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** New Airline Baggage
Policies **
AirTran
Airways
Effective
immediately, customers who are traveling on or after May 15, 2008,
may check one bag free and a second bag for a $10 fee. The fee will
not apply for passengers who hold Elite status in AirTran Airways'
A+ Rewards frequent flier program, or ticketed passengers traveling
in Business Class. The airline will continue to allow passengers to
check additional bags for a $50 fee per additional bag. As with the
previous policy, weight and size restrictions apply. Passengers can
also continue to use AirTran Airways' EasyFit storage bins on every
flight.
Alaska Airlines
Beginning May 21st, 2008,
Alaska and Horizon Airlines will
begin charging $25 for a second checked bag. First class and
top-tier Mileage Plan members and customers on flights within the
state of Alaska will be exempt from the new
fee.
American Airlines
Customers who purchase domestic economy class tickets on or
after May 12, 2008, may check one bag for free and check a second
bag for $25 each way. Our carry-on policy of one personal item (such
as a purse or laptop bag) plus one bag remains in place. This
applies to all American Airlines, American Eagle and
AmericanConnection flights within the United States the U.S. Virgin
Islands, Puerto Rico and Canada.
A
passengers 3rd, 4th and 5th checked bags will incur an additional
$100 fee per piece. For 6 checked bags and above, the fee is raised
to $200 per piece.
All fees noted are costs for one way
travel. Round-trip fees would be double those stated above.
Certain exceptions to the baggage fees apply, outlined
below:
- When traveling with a child, checked
car seats and strollers will continue to be free.
- A wheelchair may be checked and will
not be part of your checked bag allowance (or assessed a fee) if
it is strictly for mobility purposes or is required to make a
living.
- For those American Airline passengers
with AAdvantage Executive Platinum®, AAdvantage Platinum®, or
AAdvantage Gold® member status, at the time of the flight, the
baggage fee for 2nd bags will be waived.
Upon
arriving at the airport for your flight, if the traveler obtains an
upgrade from Economy to Business or First Class, the service fee
will be charged, as it is based on your status and class of ticketed
cabin at time of check in.
Continental Airlines
Continental's
new checked bag policy applies to tickets purchased on or after
April 5th, 2008, for travel beginning on May 5, 2008, and is
applicable to Continental's domestic flights including the
U.S., Canada, Puerto Rica and
U.S. Virgin Islands.
Customers who purchase nonrefundable
domestic economy tickets may check one bag for free and a second bag
for a $25 service fee each way. Car seats, strollers, wheelchairs
and sporting equipment items with service fees (i.e. surfboard) are
exempt from the $25 second bag fee.
The following customers
are exempt from this policy change and will continue to be able to
check a 2nd bag, with no additional charges:
- Coach customers on Y fare
- OnePass Elite customers regardless of
fare
- SkyTeam Elite customers regardless of
fare
- Elite for a Day (EFAD) customers
- Active Military personnel traveling on
orders
- First Class or BusinessFirst® customers
regardless of elite level or fare
Delta Air
Lines
Due to rising fuel costs and business
decisions reflecting today’s competitive landscape, Delta will begin
charging $25 for a second checked bag for passengers traveling on or
after May 1st. This fee applies to all domestic Delta flights.
Those travelers who are members of Delta's frequent-flier
program who log at least 25,000 qualifying miles of travel per year,
as well as first and business class passengers, will still be
allowed to check up to three bags at no additional charge on Delta
and Delta Connection-operated flights only.
Effective April
1st, fees on oversized bags (63 to 80 total linear inches) will go
from $100 each way, to $150 each way, for domestic flights.
Extended terms of this policy is not currently available on
the Delta site. As more details about this change becomes available,
we will post it here.
JetBlue Airlines
Effective
immediately, customers who are traveling on or after June 1, 2008,
will be charged a $20 fee for each traveler's second checked bag.
This policy applies to all JetBlue travelers, for all
markets.
US Airways
Beginning May 5, 2008, US Airways will begin assessing a $25
fee for a passenger’s second checked bag each way. Travelers who
purchased tickets on or before February 26, 2008 are exempt from
this policy change.
Customers may check one bag for free and
a second bag for a $25 service fee each way. Oversized bags or those
weighing more than 50 lbs. now start at $50 per bag each way and
increase depending on weight and the number of bags. The policy
applies to all flights within the U.S., to and from Canada, Latin America, and the
Caribbean.
The checked bag
fee does not apply to:
- All Dividend Miles Preferred members
(Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Chairman’s Preferred)
- Passengers traveling to and from
Europe, or to and from Asia
- Confirmed First Class and Envoy
passengers at time of check-in
- Star Alliance Silver and Gold status
members
- Active military personnel in uniform
with ID and government-issued travel orders
- Unaccompanied minors
- Passengers checking personal assistive
devices
United Airlines
United’s new checked
bag policy applies to tickets purchased on, or after, April 4, 2008,
for travel on, or after, May 5, 2008.
Customers who purchase
both refundable and nonrefundable domestic economy tickets may check
one bag for free and a second bag for a $25 service fee each way.
Oversized bags or those weighing more than 50 lbs. now cost $100 per
bag each way. Items that require special handling also have new
prices.
For customers who have at least Premier status in
Mileage Plus or Silver status with Star Alliance, there are no
changes to the number of bags they can check for free.
This
new checked bag policy also applies to travel beginning within the
U.S. and to/from
Canada, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and St. Thomas.
For international flights (except Canada), checking a second
bag will continue to be free and the cost to check more bags or bags
that are overweight or need special handling varies by destination.
Northwest Airlines
Northwest
Airlines' new checked bag policy applies to tickets purchased on or
after March 29, 2008, for travel on/after May 5, 2008.
Customers who purchase nonrefundable domestic economy
tickets may check one bag for free and a second bag for a $25
service fee each way. For bags number three and above, the fee
increases to $100 per bag.
Northwest Airlines's Silver, Gold
and Platinum WorldPerks® Elite customers, SkyTeam Elite customers
and passengers booked in full fare classes (Y or B) may still check
two bags free of charge. Customers booked in First Class can
continue to check up to three bags free of charge, within existing
size requirements.
This new checked bag policy also applies
to travel beginning within the U.S. and to/from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.
For international flights
(except Canada), checking a second bag will continue to be free and
the cost to check more bags or bags that are overweight or need
special handling varies by destination.
** US Airways increases Change
Fee **
Due to the rising cost of fuel, US Airways is
increasing the change fee on non-refundable fares by $50 per ticket.
This increase is effective for all tickets issued on or after
Tuesday, April 29, 2008.
The new change fee will be $150 for
US Airways flights between the United
States (including Alaska and Hawaii), Canada, Mexico, Caribbean and Latin America. The fee will be $250 for
transatlantic/transpacific flights originating from the
United States,
Canada,
Mexico, Caribbean
or Latin America unless otherwise
specified in the fare rule. The change fee for
transatlantic/transpacific flights originating from any other
location will remain unchanged.
Tickets issued prior to
April 29, 2008 are not affected by the increase and are subject to
the change fee at the time of ticketing.
Thank you for your continued support of US Airways.
** Delta and Northwest
Airlines set to Combine
Carriers **
The two
carriers have announced an all-stock transaction developing a
new airline under the name of
Delta.
Some
of the benefits of the joining include:
Customers will be
able to fly to more destinations, have more schedule
options and more opportunities to earn and redeem
frequent flyer
miles in what will become the world's largest frequent flyer
program.
* The merged airline will maintain all hubs
at Atlanta, Cincinnati,
Detroit,
Memphis, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New
York-JFK, Salt Lake
City, Amsterdam and
Tokyo-Narita -- each of which will benefit from
improved global connectivity.
* Delta customers will benefit from Northwest's
extensive service to
Asian markets and Northwest's customers will have access to
Delta's
strengths across the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe, the
Middle
East and Africa.
* Both airlines' customers will benefit from a
strengthened SkyTeam
alliance that more closely aligns the combined airline with
its
respective trans-Atlantic partners Air France and KLM.
** American Airline
Cancellations Still Occuring 4-09-08 **
Please be advised that American
Airlines is still cancelling flights for today (Wednesday April
09,2008) to conduct inspections of its MD-80 fleet to ensure
complete compliance with the FAA's directive related to the
bundling of wires in the aircraft wheel wells.
These
inspections are related to detailed, technical compliance issues and
not to safety-of-flight issues. It is not known how many
flights will be cancelled but American will re-accomodate customers
on other American Flights or on flights operated by airlines in the
same market. Customers may be automatically notified of flight
changes, but they should also check AA.com or with their
travel agents for flight
status. .
** New Fees From Delta Airlines
**
Please be advised that effective today,
April 1, 2008, Delta will implement a $3 curb administrative fee,
and increase other fees and charges. These changes, which are
effective immediately, are due to record fuel costs and business
decisions reflecting today’s economic
landscape.
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Delta’s
Administrative Fee for Curbside Check-in
|
|
Applies to
|
Current Charges
|
Effective
April 1 & April
15 |
|
Check-in at Domestic
Locations Only
(Excluding All Medallion
Members, First & BE passengers)
Online check-in passengers
are exempt from this fee |
No charge
|
$3 fee per curb-checked
item
Effective April
1: ATL, BOS, CVG,
FLL, JFK, LAX, LGA, MCO, PBI, SLC & TPA.
Effective April
15 : All other
domestic Delta mainline locations with curbside check-in.
|
|
Delta’s
Unaccompanied Minor Fee |
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Applies to
|
Current Fee (each
way) |
Effective April 1
(each way)
|
|
Domestic/Intl.
Connecting/Nonstop
|
$50 Nonstop
$100 Connecting
|
$100 Flat Rate
|
|
Delta’s Oversize
Baggage Fee |
|
Applies to
|
Current Fee (each
way) |
Effective April 1
(each way)
|
|
Domestic/Intl.
Oversize bags
63–80 total linear inches
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$100
|
*$150
*Brazil
exception: Delta’s
oversize baggage charge and excess weight charges will remain
the same pending tariff change approval.
|
|
Delta’s Fee for
Pets in Cabin |
|
Applies to
|
Current Fee
(each way)
|
Effective April 1
(each way)
|
|
All passengers
Domestic/Intl.
|
$75
|
$100
|
|
Delta’s Fee for
Pets as Checked Baggage |
|
Applies to
|
Current Fee
(each way)
|
Effective April 1
(each way)
|
|
All passengers
Domestic/Intl.
|
$150
|
$200
|
|
Delta’s Fee for
Plastic Bags (for gate-checked strollers/car seats)
|
|
Applies to
|
Current Fee
|
Effective
April 1
|
|
All passengers
Domestic/Intl. |
$3
|
$5
|
|
Delta’s Direct
Ticketing Charge (DTC) |
|
Applies to
|
Current Charges
|
Effective
April 1
|
|
All passengers traveling
Dom./Intl. with tickets issued in the U.S., Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands
|
$20
|
$25
|
** New Airline Fare for Infants
**
(This applies to Infants
without a seat traveling between the US and Mexico and the
Caribbean.)
On March 18th Continental started
charging 10% of theapplicable fare (including fuel surcharge) for infants
without a seat travelingbetween the US
and Mexico
and the Caribbean
. This will apply to any infant bookings for travel on Continental, on or after March 18,
2008 for travel on Continental Micronesia , Continental
Express, and Continental Connection.This fare will be automatically applied when pricing the
infant with the adult.
**Change to After-Hours Travel Reservation
Service **
On March 10,
2008 CTP's contracted after-hours reservation center will implement
new procedures for e-ticketing and pending ticket exchanges. E-
ticketing is defined as ticketing a new reservation. A pending
ticket exchange occurs when a client calls the after-hours service,
requests a change to an existing reservation, and the change results
in an increase in airfare.
The after- hours service will
implement the following fees as of March 10, 2007:
Each call
(per reservation) made to the service: $16.00
Each ticket
exchange: $25.00 additional to the $16.00 for the call
Each
Domestic ticket issued (original ticketing): $12.00 additional to
the $16.00 for the call
It is important to note (and
communicate with your travelers) that the after-hours service should
be used only for emergencies and/or for reservations requests that
must be handled when CTP offices are
closed.
** Notice
from CTP**
A glitch in the automated
email reminder system (for reserved non-ticketed
passengers) caused several unneccesary emails to go out to
individuals who had already purchased or taken their trips.If you
received one of these emails and had questions or were
confused, please note the glitch has been fixed. Please contact
CTP or your travel office if further assistance or clarification is
needed.
** Important
Notice**
Regarding
Airline Travel
Recent changes within the travel industry will require travelers and
travel arrangers to be diligent in submitting and approving travel
requistions within 24 hours of booking your reservation(s). Airlines
will no longer allow non-refundable tickets to be held past 24
hours( or a specific ticketing deadline) from the date and time of
booking your reservation and are now charging penalties which can
range from $50.00 to $150.00 per connection depending on the
carrier.
Some of the airlines are also extending this policy
to their non- restricted fares such as Southwest. Southwest
Airlines will no longer allow any reservation to be held past 24
hours( or a specific ticketing deadline) regardless of the fare
rules.
In order to avoid any penalties it is important
travelers and travel arrangers understand effective immediately that
any reservations not processed within the ticketing time limit of
the fare will auto cancel. This includes any car or hotel booked in
the pending reservation.
Please note: Fares and availabilty
are subject to change until the ticket has been purchased. Car and
hotel availability is not guaranteed if reservation
cancels.
** New Travel News for
2008**
New
restrictions for carrying loose lithium batteries in checked and
carry-on luggage went into effect January 1, 2008. The new
rules have been implemented to help reduce the risk of battery
fires. Under the new rules:
* Passengers will
no longer be able to pack loose lithium batteries in checked
luggage
* Passengers can
take two loose batteries in carry-on baggage but only if each
battery is in a separate resealable plastic bag or in its original
packaging
*
Common electronics (cameras, cell phones, laptop computers)
are still allowed in both carry-on and checked luggage with their
lithium batteries inside
them.
Complete information can
be found on the Transportation Security Administration web site
(http://www.tsa.gov/) under "In
The News."
** Revised
Immigration Law - Japan Travel**
Authorities in Japan have begun enforcing
a new immigration law that requires foreigners older than 16 to be
photographed and fingerprinted when they enter the country at
airports and seaports. Fingerprints and other biometric data are to
be stored and checked against databases of past deportees and
suspects wanted by Japanese police or Interpol. Japan is the second
country after the United States, to institute such a system of
collecting biometric information from visitors.
** Beneficial News - Update
(11/06/07)**
CTP has installed a new Email Alert system for UT
travelers. This e-mail will alert potential travelers when
reservations are due to expire in 24 hrs. and authorization for
ticketing has not been received. This reminder will be sent at
9 a.m. and 3 p.m. the next day to all addresses on the
reservation.
The Email will look as
follows:
" Valued Client- this is a
reminder that this reservation is due to expire and we have not yet
received your authorization to ticket. Please advise CTP if
you will or will not be utilizing this reservation.
Please
contact us at 1-866-366-1142 and reference locator
KYUIGG
Thank
you"
**Continental Airlines Extends
Discount**
Continental has extended
our 2% Corporate Discount program thru Dec. 31, 2009.
This program provides an immediate 2% savings off
all fares (excluding Texas state contract matched fares) when a
reservation is confirmed for business travel and the ticket is
purchased through one of the UT system contract travel
agencies.
** Passport Requirement - Update
(9/5/07)**
Airline passengers will
once again need valid passports in order to travel between
the U.S. and Bermuda, the
Caribbean, Canada
and Mexico starting October
1, according to the Department of Homeland
Security.
On September 30, a temporary rule is set to expire that permitted
travelers who had applied for but did not yet receive
U.S. passports to
proceed with trips to countries within the Western Hemisphere, so long as they had a
government-issued photo ID and proof that their passport
applications were pending. Under the Western Hemisphere
Travel Imitative, a law enacted last January, all airline passengers
are required to present a valid passport in order to enter and
depart from the U.S.
If
going on a cruise or traveling by vehicle across the land border to
Canada or
Mexico.
U.S. citizens do not need
a passport, but need to be able to show a government-issued
identification. U.S. citizens arriving by land and
sea must be able to prove that they are U.S.
citizens. This rule may change as early as January 2008, when
the Departments of Homeland Security and State begin to implement
the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative
(WHTI)
at land and sea ports of
entry.
_____________________________
International
SOS Program
Worldwide
emergency assistance and evacuation available to all UTHSCSA
employee's and students traveling on University business or
programs. Please see our International SOS
Program information page
to enroll and for more information on
this valuable service.
___________________________________________
Authorities Warn of Possible Terrorist
Operations at Airports
Media
reports released on 25 July indicate that the Transportation
Security Administration (TSA) issued a bulletin to airport security
officials on 20 July, advising them of the possibility of terrorists
attempting to take explosive components onto airplanes. The warning
was issued following the seizure of suspicious items on at least
four separate occasions at the San
Diego, Houston, Milwaukee and Baltimore airports over the past
year. It is suspected that terrorists are testing the security
systems at US airports before they launch attacks.
Travelers may experience longer lines and
longer wait times.
___________________________________________GetThere
Online Travel Booking Tool is now
ready!
Please click on
GetThere Online Booking Tool link for more
information.
___________________________________________
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