Latest news with #PanAm
Euronews
15 hours ago
- Business
- Euronews
Pan Am plane lands in Lisbon on luxury flight for aviation nostalgics
If you saw a Pan Am aeroplane in the skies over Lisbon this week, you weren't seeing a ghost. A special commemorative Pan Am flight passed over the Portuguese capital on Thursday. The plane, which was flying the Tracing the Transatlantic route, landed yesterday evening at Lisbon's Humberto Delgado Airport, where it will remain until Saturday. This flight attempts to recreate the company's historic routes. It left New York on Tuesday, then passed through Bermuda before arriving in Lisbon. Also on the itinerary are the cities of Marseille in France, London in the United Kingdom and Foynes in Ireland. Its return to New York is scheduled for 28 June. In the Portuguese capital, passengers stayed at the Ritz Hotel and experienced an evening of fado music. This is a dream trip for those nostalgic for the golden days of transatlantic aviation. The 50 or so passengers are travelling in business class, eating chef-cooked meals and drinking at an open bar, just like in the old days. All, of course, served by stewardesses in the company's iconic blue uniform. The price of the tickets also predates the era of low-cost aviation, around €52,000 per person. Even so, those responsible for organising the nostalgia trip say they weren't difficult to sell. Pan American World Airways used to be the largest US airline operating international flights, but went bankrupt in 1991. Then, last year, businessman Craig Carter and other investors bought the brand. For now, they're reviving it by selling merchandise and luxury travel experiences like this one. For this first trip, they used an Icelandair aeroplane, which was suitably adapted, and also the company's crew. Air India is facing disruptions following last week's fatal crash as additional safety inspections on its Dreamliner fleet have led to flight delays, cancellations and growing passenger anxiety. India's aviation safety regulator ordered deeper checks on Boeing 787 aircraft operated by the airline soon after its London-bound flight crashed during take-off in Ahmedabad city on 12 June, killing at least 270 people, including 241 passengers and crew. The precautionary inspections, as well as the closure of airspace in some Middle Eastern countries, have strained Air India operations across domestic and international routes. Since the crash, Air India has cancelled operations for 83 wide-body flights, including 66 Dreamliners, according to data shared by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, India's aviation safety regulator. In a statement late Wednesday, Air India said wide-body aircraft service would remain curtailed by 15 per cent until mid-July because of the unfolding conflict in the Middle East and the additional inspections. The airline said it would inform affected passengers and try to accommodate them with alternate flights. The 'curtailments are a painful measure to take, but are necessary,' the airline said. The airline is performing an even greater number of checks than required, which has had a cascading impact on operations, a company executive familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity as he wasn't authorised to speak to the media. The airline said in its statement that it has decided to also inspect all of its Boeing 777 aeroplanes in its fleet, even though that model wasn't involved in the crash. The cuts in the flight schedule will allow Air India to keep more planes in reserve to deal with any unplanned disruptions. The company on Tuesday announced the cancellation of multiple flights, including one from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick. Another flight from Delhi to Paris was cancelled when a mandatory pre-flight check raised an issue, the airline said in a statement. The issue was not identified. In a statement Tuesday, the aviation directorate said surveillance conducted on Air India's Dreamliner fleet so far has found no 'major safety concerns.' The aircraft and their associated maintenance systems were found to be compliant with existing safety standards, the directorate said, adding that of the 33 planes, 24 have completed the inspections, while four were undergoing long-term maintenance. The rest were expected to finish the safety checks soon. The regulator advised the airline to 'strictly adhere to regulations," and asked it to strengthen internal coordination across engineering, operations and ground handling units and ensure adequate availability of spares to mitigate flight delays. Experts from India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau are probing the crash with assistance from the UK, the US and officials from Boeing. Some aviation experts see the crash as a temporary setback for Air India as it transforms from a financially troubled state-owned carrier to a privately owned company with ambitions for broad expansion. 'If you ask me whether the accident will derail the ambitious growth plans, no way. There can be no looking back,' said Jitender Bhargava, a former Air India executive director. The company has already placed huge orders for new aircraft. Its present challenge is to boost the morale of employees and passengers through confidence-building measures, Bhargava said. 'The faster you make people forget this one-off accident, the better it is,' Bhargava said. Indian conglomerate Tata Sons took over Air India in 2022, returning the debt-saddled national carrier to private ownership after decades of government control. The $2.4 billion (€2 billion) deal was seen as the government's effort to sell off loss-making, state-run businesses. It was also in some ways a homecoming for Air India, which was launched by the Tata family in 1932. Since the takeover, Air India has ordered hundreds of new planes worth over $70 billion (€61 billion), redesigned its branding and livery and absorbed smaller airlines Tata held stakes in. The company has additionally committed millions of dollars to digital overhauls of aircraft and refurbishing the interiors of more than five dozen legacy planes.
New York Post
a day ago
- Business
- New York Post
Pan Am returns to the skies with special 12-day transatlantic journey: ‘Opportunity to relive aGolden Age of Travel'
A trip honoring the legacy of Pan American World Airways is underway after a chartered jet bearing the historic airline's branding took to the skies earlier in the week. The plane left John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on Tuesday, kicking off a 12-day trip that came with a roughly $60,000 price tag for its passengers, CBS New York reported. Advertisement The trip, described as 'a Pan Am journey by private air,' comes as part of a collaboration between Criterion Travel and Bartelings with licensing from Pan American World Airways. The operators want to give passengers the 'opportunity to relive a 'Golden Age of Travel' on a specially curated program' with the Pan Am trip, according to a brochure on Criterion Travel's website. The itinerary for the round-trip journey features stops in locales that were on Pan Am's Southern and Northern transatlantic routes, including Bermuda, Lisbon, Portugal, Marseille, France, London, England and Shannon, Ireland. The brochure for the 'Tracing the Transatlantic' trip touts 'high-end service, stays at top hotels, fascinating destinations, reminiscences of Pan Am's glory days, and iconic Pan Am design, logos, and identity popping up throughout.' Advertisement 3 CBS New York reported that a Pan American World Airways flight took off from John F. Kennedy International Airport on Tuesday in what is the start of a 12-day trip costing about $60,000 per passenger. HUM Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images 3 The trip is part of a collaboration between Criterion Travel and Bartelings, with licensing from Pan American World Airways. AFP via Getty Images 3 Stops along the way include Bermuda, Lisbon, Portugal, Marseille, France, London, England, and Shannon, Ireland. dpa/picture alliance via Getty Images The trip is using a Boeing 757-200 jet with lie-flat business-class seats. Advertisement 'Every detail, from the flight deck, to the cabin, has been designed with care–honoring the golden age of travel while reimagining it for today's world,' Pan Am Brands said in a Facebook post. Flight attendants working on the trip will don uniforms that recreate the ones worn by Pan Am staff when the airline was still operating, CBS New York reported. 'It's such an honor and a privilege to be stepping into this uniform,' one flight attendant named Anna Maria Aevarsdottir told the outlet. Advertisement 'We hope we can embrace the grace that they showed America.' The transatlantic trip was first announced in the summer of last year.
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Bloomberg
Pan American Airways Is Back, But It's Not What It Seems
A small gaggle of former Pan American World Airways flight attendants stood by a window in Terminal 7 at John F. Kennedy International Airport, craning their necks and holding up phones. There were a few audible gasps and a soft cry of 'Oh gosh, there it is' as the plane came into view. Several of the women teared up as the jet finally slid past the window, its fin bearing the unmistakable cobalt-blue meatball of the Pan Am logo. The former flight attendants—and several dozen fellow passengers—were at JFK on Tuesday to board the plane, a chartered Boeing 757 that's being billed as a 'Pan Am journey by private air.' Over 12 days the plane will travel from New York to Bermuda and then on to Lisbon, Marseille, London, and Shannon, Ireland, before returning to New York City. The plane itself, which has capacity for 50 passengers, features fully reclinable lie-back seats, personal devices from which to stream entertainment options, as well as an open bar and chef-prepared meals served by attendants dressed in full Pan Am regalia. The trip cost $59,950 per person for double occupancy, $5,600 more for single occupancy.
CBS News
3 days ago
- CBS News
Pan Am returns to JFK Airport with flight commemorating Southern and Northern Trans-Atlantic routes
Pan Am left an incredible mark on aviation history, and on Tuesday there was a rare opportunity for history to repeat itself. For more than 60 years, Pan American World Airways, also known as Pan Am, took its passengers to new limits. On Tuesday, there was a commemorative flight out of John F. Kennedy International Airport that paid tribute to one of the world's great airlines. Complete with Pan Am logos, the private charter jet took off on a 12-day journey, tracing the legendary Southern and Northern Trans-Atlantic routes. Passengers will be making stops in Bermuda and throughout Europe. With everything included, such as 5-star hotels, the nostalgic trip costs $60,000 per person. Organizers are also now putting together another trip that will be 21 days, called "Tracing the Trans-Pacific," which will cost $95,000 per person. Flight attendants mark the different eras with what they wear Officials are making the experience as immersive as possible. The entire aircraft is configured with all business class lie-flat seating, and flight attendants are dressed in replicas of the original Pan Am uniforms. "It's such an honor and a privilege to be stepping into this uniform," flight attendant Anna Maria Aevarsdottir said. "We hope we can embrace the grace that they showed America." Each of the flight attendants is representing a different time frame. "I am wearing the galaxy gold and my colleagues are wearing the Super Jet Blue," Aevarsdottir said. The uniforms are something Anita Mathewson knows all about. She was once a flight attendant for Pan Am. She was on hand Tuesday to relive those glory days, but this time as a passenger with her two daughters. "It was a wonderful time in my life. Pan Am was beautiful," said Mathewson, of Norfolk, Connecticut. "Pan Am was about the airline, but it was more about the people. It was the people and the experiences," added Linda Freire, chair of the Pan Am Museum. The trip is a full-circle moment for one family One of the many pilots behind Pan Am's rise to fame was the father of Sheryl Slyter and Louise Koch. "When we were kids, he always brought back stuff from different countries that he visited," Koch said. Now, it's their turn to see those same places their dad flew thousands to and from, since they're passengers on the first commemorative Pan Am jet. "Knowing he was with the flying boats and all the places we are going, that he flew into," Slyter said.
Calgary Herald
3 days ago
- Sport
- Calgary Herald
Calgary Rowing Club headed to England for Henley Royal Regatta
The Calgary Rowing Club will be heading across the pond to England, as they gear up for the 2025 Henley Royal Regatta set for the first week in July. Article content The Henley Royal first started in 1839, and is an annual rowing event that takes place on the River Thames by the town Henley-on-Thames in England. Article content Article content The annual four-day rowing event is always held on the first week of July. This year it will run (or row) from July 1 to 6. Article content Article content Although water around the city freezes for over half of the year, the Calgary Rowing Club is the second largest rowing club in all of Canada. Article content Article content 'We're sending a total of 22 athletes, which is really exciting,' Davis said. 'The last time we, the Calgary Rowing Club, sent any boats to the Henley Royal was in 2017, where they sent a women's eight, and before that, I believe it was in 1992 we sent our last boat. And last year, they sent the men's four, who's also going again this year.' Article content Although the men's team that competed last year lost to the eventual champions in the third round, Davis said their performance at the event is still a huge accomplishment. Article content Davis said many of their members who participated in the Henley Royal eventually moved on to represent Canada in varying capacities. Article content Article content 'Two of which were Olympic gold and silver medalists in the last two Olympics, we had a Pan Am medalist who competed in that, and they all competed for Team Canada,' Davis said. 'So, I view this as sort of a stepping stone.' Article content The regatta serves as a peak event for athletes before they begin entering national team prospects, including World Cups, World Championships, and even the Olympics. Article content A regatta itself is a series of races. Over the summer season, rowing is raced over a distance of 2,000 metres. The Henley Royal, however, has a distance of 2,112 metres. Article content As a unique dual-style race, Davis said each race is done by one boat at a time in a knock-out style format.
