About this episode
SHOW NOTES I. News of the week Emirates massive engine order Rolls-Royce secures its largest engine order with £6.1bn Emirates deal | Business | The Guardian Gulf airlines' success prompts hostility from US and European carriers | Business | The Guardian Emirates Chasing After US Passengers With A 2 For 1 Special Cyprus plans for a new flag carrier New airline seeks to use Cyprus as a base (updated) | Cyprus Mail Iconic JFK Terminal 5 building revived JetBlue May Enter the Airport Hotel Business - Condé Nast Traveler Mohegan Sun and Incheon Airport To Collaborate on Unique Gaming Resort – Skift United expels passenger for tweet United bans researcher from flight after 'joke tweet' - BBC News SkyJet and media sensationalism A Skywest Regional Jet Suffers Loss Of Cabin Pressure At 38,000 Feet Manston's future Ukip manifesto pledge to re-open Manston New UK Air Passenger Duty Taxe rate Tax changes on 1 April: Cheaper long-haul flights - BBC News Rates and allowances: Excise Duty - Air Passenger Duty - GOV.UK Belfast International Airport calls for air passenger duty rethink - BBC News II. Innovation news of the week ANA Star Wars plans Star Wars Boeing 787 R2-D2 Dreamliner Launched by Japan ANA — Layovers Device charging safety Experts flag concerns about charging devices on takeoff and landing - Runway GirlRunway Girl Lufthansa introduces Wifi on short haul flights Lufthansa signals intent to adopt terrestrial Wi-Fi for short-haul - Runway GirlRunway Girl A truly global Wifi Get Ready for Truly Global High-Speed In-Flight Wi-Fi | Flight Chic Gogo's study on in-flight Wifi expectations Global Passengers More Willing to Pay for In-Flight Wi-Fi Than U.S. Flyers – Skift The success of in-flight live sports Next-gen IFC driving onboard re-accommodation and live sport Docking iPad seat New PaxEx partnership could offer powerful proposition to airlines - Runway GirlRunway Girl Why it's high time to start future-proofing aircraft interiors - Runway GirlRunway Girl Could planes be hacked through wifi? FAA Needs a More Comprehensive Approach to Address Cybersecurity [PDF] Lufthansa frequent flyer system compromised Lufthansa Frequent Flyer Accounts Hacked Airport sleeping pods At Helsinki Airport, a New Snooze Option - NYTimes.com Business Lounge etiquette revised by Qantas Going for a thong: Why Qantas are cracking down on scruffy frequent flyers - News & Advice - Travel - The Independent III. App of the week Kayak Flights Price Alerts (account needed) Kayak.com IV. Topic of the week The future of virtual reality, smartwatches and gadgets in flight. With Dean Johnson, SVP of Creative Innovation at Brandwidth Group. Mentioned during the interview I'm the creepy guy wearing a VR headset on your plane (and it's great) | Polygon Virtual reality content on offer to airline passengers - BBC News Airbus Invents Immersive Seat Helmet To Make You Forget You're Flying — Layovers Headphones Not Cutting It? Noise-Canceling Airplane Seats Are Coming Sony partners with Virgin Atlantic for smartwatch initiative Airlines Use Digital Technology to Get Even More Personal - NYTimes.com — Layovers JAL Tests Smartwatch Broadcasts At Tokyo Haneda — Layovers V. Question of the week 1st Class, Premier Class, Upper Class. Who truly has the top tier "pointy end product"? What product/services are necessary to be widely considered a 1st class product?by Will Hunter from Berkeley, California. VI. Airport of the week LAX — For video, subscribe on Spotify or YouTube (or YouTube Music) Review, and rate us, on