iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Packing

Web: www.stevenfrischling.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

20/11/2008 – iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Packing

Packing for a one day trip or a one-week trip is the same for me. I am slow, methodical and spent a considerable amount of time compiling what I need. Once I have assembled everything in front of me I spent an hour mumbling incoherently to myself as I remove items, add items and pack everything in my bag(s).

Departing is somewhat easy; it is the return that can be stressful. At the end of a short business trip, an assignment or a long vacation, travelers tend to pack at the last minute. Last minute packing often causes people to be forgetful and leave items behind.....this is where the iPhone 'App' Of The Week "Packing" comes in very handy.

Packing is simple to use. You set up a packing list for yourself. You add items to the list. As you pack those items you place a check mark next to them. Could it get any simpler?

Since downloading Packing I have used it to track a variety of packing situation. Since entering my 'Day Pack - Run Kit' I have chosen to permanently leave this packing list in my iPhone, as it is a fairly constant kit.

Packing allows you to view pre-created Sample Packing Lists, as well as create a list from a template, or creates lists from scratch. As a photographer, none of my packing set ups match any sample lists or templates, so I have been creating lists from scratch simply and quickly.

Using Packing is simple in practice. As I begin to put my gear and personal items away I take out my iPhone, open Packing, and scroll down my list checking off everything I have stowed away

Best of all for all travelers, the Packing 'App' is easy, functional, hard to lose (unless you lose your iPhone), not prone to bad handwriting, and can be easily edited.

Next time you sit down to print out your print-at-home boarding pass also take a moment to download Packing from the iTunes App Store.

Below are five screen shots of Packing (typos and all...)

Happy Flying!
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I Love The Smell Of Jet-A Fuel In The Morning

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

29/09/2008 – I Love The Smell Of Jet A Fuel In The Morning

Periodically I am asked the question of "What gets you up and motivated in the morning." The question has been asked dozens of different ways, but overall it is the same question of what motivates me to do what I do. I can give a few complex answers, some sentimental answers, but I'd prefer to leave you with the first answer that tends to pop into my head when I am asked this question...........

Robert Duvall has a famous line in the movie Apocalypse Now, "I love the smell of napalm in the morning." I have not personally smelled napalm, nor do I think I'd enjoy the smell of napalm, but I can say this, "I love the smell of Jet-A Fuel in the morning."

The distinct smell of 'Jet-A' reminds me that people are moving, planes are flying, and there are places out there waiting to be visited and explored. Whether I am bouncing through the world or helping others travel around the world, I am inspired by that distinct smell of 'Jet-A.'

As I continue to work with flyers, be they photographers or corporate business travelers, I keep an eye on the airline industry. I watch trends, I follow schedule and route changes, play close attention to the stability and instability of airlines and I have recently turned my focus to a different direction with The Travel Strategist.

The newly created additional direction of The Travel Strategist is consulting directly with airlines on how they can better service their passengers. Airlines are losing money hand over fist due to a variety of reasons, the cost of 'Jet-A' topping the list. As the airlines lose money, more passengers seek out a 'race to the bottom,' in search of the lowest airfare. With the race to the bottom airlines need to pick up the slack and start aggressively seeking out how to attract their 'premium passengers,' and retain a loyal base of frequent business travelers.

Airlines have known for a long time that it is better to retain someone who flies 50+ last minute segments per year than market heavily to the couple who flies once a year from a cold destination to a warm destination during a peak travel period. Some airlines are currently shedding loyal flyers due to their 'anti-customer' tactics. These tactics may work for generating income from the infrequent traveler, but in the end will cost these airlines a steady stream of high-revenue passengers. These new practices by some are airlines are forcing many frequent business travelers to start looking for a 'new home.' With many high revenue passengers looking for 'new homes,' there is a lot of potential revenue up for grabs and the airlines shouldn't miss their potential for seeking out these potential long term frequent business flyers.

When an industry is in turmoil only the strong survive. As travelers it is on our best interest to keep as many potential options available. When airlines collapse we all lose when it comes to our potential travel options.

Maybe we'll get lucky and some airlines will think outside the box, work with some low cost high reward options and make their potential future customer base happy.......giving all of us travelers one more airline on the road to stability, ensuring more potential options exist as we make our travel plans.

Happy Flying!

American Airlines Adds Perks For AAdvantage 'Elites'......just a few years behind all of their competitors

Web: www.fishfotoworldwide.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

24/09/2008 – American Airlines Adds Perks For AAdvantage 'Elites'......just a few years behind all of their competitors

Yesterday afternoon American Airlines made a bold announcement to the 'elite' members of their AAdvantage frequent flyer program and those who fly on full-fare and in premium cabin seats. The 'bold' announcement is called PriorityAAccess. What PriorityAAccess offers these flyers is a set of perks that have been enjoyed by 'elite' frequent flyers of more than 1/2 of a dozen other North American airlines for quite a few years now.

American Airlines' PriorityAAccess promises to make cruising through the airport easier and faster for 'elite' flyers and premium passengers. How does it plan on making the airport experience more streamlined? American Airlines will be opening up 'priority security lanes' for shorter lines at the TSA screening checkpoints at a number of airports. These lanes are generally available to all elite flyers of the airline and their OneWorld alliance partners.

American will be adding priority security screening at a number of airports including Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), San Francisco International Airport (SFO), New York's LaGuardia Airport (LGA) and Chicago O’Hare (ORD). It should be noted that American Airline's primary competitor, United Airlines (with whom they share their primary hub, ORD) has offered priority screening lanes at all of these airports for many years.

Another perk of PriorityAAccess is that 'elite' flyers and premium fare passengers will now be allowed priority when boarding flights. This means that they will be called separately, ahead of general boarding. This is a nice perk, and one that has been in place for many years with nearly every other 'legacy' airline in the United States......and one that seems to already be in place with American Airlines.

What confuses me about the new PriorityAAccess' boarding structure is that flights are generally already boarded in this order:
A) First//Business Class passengers
B) Executive Platinum / Platinum passengers
C) Gold passengers

Does this new lane just group all of these passengers into a single group of "PriorityAAccess?" if everyone is grouped together, won't certain routes, such as New York's LaGuardia (LGA) to Chicago O'Hare (ORD) may end up with 65% of the plane boarding at the same time with PriorityAAccess?

PriorityAAccess appears to create a while new boarding lane at the gate. This new separate lane as a perk follows the lead of other airlines such as Northwest Airlines, United Airlines and Continental Airlines, who even go so far as to have a separate boarding lane at the gate with a red carpet (actual Continental's is blue) welcoming these passengers on-board.

A few years ago American Airlines spent millions of dollars building an outstanding, state of the art and beautiful Admirals Club at Tokyo's Narita International Airport (NRT). This lounge while wonderful was constructed to service American Airlines' five flights per day from NRT (you read that correctly, only 5 flights per day).

Since American Airlines has always claimed to be focused on the business traveler, and proven so in some respects, such as in-seat power on all 'mainline aircraft' and reintroducing in-flight WiFi (as I had written about earlier this month here : 2/09/2008 – American Airlines Puts WiFi In The Sky), why did they think that building an Admiral's Club for five flights, when their passengers have access to the JAL Sakura Lounge at Narita, rather than offering more incentives to their 'elite' flyers? An airlines most frequent flyers, those who fly 50,000+ miles per year, those who purchase full-fare economy seats (Y-fare seats) and those who purchase business class and first class seats should see significant benefits from an airline. These 'premium passengers' are the ones putting the money in American Airlines' coffers.

Looking at PriorityAAccess vs Narita's Admiral's Club, it is much less expensive to offset the costs of maintaining priority security lanes at a handful of airports than it was to construct a redundant OneWorld lounge at NRT, especially with all the OneWorld Airlines residing in Terminal 2. How did American Airlines not view the perk of elite and premium passengers boarding flights first? Priority boarding costs the American Airlines NOTHING when compared to the operational costs of maintaining a lounge that services only five flights per day (and generally less than 500 passengers per day, with only 265 premium class seats departing from NRT daily if all the first and business seats are occupied).

I'd like to commend American Airlines for offering its elite and premium passenger’s added perks for their loyalty. Many airlines are stripping out the perks offered to their best flyers. I'm just curious why American Airlines is touting these new perks when they are nearly a decade behind their competition (if not longer in some cases).

Happy Flying!

Baghdad Gets Scheduled Flights To Europe With Turkish Airlines

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

23/09/2008 – Baghdad Gets Scheduled Flights To Europe With Turkish Airlines

Commercial air travel is a key element to the growth of international business. Without the ability to travel creating an international network is extremely challenging. Even in this day-and-age where we can fax, email, FedEx and video chat, being able to visit locations and sit down face to face is often how business is conducted.

Today Turkish Airlines announced that it would begin regularly scheduled service between its 'hub' in Istanbul (IST) and the capital of Iraq, Baghdad (BGW). This service which is set to begin on the 26th of October, and operate on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.

For a nation seeking to rebuild its self and move forward with international commerce this new route allows business travelers the ability to easily travel between Iraq and many European business centers. Turkish Airlines' hub at IST is also ideal for travel within the Middle East region as well.

While Royal Jordanian Airlines has operated regular service between its 'hub' in Amman (AMM) and BGW, and Iraqi Airways also operated service between BGW and AMM, as well as Tehran (THR), these flights limit the potential for doing business in a more efficient manner with European nations due to location and limited connecting flight schedules.

The arrival of Turkish Airlines into BGW also brings the arrival of modern 'mainline' aircraft rather than Royal Jordanian's regional jet flights and the older aircraft in service by Iraqi Airways.

Hopefully the new service into Baghdad is beneficial and allows Iraqi business to grow, expand, and help rebuild a national that is one of the original cradles of civilization.

Happy Flying!

Choosing A Frequent Flyer Program Pt-2 : Fish's Suggestions For Helping A Photographer Maximize His Miles

Web: www.fishfotoworldwide.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

23/09/2008 – Choosing A Frequent Flyer Program Pt-2 : Fish's Suggestions For Helping A Photographer Maximize His Miles

Last week I posed a question to the readers of Flying With Fish. I asked the readers to consider the flying habits of photographer Mark Rebilas' and offer up their opinions on the best frequent flyer program for him. I received a few e-mails from readers, oddly enough nearly all the replies involved moving from US Airways' Dividend Miles to United Airlines’ Mileage Plus. This a logical choice (and I like United, and am a former United Premier Executive frequent flyer) , but given the state of the industry not the best plan to maximize Mark's potential benefits from belonging to a frequent flyer program.

So what would I suggest to Mark when selecting a frequent flyer program given his 'home airport' and flying habits?

For a primary frequent flyer program, given that Mark's home airport is a Star Alliance hub, I would suggest signing up for Air Canada's AeroPlan and ditching his US Airways Dividend Miles program, despite Phoenix (PHX) being a US Airways fortress.

For a secondary frequent flyer program I would suggest looking into the Air France-KLM Flying Blue program

Why would I select Air Canada's AeroPlan rather than suggesting Mark put his miles in 'the other' United States based Star Alliance airline, United Airlines? I suggest this change for a few reasons.

I'll start with why I believe Mark should eliminate the US Airways Dividend Miles from his frequent flyer programs. US Airways has stripped out the benefits of the Dividend Miles program to the point that it has essentially no value to its loyal customers. There are no longer any elite bonuses; the reduction in first class seating has eliminated the upgrades for most frequent flyers; the lack of lounge access for US Airways' Star Gold flyers; and the lack of a significant difference between being a Gold and a Chairman, makes the program less than beneficial for anyone.

United Airlines may offer more things to its frequent flyers, however their system does not allow for complementary upgrades and like US Airways offers no complementary lounge access for their Star Gold flyers.

What can Air Canada's AeroPlan offer Mark? It can offer him Star Alliance Star Gold at 35,000 miles, or 50 flown segments, vs 50,000 miles, or 50 flown segments, required to reach Star Alliance Star Gold. What does saving 15,000 miles to get to Start Gold get Mark? It gets him Priority/Zone 1 boarding, priority baggage, elite bonuses to earn him additional miles and it gets him worldwide access to Star Alliance lounges, even when flying domestically, when he is flying on a Star Alliance flights.

As a secondary frequent flyer program for Mark is an unconventional move to skip out on Delta's SkyMiles program. As a former Delta Airlines Platinum frequent flyer (as well as a former US Airways Platinum frequent flyer, maintaining Platinum on both airlines simultaneously for two years) I can honestly say that Delta's SkyMiles program offers considerably more than US Airways' Dividend Miles program.

So why skip Delta? Why overlook Sky Team airline alliance partners Northwest Airlines and Continental Airlines? For quite a few reasons, the first reason is that upgrades on Delta Airlines on many of the transcontinental routes which Mark flies are very hard to get access to for those below the status of Platinum SkyMiles system. Delta also no longer offers complimentary membership to the Crown Room Club, even for its Platinum flyers (this is one reason I chose to depart the SkyMiles program)

Why skip Northwest's WorldPerks Program (which I am formerly a WorldPerks Gold for 2006 and 2007)? Northwest Airlines and Delta Airlines have heavily been engaged in merger talks. Should the likely merger happen Northwest Airlines will cease to exist and the two airlines will merge into the single entity Delta Airlines. This merger will approximately double the number of Delta SkyMiles Elites and in the process the merged airline will most likely further slash the benefits available to their 'elite' flyers.

How come I have completely written of Continental Airline's OnePass program? The answer to this one is simple. Continental Airlines has entered into an extensive agreement with Star Alliance carrier United Airlines and they will be leaving SkyTeam to join the Star Alliance, along with United Airlines and US Airways.

So how does this bring us to joining Air France-KLM's Flying Blue frequent flyer program? There are a few reasons I arrived at the Flying Blue program (I am currently an Air France-KLM Flying Blue Gold and a member of KLM's Club China). The first reasoning behind the Flying Blue program is Mark can gain status with either miles or segments. The Delta SkyMiles program is based on miles only, not miles and segments. With just 40,000 miles or 30 segments Mark can reach Gold (25,000 miles or 15 segment will put him at Silver). Elite flyers in the Flying Blue program can get upgrades when flying domestically in the United States on Northwest Airlines as well. I know it sounds to good to be true, but while flying on Northwest Airlines as a Flying Blue Gold I have a nearly perfect track record in getting upgrades on most routes I fly, many of which are transcontinental routes. This upgrade system is in place because Air France-KLM is an owner of the Northwest Workperks program, and Northwest's long and heavily intertwined relationship with KLM. While a Delta Gold or a Northwest Gold has no lounge access (and neither do the Platinum flyers) Gold status flyers with Flying Blue have access to Air France and Northwest Airline lounges Worldwide. As a United States based Flying Blue member Mark would have access to all SkyTeam lounges Worldwide when flying on any SkyTeam flight.

.......as a 'bonus' Northwest elites also have access to upgrades while flying on Continental Airlines (while they are still a SkyTeam member until late 2009), so Gold status on Air France would allow Mark to access potential upgrades on two SkyTeam carriers, and earn qualifying miles while flying Delta while he earns status.

There you have it. My two likely candidate programs for Mark maximize his frequent flyer experience, while barely making any changes to his flying habits or preferred airlines and airline alliances.

So if Mark flies 80 segments a year, or 75,000 miles, which is likely based on his last two years of travel, he can achieve Gold/Elite status with two major global airline alliances and give himself more options, a greater earning on his butt-in-seat miles (BIS) and more comfort when stuck in airports around The World.

Happy Flying!

Watching An Airline Die A Slow Death : Alitalia's Almost Certain Failure

Web: www.fishfoto.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

22/09/2008 – Watching An Airline Die A Slow Death : Alitalia's Almost Certain Failure

I have been following what I believed to be Alitalia's almost certain demise for nearly a year, if not longer. Alitalia has only posted a single profitable year since 1998, even with a €1.5bil cash infusion from the Italian Government in 1998, and has sustained losses of more than €3.7bil between 2000-&-2008.

Watching an airline continue to fail so massively is made more difficult when you also watch the airline's Unions maintaining an unwavering stance to allow no concessions in the face of an airline that is shedding approximately €1mil (US$1.4mil) per day.

The Unions' stance initially caused me to step back and wonder what the Unions knew, until the last few months. Over the past 7 or 8 months it became blatantly apparent that the Unions were not making an educated decision. The Unions have merely been sticking their heads in the ground.

Alitalia for years has lagged behind other European 'Flag Carriers' in terms of on-time performance, in-flight amenities (an example is the airline still not offering in-seat electrical power in their business class cabin on their long haul fleet), and has continued to operate out of a 'hub airport' that can only be described as 'chaos.'

Many international airlines operate out of complex airports, some of these airports aren't always up to the standards an airline would like. Rome's Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport (FCO) however operates at a level of chaos that would best be described as 'pure chaos' on a good day.

The baggage situation alone at FCO appears to be unrivaled in terms of delays, lost baggage and a total inability to manage an airport's basic operations effectively. The baggage operations at FCO, which are largely run by Alitalia, was so out of control at one point that nearly 100,000 pieces of baggage were lost or mid-sorted in a single weekend during the summer of 2007.

Alitalia's 'hub airport' has even been referred to as a 'National Disgrace' by members of the Parlamento Italiano

In the last week Alitalia's Unions have refused a €1bil (US$1.4bil) bailout/buy out by CAI, an Italian company who owns AirOne. In the face of total collapse, the Unions refused the offers and eventually CAI removed their offer from the table.

Today Alitalia is continuing to have some problems getting fuel to their aircraft. The fuel delivery trucks are running, but fuel delivery companies are requiring guaranteed funds before fueling Alitalia's aircraft.

.........so where does this leave Alitalia? After 62 years of being Italy's National Flag Carrier it appears that Altero Matteoli, Italy's Transportation Minister, is beginning the process of rescinding Alitalia's license to operate as a commercial airline.

It is highly likely that my year of watching the slow painful death of Alitalia will come to an end by the end of this week.

Is this how it ends : Alitalia 1946-2008?

Happy Flying!

Leaving Your Bag At The Stairs On Regional Flights, AKA: Valet Check, Stair Check, Planeside Check

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

22/09/2008 – Leaving Your Bag At The Stairs On Regional Flights, AKA: Valet Check, Stair Check, Planeside Check

Not a day seems to pass where I don't get an e-mail or see an enquiry on some travel or photography message board regarding travelers being forced to leave their full-size roll-aboard bag at the stairs of a 'regional jet' or turbo-prop aircraft.

As more airlines reduce their mainline aircraft routes and increase their dependency on smaller regional jets and turbo-prop aircraft the question about leaving your bags plane side has moved from a problem faced only and smaller regional airports and moved into many mid-sized and larger regional airport routes.

Leaving your bag plane side, which has many names depending on the airline you're flying, is a significant concern for many travelers. The obvious concern involves damaging the contents of your bag. As a photographer who travels constantly, and who flies regional jets and turbo-props constantly, I have been dealing with these issues for quite a few years now.

As I have mentioned previously on Flying With Fish my home airport, New Haven (HVN), only have five flights per day, each of those flights is on a US Airways Express Dash-8 turbo-prop. My preferred airport, Providence (PVD), has seen a significant increase in regional jet usage, particularly on short routes I often fly to pick up medium-haul and long-haul flights.

Over the past few years I have only had my equipment damaged once when being forced to 'Valet Check' my bag. It was an isolated incident at Washington DC's Reagan National Airport (DCA) and I was lucky a ramp-supervisor witnessed the incident. A ramp handler from US Airways Express tool my well packed bag and threw it from the back of a regional jet completely missing the baggage loader truck.

Other than this once incident my Think Tank Airport Addicted backpack has flow hundreds of regional jet & turbo prop flights loaded with a minimum of two camera bodies, five lenses, two flashes and other gear and has never had any of the contents damaged. My Mountainsmith Correspondent, which I have recently begun to use, has now flown on dozens of regional flights, has also not had any gear damaged when left at the stairs of a flights.

What is the secret? Well there is no secret.

- First off if you have your laptop in your bag remove it! Do not ever have your laptop placed in the cargo hold, even for a short flight.

- When you chose your bag make sure it is semi-rigid or hard sided. Make sure the interior of the bag has padding, preferably multiple layers of padding, around your equipment.

- Make sure the padding in your bag is secure. You don't want the padding shifting around in the bag so it no longer protects the contents.

- If you have fragile contents in your bag do not be afraid to label the bag as such. My Think Tank Airport Addicted has strips of white duct tape on it with "FRAGILE" written in big bright red block letters on it with a permanent magic marker. My Mountainsmith Correspondent has bright pink duct tape strips on it with "FRAGILE” written on it in big bold black lettering with permanent magic marker.

- When you pack your bag make sure your fragile items are secure. You want in them in place and not shifting around. Damage comes from not only impact but also movement. You can have some 'give room' but not so your items are sliding. For photogs who stack lenses, place something between the lenses. I use the 'orange' Ilford anti-stat cloths, but I have also used a sock and a small face cloth. This is just to reduce things from scraping together; it won't protect your gear from a 15-foot drop (then again a Pelican case probably won't protect your gear from impact damage if it took a 15 foot straight drop).

- If you can hand your bag to a human, rather than just leave it at the stairs, and tell them the contents are fragile it can also be helpful. I know many flyers think the ramp agents damage bags just for fun, but most of them in my experience are nice folks and will take care with your bag if you ask.

I know leaving your bag at the mercy of the 'Valet Check’ is never ideal, but with some careful planning, and knowing if you'll need to leave your bag at the stairs (check your flights before hand to find out the type of aircraft you'll be flying on), can minimize the risk in leaving your bags and potentially fragile equipments at the bottom of the stairs.

For those of you where the term I often use "Valet Check" comes from, it comes from American Airlines' "Valet plane-side baggage check for carry-on bags"

Below is a photo of my Mountainsmith Correspondent on the ramp outside PHL's Terminal F, waiting to be placed under a US Airways Express Dash-8 turbo-prop for the quick flight up to HVN

Happy Flying!
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In-seat Power & emPower Revisited : Working In Flight

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

11/09/2008 – In-seat Power & emPower Revisited : Working In Flight

Many travelers want to stay productive while traveling. I often find I get more work done sitting in a cramped seat than sitting at my desk at home. When I am flying I am not distracted, no one is trying to have a conversation with me, my phone is not ringing, there is no email to check and I can't flip on the TV. The key to staying productive is obviously keeping your laptop supplied with power.

While many airlines around the world are installing 'standard' 110v/220v electrical outlets in their newer aircraft, many airlines continue to use 'emPower' outlets (American Airlines uses a standard automobile DC outlet) for in-seat power. emPower came into use in the 1990s as proprietary electrical power supply for commercial aircraft. This outlet is neither a standard auto-DC outlet or 110v/220v outlet, although many companies produce emPower inverters that are a combination of emPower & auto-DC outlet. An emPower tip is irregularly shaped with two larger 'power pins' and two smaller 'grounding pins' that slide into a specific emPower socket.

A common question I am asked by readers is where they can find emPower. The easiest place to find out what airlines have in-seat power, and on what aircraft and cabins is Seat Guru (www.seatguru.com). If you are flying on an aircraft equipped with emPower, the outlets are generally found in two places.

The first place to look for an emPower outlet, and the most common place, is in the armrest of your seat. It can be near the controls for the audio output or with some airlines in the front of the arm rest. The second most common place to find emPower is directly below the seat, between the two seat cushions.

If you are flying in business class, or first class, with an airline that offers emPower, the outlets can vary with the design of the seats as installed by the airline.

emPower outlets have a ready light with two colours. A red light means there is no power, while a green light means there is power.

It should be noted that some airlines that have emPower throughout an entire fleet may not have the outlets functioning. An example of this is US Airways. US Airways has emPower installed in all seats on-board the majority of their Airbus fleet. The problem with US Airways' emPower system is that it is prone for failure. On my last 16 US Airways flights on Airbus aircraft have all been equipped with emPower, all showed a 'green light,' however I was only able to use the emPower on 4 of those flights. The others all had faulty emPower outlets, and in all cases I tested all three outlets in my row before determining they were truly faulty .

Most other airlines that offer emPower have it working in a consistent fashion. When I fly with Delta Airlines I routinely search for flights serviced by the Boeing 737-800 and 767-400 as they both offer in-seat power with emPower (some are being converted to standard 110v-Type B outlets, identical to ones found throughout the United States). In more than 250 segments on Delta 737-800 aircraft I have only found two non-fuctioning emPower outlets.

Aside from Delta Airlines, other airlines I have found to have very reliable emPower outlets include: Continental Airlines, Air Canada, Virgin Atlantic and United Airlines (who has 110v outlets on their 757-PS fleet and some new international premium cabin seats) .

While emPower inverters used to be fairly expensive when compared to a standard auto-inverter, many compact and reliable emPower inverters may not be found for around US$50-$75.

Below are photos of an actual functioning emPower outlet in the armrest of a US Airways Airbus A321 with my Vector 100w emPower inverter. The Vector iMobile Slim Power Inverter 100watt comes with both a standard Type-B 110v outlet and a USB outlet.

Happy Flying!

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WPPI Highlights Flying With Fish As Resource For Traveling Photogs

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

6/09/2008 – WPPI Highlights Flying With Fish As Resource For Traveling Photogs

This morning I received a message from a WPPI member, Karen Ziemkowski (www.tavestudio.com), informing me that the Wedding & Portrait Photographers International organization had highlighted Flying With Fish in its latest e-newsletter to its members.

WPPI (www.wppionline) is an international organization with thousands of members around the world. As the organization is helping its membership plan for their annual convention and trade show, in Las Vegas this coming February, the editors of the organization, sent off information regarding Flying With Fish to help its membership plan their travel logistics.

For those of you who receive the WPPI newsletters, Flying With Fish is in the first segment under Member News : Important News for WPPI Members

This is what it says:
For photographers who are heading to Las Vegas for WPPI 2009, check out the blog Flying With Fish (www.flyingwithfish.com). Flying With Fish is regularly updated with travel information relevant to photographers who travel and those who seek to travel. Flying With Fish keeps photographers informed about travel-related topics.


For those of you flying to Las Vegas McCarran International Airport (LAS), some quick tips. On your way home if you want a quiet place to sit and work, check out the Kids-Area new the D-Gates. In the evening there are rarely any kids in there, but the floor is comfortable to lie down and stretch out on. Additionally there are plenty of electrical outlets, and the WiFi signal is strong. Directly (well sort of angled) across from the Kids-Area is Ruby's Dinette, the food is pretty good and relative to eating in an airport it is affordable.

For you international travelers flying home from Las Vegas, keep in mind that the international terminal, Terminal 2, while nice is lacking a selection of restaurants to eat at. While most airports have a wider selection in the international terminals than the domestic terminals, Las Vegas' McCarran Int'l Airport is the opposite. 'T2' only offers fast food and a bar, with no real sit down restaurants. The shopping in 'T2' is also lacking when compared to nearly every international departures terminal I have been through. For those with 'Lounge Access' there is a joint 'First Class Lounge' in T2, next to Gate #3, however it is not what you often expect from a lounge operated directly by an international airline.

Have a great time in Vegas folks!

Happy Flying!

Free WiFi Worldwide (well sort of)

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

4/09/2008 – Free WiFi Worldwide (well sort of)

Love Starbucks or hate Starbucks, they are everywhere. With stores in 54 countries, spanning four continents and a sub-continent, it is hard to not spot a Starbucks. Throughout most Starbucks locations you can find public WiFi spots to sit down, log on and surf the web.

How does any of this tie into getting free WiFi around the world? Simple, sign up for Starbucks Card Rewards and you can activate your card with two free hours of WiFi per day at Starbucks.

In the United States this offer is through AT&T, despite the vast majority of Starbucks locations still primarily offering T-Mobile WiFi hotspots. While the offer may vary from country to country, Starbucks customer service tells me the ability to access your two free hours per day should be available to all Starbucks Card Rewards users who use their Starbucks.com account and use that account to log on.

The cost of the Starbucks Card Rewards? Free. Want to customize your card? It is US$4.00. You can top-up the card, you can leave it bare, but you can still get your 2 hours of WiFi free per day. The only catch is that you muse use your Starbucks card at lease once per month.

Last week I came home and found a greeting card containing a personalized Starbucks Card Rewards card in my mailbox. What does my card have on it? A picture of 'me' holding a passport in a city.

While I do not drink coffee, I find myself in Starbucks all over the world.......almost always sitting down to log on and use the internet. From Frankfurt to Hong Kong, I have always been able to find a store when I want to read the news, send an e-mail home or transmit photos to clients via an FTP site.

Want your 2 hours of free WiFi daily at Starbucks? Order yours here: www.starbucks.com/card

Below are a few photos of my Starbucks card......and one of my Starbucks travel mug with my 'Fish Family' drawn on it.

Happy Flying!

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iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Coolgorilla's Talking French Phrasebook

Web: www.fishfotoworldwide.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

3/09/2008 – iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Coolgorilla's Talking French Phrasebook

With my enjoyment of Lonely Planet's Mandarin Audio Phrasebook (which I reviewed *HERE*) I set out to find other language translation 'Apps' for my iPhone. While looking at a variety of language options, for not only the iPhone but also ink-and-paper phrase books and instructional software, I found myself downloading Coolgorilla's Talking French Phrasebook.

Much like Lonely Planet's audio phrase books, Coolgorilla's talking phrasebooks are equally easy to scroll through to find the phrase you're looking for and effective in practice while on the road. The phrase categories are broken down into sub-categories. Inside each sub-category you'll find the phrase you are looking for. I was easily able to find the bathroom and explain that my baggage had not arrived while quickly scrolling through the Coolgorilla Talking French Phrasebook.

For those not comfortable in attempting to speak a foreign language (or in my case butchering a language) you can both find your phrase and show someone your comment/question in their native language or you can click the audio icon and play and audio clip of your comment/question. I generally attempt to speak (butcher) the language, but sometimes the audio clip is extremely helpful!

There is some overlap between both the Lonely Planet Audio Phrasebook and the Coolgorilla Talking Phrasebook, however they each have their own strengths, and in some areas there is no overlap in languages. Having used the Coolgorilla Talking French Phrasebook I'm now off to download the Coolgorilla Talking German Phrasebook as I start looking at a possible flight through Frankfurt, Germany.

Below are five photos that walk you through the steps of using Coolgorilla's Talking French Phrasebook on your iPhone.

Happy Flying!

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American Airlines Puts WiFi In The Sky

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

2/09/2008 – American Airlines Puts WiFi In The Sky

Last Wednesday, the 27th of August, an American Airlines (AA) Boeing 767-223 (762) closed up its forward cabin door, the jetway pulled away from the AA 762 at JFK International Airport's Terminal 8, in New York. As the ramp-tug slowly pushed the aircraft back from Gate 35 there was a quick stop, the tug disconnected and the American Airlines 762 turned right onto ‘Tango,’ left onto 'Alpha' and slowly made its way to runway 13-Right. As the aircraft started down the runway there were some excited techno-business travelers that were getting giddy, excited about their 6 hour and 19 minute flight to San Francisco International Airport (SFO).

Why were there some excited techno-savvy business travelers onboard? This flight was the day American Airlines launched their in-flight WiFi services for all passengers on-board.

AA launched this service, 'GoGo', on their domestic 767-200 fleet that services the high traffic New York-Los Angeles and New York-San Francisco routes. American Airlines has long since been the industry leader in providing simple business friendly amenities in all classes of service, most notable being in-seat power on all their mainline aircraft (DC power, using a standard automobile cigarette lighter plug), and this launch puts them significantly ahead of Delta Airlines and Virgin America who also service this high traffic route. American AA's primary competitor on this route, United Airlines, has not announced any intention to offer in-flight WiFi on their JFK-LAX/SFO sub-fleet of 757-200 "PS" aircraft.

The cost of the unlimited in-flight WiFi is $12.95. Unlike other airlines that have in-flight e-mail and messaging, this service will allow you to use your laptop or PDA in WiFi mode to work in a normal mode during your flight. VOIP will not be enabled with the service (no airlines intend to allow VOIP)

Back on the 17th of May 2004 Boeing introduced "Connexion" that was installed in both Boeing and Airbus aircraft to allow WiFi to the flying public. The original intention of Boeing Connexion was to primarily service high-traffic North American business routes. Instead of being installed primarily on North American aircraft it was installed by a variety of European and Asian carriers on long-haul international routes, without a single North American carrier picking up this option. With few airlines installing Connexion service, it was discontinued on the 31st of December 2006. Personally, I enjoyed using Boeing Connexion on Lufthansa and Korean Air.......so I am glad to see WiFi return to the skies.

Will this new service sway my airline choice to AA? That remains to be seen, as the WiFi is only on limited routes (although one I fly often) and does not service any of my three local 'home' airports.

So for those of you in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, who enjoy surfing will you fly, you now have an option to be production while in-flight!

Happy Flying!




PS: For those of you who use your travel time to relax....... there are plenty of other airlines that fly these routes

Travel Planning & Natural Disasters

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

30/08/2008 – Travel Planning & Natural Disasters

As many people in North America watch the weather on the television they cannot help but notice Hurricane Gustav taking aim at New Orleans just three years after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the city.

As this potential repeat natural disaster potentially plays out I'd like to address travel planning in regions as they face immediate natural disasters. When I covered Hurricane Katrina back in 2005, flying into New Orleans was almost as challenging as flying out of New Orleans. The challenges in finding a flight, a rental car and lodging were significant.

First off, when looking at planning travel to a potentially affected area you need to asses the importance of your trip. If you are traveling for pleasure or routine business, reschedule your trip. If you have an 'essential role' or you are a journalist you need to look at your options and your resources. As you plan your flights, you may need to fly a hundred miles, or more, away, to find in-bound flights. Airlines start canceling flight and shifting schedules to make sure they have no aircraft caught in the wake of a hurricane.

Outside of flights, rental cars can be hard to find in a city about to be hit by a storm. If you need to be in a city, such as New Orleans, you may need to fly into Baton Rouge or Dallas to get a rental car, as rental car companies often try and move their fleets prior to a potential catastrophic event to reduce their loss of their assets.

If you are in, or around, an area about to be affected by a major natural disaster and you need to leave, you need to know airfares will be rising. Airfares rise due to all the seats being sold out and airlines minimizing capacity just before a hurricane. It is not uncommon for airlines to stop servicing a city at least 48 hours before the expected storm to affect the area. This allows an airline to not only move their aircraft, but also move their staff out of the potential disaster zone.

Once a storm, or natural disaster has occurred, travel to a specific area can be a serious challenge. With New Orleans for example, flying into New Orleans may not only be a challenge, but flying into an airport such as Dallas-Ft Worth or Houston's Intercontinental Airports may be difficult. While these airports are 300 miles and 450 miles from New Orleans, they will play major roles in staging, relief and evacuation from the potential disaster zone. With aircraft flying additional aircraft to surrounding areas the airspace and ground space gets congested. While many flyers only factor in passenger flights, you need to also keep in mind that freight and cargo airlines must continue to fly, and at times fly additional aircraft into a region to keep business and relief efforts going. Outside of these additional aircraft, military aircraft may also use nearby regional airports as potential staging points.

If you have critical business in an area within approximately 400 miles from a potential disaster zone, you may need to adjust your travel plans. While seats may be available on flights, rental cars may not be available and you need to account for potential delays in flight schedules.

I know this is over simplified, but with a potential major disaster about to happen to a city that has already been nearly washed away once before in the past three years, I wanted to put this basic information up for as a reference point for journalists who will potentially find themselves in the region in the coming days.

Remember this. If you choose to travel to an affected region and you decide it is time to go home, you may find yourself at the end of the line for evacuation.

Happy Flying!

iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Currency

Web: www.fishfoto.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

28/08/2008 – iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Currency

Not all useful iPhone 'Apps' have whiz-bang features and tons of options. Some very useful iPhone 'Apps' are straightforward, simple and singular in purpose, which is why this week I'll be discussing the simplistic nature of 'Currency.'

'Currency' is an exchange rate tool ideal for anyone who travels, or who needs to quickly review foreign currencies. The set-up of the Currency 'app' allows you to add and delete currencies and set a 'Master Currency' (mine is obviously set to US$)

The one function the iPhone Currency 'App' is missing is that of a rate calculator. I'd like to quickly be able to figure out a total cost, so I am still looking at other currency converter 'apps,' but for the total cost of FREE from the iTunes App Store, I'm quite happy with the Currency 'App.'

Below are two images of the Currency 'App' on my iPhone

Happy Flying!

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iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Locly

Web: www.fishfotoworldwide.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

19/08/2008 – iPhone 'App' Of The Week : Locly

Whenever I travel one of the challenges I find most difficult to resolve at times is where things are. I don't know a single person who has gotten off a plane; gone to work then suddenly thought, "What is there around here to eat?"

Locly has the answer to "What is there to eat" as well as different categories for this question (such as restaurants, cafes, pubs, and super markets), and other common questions on the road. How Locly works is by figuring out your position from the GSM mobile phone towers. I have had Locly have an accuracy of my location far off as 3,000 meter (1.85 miles) and as close as 450 meters (0.25 miles)

While 3,000 meter can be a great distance if you are standing in the middle of a city, it is extremely helpful when you find yourself in metro-area or suburban area rather than in the middle of the city. I have however used Locly in city center environments and be very happy with its results as the results for 450 meters of accuracy is quite convenient to wherever you may be.

I have used Locly to find dinner on the road as well as locate movie theaters, banks and gas stations. To find interesting tid-bits I have used Locly's "Wikipedia" feature and have heard of others using the iPhone 'App's' Twitter feature to meet up with others.

For you international travelers, fear not! Locly works in many countries throughout the world! Being able to look up a restaurant for dinner in Paris or Shenzhen has never been easier (OK, I haven't tried Locly out in Shenzhen yet, but I'm sure I'll use it in the region at some point in the coming months)

Locly is certainly an iPhone 'App' I will continue to update as they become available and use on a regular basis both on the road and at home.

Below are four photos of Locly on the iPhone

Happy Flying!

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Is Your Carry-On Bag Legal For 'International' Carry-On? Maybe Not

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

14/08/2008 - Is Your Carry-On Bag Legal For 'International' Carry-On? Maybe Not

Have you ever looked the dimensions of your roll-aboard bag and wondered exactly what was included in the bags dimensions?

This seems like a redundant question doesn't it? The company measured the 'whole bag' right? Well the answer is 'not really.'

Many bag manufactures measure the body of the bag, and exclude the wheels from the dimensions. While the overall actual size may be negligible for bags that have 'inset' wheels, the linear size difference between 'bag size' and 'bag size + wheels' for bags that have exterior wheels is quite significant. Often the difference in 'bag size’ and 'bag size + wheels' for bags with exterior wheels more than 1inch (2.54cm).

While 1"(2.54cm) may not seem like a big difference, it can easily be the difference between having your roll-aboard bag be allowed onto the plane with you and a gate agent telling you that you must check it at the gate.

In the U.S. and Canada we have experienced a fairly relaxed carry-on guidelines for our carry-on bags. Airlines in the US and Canada have traditionally measured a bag's dimensions by the size of the bag, excluding the wheels. This has allowed travelers to bring bags that technically exceed the maximum allowed carry-on sized bag onto their flights. With a change in carry on policies for some US airlines, the most notable being American Airlines, the dimension allowances for carry-on bags is becoming closer to those allowed in many airports in Europe and Asia (as well as Australia/New Zealand).

Outside of the US and Canada carry-on bags are measured by the total linear dimension of a bag, including the wheels. In fact many airlines have rigid baggage templates at not only the check-in counter but also at the departure gate. With a rigid baggage template there is no way to 'squeeze' your bag to fit. You can't fudge or fiddle with the tape measure to show that your bag 'fits.' With a template either your bag fits or it does not.

When shopping for a bag you should always measure your bag including the wheels. If you are not purchasing your bag in person you should find out if the bag is not only 'legal for carry-on’ but also legal for 'international carry-on' (that is if you're buying your bag in the US/Canada). If you have any questions about the bag size you should try and contact the manufacturer to find out if the dimensions of the bag include the wheels.

A great carry-on bag does you no good if you cannot bring it with you on all your flights...and there are few things as frustrating while in transit than being told your carry-on bag must be checked before you board the flight.

Happy Flying!

Emirates 'Goes Off Line' (no, they didn't go out of business......just off line)

Web: www.thetravelstrategist.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

31/07/2008 – Emirates 'Goes Off Line' (no, they didn't go out of business......just off line)

What happens when a major international airline takes delivery of a brand new aircraft and is taking every opportunity to further their marketing? Well they might overlook simple marketing tools such as renewing their domain name!

This week Emirates (طيران الإمارات) has taken delivery of its first Airbus A380 and been using every marketing tool available to them to attract attention to the launch of their Airbus A380 service between Dubai (DXB) and New York (JFK). During this media-blitz week their website suddenly went dead. It turns out that Emirates’ IT department overlooked the little detail of renewing their domain name.

As potential travelers logged onto the website they met a generic placeholder site rather than the airline's site.

As you read this you should probably consider logging into your domain host account and checking your domain name expiration dates.

Below is a photo of both the Emirates web site front page and the generic 'place holder' page that was found at Emirates.com when it went off line.

Happy Flying!

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iPhone 'App' Of The Week : iPhone Tools For Road Warriors

Web: www.fishfoto.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

30/07/2008 – iPhone 'App' Of The Week : iPhone Tools For Road Warriors

Well it was bound to happen eventually. At some point I'd have to enter 2007 (yes, I said 2007). Not too long ago an original iPhone was provided to me to use and figure out how to turn it into a 'travelers tool.’ While my iPhone is not the new iPhone 3G, I have not been deterred from playing with the potential of using the iPhone's apps for travel purposes.

I'm not going to go into the details of iPhone vs other phones, as I still use and prefer my Blackberry for my mobile mail, and I have considered going back to my Motorola Razr for battery life and size............but the iPhone's 'Apps' are what keeps me interested in the iPhone. Since I received my iPhone I have downloaded many 'Apps' that have the potential to be good tools on the road and found some that I like and some that I will never utter the name of in public because they are so horrendous.

.............so this entry kicks off my first iPhone App Of The Week post.

One of the first 'Apps' I downloaded for the iPhone was the Travelocity ‘App.’ While Travelocity has not been my preferred online booking site, the 'App' has some great features that can provide some excellent information to anyone on the road. The Travelocity 'App' is so useful it is on the top line of the first page of my iPhone 'Apps.'

What does the Travelocity 'App' offer its users?

For starters if your schedule is forced to change at the last minute you can click on 'Flight Schedules', type in your departure airport and your arrival airport, and pull up a complete list of all flights between the two airports for the day. This schedule also includes 'Code-Share' flight numbers for many flights. Once you select the flight you think you'd like to use you can click that fight and see all the details of that flight.

I found a few gaps in some routes for available flights, but overall this feature can really save a traveler time should their schedule change unexpectedly or they have to rebook a flight while already in transit.

In a hurry and want to know where you're headed in the airport? The Travelocity 'App' can search most flights (primarily in the United States) quickly and let travelers know what terminal and gate their flight is departing from (you can also get this information easily from AeroChannel Mobile at: www.aero2go.com). Being able to quickly access an iPhone 'App' to get your terminal info and gate info at an unfamiliar airport is extremely useful for anyone running late getting to the airport.

Finally, the Travelocity 'App' can tell you the average wait times for airport security check points. This feature gives you a break down of terminals, individual checkpoints and the time of day you're planning on passing through security. While security times can change depending on the circumstances of the day, this feature is fantastic to know what you should be facing when you show up at the airport.

Overall I have found the Travelocity 'App' to a fantastic travel tool for iPhone users.

Below are 12 images of the Travelocity 'App' on the iPhone.

Happy Flying!

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Unstable Airfares & The Need To Travel : Are There Options?

Web: www.fishfoto.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

5/06/2008 – Unstable Airfares & The Need To Travel : Are There Options?

With the United States airline industry in turmoil, and the global airline industry trying to assess their next moves, this is a tricky time to be a business traveler.

I'm a realist, airlines are disappearing, fleets are being grounded which cuts capacity, airlines are increasing ‘code-share’ flights which cuts capacity, the price of oil is at all time global highs, and the US Dollar (US$) to which OPEC pegs it's oil prices is losing it's value by the day.

What does this mean for those who must fly for work? It means you need to plan your journeys with more flexibility and purchase your tickets as far in advance as possible, but with caution.

I have a wedding to document on the 4th of July in San Francisco and another wedding on he 5th of July in Philadelphia. I had priced out my travel a few times, as recently as a week ago, and airfares were hovering between $450 and $575 for my travel. In the last week alone fares on non-stop flights in the United States have nearly doubled in price on some routes. As I generally purchase my airline tickets to shoot weddings in the 21 day-to-14 day window I re-priced my flights last night and came up with fares ranging from $1127 to $1463.

I have some flexibility on when I travel to San Francisco (SFO) and when I depart Philadelphia (PHL), which is good. The problem in flexibility is that but I am absolutely locked into only two potential flights that can get me from SFO to PHL to leave wedding #1 on-time and arrive at wedding #2 on time, given that they these weddings are a 2,500 mile distance and 5hr 30min flight apart.

For those of you who shoot destination weddings, or plan your business trips far in advance, you may want to start searching fares as soon as you book your weddings, or business schedules, and start watching fares. Most airlines allow you to book flights up to 330 days from your date of travel. If you book 330 days out and your flight information is changed by the airline, such as a change in route, change in flight number, etc, the airline must adjust your travel at no fee to you. This gives you some security.

The downside to this is with airlines failing at record rates you may be stuck on anon-existent airline. There are some "safe bets" on legacy airlines that should be able to easily last the next 330 days, but in this financial climate who knows. Some large, long time, legacy airlines have vanished very rapidly in the past, much to the disbelief of their loyal flyers, including Eastern Airlines, TWA and Pan Am.

Watching the rise and fall of the airfares, and the gouging going on in some areas, which I expect to slow down and disappear at the end of the peak summer travel, my advice is this. For destination weddings, or business travel, book your tickets within 30 to 60 days of travel This is the best way to still look for lower fares, giving yourself time to check fares, watch the strength of an airline and utilize online tools that monitor the rise and fall of airfares.

Oddly enough with the cost of flights rising more than a dozen times across the board in the United States since the start of 2008, I just booked my flights to document a wedding on June 21st wedding in Minneapolis and June 22nd wedding in New York for more than $100 less than I had originally estimated and budgeted.

This summer, and the future of air travel may get worse before it gets better. There is a future out there for those who travel, but we certainly need to weather the storm before we get there.

Happy Flying!