Interested in following Airport Radar? Then Check Out this Utility!

While browsing on the New Orleans Int'l Airport website this morning, I found a very interesting utility called "Airport Monitor 2.0." Airport Monitor 2.0 is a real-time Airport Radar utility which can be accessed from any computer with an Internet connection. It also has a retrospect mode, so radar can be viewed from previous dates and times. It is available for a number of airports including, LaGuardia, JFK, Newark, New Orleans, LAX, and San Diego. I will include a list of links below.

New Orleans Airport (MSY) Airport Monitor 2.0:

http://www4.passur.com/msy.html

JFK Airport:

http://www4.passur.com/jfk.html

LaGuardia Airport:

http://www4.passur.com/lga.html

Boston-Logan:

http://www4.passur.com/bos.html

LAX:

http://www4.passur.com/lax.html

Full List of Airports:

http://www.passur.com/airportmonitor-locations.htm

Yemenia Air Jet Crashes, Child is Found Alive

A Yemenia Air Airbus A310-300 carrying over 150 passengers crashed off the Eastern Coast of Africa while trying to land, according to the Sydney Morning Hearald. The jet departed Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris and was bound for Moroni, Comoros Islands, with a stopover in Sana'a Yemen. The jet encountered difficulty landing and crashed into the swells of the Indian Ocean, according to eyewitnesses at Moroni Airport. The scene of the crash is being investigated by French military jets and seacraft, which were already stationed at other islands the Indian Ocean. Although the situation is egregious in the highest way, a small miracle has emerged. French sailors found a five-year-old boy floating among the wreckage of the A310. According to Ben Imani, a doctor at a Moroni Hospital, the boy is being treated and closely monitored. No other survivors have been found at the site of the crash.

This is the second Airbus aircraft to crash over a major body of water in less than a month. The last flight, an Air France Airbus A330-200 bound from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Brazil. The cause of the AF A330-300 crash was determined to be failure of vital computer systems. The cause of the Yemenia A310 crash is unknown, as of now.

AeroMexico Comes to New Olreans Int'l, Promises More Routes

AeroMexico, a Skyteam alliance airline based out of Mexico City (MEX), announced that it will once again establish a daily nonstop service from Mexico City Int'l to New Orleans Armstrong Int'l (MSY), after arduous negotiations with the city of New Orleans. AeroMexico will use Embraer E-145's for the route, with possiblity for equipment upgrades if the route shows promise. This is vital to the economic growth of New Orleans, and is a sure sign of recovery of international commerce in New Orleans and its surrounding areas. AeroMexico will also begin to offer daily nonstop service from New Orleans to Honduras, beginning July 7. According to WDSU, a New Orleans news station, AeroMexico will continue to offer the inaugural flight, despite civil unrest in the country. AeroMexico also promises to start other services to cities in Latin America if these two new routes fare well.

AeroMexico coming to New Orleans Int'l?

On November 26, 2008, AeroMexico filed an application with the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to begin a daily nonstop service from Mexico City, Mexico to New Orleans, Louisiana.  The application was approved by the DOT, and AeroMexico is currently engaging in talks with New Orleans Airport personnel.  Greater New Orleans Inc. President Michael Hecht who, with his economic development group, has been working fervently with AeroMexico stated, "AeroMexico sees New Orleans as a very attractive airport with a central location between Houston and Atlanta...  Our plan is to return New Orleans to the gateway to the Americas."  Airport officials stated that if AeroMexico wished to begin flights into New Orleans immediately, facilities such as INS (Immigration) Checkpoints and ticket counters are prepared and ready for use.

Video: Delta Airlines First Class Cabin - Boeing 757

This is a short video I took of the first class cabin while awaiting departure from New Orleans to Atlanta.  The airplane is a Delta Airlines Boeing 757-200 Transcontinental edition with PTV's (Personal TV's, which is Delta's name for IFE) and the flight flew from New Orleans Louis Armstrong International to Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International.  It also sported the Susan G. Komen livary.  I was lucky to get the video before everyone was able to board.  It was a full flight, but still a good one.  Pre-departure drinks were served followed by more drinks and snacks from the Snack Basket after departure.

Want Airline and Airport Information? Get it from SKYTRAX!

Is there something you would like to know about an airline or an airport?  Maybe how good the service is or how comfortable the seat is?  Well, you can find mostly all of the informatoin you need at SKYTRAX.  The website has everything from airline and seat reviews to airport and lounge reviews, all written by the consumers themselves.  SKYTRAX also has an official Airline Star Ranking Guide, which rankes airlines on a scale of one to five stars.  Overall, it is a very informative site.

Here's the URL: http://www.airlinequality.com

New Orleans Int'l Airport Reaching Pre-Katrina Passenger Levels

In a recent article published by S. C. Hunter, Director of Aviation at the New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport, it was stated that air traffic levels are creeping slowly but surely back to Pre-Katrina levels.  At the moment, air operations are at approximately 80 percent of the Pre-Katrina levels.  This number, however, is expected to rise through the end of this year and in 2009.  One of the greatest reasons for the return of air traffic is conventions.  Conventions are vital to the survival of New Orleans and, respectively, the Armstrong International airport.  The Starbucks Leadership Conference, scheduled for this fall, will bring an estimated 12,000 people to the Crescent City.  The airlines that serve the Armstrong International Airport have been very willing to add extra seats on their routes to and from the city for conventions.  Officials are "optimistic about the growth and rebound of the convention/leisure traveler in our market," but are "curiously optimistic about air service return given the current volatile nature of the aviation industry."