Overhead bins are now banned for all flights in Italy — will other countries follow?


Save On Airport Parking

Alitalia, Italy’s flag carrier, has the policy in detail on their website:

“To protect the health of passengers, the use of overhead bins for the storage of hand baggage will no longer be allowed on all flights operated in Italy. Passengers will only be permitted to bring on board small baggage, that can be placed under their seat such as, for example, handbags, backpacks, laptop cases not exceeding 36x45x20 cm. We invite passengers to deliver their baggage to the airport at the Check-in / Drop-off counter, to be placed in the hold, free of charge.” 

Other European airlines have also updated their policies in recent days. British Airways has a section of their website dedicated to flights to and from Italy with the requirements:

“You will need to complete a Health Declaration form at check-in, and check-in any large hand luggage. Overhead lockers will not be used on your flight, so if your hand luggage will not fit under the seat in front of you, it will need to be checked in. There will be no additional charge for this, as long as it does not exceed the standard hand baggage allowance.”

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‘Travel will never, ever go back to the way it was,’ Airbnb CEO says


Mike Murphy

That’s the grim view of Airbnb Inc. co-founder and Chief Executive Brian Chesky, in an interview published Sunday by Axios.

“I will go on the record to say that travel will never, ever go back to the way it was pre-COVID. It just won’t,” Chesky told Axios. “There are sometimes months when decades of transformation happen.”

Chesky predicted that vacationers will stay closer to home in the future, largely limiting their travel to places within driving distance, with national parks becoming even more popular destinations.

“I think you’re going to start to see travel becoming more intimate, more local, to smaller communities,” he said, citing Airbnb data that shows travel within countries is recovering to normal levels. But its international business is still being hit hard. “People are not getting on airplanes, they’re not crossing borders, they’re not meaningfully traveling to cities, they’re not traveling for business.”

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Brian Chesky, chief executive and co-founder of Airbnb Inc., speaks in New York in 2017. 
 BLOOMBERG NEWS

I took a plane trip this week. It was surprisingly pleasant.


Opinion by Helaine Olen ColumnistJune 26, 2020 at 5:37 p.m. CDT

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. — When I arrived at JFK Airport in New York earlier this week, the terminal was all but empty — passengers nonexistent, the vast majority of stores closed. I knew to expect it, but it was still eerie. It was a weekday afternoon in June, and when I looked up at the departure board, I saw a total of eight flights listed. My flight, to LAX, was the third-to-last of the day.

Nonetheless, there was a bit of a mob at one of the few food-and-snack shops open. There was only one cashier, and all of the customers were ignoring the recommended social distancing helpfully highlighted on the floor. They grouped together, a pre-covid queue for a post-covid world. The same probably would have been true at the security check-in, but there were so few people at the airport that the TSA PreCheck line was shut down. It could be said we were all expedited.

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Buy now, fly later? What travel experts say about today’s low prices for future flights


By Katie Jackson | Fox News

There’s never been a worse time to fly. With coronavirus cases surging in some states and more international borders closed than open, the friendly skies aren’t so friendly. But there is a silver lining. Many fares have never been better. Considering airlines are waiving sky-high change fees and dropping prices to fill empty seats, buying that $275 roundtrip ticket from San Francisco to Costa Rica in September is awfully tempting, even in the midst of a global pandemic.

“Almost all airlines are offering flexible booking policies right now, so we’re strongly encouraging people to book refundable travel because there are some great deals to be had,” says Raj Mahal, founder of the flight deals site PlanMoreTrips. A couple of months ago when coronavirus nearly shut down the airline industry and fares were in freefall, Mahal found a record-low $293 roundtrip ticket on United to London. It departs from San Francisco in December. For the price of one ticket during normal times, he scored four tickets for his family.

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Fortunately, most airlines have responded to the unpredictable pandemic by waiving change fees (that often cost more than the fare).
Fortunately, most airlines have responded to the unpredictable pandemic by waiving change fees (that often cost more than the fare). (iStock)
You don’t want to book a last-minute ticket abroad if you can avoid it.
You don’t want to book a last-minute ticket abroad if you can avoid it. (Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

‘It was so crazy’: Man grabs shark with bare hands on Delaware beach in viral video


Daniella Medina, Salisbury Daily Times

June 24, 2020, 11:45 AM CDT

SALISBURY, Md. — A swimmer was caught on camera handling a shark off Cape Henlopen State Park Beach in Delaware last weekend.

The video, shared on Facebook by Delaware native Rachael Foster, depicts a man grabbing onto the shark, trying to unhook the shark after it had been caught. The video yielded a combined 200,000 views on Facebook and TikTok.

“Everyone started yelling, ‘Shark, shark, get out of the water!’” Foster said. “It was so crazy, like a movie. Like Jaws.”

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Man picks up shark at Delaware beach in viral video, opens its jaws
‘It was so crazy’: Man grabs shark with bare hands on Delaware beach in viral video

A Man Drove Solo Across America in 25 Hours 55 Minutes in a Rental Mustang


Luxury Car Rental

From Road & Track

You’ll be forgiven for stifling a yawn as we delve into the details of yet another Cannonball record. And although the overall New York City-to-Redondo Beach, California record has allegedly been broken again by some folks who have not yet emerged from the shadowy world of hearsay and conjecture, that’s not the one we’re going to tell you about today. What we’re here to talk about is a record that’s so stupid it’s brilliant, and so crazy it’s just about what we’ve come to expect as the elapsed times on these ill-advised adventures have crept ever closer to the 24-hour mark.

We’re talking about a solo run. One man, one car, a whole lot of gasoline, and an alleged 25-hour, 55-minute elapsed time. That’s an average speed of nearly 108 miles per hour.

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Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

Photo credit: Fred Ashmore
Photo credit: Fred Ashmore

New double-decker style seat design on planes could let all passengers lie flat


Marie Claire Dorking

June 19, 2020, 5:18 AM CDT

Being able to lie completely flat on a plane is the travelling dream, but until now it is reserved for those able to fly business class.

But a new design by a start-up company has created a double-decker style cabin featuring two tiers of seats, which would mean every passenger could have a lie-flat seat.

Zephyr Aerospace initially came up with the plans to give passengers more space, but the concept would also allow travellers more isolation, which could give travellers more confidence in flying following the coronavirus crisis.

The design means standard plane cabins could accommodate two levels of passengers using the same amount space meaning holidaymakers wouldn’t have to sit shoulder-to-shoulder with other passengers.

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The clever design means everyone could lie down. (Zephyr Aerospace)
The clever design means everyone could lie down. (Zephyr Aerospace)



The flat seats. (Zephyr Aerospace)
The flat seats. (Zephyr Aerospace)


An airline will stop flight attendants from wearing face masks after passengers complained they couldn’t see their smiles


dslotnick@businessinsider.com (David Slotnick)

Business Insider

June 18, 2020, 6:13 PM CDT

Dita Alangkara/Associated Press

  • Garuda Indonesia, the nation’s national flag carrier, plans to stop letting flight attendants wear face masks after passengers complained that they couldn’t see flight attendants smiles.
  • According to The Jakarta Post, the airline is looking into other options, such as plastic face shields, to replace the masks.
  • Flight attendants will continue to wear masks in the meantime. Indonesia’s transportation ministry requires cabin crewmembers
  • Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

The Indonesian national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia is planning to drop face masks for flight attendants after passengers complained that they couldn’t see the cabin crewmembers’ smiles.

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