The Justice
Department belatedly objected to a plan by United
Airlines parent UAL Corp. and Continental Airlines
Inc. to cooperate on routes world-wide within the
Star Alliance of air carriers, and recommended
instead a more-limited trans-Atlantic deal. The
Transportation Department gave UAL and Continental
preliminary approval for the arrangement nearly
three months ago. The DOT tentatively agreed to let
Continental join the Star group and granted
Continental and nine of Star's 21 current members
provisional antitrust immunity to act as a single
carrier on some international routes. The Justice
Department, which said approval of the airlines'
request for immunity would likely result in higher
fares and diminished competition, technically has no
authority over international aviation agreements,
but it typically weighs in on such DOT rulings. In
this case, however, it waited nearly two months
after the comment period closed before registering
its opinion with the DOT on Friday.
WSJ
story
TSA Mission Creep? The
Transportation Security Administration has moved
beyond just checking for weapons and explosives.
It’s now training airport screeners to spot anything
suspicious, and then honoring them when searches
lead to arrests for crimes like drug possession and
credit-card fraud. But two court cases in the past
month question whether TSA searches—which the agency
says have broadened to allow screeners to use more
judgment—have been going too far.
WSJ story

Celebrate summer with a getaway to Canada and two
roundtrip tickets for the price of one. For a
limited time, receive a
free* companion ticket
when you purchase a United Economy roundtrip between
Chicago , Denver or
Washington Dulles and Canada . Purchase by
July 5, 2009, then travel between
July 9 and
September 30, 2009. To learn more about this
offer, including sample fares for the paying
passenger, contact your EWA Travel Counselor. In
every Canadian city you're only steps from good
food, great views, and a breath of nature's fresh
air. For more information about Canada , visit the
Canadian Tourism Commission.
Top 10 airports in 2009
Source: SkyTrax
The Skytrax survey evaluates airports
using 39 different criteria, including check-in
facilities, ease of transit through airport,
Internet access and lost/delayed luggage.
1.
Incheon International Airport (Seoul)
2. Hong Kong International Airport
3. Singapore Changi International Airport
4. Zurich Airport
5. Munich Airport
6. Kansai International Airport (Osaka)
7. Kuala Lumpur International Airport
8. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol
9. Central Japan International Airport (Centrair)
(Nagoya)
10. Auckland Airport