bigdelta

tyvm

George Bush, Queen Elizabeth, and Vladimir Putin all die and go to hell. While there, they spy a red phone and ask what the phone is for. The devil tells them it is for calling back to Earth. Putin asks to call Russia and talks for 5 minutes. When he is finished the devil informs him that the cost is a million dollars, so Putin writes him a check. Next Queen Elizabeth calls England and talks for 30 minutes. When she is finished the devil informs her that the cost is 6 million dollars, so she writes him a check. Finally George Bush gets his turn and talks for 4 hours. When he is finished the devil informs him that the cost is $5.00. When Putin hears this he goes ballistic and asks the devil why Bush got to call the USA so cheaply. The devil smiles and replies, "Since Obama took over, the country has gone to hell, so it's a local call."

Travelers may find it just a teeny-tiny bit easier to redeem miles this year compared with last year, according to a new study of 24 different frequent-flier programs world-wide. Best among U.S. carriers: Southwest Airlines Co., which had award seats available for 99.3% of the queries made, and jetBlue Airways, which offered seats 79.3% of the time. Southwest and jetBlue both use points instead of miles, and IdeaWorks Co., the consulting firm that conducted the study, searched for award seats available at 25,000 points, the equivalent to standard awards at other airlines. Worst among U.S. carriers: US Airways Group Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc., which didn't have seats available in about three out of every four requests. Still, both carriers showed large improvement over the past year, more than doubling their availability rates. Of 6,720 requests for award trips at standard mileage levels, typically 25,000 miles for a domestic ticket on U.S. airlines, 68.6% turned up with available seats, according to IdeaWorks. That's up slightly from 66.1% last year. The fact that availability increased at all is surprising: Airlines are eager to sell seats rather than trade them for miles due to high fuel costs. That said, it is expected to be especially tough to exchange miles for seats this summer because airlines are already heavily booked. Airlines say they have tried to improve availability as miles have been losing some luster and award liability has been piling up on balance sheets. Miles bring in billions of dollars in revenue for airlines when they sell them to credit-card companies that offer loyalty rewards, and carriers have acknowledged they need to loosen restrictions on seat availability or risk losing customers. Inventory managers at airlines typically allocate seats in the lowest mileage-redemption levels when the lowest fares are still available. Then, they make award seats available only at higher-mileage prices as fares increase on a flight. Some popular flights may never have standard-level frequent-flier seats available. Among international airlines, Star Alliance carriers Singapore, Lufthansa and Air Canada scored highest in award-seat availability, along with low-fare carriers GOL of Brazil and Europe's Air Berlin. GOL had the distinction of offering seats on all 280 requests made. "I think airlines are getting the message that award availability is important," said Jay Sorensen, president of IdeaWorks. "Are airlines where they need to be yet? I don't think so. But the overall picture is positive." The number of awards used at United Continental Holdings Inc., the parent of United and Continental airlines, was up 17.6% last year over 2009, according to the company's filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Delta awards used were up 10.8%, AMR Corp.'s American Airlines rose 7.7% and Southwest 6.7%. More customers have been using miles for domestic awards, in light of higher ticket prices, rather than holding out for hard-to-book international prizes. As a result, more awards are being redeemed, airlines say. The IdeaWorks survey also pointed to the toughest city to get into and out of using frequent-flier miles: San Francisco. The city is a popular vacation spot year-round, so demand remains high. This summer, fliers don't have to be going to San Francisco to have a hard time using miles. Frequent-flier program executives at several airlines say summer bookings with awards are already above average compared with past years, and below average so far for fall and winter trips. Higher ticket prices have prompted more people to shop early this year for summer vacations, and burn miles because they have more buying power. "For us, availability is a bit lower year-over-year for summer. We're booked higher for the same point in time this year," said Tom Trenga, vice president of revenue management at US Airways. "It's not only tighter for award seats. It's tighter for any seat." The availability study, sponsored by ezRez Software Inc., which supplies online travel-selling tools to airlines, hotels and travel agencies, checked availability by doing what travelers do—asking airline websites for a pair of award tickets at standard award levels. IdeaWorks, which consults to airlines on loyalty programs and ancillary revenue projects, picked 20 of each airline's busiest routes, both international and domestic. Fourteen dates between June and October were checked during March and early April for each route, for a total of 6,720 queries across the 24 airlines. The result is data that quantify a frustration consumers have long complained about: Scant opportunity to miles when you want to go to popular destinations. US Airways, which offered seats for only 25.7% of IdeaWorks queries, also looks miserly with its frequent-flier awards on other measures. Last year, only 4% of the airline's passenger traffic involved a frequent-flier award. Delta, United, American, Southwest and Alaska were all over 7.5% of revenue passenger miles with awards. (A revenue passenger mile, or one passenger flying one mile, is the standard measure of traffic for airlines.) Alaska was best at a hefty 9% of revenue passenger miles on frequent-flier awards. The number of awards redeemed at US Airways in 2010 was flat compared to 2009, while rival carriers showed increases. US Airways said the low numbers reflect the airline's comparatively smaller frequent-flier membership, its short-haul route structure which makes it harder for members to rack up big mileage totals, and the propensity for its members to cash in miles for awards on Star Alliance partner airlines that fly longer routes. "People like to burn miles in long-haul routes and they go burn them on Star partners," Mr. Trenga said. Delta, at 27.1% availability in the study, says it has made major improvements in availability over the past year, driven largely by its low standing in the IdeaWorks research last year and coverage by this column. That forced the department that controls ticket pricing to work closely with managers of the SkyMiles program, airline executives say, such as changing how many seats are offered at Delta's lowest "Saver" mileage level. "We really upped our Saver award availability," said Jeff Robertson, Delta's vice president of loyalty programs. In addition, Delta has been opening up lowest-level Saver awards close to departure for flights that aren't selling well, Mr. Robertson said. Traditionally airlines have made seats available for awards far in advance, rarely adding to award inventory in the final 21 days before departure. But that's changed. Travelers should now check early and check often. IdeaWorks tested award availability five to 15 days before departure for travel in April and found that seats were available on Delta 42.5% of the time, compared to the airline's overall 27.1% rate. United, American and US Airways all had lower availability close-in than they did in the regular advance-purchase test. The research unearths a tip for travelers having trouble using their frequent-flier miles: It might be easier to get "free" tickets using miles on low-fare carriers than it is on big carriers with global networks. The survey showed that six low-fare carriers had seats available for 85.6% of the requests made. The 18 other carriers in the survey offered seats for only 62.9% of requests made. One reason for this is that low-fare airlines tend to have smaller credit-card tie-ins. American, by contrast, said that 62% of the 185 billion frequent-flier miles it issued last year went to customers as credit-card rewards, not flying in airplanes. In addition, low-fare airlines don't have long histories of customers accumulating billions of miles—their programs are younger and often set up relatively quick expiration dates for miles or points. Fly Me to the Moon There are an estimated 9.7 trillion unredeemed miles in frequent-flier accounts, according to InsideFlyer.com. Here are some examples of how massive that total is: Value at 1.5 cents per mile: $145.5 billion Number of business-class or first-class tickets that could be purchased with total unredeemed miles (at 150,000 miles per ticket): 64.7 million Number of basic 25,000-mile awards: 388 million Number of times a person could circumnavigate the Earth at its equator: 449 million Number of round trips to the moon that could be made with total unredeemed miles: 19.4 million Number of round trips to the moon represented by American Airlines' 587-billion miles outstanding: 1.2 million Write to Scott McCartney at middleseat@wsj.com

By Scott McCartney-WSJ-Middle Seat Terminal How do you measure frequent-flier programs? Which one is the best for you? The decision often boils down to what perk you value the most. Are the benefits of elite status -– upgrades, early boarding, standby-list priority, special lines at security checkpoints, baggage-fee waivers and exit-row coach seating -– more important than more trips? Or are you really after “free’’ tickets and want to maximize the buying power of the miles earned in the air or on the ground through credit card benefits? The elite-level program benefits are easy to compare, and if you live in a city dominated by one airline, the choice is made for you. But how do you evaluate the ticket-buying power of each program, when you know the frustration of having miles and not being able to redeem them for itineraries you want because of limited availability? This week’s Middle Seat shows a data-driven way to compare -— an extensive survey of availability of award seats at 24 airlines around the world. It reveals huge disparity between programs –- some that had seats available almost all the time in the queries made, others that said “no’’ three out of four times. The study by IdeaWorks Co. looked at the routes where each airline ought to have the most ample offerings — the top short-haul and long-haul routes in terms of seat capacity. But it asked for two seats at the standard award level. That’s the lowest level in each program, the one that the airline typically advertises when highlighting the addictive allure of free travel. In other words, it was a real-world test much like any customer would want. Discount carriers generally fared better than other airlines. Star Alliance carriers generally had more availability than others. US Airways and Delta Air Lines were worst. That was also true in the same survey last year, though both US Airways and Delta showed significant improvement. Finding seats with your miles has often been a mysterious business driven by complexity. Some people search at midnight 11 months before the departure date they want -– the exact time most airlines open flights for booking. It pays to keep searching -– inventory does change. And it pays to be realistic: There probably aren’t ever going to be seats to Paris for you in July. I’ve long advocated, by the way, using miles for last-minute emergencies and surprises rather than long-planned vacations. Planning ahead you can almost always get cheap fares. It’s the last-minute tickets that can cost the most, and it’s usually easier to find award inventory to get to your uncle’s funeral than to Hawaii. The IdeaWorks survey shines the light of comparison on airline award inventory. That’s an important step toward forcing airlines to make their programs more useful to consumers, and toward consumers making better-informed choices.

Boeing and ANA to Conduct 787 Service Readiness Validation in Japan-The first time the 787 will fly to Asia and Japan Press Release Source: Boeing On Thursday May 26, 2011, 3:00 am EDT TOKYO, May 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] and ANA today announced how the two companies will work together to help prove the 787 Dreamliner's readiness to enter service on a commercial basis. Using the second flight test aircraft, known as ZA002, they will simulate in-service operations across several airports in Japan in a service ready operational validation. The validation is expected to take place the week of July 4. Anticipated city pairs include trips between Haneda Airport in Tokyo and airports in Osaka (Itami and Kansai), Okayama and Hiroshima. This will be the 787's maiden appearance in Japan. ANA is the launch customer for the aircraft and has 55 Dreamliners on order. The 787, which will be deployed across the ANA route network, is an integral part of ANA's strategy to strengthen its position and support its growth and expansion plans. "ANA is eager to introduce the innovative 787 Dreamliner to Japan," said Shinichiro Ito, ANA president and chief executive officer. "Giving our employees the opportunity to gain experience with the airplane will help ensure a smoother entry into service later this year." "We've put the airplane through its paces in a rigorous flight test program," said Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 program. "Now, as we get closer to first delivery, we'll prove out its capabilities and reliability in a revenue-like environment." ANA's maintenance crews also will practice maintenance and servicing of the 787 during the validation. This will include typical ground servicing activities, fit checks of airplane jacks and maintenance hangar stands, towing and refueling the airplane, and other routine maintenance operations. Watch this video to see how Boeing and ANA are planning for the validation. Similar service ready validations have been conducted with great success on previous Boeing programs, including the 777, 737NG and 757-300. Boeing plans to deliver the first 787 to ANA in the August to September timeframe.

I made a no-notice 5 hr trip to Miami last month and missed lunch.Cleared immigration in Cabo and in the gate area,there's 1 restaurant and a Sbarro.1 slice on cheese pizza,lukecold,was 105 pesos,roughly $9.And the line was 20 deep.Some slices were 130 pesos.Airport prices are a license to steal.The price was more shocking because it's generally cheap to eat here,not Thai cheap,but still cheap.

I do remember a time when duty free actually had great prices,but that was quite some time ago.Late 80s-early 90s,Dubai Duty Free had the best Rolex prices around.And they also gave away an expensive car fairly often-you got a free entry with any duty free purchase IIRC.

Ash cloud to shut German airports, snarls British air travel By the CNN Wire Staff May 24, 2011 5:34 p.m. EDT London (CNN) -- A cloud of ash from Iceland's Grimsvotn volcano spread toward central Europe late Tuesday, spurring German authorities to announce two airports will close and prompting British airlines to cancel hundreds of flights. Hamburg International Airport will shut down at 6 a.m. Wednesday (midnight Tuesday ET), while Bremen's airport will close at 5 a.m., Germany's Aviation Safety Agency announced. Berlin's airport could be affected by the falling ash by noon Wednesday, the agency said. A portion of the ash from Saturday's eruption in Iceland had spread over Britain by Tuesday afternoon, with the cloud reaching London's Heathrow airport -- the world's busiest international air travel hub -- around lunchtime, a computer model indicated. The European air traffic control organization Eurocontrol reported about 500 flights in British airspace were canceled Tuesday, roughly double the number expected earlier in the day. The ash cloud was projected to cover all of British airspace by early Wednesday morning and will be densest over Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England, according to Britain's weather agency, the Met Office. But British Airways, which sent a test flight into the region Tuesday evening, said it expects service to return to normal by Wednesday. That may help passengers like Karen Bryan, who was unable to return to the Scottish city of Edinburgh from the Mediterranean island of Malta on Tuesday. "It's bad not knowing what's happening, being on standby and not knowing when and if you'll get back," Bryan said. The number of flights affected was a small proportion of the 29,000 or so that had been expected across the continent, Eurocontrol noted. But Germany's meteorological agency projected that the cloud would spread across the country's north and could reach Berlin around midnight Tuesday, raising the possibility of more cancellations. And there was a "strong possibility" it could also affect Denmark and parts of Scandinavia by the end of the day, Eurocontrol reported. The Grimsvotn eruption came about 13 months after Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano belched smoke and ash into the skies over the continent, forcing the cancellation of thousands of flights per day at the peak of the problem. The ash can be a serious hazard to aircraft, reducing visibility, damaging flight controls and ultimately causing jet engines to fail. Grimsvotn's eruption was more than 10 times larger and put more ash into the air in 36 hours than last year's burst did in a month, University of Iceland geophysicist Magnus Tumi Gudmundsson told CNN -- but the main eruption is now over, he said. "We expect it to behave and slowly decline," Gudmundsson told CNN. "It will, however, last for several more days. The ash does continue to cause huge problems on the ground, but no new ash is coming into the high altitudes." Gillian Foulger, a geophysicist at Britain's Durham University, told CNN that the disruptions from the larger eruption are likely to be smaller than they were in 2010. Most of the ash is blowing northwest, toward sparsely populated Greenland, and the European aviation industry collected valuable safety data during last year's event. "It's much better able to set the safety thresholds accurately, so I think things are probably going to turn out very well for us," Foulger said. Airlines have been making the case that it is safe to fly through ash clouds of medium density, Britain's Civil Aviation Authority said Tuesday. Carriers including British Airways, Virgin and EasyJet are now free to fly through clouds of up to 4,000 micrograms per cubic meter if they feel it is safe to do so, Richard Taylor of the CAA told CNN. The budget airline Ryanair, one of Europe's biggest carriers, announced that it had canceled its remaining flights from Scottish airports Tuesday after arguing against closures. The airline said it had conducted a test flight that found no ash, but Taylor told CNN that Ryanair's claims were "not true" and that the test flight did not go where the airline claimed. British Airways canceled all flights to and from Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland and Newcastle in northern England until at least 7 p.m. Tuesday, though service to Aberdeen, Scotland, continued. Dutch airline KLM also canceled dozens of scheduled Tuesday flights to and from locations in Scotland. And British Midlands International canceled its Tuesday evening flights into Glasgow and Edinburgh but resumed service to Aberdeen, the carrier announced. U.S. President Barack Obama left Ireland for England on Monday, a day earlier than planned, to make sure the ash cloud would not affect his flight plan. Barcelona's soccer team also announced on Twitter that it would fly early to London for its Saturday match against Manchester United in the Champions League Final. The ash forced the closure of Icelandic airspace over the weekend, but the island nation's main airports were open Tuesday. Flights to London were canceled, but flights to North America and Scandinavia were still scheduled. Britain's CAA said new arrangements have been put in place since last year's eruption, and those changes should reduce the number of flights that have to be canceled if the ash cloud spreads. Grimsvotn lies beneath Iceland's Vatnajokull glacier, a sheet of ice more than three times the size of the U.S. state of Rhode Island -- larger than any on mainland Europe. It is the country's most active volcano and last erupted in 2004, according to the Icelandic Meteorological Office. In 1783, a 16.7-mile fissure system from the volcano produced the world's largest known historical lava flow over a seven-month period, damaging crops and livestock, according to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. A resulting famine resulted in the loss of one-fifth of Iceland's population, according to the museum. CNN's Ayesha Durgahee, Adam Reiss, Claudia Rebaza, James Partington and Brianna Keilar contributed to this report. http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/05/24/iceland.volcano/index.html?eref=rss_mostpopular&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_mostpopular+%28RSS%3A+Most+Popular%29

Thank you.Your attempt at sarcasm is lame.

LOL! I guess the author of that article was being generous.

Korean Air Celebrates Delivery of First GP7200-powered A380 Aircraft-apparently this is the NON-EXPLODING engine TOULOUSE, France, May 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Korean Air celebrated the delivery of its first GP7200-powered Airbus A380 aircraft at a ceremony in Toulouse, France. Korean Air has ordered a total of 10 A380s and will begin operating the aircraft in June. Korean Air will be the first Airbus A380 customer to dedicate the entire upper deck of the aircraft to Prestige (business) Class passengers with 94 lie-flat Prestige Class seats. It is also the first airline in the industry to have a 'Duty Free Showcase' on the A380 aircraft. The unique feature will have a variety of duty-free products displayed with a dedicated cabin crew member on hand to assist and advise passengers with their shopping. "We are delighted that Korean Air will become the first Asian carrier to operate the GP7200 engine," said Engine Alliance President Mary Ellen Jones. "By doing so, they offer customers the quietest and most environmentally friendly way to travel on the A380." The GP7200 engine is the leading engine for the Airbus A380 aircraft. It has been selected to power 56% of all A380s on order with engine selections. There are 20 GP7200-powered A380s in service and 104 more on order. In addition to Korean Air, Emirates and Air France operate GP7200-powered A380 aircraft. Etihad and Air Austral have also selected GP7200 engines for their A380 fleets. The Engine Alliance is a 50/50 joint venture of General Electric (NYSE:GE - News) and Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX - News). The GP7200 is the result of innovations to the combined technologies of its member companies' most successful wide-body engines: the GE90 and the PW4000. The GP7200 utilizes the lessons learned from more than 35 million flight hours of successful operation with these legacy engines and incorporates new technology to produce the quietest, most fuel efficient engine for the A380. The GP7200 is certified at 76,500 pounds (340 kN) of thrust and has the capability to produce more than 81,500 pounds (363 kN). Its emissions are well below current and anticipated regulations. GP7200 Engine Program participants include SNECMA (France), Techspace Aero (Belgium) and MTU Aero Engines (Germany). For more information about the Engine Alliance, visit www.enginealliance.com.

Ryan Giggs.

Another reason I retired at 54.

Airbus' New BFF: Boeing On the surface, the contest between Boeing (NYSE: BA ) and Airbus appears to be an epic struggle. A clash between titans for control of the $4.7 trillion airliner market. But could Boeing actually be the best thing that ever happened to Airbus? I know the idea's heresy. But a recent report out of Bloomberg suggests that Boeing's attempt to steal share from Airbus with its groundbreaking "composite-skinned" 787 Dreamliner may have hamstrung Boeing, even as it gave Airbus a weapon with which to grow sales. Bloomberg describes how London-based Umeco gained experience working up carbon-fiber components for the 787 Dreamliner. The new technology has been bad news for Alcoa, whose share price has never quite recovered since Boeing's switch to from aluminum to composites was announced back in early 2003. But it's been worse news for Boeing, whose 787 project has been plagued by three years of production delays as the company tried to get a handle on integrating the new material into the 787. But here's the real kicker: Boeing began its 787 project nearly two years before Airbus announced the development of its answer to the Dreamliner, the A350. On one hand, this gave Boeing a big head start that's enabled it to book record sales on its new plane. On the other hand, it gave Airbus time to learn from Boeing's mistakes and to profit from advancements in the technology while avoiding similar mistakes itself. Today, says Umeco, it's figured out how to manufacture composites more cheaply and easily than it used to. Many analysts believe that Boeing's initial foray into composites has made it difficult for the company to turn a profit on planes using the new tech, such as the 747-8 and the Dreamliner. But Airbus also buys composites for its A350 from Umeco. Between lower costs on these components and the ability to learn from Boeing's mistakes, it's that possible Airbus' A350 will fare better. If Airbus ends up enjoying lower development costs, the company will face less pressure to keep prices high to recoup its investment. That situation could help it to win more sales outright, instead of splitting them with Boeing, as happened at United Continental (NYSE: UAL ) last year. (In fact, Airbus did just that with its recent 100-plane order from AIG (NYSE: AIG ) .) Reduced pricing pressure could help it win further contracts in bidding on upcoming contracts from Delta (NYSE: DAL ) and Ryanair (Nasdaq: RYAAY ) . Boeing may yet rue the day it came up with this particular bright idea. http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2011/05/21/airbus-new-bff-boeing.aspx

Imagine Cardiff losing again this year-hard to take.

Good luck. Have they got the field (pitch to Brits) fixed (sorted to Brits)yet?Last I read,they expect to continue to replace after every few matches. Being the national stadium,it would be wonderful to have the best grass in the country since it hosts so many important matches.

Can you (MM) see who votes + & -? I ask because of the possibility over time of "stuffing the ballot box" in a person's favor or not.I guess this coattails Midlife's post regarding someone's rep (over time).

Does it ever end with Rose Royce? (not the Disco singer from the 70s) "We believe the cause is similar to events that other airlines are experiencing and is subject to an increased monitoring program from the manufacturer Rolls Royce." The incident comes as Qantas faces strike action by some of its employees, including pilots, at the same time as it grapples with high fuel prices and a non-performing international business. Qantas pilots said Friday the airline was pressuring them to take on less fuel to help save costs, amid an industry belief that long-held fuel allocation ratios should be lowered given improved accuracy in weather and traffic forecasts. Captain Richard Woodward, vice president of the Australian and International Pilots Association, told ABC radio that Qantas printed out a chart for its pilots showing how much fuel they ordered and how much they landed with. Woodward said there was a "subtle pressure to make sure that you only carry the minimum necessary." "They certainly say to us they would prefer not to carry extra fuel because it's outrageously expensive," he added. On Tuesday a Melbourne-bound flight from Singapore to Melbourne was diverted to Adelaide after crew discovered the Airbus A380 running low on fuel. The plane is thought to have burned more fuel than expected due to bad weather. Qantas rejected the claim, saying captains were responsible for their fuel order and the airline did not attempt to influence that decision in any way. "All Qantas flights operate with appropriate fuel based on extremely detailed flight planning and forecast flying conditions," the spokesman said, adding that pilots were encouraged to closely monitor "discretionary fuel uplift". http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/468715-qantas-boeing-747-stranded-at-suvarnabhumi-after-mid-air-engine-shut-down/page__gopid__4436244#entry4436244

Boeing: WTO Affirms Landmark Decision That European Subsidies To Airbus Are Illegal -- Illegal European launch aid and non-launch aid subsidies must end -- Appellate ruling concludes the WTO's review, compliance must occur within 6 months -- Ruling sets governing standards for the global aerospace industry, ensures a fair and level playing field for all companies and workers. http://www.cnbc.com/id/43078698 Published: Wednesday, 18 May 2011 | 11:45 AM ET CHICAGO, May 18, 2011 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The World Trade Organization's Appellate Body today confirmed that Airbus received $18 billion in illegal "launch aid" and other subsidies from European governments. "This is a clear, final win for fair trade that will level the playing field for America's aerospace workers," said Jim McNerney, Boeing chairman, president and chief executive officer. "The WTO has concluded that launch aid and other illegal Airbus subsidies distorted the market, harmed U.S. industry and now must end. The administration--particularly the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative--and the Congress are to be commended for their long-standing efforts in this case to enforce global trade rules. We join them in calling for immediate compliance with this landmark ruling," McNerney said. "The WTO has rendered its final verdict, and now Europe must comply within 6 months," said Boeing Executive Vice President and General Counsel J. Michael Luttig. Altogether, the WTO confirmed that Airbus received $18 billion in illegal subsidies (principle amounts only). That includes $15 billion in launch aid, including $4 billion for the A380, without which Airbus could not have developed its fleet of airplanes. It also includes $3 billion in non-launch aid subsidies, which alone exceeds the $2.7 billion of un-remedied U.S. subsidies to Boeing (mainly NASA R&D spending) that the WTO identified in a separate ruling in March and that currently is under appeal. "Airbus and its government sponsors have tried to justify their illegal subsidy practices by claiming that Boeing benefitted equally from government R&D contracts," Luttig said. "But the WTO in March categorically rejected that argument, dismissing 80% of the EU's claims against the United States and confirming the huge competitive advantage Airbus has as a result of massive illegal government subsidies." Luttig stressed that Europe's obligations resulting from today's decision do not hinge on the ultimate WTO decision in the European case against the United States. "Europe must end all practices held illegal by today's decision--particularly launch aid; government loans for the A350 and future products must be on proven commercial terms," he said. Luttig also answered recent calls by Europe for a negotiated settlement. "I understand why Airbus and its sponsor governments now want to negotiate. For 40 years they have relied on massive injections of launch aid, which today were confirmed to be illegal. We're not interested in a settlement that would allow a continuation of illegal launch aid--the most pernicious, market-distorting subsidy of all," he said. "Airbus currently has more than $17 billion of cash on hand. It can well afford to bring itself into compliance with the WTO ruling and thereafter develop airplanes without illegal aid from European governments." "The WTO rules, combined with the ruling in this case, give clear guidance on what governments can and cannot do to support their respective aerospace industries. These rules will govern all market participants and help ensure that competitions are won or lost based on the merits of the respective product offerings rather than on government subsidies," he said.

http://www.bzke.com/game/osama-vs-obama-shoot-and-kill-4

I remember you did very well in that little tournament we had in choosing the WC winner.Congrats.

When I was living in Jomtien,I had UBS which carried all the matches at a decent hour.Here,the early matches come on at 5:45 am,too early for me.Others are aired live at 8 am which is a stretch too.And as closely as I follow soccer,I find it much easier when I can watch 3-4 matches each week.It seems it's much easier if I can watch matches to help in choosing players,even though I know them. The head to head is difficult.On consecutive weekends,I beat both teams closest to me and then lost to the the bottom feeders-go figure. I'm returning to the States next month and have already ordered Fox Soccer Channel for my fix. Hope to see you guys next season.

With the season ending this weekend,any active posters here participating? I recognize MidlifeCrisis United,Mick from (The Wrath of)Khon Kaen xpats,Hammer of Cherry United fame. I'll finish mid-table again,my 2nd try at this-all it takes is one bad month and you're toast.But 3rd in head to head,which is actually a crapshoot.And we all know so much depends on choosing your captain each week.I saw a player with a relatively high score that had only made 16 trades all season and we've completed 39 weeks. .I have overdone trades again this season with 60 or so. Thoughts.

No need to include "Interests" underneath. I like it better after a short adjustment period.I say keep it. I like it,I love it,I want some more of it.Wait,that a C&W tune. Who posts on PA anyway?

"View New Posts" button missing.I like the new warn status bar also-very fetching.Interests are now shown under poster info-needless.Do NOT like the new face.