Reward for honeymooners gunman

ANTIGUA hotels and businesses have offered a reward for information leading to the arrest of those responsible for shooting a British couple on their honeymoon, killing the woman.

Doctor Catherine Mullany, 31, was shot and killed, while her husband, Benjamin, also 31, is in a coma with bullet wounds to the head and neck.

Assailants shot the couple at their cottage on Sunday in an incident police are treating as a robbery “gone bad”.

Police Chief Gary Nelson said his staff were pursuing several leads and have been questioning people about the murder.

Mr Nelson said he hoped a $US130,000 ($136,610) reward offered by local businesses would encourage people to come forward with information on the case.

Antigua Hotels & Tourist Association chairman Ted Isaac said his group planned a march and memorial service on Sunday for the murder victim to show how serious hoteliers were taking the issue.

“We want the world to understand that we abhor this despicable crime,” Mr Isaac said.

Police spokesman Cornelius Charles said if Britain’s Scotland Yard offered help in the case, “we will accept it”.

The Mullanys were reportedly from Pontardawe, in South Wales, and were nearing the end of a two-week honeymoon on the island when they were attacked.

The parents of both victims arrived in Antigua on Tuesday to identify Catherine Mullany’s body and visit Benjamin Mullany, who is fighting for his life in a hospital intensive care ward.

The Antigua and Barbuda Government, still reeling from the shock and likely negative implications from the incident, has continued to promote the country as a safe destination.

However, at least one airline, Virgin Atlantic and its subsidiary, Virgin Holidays, reported cancellations of bookings and tour packages.

Hoteliers have increased security at their properties since the attack.

Cruise passengers hurt in rough sea

DOZENS of passengers aboard a cruise ship were hurt when the ship lurched sharply in heavy seas off New Zealand.

A P&O Cruises spokesman said the Pacific Sun was caught in the storms that have swept the country, the New Zealand Press Asociation reported.

The ship, which was about 600km north of Auckland, was in 7m swells and 50 knot winds when it rolled sharply just before 8pm (10pm AEST) yesterday.

About 40 passengers were hurt and treated by onboard medical staff.

“I would like to assure the friends and families of our passengers that they are in good care on board the ship,” the spokesman said

The ship, which was due to return to Auckland this morning, has been delayed by at least 24 hours by the bad weather.

The ship is carrying 1732 passengers and 671 crew and was on its return from an eight-day cruise in the South Pacific.

Etihad boosts frequency of Melbourne services

In a recent announcement that was enthusiastically welcomed, Etihad Airways has confirmed that it has decided to increase the frequency of its connecting flights to Melbourne.

With effect from March 2009, the Abu Dhabi-based airline is to commence offering daily services from London Heathrow and Manchester airports through its base located in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Already the carrier is offering about 17 flights in a week from Heathrow and seven flights from Manchester. However, with effect from next spring, the airline’s timetable will be updated to provide daily connections to the Australian city.

Most notably, on the enhanced Abu Dhabi to Melbourne leg, a three-cabin Airbus A340-600 will be employed that is configured to carry about 244 passengers in the economy class, 30 in business class and 12 in the first class.

Commenting on the present expansion, James Hogan, the airline’s chief executive noted that the company is keen to expand the leisure segment of the airline in the UAE and Australia regions. He observed, “Etihad looks forward to opening up further trade and holidaymaker traffic business in both the UAE and Australia by creating direct links between Abu Dhabi and Melbourne.”

Jeremy Bruer, Australia’s ambassador to the country, added further, “This announcement is great news for the UAE and Australia and will, I’m sure, be warmly welcomed by the business community and leisure travellers.”

In yet another move, Etihad has also recently increased the number of its flights operated between Abu Dhabi and Sydney from seven to about eleven every week.

Emirates readies five A380s for Heathrow

A recent news published in the Telegraph observes that Emirates Airlines has decided to operate five Airbus A380 superjumbos into London Heathrow Airport on a daily basis.

According to a statement made by the Dubai-based carrier, the airline has decided to use the largest passenger airliner on the globe on all its slots into the global hub. The airline has further insisted that it will have little difficulty in filling the extra 550 seats.

Most notably, Emirates took the delivery of its first A380 from Hamburg during this week. The delivery followed a delay of 18 months. There are also outstanding orders for a further 57 numbers of the giant aircraft.

Featuring a multiple-class configuration, the A380 is well capable of transporting not less than 525 passengers. The capacity of the aircraft means that about 2,600 travellers can fly out of Heathrow with the services of the carrier on every single day of the week.

When he was questioned whether the roll-out of its new fleet would result in the lowering of the number of daily flights, Tim Clark, the Emirates president said, “We would not reduce the frequency of our services at Heathrow.”

The said commitment by the airline comes in spite of the highly worsening conditions in the global aviation industry. According to The Telegraph, this confidence by the airline amounts to the belief of the airline that it can certainly “defy the gloom.”

During this week, the airline also confirmed that it has signed a $17 billion (£8.6 billion) deal for purchasing about 60 wide-body passenger jets from Airbus.

Surge in public transport use in USA

Several harsh economic realities are haunting several American communities including those like higher costs of food and fuel. Notably, the rising prices of oil have forced a greater number of Americans to resort to train travel.

On the other hand, the gas prices at the USA are still low when compared to the rest of the world. But, this does not stop the Americans getting dismayed, since the average price of unleaded gas per gallon has reached up to $4, which is actually a steep increase of about $1 a gallon since January.

Most interestingly, in Stockton of California, the number of passengers traveling on the Altamont Commuter Express has seen a sharp jump of about 15 percent. Due to this fact, the operator of the said service has enthusiastically placed order for extra rail cars. Thomas Reeves, a spokesperson for the railway noted, “We’ve seen a huge increase in the last couple of weeks because of the price of gas.” At the outset, the Altamont Commuter Express connects Stockton and San Jose, in the Silicon Valley located in California.

A majority of people residing at Stockton need to travel to the San Francisco Bay area for work daily, which is at about 60 miles away. For those who are already on a struggle to avoid foreclosure on their mortgages, expensive gas is something, which they cannot afford. A Stockton housing activist observed, “You’ve usually got to beat people on the head here to get them out of their cars.”

Ryanair readies for hand luggage only service

In the month of October, Ryanair has decided to introduce its first flights that will allow only hand luggage. Notably, this move is the next step in the campaign by the carrier to reduce the costs associated with checked baggage. Ryanair is working out on the moves to offer higher airfares for this new service, which according to the airline will operate on time, since there will be a quick turnaround as the airline will not need to handle checked luggage.

Recently, Ryanair has announced its latest step in its battle against the issue of checked baggage while releasing its latest financial figures. The airline has warned that the last year’s profits of €439 million are expected to turn into a loss of up to €60 million in 2009.

According to Howard Millar, the deputy chief executive of the airline, a number of routes in the UK are getting prepared to see the ‘hand luggage only’ trials, which will permit the passengers to travel with only one piece of hand luggage. He added, “We are going to trial them on routes where we have a lot of passengers who are business-type groups. So maybe the first flight in the morning has bags and the second does not. You just go straight through security and on to your flight.”

When the deputy executive was questioned whether there would be a price reduction than the average fare of €42 due to the reduced check-in and baggage-handling costs, Millar observed, “Maybe there will be a premium because the aircraft will turn around quicker.”

30 July : Holidays and observances

Vanuatu – Independence Day

Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago is some 1,750 km (1,090 mi) east of northern Australia, 500 km (310 mi) north-east of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and south of the Solomon Islands. The archipelago is of volcanic origin.

Vanuatu was first inhabited by Melanesian people. Europeans began to settle in the area in the late 18th century. In the 1880s France and the United Kingdom claimed parts of the country and in 1906 they agreed on a framework for jointly managing the archipelago through a British-French Condominium as the New Hebrides. An independence movement was established in the 1970s, and the Republic of Vanuatu was created in 1980.

Massive WW2 bomb causes transportation chaos in Budapest

The recent discovery of an unexploded 500 kilogram bomb from World War II has totally paralyzed a greater part of the 9th district of Budapest besides wrecking a great havoc disrupting the transportation network of the city. Shortly after the bomb was discovered, a huge section of Budapest’s downtown core was completely shut down to traffic in addition to evacuating the zone within one kilometer. Over and above, the residents had to leave their apartments and all stores were closed down. As a result of all this, all roads were cordoned off in this area, with more than 16,000 locals evacuated from the region.

‘Ferencváros’ as the evacuation procedure was entitled; the operation involved the suspension of all the public transportation in the area in addition to the shutting of electricity, water and gas. The corporation suspended one of the commuter train (HÉV) lines and the crucial 4-6 tramline forming the backbone of Budapest’s tramway system did not stop at all stations. This left those using the public transportation system provided by the BKV Zrt-Budapest’s transit authority, left out without any luck. However, the one consoling factor was that the BKV officials notably increased the service in one of the metro lines (M3-blue), to ensure that the commuters affected by the cancellation of ground transportation and delays could still rely on the underground of the city.  Most notably, those travelling by cars too were bothered down by major traffic jams, especially due to the closure of the Lágymányosi Bridge.

Another plane in midair damage drama

A CATHAY Pacific Airways Boeing 747 aircraft with 363 passengers suffered mid-air damage while descending for a landing at Vancouver overnight.

There were no injuries but officials were trying to determine what happened to the plane at 20,000 feet while on a flight from New York to Hong Kong via the western Canadian city of Vancouver, said Jennifer Pearson, a Cathay Pacific spokeswoman.

An external panel on the aircraft’s fuselage was damaged in the incident, according to Pearson, but she could not confirm or deny local media reports that the panel had been separated from the plane.

A Qantas Boeing 747 was forced to make an emergency landing last week in the Philippines after it suffered a hole in its fuselage during a flight from Hong Kong to Australia.

Emirates A380 Passengers To Shower At 43,000 Feet

In a statement made on Monday, Emirates, the Dubai based airline said that its passengers will be able to enjoy a shower at 43,000 feet besides enjoying a drink at the bar upstairs. In a ceremony to take the delivery of the first of 58 A380s at Airbus’s Hamburg plant, Emirates enthusiastically noted that the said plane will feature two bathrooms fitted with showers in its first class cabins besides a lounge dedicated for the premium class travelers.

However, there is a limit for luxury too. According to a warning issued by Emirates President Tim Clark, passengers could not spend too much time under the flowing strains of water.

During a conference, Clark told, “The showers are regulated through a software program that gives people a five minute shower, which is ample in most cases.” He too added that there would be a traffic light system that would let the passengers know how much time is left for them, stating that, “If you’re on amber and your hair’s full of shampoo, you want to get moving.”

On the other hand, the introduction of the shower actually complicates the serious attempts by Emirates and Airbus to slim down the superjumbo by not less than 5 tonnes by the year 2012. This move is intended towards cutting the fuel consumption amidst soaring fuel costs, in addition to bringing down the carbon footprint left by the airline’s carriers. To introduce the facility, the plane will need to carry an additional 500 kg of water onboard, which is actually an increase of about 25 percent.