Bird Strikes Damage Four Planes at Sac Airport

Sacramento International Airport ranked second in the country for the number of serious bird strikes since 1990.

Four planes were damaged within a 14-hour period last weekend in separate bird strike incidents. The latest occurred with a Southwest Airlines was hit during final approach from Portland. The plane made a normal, on-time landing, but needed repairs before returning to flight.

1,553 bird strikes were reported at Sacramento Airport from 1990-June 2009, most with little or no damage to the plane.

Snow Likely in on the Valley Floor Monday

The National Weather Service continues to predict snow in parts of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valley's, including in Sacramento, Stockton and Modesto. The snow is expected to begin early Monday morning and last through early afternoon, with total accumulations of 1-3 inches possible. Those of you familiar with the area know, snow is a rare in the Sacramento area.

Not all models are in agreement for this snow event, but if it does pan out, could be a record - as the most significant snowstorm hit Sacramento back way back in 1888, where 2.5 inches of snow fell.

Travelers through Sacramento (SMF) should stay tuned for changing weather conditions.

Elsewhere, snow levels around the Bay Area are expected to drop to 1,000 feet Monday, locally lower in any heavy downpours.

Parking and Waiting Options at Bay Area Airports

With another busy travel season upon on, finding a good spot to park the car at local airports might become a little more difficult. But whether you are trying to park and fly, or just waiting to pickup friends and family from an arriving flight, there are several options to consider before making the drive over to the airport.

San Francisco Airport:

-Cell phone waiting lot offers 60 minutes of free parking/waiting. Conveniently located five minutes from the terminals. 

-General parking, ParkFast parking and ParkValet parking offer fliers a variety of choices depending on individual needs. 

Oakland Airport:

-Offers a Park and Call lot with 30 minutes of free parking/waiting. 

-General parking and Valet parking is available as well. See Oakland parking map. 

San Jose Mineta Airport:

-Cell phone waiting area lot permits 30 minutes of waiting. 

-General parking, and corporate parking with guaranteed parking spot and express exit.

-Call 408-277-3145 for current parking availability at San Jose Airport.

Sacramento Airport:

-30 minutes of complimentary waiting in the hourly parking lots. 

-General parking and ParkSmart automated parking allows arriving passengers to quickly locate open parking spaces and shuttle buses to the terminal. 

-Detailed airport map here. 

Keep in mind that although Bay Area airports offer complimentary park and wait options, your vehicle must remain attended at all times. 

Finally, for up-to-the-minute information on departing and arriving flights, visit www.flightstats.com, where you can sign up to receive flight updates via text messaging at no charge. 

Horizon Begins Sacramento to Santa Barbara Flights Today

Nonstop service between Sacramento and Santa Barbara returns today thanks to Horizon Airlines. The route was recently discontinued by regional airline ExpressJet.

Two daily flights, one in the morning, one in the evening, operated by a 70-seat Bombardier region jet will be available during the week, and one daily flight on weekends. 

Santa Barbara airport (pictured above) is one of my favorite airports to fly through. The charming little airport resting near the mighty Pacific is a preferred alternative to the hustle and bustle of LAX to the south. For example, upstairs at the Overlook Cafe, there is an observation deck to watch the small commercial planes come and go. Downstairs, the inviting back patio, complete with lawn and wooden benches, provides the perfect opportunity for waiting passengers a last minute chance to soak up the warm Southern California Sun.

Air Canada Jazz Drops Sacramento to Vancouver Later This Month

Air Canada Jazz will drop twice-daily flights between Sacramento and Vancouver effective October 25th. Record high fuel prices and a mild recession are partially blamed for the route loss, which has operated since June 2007.

Horizon Adds Sacramento to Santa Barbara Route

Flights down to wonderful Santa Barbara Airport resume.

Nonstop service between Sacramento and Santa Barbara returns beginning November 9th - thanks to Horizon Airlines. The route was recently discontinued by regional airline ExpressJet.

Two daily flights, one in the morning, one in the evening, operated by a 70-seat Bombardier region jet will be available during the week, and one daily flight on weekends. 14-day advance tickets are available for just $79 each way. Click here for more information.

Santa Barbara airport (pictured above) is one of my favorite airports to fly through. The charming little airport resting near the mighty Pacific is a preferred alternative to the hustle and bustle of LAX to the south. For example, upstairs at the Overlook Cafe, there is an observation deck to watch the small commercial planes come and go. Downstairs, the inviting back patio, complete with lawn and wooden benches, provides the perfect opportunity for waiting passengers a last minute chance to soak up the warm Southern California Sun.

Sacramento Int'l Officials Launch 'Big Build' Site

Sacramento International Airport officials announced the launch of a website dedicated to provide interested parties up-to-date information on the $1.3 billion airport expansion.

The site, www.bigbuild.org, includes information about the project including a fly-through animation, employment opportunities for the build, and construction information that may cause traffic issues around the airport.

Sacramento to Philadelphia $181 "All In"

Sacramento to Philadelphia is currently pricing at $155+ tax, "$181 all in."
The fare is available on United ("L" class) and Northwest ("K" Class) with good availability through early January 2009. Visit Travelocity and search using the "flexible dates" option.

U.S Airways Dropping Sacramento to Charlotte Flights

After less than two months in operation, U.S Airways said Tuesday they will discontinue flights from Sacramento to its Charlotte hub. The route, which officially ends August 18th, was intended to be seasonal, but according to an airline spokesperson, “Skyrocketing fuel costs and softening demand," are also factors for the cutback. Overall, the airline plans on 4th quarter cutbacks in domestic capacity by 6-8% over last years levels.

In addition to Charlotte, U.S Airways also operates flights between Sacramento and Phoenix, Las Vegas and Philadephia.

Click here for more posts about on Sacramento Airport, including information on other airline cutbacks.

Sacramento Airport To Expand, Raise Fees - Upsetting Airlines

In May, Sacramento county government unanimously approved a $1.27 billion expansion of Sacramento International Airport, to include a new terminal, hotel, parking garage and people-mover tram. But the cost of the expansion is expected to be paid by already cash-strapped airlines.

As part of the plan, the airport will boost charges to the airline by $6 to $9 per passenger, climbing to over $13 by the year 2013 to help cover improvement costs. The airlines strongly opposed the extreme fee hike. American airlines recently notified Sacramento airport officials they will pull 1 of the 4 daily flights between Sacramento and Dallas due to "substantial and unreasonable" fee increases recently imposed on all airlines using Sacramento's runways and ticket counters. Airport officials contend the real reason for American cutbacks may actually be related to rising fuel costs and trimming of flights nationwide.

Meanwhile, county officials have defended the airport's expansion plan and rate increases as fair and necessary.

(Pictured above: Design of the second floor ticketing area for Central Terminal B at Sacramento International Airport. More pictures can be found here.)

Air Canada Dropping Sacramento to Vancouver Route

According to the Sacramento Bee, Air Canada will be dropping twice-daily flights between Sacramento and Vancouver effective October 25th. Citing record high fuel prices and a mild recession, the airline will slash overall U.S-Canada capacity by 13%. In addition to the Sacramento loss, the airline will cut seasonal flights between San Francisco and Montreal this fall.

Horizon Airlines To Debut San Jose to Sacramento flights

Horizon Airlines, a subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group announced it will launch once daily service between San Jose, CA and Sacramento beginning August 25th. No other airline currently offers this routing. United Airlines/Skywest comes closest, with several daily flights between Sacramento and its San Francisco hub.

The new Horizon flight will be operated by a 76-seater Q-400 turboprop plane. Tickets can be purchased beginning June 15th.

Southwest Adds Non-stop Sacramento to Denver Flights

Southwest Airlines announced the addition of a Sacramento to Denver route. Effective August 4th, the airline will add two daily non-stop flights. At present, travelers between these two cities have to connect in San Diego, Vegas or Phoenix. Introductory fares of $69 each way are currently available for purchase.

Several New Airline Routes & Destinations Begin This Summer

By Mike Grasso
Despite the recent pullback in the airline industry, new routes and destinations are being introduced throughout the Bay Area this summer. Although the airlines are thinning the total number of available seats in some markets by reducing plane size and limiting daily departures, they continue to expand in markets they deem profitable, either by anticipated market demand and/or government subsidies.

I've compiled a list of new routes, sorted by departure city, which will begin operating this summer, many in May and June alone. The list includes many exciting visits soon accessible from San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Sacramento, and Monterey Airports.

With these added destinations, now is the time to begin thinking about Summer vacation plans!

San Francisco to:

• Austin, TX - JetBlue
• Milwaukee, WI- AirTran (seasonal service)
• Victoria, BC- United Express
• Bellingham, WA- Allegiant Airlines
• Kalispell, MT- United Express (seasonal service)
• Missoula, MT- United Express (seasonal service)
• Zurich, CH- BelAir Airlines (charter/seasonal service)
• North Bend, OR- United Express
• Klamath Falls, OR- United Express
• Dubai, UAE- Emirates Airlines (Begins October 26)
  

San Jose to:

• Denver, CO- Southwest Airlines
• Long Beach, CA- JetBlue

Oakland to:

• Honolulu, HI- Hawaiian Airlines
• Austin, TX- Southwest
  

Sacramento to:

• Philadelphia, PA- U.S Airways
• Charlotte, NC- U.S Airways
  

Monterey to:

• Las Vegas, NV- Allegiant Airlines

$91 Airfare Sale: Bay Area to Southern California

United Airlines is offering some pretty decent airfares from the SF Bay Area to Los Angeles and San Diego. Travel is valid now through May and available most days of the week.
Examples of the sale:
San Francisco/San Jose/Oakland/Sacramento to Los Angeles $91.20, roundtrip, tax included.
San Francisco to San Diego $91.20, roundtrip, tax included.
Memorial Day Weekend to L.A prices out slightly higher - just $99 bucks "all in"

Fares are available for a limited time and at a limited quantity. Visit http://www.ual.com/

U.S Airways Adds Two Transcontinental Routes from Sacramento

Great News for travelers to and from Sacramento!
On Monday U.S Airways announced three new cross country flights beginning this summer. Of these, two are non-stop flights from Sacramento to U.S Air hubs in Philadelphia and Charlotte. This compliments existing service into hubs in Phoenix and Las Vegas, acquired from the America West merger.

“We are thrilled with the addition of these two great cities to our non-stop service here in Sacramento,” said G. Hardy Acree, director of airports for the Sacramento County Airport System. “We have a great working partnership with US Airways and we are confident that our travelers will embrace these two new flight opportunities.”

The new routes begin June 3rd, and will be operated by Airbus 320 aircraft.
Schedule:
Sacramento to Philadelphia - Departs 8:30am, arrives 4:31pm
Sacramento to Charlotte - Departs 10:30pm, arrives 6:10am

Hot Hot DING fares

It's been a while since we've seen some good Southwest Airlines Ding! fares, but now they're back! You must download the DING! program (free) onto your PC or MAC in order to see DING! fares. Purchase by 3pm Central Time Wednesday, for travel during certain days in March and April. Prices below are one way, before tax. Example fares:

Oakland-Los Angeles or Reno $38
Oakland-Spokane $51
Oakland-Austin $71
Sacramento-Seattle or Spokane $51
Sacramento-Las Vegas $55

More information on DING! can be found here.

Free Wi-Fi at airports throughout the world

Like most travelers, business travelers want a no hassle airport experience. Delays and cancellations are not only time consuming and bad for business, but also cause restlessness and frustration of the traveler. The introduction of Wi-Fi in airports meant travelers can remain fairly connected to the world and limit problems associated with travel related delays. But from the very introduction of Wi-Fi came a cost for the service.

Airports are wise to the needs of travelers and began offering wireless service to meet the needs of travelers. A 24-hour pass typically runs around $10, a small cost for a business that desires productive travelers. But there's a little known secret that many airports offer free Wi-Fi for travelers flying to/from or through. Although most of these free Wi-Fi spots in the United States are small and middle sized markets such as Las Vegas, Phoenix, Portland, Charlotte, Orlando and Sacramento, several mega cities throughout the world also offer the service at no charge.

A complete listing of cities offering free Wi-Fi cane be found at www.wififreespot.com

We've also tagged this site as a favorite and can be found on the left column of this site.

Southwest announces changes to Bay Area departures

Citing concerns of slowing economic growth, Southwest Airlines announced several route changes from airports around the SF Bay and nationwide. In all, the airline will trim a net 17 flights, while it focuses on higher yielding routes. The changes go into effect May 10th.

Losses:
Oakland - San Diego, Las Vegas, Ontario, Los Angeles, Burbank; 2 daily flights being axed on each route.

San Jose - Los Angeles and Ontario will loose a daily flight each.

Sacramento - Burbank, Los Angeles, Ontario, San Diego; loosing 1 flight each.

Gains:

Oakland - Austin service will be inaugurated with 1 daily non-stop.

San Francisco - San Diego; 2 extra daily flights to be added, for a total of 10.

San Jose- Denver; New 3 X daily non-stop service will begin

Sacramento to Santa Barbara now available Nonstop

ExpressJet Airlines began new service from Sacramento International Airport to Santa Barbara this month. Sacramento travelers can fly nonstop with ExpressJet to Albuquerque, Bakersfield, Colorado Springs, Spokane, Oklahoma City, Santa Barbara, Tucson and San Antonio.

ExpressJet Airlines aircraft are quiet, fuel-efficient and configured with no middle seat. Amenities include complimentary headseats and over 100 channels of XM Satellite Radio, along with "beer for a buck" on most flights. Visit http://www.xjet.com/