World’s largest airport terminal to be inaugurated in Beijing

Beijing's new international airport terminal, which will open for trial operations on February 29, will be the largest and most advanced airport building in the world. The $3.5 billion project was designed by UK architects Foster & Partners and was completed in just four years.

Terminal 3 has a dragon-like form with a soaring aerodynamic roof and evokes traditional Chinese colors and symbols. It features a main passenger terminal, two satellite concourses, and five floors above ground and two underground. The total area of the complex is 1.3 million sq. meters, including the terminal building and the transportation centre.

T3 will be fully operational on March 26 and will be the gateway to the city as it welcomes athletes from around the world to the twenty-ninth Olympiad in 2008.

Top 10 air passenger trends and issues for 2008

Airline mergers and more low-fare regional jets, predicts the Air Travelers Association in its assessment of the top ten airline passenger trends and issues for the new year. Here’s the list:

1. The battle with the government over delayed flights versus high fares will continue.

2. The airline system will continue to operate at or near capacity.

3. The start of the next generation air traffic control system (NextGen) will continue to be delayed.

4. There will be more reports of near collisions in the air and on the ground.

5. The battle over the “Passengers’ bill of rights” versus passengers’ rights to get to their destination will continue.

6. Watch for domestic airlines to merge or accept foreign carrier investments.

7. Expect more low fare regional jets in the near future.

8. There will be continued service problems with airlines with labor disputes.

9. The competition between the super-jumbo Airbus A380 versus super-nonstop Boeing 787 will begin in 2009.

10. The battle between residents on the ground over noise and airline passengers in the air will continue.

The Air Travelers Association, founded in 1997, advocates for airline passengers on airline safety, security, savings, and service.

Using your cell phone as airline boarding pass?

A three-month experimental program at Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport has begun to test a technology using encrypted bar codes on mobile device screens. Instead of a paper boarding pass, Continental Airlines and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will let passengers leaving Houston to show a code the airline has sent to their cell phone or PDA.

The two-dimensional bar stores the passenger's name and flight information and will be screened at the airport by the TSA administration with a handheld scanner. The new check-in procedure could eliminate the need for a paper document (besides photo ID) and prevent from people trying to use fraudulent paper boarding passes. Initially, the pilot program will be used solely on Continental flights at Houston Intercontinental. However, if successful, the paperless technology will expand nationwide.

Continental to launch Heathrow flights

Continental Airlines is to make Heathrow debut by launching twice-daily nonstop service from both its Newark and Houston hubs on March 29. The world's fifth largest airline revealed plans to begin services to London’s Heathrow Airport under the new US-European open skies rules. The airline will operate at Terminal 4, which will be the future base for all SkyTeam group carriers operating at the airport. Continental’s Heathrow flights will be flown on the 283-seat Boeing 777-200 and the 174-seat Boeing 767-200ER. The airline said it will continue to offer its existing flights from Newark, Houston and Cleveland to London/Gatwick.

Continental had been prevented from operating from Heathrow by the restrictive US-UK bilateral air services agreement. The Houston-based airline has served Gatwick since 1985.

Free WiFi access at New Orleans International

Louis Armstrong International Airport on Tuesday began offering free WiFi access in its terminal lobbies, gates and dining areas. The airport has invested $400,000 in the new service, covering about 85 percent of the terminal’s main level. So far, the only dead spots are at the airline ticket counters and the baggage claim area.

New Orleans airport is now among many other US airports in offering WiFi access. Many small airports offer the service for free, while most hubs, which are generally larger airports with a significant passenger traffic, charge a fee for wireless service. For example, both Houston Hobby and George Bush International Airport in Houston charge $7.95 per day for WiFi access through Boingo. The Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta charges $7.95 to $10.95 for 24 hours depending on the service provider. Dallas Forth Worth International Airport offers WiFi for $6.95 an hour or $9.95 a day.

Louis Armstrong International is considering charging for the service in the future, but first will measure user demand for the free service to determine if a paid version would generate enough revenue to be worthwhile.

Skybus to begin service from new base at Piedmont Triad

Skybus will launch its newly-announced base at Piedmont Triad International Airport (PTI) in January and February with nonstop flights to seven new destinations and additional service to Columbus. The ultra low-cost airline will connect the Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Point area in North Carolina with Florida, Gulf Coast, East Coast and West Coast markets. PTI will become Skybus’ second hub after its headquarters city – Columbus, Ohio.

Currently, the low-fare carrier provides service to 12 destinations throughout the United States with five full-size Airbus A319 jets. Prices start at $10 one way on every flight, excluding taxes and fees.

3-D body scanner tested at Phoenix Sky Harbor

The first airport 3-D body screening machine was tested at Phoenix Sky Harbor International yesterday. The new tool in U.S. airports’ security arsenal is taking a 3-D image of passengers using radio waves to check for explosives, metal, plastic and liquids - anything hidden on the body. The machines are being used by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) as an alternative to physically patting down some passengers at the security checkpoints. The American Civil Liberties Union has objected to the technology, concerned that the machines are capable of showing passengers' bodily parts. TSA says the images look more like an x-ray and blurred photo negative keeping passengers’ privacy.

The new airport security equipment will also be tested at New York's Kennedy and Los Angeles International airports, officials confirmed.

New low-cost terminal approved at Austin Airport

City of Austin, Texas has approved the construction of a low-cost terminal at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The new terminal will serve no-frills carriers including a new Mexican airline Viva Aerobus, which has announced to fly between Austin and five Mexican destinations. Flights will be operated by Boeing 737-300 aircraft with fares starting as low as $5 one-way. The airline, which is part-owned by Ryanair, is aiming to begin operations from Austin by Thanksgiving.