One year on and Easyjet have announced the progress of AVOID (Airborne Volcanic Object Identifier and Detector) system and calls upon the aviation industry to work together to avoid further disruption in European airspace from future volcanic activity.

The budget carrier will be fitting the new equipment to 20 of it’s fleet and it is hoped it will radically change air travel, giving Easyjet the ability to navigate around future ash clouds without incurring risk.

The AVOID system is effectively a weather radar for ash. The system comprises of infrared technology fitted to aircraft to supply images to pilots and an airline’s flight control centre. These images will enable pilots to see an ash cloud up to 100 km ahead of the aircraft and at altitudes between 5,000ft and 50,000ft. This will allow pilots to make adjustments to the plane’s flight path to avoid any ash and therefore greatly reducing any future disruption to air travel.

The next phase of the project is to further test the equipment by flying close to volcanic ash. The testing is expected to take place over the next few months. In addition to the larger roll out of the AVOID system, Easyjet plans to have the AVOID equipment certified and ready to fit to one of its aircraft in the event should another volcano erupt in Europe. EasyJet believes that if 100 aircraft (20 of which would be EasyJet aircraft) across Europe were to be fitted with AVOID equipment, this would provide comprehensive coverage of the continent.

FirstGroup UK buses

The announcement of a £160m order for more than 955 buses over 2 years, comes as fuel prices across the UK hit an all time high and the British public begin to look to alternative modes of transport in order to keep costs down.

Research released today by FirstGroup will reveal whether rising fuel prices will force people out of their cars and on to public transport. With the average tank of petrol now costing £2, and continuing instability in Libya and the wider Middle East, public transport may become increasingly viable for more people as rocketing fuel prices make people think twice about using their cars.

The order includes an additional 200 buses for the London 2012 Olympics which will help transport the thousands of visitors expected to converge on the UK throughout the Games.

FirstGroup’s order includes 40 hybrid buses which have been funded with the help of the Government’s ‘Green Bus Fund’. These hybrid vehicles will be operating in Leeds, Manchester and Glasgow from 2012. Powered by a combination of batteries and conventional diesel, the new hybrid buses produce around 40% less carbon emissions. As well as being kinder to the environment the new state of the art buses are quieter than other vehicles and also more comfortable – with leather seating.

FirstGroup plc is the leading transport operator in the UK and North America with revenues of over £6 billion a year. It employs more than 130,000 staff and transports some 2.5 billion passengers a year. The Group is Britain’s largest bus operator running more than one in five of all local bus services. A fleet of some 8,500 buses carries approximately 3 million passengers a day in more than 40 major towns and cities. It also operates Greyhound UK providing regular services between London and the south coast and between Cardiff and Swansea.

Following a year that has tested the patience of both British Airways management, staff and passengers alike, the UKs number one airline have been in the news for some of the right reasons so far in 2011.

Most recently British Airways has announced a year long partnership with Comic Relief under the banner of Flying Start and with the help of the charity organisation the programme aims to transform lives of disadvantaged and vulnerable children both at home and abroad.

Together, British Airways and Comic Relief have created a year-round fundraising initiative, making it a truly unique partnership that will transform lives both at a local level and on a global scale.

In an attempt at gaining further publicity for the Flying Start project, British Airways will be hosting a stand up comedy performance with a difference, when comedians Dara O’Briain, Jack Whitehall and Jon Richardson will be teaming up with BA, Guinness World Records to set the record for the Highest Stand Up Comedy Gig in the World.

Seventy five lucky people will be aboard the plane to witness this unique event, two and a half hours of comedy entertainment including Champagne and refreshments all in the name of charity.

To be in with a chance of joining the select few, simply text ‘Fly1′ to 70300 or visit the British Airways Facebook page to register your entry. Full terms and conditions will also be found on the Facebook page.

Sponsored Post

The production line in the West Midlands has seen three generations of Range Rovers being produced at the factory over the last forty years.

To mark the occasion the £85,000 vehicle will be donated to the Help For Heroes charity that provides support for soldiers and their families who have been wounded or killed in action.

Land Rover Managing Director Phil Popham will drive the one millionth Range Rover to London to hand the car to Help for Heroes. He will be followed on the M40 by a convoy of historic previous-generation Range Rovers, driven by their enthusiastic owners.

The destination is the Top Gear Live set in Earls Court where Jeremy Clarkson – who is a Help for Heroes patron – and war veterans will take delivery of the land mark car on behalf of the charity. The Range Rover being donated is the highest-specification model currently available, and estimates suggest it will raise over £100,000 for charity when auctioned later this year.

From 2011 Eurostar will embark on a major programme of investment including a redesign and complete overhaul of the existing fleet and the purchase of 10 new trains.

The plans include investment in the e320 German built trains which are being built by Siemens and the latest developments include:

• The trains will be ‘interoperable’ allowing them to operate across the European high speed rail network, providing an increased number of direct services between London and a range of cities throughout Europe.
• Capable of 320kph, with the potential to cut journey times between London and Paris to just over two hours and London and Amsterdam to under 4 hours.
• 20% increase in capacity on the current fleet, providing capacity for 900 passengers.
• The most advanced wi-fi and on board ‘info-tainment’ on any train in Europe.

The Shogun was aimed squarely at company executives who had little interest in cars, but loved to have all the toys and gadgets that such a vehicle could offer.

The sad fact was that Mitsubishi could not make enough of these vehicles and other manufacturers began taking the Japanese offering very seriously, particularly when Mitsubishi shot itself in the foot by increasing the price for the later model.

Nowadays of course there is no better way to take little Johnny the half mile to school than in the safe confines of an enormous 4X4 and these lovely vehicles are often to be found parked half on the pavement half on the road blocking  school entrances around the country.

But hopefully the days of the gas guzzling utility vehicle will soon be over, if we were really as concerned about the planet as we make out to be there would be no market already.

It is another Japanese manufacturer who is making the headlines in 2010, at last we are being offered a vehicle, albeit not four wheel drive, but a vehicle none the less that can carry five adults and no matter how fast it is driven it will still record zero emissions.

The Nissan Leaf has been marketed as the world’s first mass produced, affordable, zero emission vehicle and interest in the car in Europe, has been strong, with 12,000 customers signing up for updates.

Government incentives make the Leaf an interesting proposition to anyone looking to renew their vehicle during the coming year, with first delivery in Europe expected in Portugal in January 2011.

Deliveries to the Republic of Ireland and the UK are scheduled for February and March 2011 respectively, with orders being taken in ROI staring from July 30th and in the UK from September 1st this year.

The US and Japanese markets have exceeded expectations with pre-orders of 23,000 vehicles since April, this high demand means that the car will now not be launched in the Netherlands until June 2011.

If you want to be one of the first in the UK to own this world first vehicle, there is only a few weeks to wait until orders from the UK will start being taken. Make sure to go compare car insurance before you make any commitment to order and don’t expect to be among the first cars delivered if you have not already registered with Nissan.

As outlined in Deloitte’s paper “2010 FIFA World Cup. A Turning Point for South Africa,” South Africa is reaping the rewards of hosting the Cup, including infrastructure improvements, an economic boost, and an increase of national pride.

“South Africa has been likened to a mix of the developed and developing world,” said Lwazi Bam, Public Sector Industry Leader, Deloitte Southern Africa. “On the one hand, a strong technological and economic base put it on a par with the well-developed nations of the world. On the other, infrastructure shortfalls have contributed to keeping it from realizing its full economic potential. This major global event is a catalyst for much-needed infrastructure improvements.”

The need to move tens of thousands of fans, teams, and accompanying supportpersonnel rapidly from one place to another prioritized the strengthening of South Africa’s transportation system.  The country completed much of the
first section of its new high speed Gautrain passenger railway and added bus lines.  Highways were upgraded and the city of Durban was able to finish the country’s first new green field airport in five decades.  These infrastructure projects have increased employment opportunities and provided workers long-term skills and training.

One of the challenges in building the infrastructure for the event was generating power without an unduly adverse environmental impact. New stadium facilities include such environmentally-friendly features as natural ventilation and rain water capture systems.

In addition, host cities have undertaken large-scale tree-planting projects in an effort to soak up excess carbon dioxide.  As a coal-dependent economy, South African faces challenges; however, these steps move the country toward greener energy sources.

To ensure security, the minister of police has consulted with officials from more than 30 different countries whose nationals are in the country, resulting in an unprecedented level of international cooperation.

Seeking to balance a welcoming atmosphere with rigorous security standards, 40,000 police officers, 25 percent of the country’s total force, have been assigned to the Cup.  All of these activities have required a renewed spirit of cooperation between national and local agencies and departments.

Greg Pellegrino, Global Public Sector Industry Leader, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, said;

“South Africa has already realized many of the benefits hoped for by any national host of a major international sporting event. The event has provided a boost to national infrastructure improvements, increased employment during the global financial crisis, and provided a unifying rallying point for a still-developing nation. Moving the FIFA World Cup from a developed economy such as Germany, to an emerging economy such as South Africa, and to a continent that has never hosted the Cup, creates an important precedent for future hosts such as Brazil in 2014,”

The initial launch markets in Europe include the UK, along with Portugal, Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland, with all four countries offering government incentives to buyers of the eco friendly vehicle.

The price of purchasing the Nissan LEAF in the UK will be £23,350 after government incentives, putting the vehicle around the same area price wise as a similarly equipped diesel or hybrid vehicle.

The price before incentives is £28,350, and is subject to a recent UK government announcement that it would refund 25% of the purchase price of an all electric vehicle up to a ceiling of £5,000.

Further savings for UK customers will come in the form of zero vehicle excise duty and zero company car tax for five years. This is on top of the significant savings on fuel costs over a conventional engined vehicle, for average mileage motorists this would equate to just over £500 annually.

There are similar incentives available through all of the four initial European launch countries.

The Nissan LEAF is a compact, zero-emission five-passenger family car that comes fully equipped with features such as air conditioning, satellite navigation, a parking camera, a quick charge socket and innovative smart-phone connectivity.

Nissan has decided to launch in these countries first due to significant government incentives for electric cars, and the ongoing development of charging infrastructure for their successful adoption. By the end of next year, Nissan LEAF will be available in every major Western European country.

The high-speed rail company has become Official International Rail Services Provider and will be providing London 2012 with arrival and departure services at St Pancras International for those competing and working at the Games who are travelling to London on its trains.

It will also provide international rail services for London 2012’s operational requirements. Outside of its sponsorship with LOCOG, Eurostar will naturally be carrying many spectators from main land Europe to and from the Games in 2012 itself.

The cross-Channel rail operator has also acquired rights in France and Belgium and become a partner of the French and Belgian National Olympic Committees. As part of these deals, the French and Belgian Olympic teams will travel to and from the Games using Eurostar services.

As part of its sponsorship of the London 2012 Games, Eurostar will be conducting a number of activations across the UK, France and Belgium to promote London 2012 as a truly sustainable Games.

The first main Eurostar activation is the Tri-City-Athlon planned for 14 September 2010 which takes places across the three capital cities that Eurostar serves. Over one day participants will do a swim in Paris, a cycle in Brussels and a run in London.

Three former British Airways employees and one current employee had been charged with colluding with Virgin Atlantic to fix fuel  surcharge prices between 2004 and 2006.

The court heard on Monday that the Office of Fair Trading had failed to disclose key information to the defence, including an e mail that suggested that Virgin Atlantic had increased its fuel surcharge without consulting BA during the period in question, ending any speculation that the two companies had colluded.

William Boyce QC, defending one BA executive, said that had this e-mail come to light earlier, the case may never have come to court.

What a waste of time and money!