBC Pacific 213) 216-1637 11am-4pm - City link 213) 410-9063 - Jupiter Air 213) 670-5123 - Crossroads International 213) 643-8600 3pm-5:30 pm - Midnight Express 213) 673-1100 ========================= Agencies in San Fran ---------------------- TNT San Fransisco 415) 692-9600 afternoons only ========================= Publications ------------- Travel Unlimited P.O.Box 1058 Allston, MA 02134 attn: Steve Lantos $25 for 12 monthly issues - Travel Secrets Box 2325 NY, NY 10108 $30 for 12 monthly issues - Several people here have mentioned interest in courier travel. Here is some information from an article in the Sunday issue of the Houston Chronicle. The article mentions two courier companies: Now Voyager, (212) 431-1616, a $50 reg. fee covers 1 year from your first trip. Courier Travel Service, (800) 922-2359 or (516) 791-4600, charges no fee. The article gives an outline of what to expect: There are no refunds if you cancel and advance notice is generally short less than two weeks. Couriers don't get an airline ticket till arriving at the airport. A representative of the freight company, which has bought the ticket, checks in the items to be escorted as the courier's personal luggage and gives the claim check, ticket and boarding pass to the courier. However, most of the couriers interviewed had not been met at the airport till just before (or sometimes after) flight time. On arrival, the courier turns over the claim check to a representative of the courier company. He or she does not normally touch the freight. On return, the same procedure is generally followed. One courier interviewed was not met, and had to call for directions and go to the company's warehouse. [References to the above two periodicals deleted... (autry)] I have no connection with any of these companies, and no first hand experience with courier companies. Travel Unlimited; PO Box 1058; Allston, Massachusetts 02134 publishes a newsletter describing opportunities to fly as a courier ( = cheap but carry-on luggage only) in a monthly newsletter. An annual subscription costs $25 ($30 foreign). They accept check or money order. Disclaimer: I have no connection with Travel Unlimited, any airline, or any courier service. This is for the person who asked about courier travel information (sorry, I don't have the original post). There was an article in the July 21st San Francisco Chronicle (Sunday) about this subject. At the end of the article, two handbooks are recommended: "The Air Courier's Handbook" ($10 to Big City Books, P.O. Box 19667, Sacramento, CA, 95819) "A Simple Guide to Courier Travel" (ordered by calling 1-800-344-9375, or by writing to Guide, P.O. Box 2394, Lake Oswego, OR 97035. Cost: $15.95) Some courier flights allow you to take 22kg of your own luggage. I guess you will not get much discount in this case. Long Haul flights of such an arrangement normally saves you approx 25% of the full costs, that is from London. There is a flight guide which may answer some of your questions. The Air Courier Guide Hand Book 5.99 Sterling ** A step by step guide to courier Travel ** Directory of Worldwide Air Courier Companies ** from John Walker Books, 160 Cromwell Road, LONDON SW5 0TL -----------------------End of Original message---------------------------- 6. WHAT IS AIRHITCH ALL ABOUT? Airhitch essentially claims to be an intermediary between customers looking for flights and airlines with empty seats to fill. When you sign up, you provide a desired point of departure and destination, along with a 5 to 7 day date range in which you want to travel. For $160 each way (from the East Coast), Airhitch then commits itself to "act as agent for the passenger ... for the purpose of securing the transportation described thereon or as close an approximation as possible." The following is abbreviated from an early 1992 posting about Airhitch: One pair of travelers, while willing to travel without the guarantee of a seat on any particular flight, were extremely disappointed at the lack of any seats at all for their return trip to the U.S.. The couple claimed that Airhitch had misled them by informing them that there were seats available at another airport hundreds of miles away. The seats in fact, did not exist, they claimed. Also, according to the couple, the airlines were actually over-sold and there were other Airhitch customers at the same airport (sent there by Airhitch) looking for seats as well. The couple eventually purchased one-way tickets back home for $1000 each. They brought suit but it was initially invalidated due to the nature of the business structure of Airhitch. Finally, they sued CIIE, the "parent" company and won but were told by the company not to expect payment. Their entire experience was rather unpleasant, even for the adventurous. The recommendation is that if you travel via Airhitch, be aware that you do not have a guaranteed seat there and back. If it's a busy season, you may be out of luck. 7. WHERE CAN I ADDRESS COMPLAINTS ABOUT AIR TRAVEL? Ask the ticket agent politely how you can communicate to the airline to comment on service. Sometimes, it's nice to write to the airline about someone who is doing their job and it shows. When complaining, it's really best not to get offensive or personal. If you keep the conversation professional and logical, you will have better luck at gaining satisfaction. The individuals that you deal with are instructed to keep their composure at all times, but they too can be hurt personally. When writing, be specific about dates, times, people, places and flight numbers. Keep records and receipts of expenses incurred due to missed or delayed flights. It is possible that the airline may be inclined to reimburse you to the extent they decide is appropriate. Before deciding to relent to the airline's schedule, ask them to check for other available flights. At their option, they can validate even a restricted ticket for travel on other airlines. Often, different employees will give different answers for the same question or problem. Also, different airline job categories carry different levels of responsibility and authority. It may help to talk to a different person, whether you are in the airport facing a problem or on the phone trying to solve one. If you receive an answer you like, take the name of the person who offered it. If not, ask to speak to the supervisor in charge. Remaining calm and level-headed, even when furious, is recommended for most situations. Please don't yell at agents who didn't cause the problem. However, occasional crying or coldly requesting the address of the company CEO or FAA offices may have a beneficial effect. 8. WHAT IS THE USUAL BAGGAGE LOSS LIABILITY? On U.S. domestic flights, federal rules require any limit on an airline's baggage liability to be at least $1250.00 per PASSENGER. If your bag is lost (and it will not be considered to be lost until at least 5 days have passed) then you will have to submit paperwork to the airline. This can take anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks for reimbursement. Note that you might not get full value for all lost items. Luggage liability for most international travel (including domestic portions of international flights) according to my latest generic coupon, is $9.07 per POUND for checked baggage and $400 per PASSENGER for unchecked baggage. You must report any damage within 7 days. In the case of delay, complaint must be made within 21 days. Airline tariffs do not allow them to reimburse you for currency, photographic equipment, electronic equipment, expensive jewelry, or prescription drugs. However, if you charged your ticket to the American Express card, Amex will reimburse you for up to $250 for all items not covered by the tariffs, in addition to an additional amount for items covered by the tariffs (if you lost more than $1250.00). Other credit cards may also do this as well. Check before you buy your ticket. Also, credit card companies, like Amex, offer baggage delay insurance. It is sort of like a lottery. You pay the card company approximately, $5.00 for each ticket you buy. If your flight TO your destination (in other words, not to your home) arrives without your luggage, AND that luggage is delayed more than 6 hours (or is eventually lost), you can charge up to $200 on your credit card for immediate replacement (whatever you consider to be replacement) goods. 9. IS IT OKAY TO SELL A TICKET OR USE ANOTHER PERSON'S TICKET? It is not necessarily a criminal offense to sell tickets or portions thereof, or to travel on someone else's ticket -- that is, you are not likely to be arrested, but since your name and the name on the ticket are different, the airline does not have a contract with you and therefore is not bound to furnish you transportation. Most (if not all) airlines have reserved the right to deny this activity, although in practice it occurs frequently. The airline agents may check the ID of a traveller, and may confiscate a ticket on the spot. You have no recourse against this. It is a risk you take when using someone else's ticket. Special fare tickets, such as student vouchers, are checked more often than standard tickets. Travelers try to get around this by having the person named on the ticket check in at the counter -- but that doesn't help on the other leg of the trip. And it definitely won't work on international flights, as all travellers' passports are checked against tickets. So don't be surprised if no one offers to buy the one-half of a round-trip ticket you are trying to sell. 10. WHAT RISK IS THERE IN FLYING ON AN AIRLINE IN CHAPTER 11? There are several U.S. airlines under the protection of Chapter 11 bankruptcy laws. While there is always the chance that one of these airlines will cease operations on a moments notice, historically most passengers have usually been served by other airlines when previous airlines have folded. Eastern and Pan Am were two fairly recent casualties of financial problems. Airlines currently in Chapter 11 are, TWA, Continental and America West. When an airline ceases operations, the other concern that flyers have is their frequent flyer progam mileage. Frequent flyers are a highly sought commodity in the airline industry and there is a high probability that your miles will be protected through either aquisition or during by invitation of a competing airline wanting to pick up the customers of the failed airline. Such a program usually has a grace period and of course is not guaranteed to be implemented. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COMMON PET PEEVES ABOUT OTHER TRAVELERS - Carrying on twice your allowance just because you can get away with it. - Using up the overhead bin far from your seat. - Boarding before your section is called just so you can use up more overhead bins or try to get a better seat. - Smashing other people's luggage in the overhead compartment. - Hogging both armrests, if you're in the middle. - Not letting the middle person have ANY armrests. - Talking too much or too loudly. - Standing up in the aisle for a long time, either blocking views of the movie or talking at length over two people's heads to the person by the window. - Not covering the window when requested during movies or sleep time. (You can cover it halfway and still look out the window.) - Trying to take a seat that's not yours. - Drinking too much. - Not controlling your children. True, children aren't 100% controllable, but please make some attempt to stop them from annoying other passengers, making a lot of noise or kicking seats. - When travelling with a group, making a party of it and filling the entire plane with noise. - Leaving trash in the magazine compartment where it might not be seen. Leave it on the seat where the crews can find it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- --FOR FURTHER READING: -Monthly newsletters containing tips on discount travel (prices may change): Best Buys: (800) 880-1234 (price unknown) Travel Secrets: $30 for 12 monthly issues, Box 2325 New York, NY 10108 Travel Unlimited: $25 for 12 monthly issues, Box 1058, Allston Mass. 02134 -Overcoming jet lag Dr. Charles F. Ehret and Lynne Waller Scanlon A Berkeley Book (New York) c 1983, $5.95 (old price) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- COMMON AIRCRAFT IN USE Legend: MD - McDonnell Douglas; DC - (old) Douglas Aircraft; B - Boeing; L - Lockheed; A - Airbus; F - Fokker; I - Ilyushin; T - Tupolev Typical Type Aircraft Seating Seating Comments Designation Capacity Layout B727-100 727 120 3-3 Tri-jet, all engines in rear B727-200 72S 150 3-3 Stretch version of 727-100 B737-100 737 100 3-3 Very few in existance B737-200 73S 110 3-3 Twin-jet, engines under wings B737-300 733 130 3-3 Newer, with larger engines B737-400 734 145 3-3 Slightly larger version of -300 B737-500 735 100 3-3 Intended 737-200 replacement B747-100 747 350 3-4-3 "Jumbo Jet" with two decks B747-200 747 350 3-4-3 Slightly modified -100 B747-300 743 375 3-4-3 Stretched upper deck B747-400 744 400 3-4-3 Winglets, longer range, new engines, advanced avionics B757 757 190 3-3 Twin-jet, long and skinny B727 replacement B767-200 767 200 2-3-2 Long range twin-jet B767-300 76S/763 240 2-3-2 Stretched, extended range version of -200 DC-9-10 DC9 90 2-3 First version of twin-jet DC-9-30 D9S 100 2-3 Stretched version of -10 DC-9-50 D95/D9S 120 2-3 Few in existance MD-80 M80 140 2-3 Advanced DC-9 MD-87 M87 120 2-3 Smaller version of MD-88. DC-10-10 D10 300 2-5-2 Mainly used on domestic routes DC-10-30 D10 275 2-5-2 International version of DC-10 MD-11 M11 300 2-5-2 Advanced version of DC-10-30 3-4-3 A-300 AB3 275 2-4-2 DC-10 Size/Range Twin-Jet A-310 310 190 2-4-2 Smaller version of A-300 A-320 320 150 3-3 Fly-by-wire, similar to 737-400 L-1011-1 L10 300 2-5-2 Very Similar to DC-10 L-1011-500 L15 225 2-5-2 International Version of -1 F-28 F28 65 2-3 Small (commuter) twin-jet F-100 100 100 2-3 Larger, Advanced version of F28 BAE-146 146 100 2-3/3-3 4 engine, high wing commuter jet Ilyushin 86 ILW 300 3-3-3 4 engines, 5000 km range used for high-traffic domestic and European routes Ilyushin 62 IL6 150 3-3 4 engines, 10000 km range transoceanic Aeroflot routes including all trans-Atlantic, trans-Pacific, and polar flights to the Americas Tupolev 154 TU5 130 3-3 engines -- secondary routes. Widely used in China and by socialist 3rd-world carriers. Tupolev 134 TU3 68 2-2 2 engines. As with TU5. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= END OF FAQ -- Larry Autry Silicon Graphics, St. Louis autry@sgi.com Xref: bloom-picayune.mit.edu rec.travel.air:4777 news.answers:3156 Newsgroups: rec.travel.air,news.answers Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!micro-heart-of-gold.mit.edu!uw-beaver!ubc-cs!destroyer!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!darwin.sura.net!sgiblab!sgigate!odin!news From: autry@sgi.com (Larry Autry) Subject: FAQ 5/5: How To Prevent Jetlag (Monthly Posting) Message-ID: <jetlag-prevent_717362296@sgistl.stlouis.sgi.com> Followup-To: poster Summary: Things one can do to prevent jetlag. Keywords: air travel jetlag prevention Sender: news@odin.corp.sgi.com (Net News) Supersedes: <jetlag-prevent_710000068@sgistl.stlouis.sgi.com> Nntp-Posting-Host: sgistl.stlouis.sgi.com Reply-To: autry@sgi.com Organization: Silicon Graphics, Inc., St. Louis, MO. Date: Thu, 24 Sep 1992 19:19:30 GMT Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.Edu Expires: Sat, 7 Nov 1992 19:18:16 GMT Lines: 75 Archive-name: air-travel/jetlag-prevention Last-Modified: Thu Sep 24 13:58:38 CDT 1992 This FAQ list is published approximately monthly. Read the intro in FAQ 1/5 for a notes on this FAQ list. ================================================================================ The following is a contribution from pete@Octopus.COM (Pete Holzmann). He originally posted this article on 28 April 1992. ================================================================================ My experience says go with the time adjustment regimen... As soon as possible before departure, set your watch to the final destination time zone, and do all you can to act as if the time were truly what your watch says. [I usually can't do this until I arrive at the airport :-(, due to last second rush...] I've traveled west (Singapore, Philippines, India) and east (Norway, England). Following this regimen has helped me avoid just about any signs of jet lag, except that 3 days after returning from India, I died for a day or so. That just might be attributable to the fact that I was totally worn out anyway :-) Overall, I've noticed a tendency to be a more tired on the return leg of any very long trip than on the outgoing leg. A few hints about actually following the "act according to destination time" advice: - The on-board airline routine is not at all designed to help you act as if you were on destination time. You can ignore the standard routine as far as light/dark and busy/quiet times go if you bring along eye shades and ear plugs (actually, a blanket in my face darkens things enough for me). - Meals are the really tricky part. I can't completely go without meals without getting my body a little upset. I try to just tell myself that this scrambled egg is a late evening snack, or this chicken with vegetables is a strange breakfast. It works! - Getting comfortable is really important. If I don't get some good sleep at an appropriate time, I end up very tired once I arrive. [I once ended up on a trans-pacific flight with a planeload of excited exchange students who talked most of the way across. THAT didn't work out so great for me!] - Remember that you can request alternate diets. Typical airline food is extremely high in protein. Something a little lighter weight ('heart healthy' 'vegetarian' or some of the other alternative menus) helps me a lot. At the very least, I try to avoid pigging out on sausage, etc. when I'm on a long flight.