Shanghai Airlines

Shanghai Airlines Orders Boeing 767s: Boeing Co. said in Seattle that Shanghai Airlines had placed firm orders for five 767-300 wide-body jets, valued at about $450 million, to be delivered in the mid-1990s. Shanghai Airlines was launched in 1985 as China's first independent carrier. The airline operates eight 757-200s. It will use the new 263-passenger aircraft initially on heavily traveled routes to Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

For the first time since California-based Virgin America was launched, the airline backed by billionaire Richard Branson has reported an entire profitable year. For 2013, Virgin America's net income was $10.1 million, compared with a loss of $145.4 million in 2012, the airline reported Wednesday. The news comes about a month after sources reported that the airline plans to go public later this year. Virgin America Chief Executive David Cush has previously said he was waiting for the carrier to show a profit for several quarters before initiating a public listing.

For the first time since California-based Virgin America was launched, the airline backed by billionaire Richard Branson has reported an entire profitable year. For 2013, Virgin America's net income was $10.1 million, compared with a loss of $145.4 million in 2012, the airline reported Wednesday. The news comes about a month after sources reported that the airline plans to go public later this year. Virgin America Chief Executive David Cush has previously said he was waiting for the carrier to show a profit for several quarters before initiating a public listing.

More and more air travelers are buying expensive first-class and business-class seats, and airlines are coming up with some creative amenities to keep those big spenders happy. That includes scented pillows and chauffeur-driven SUVs. The number of passengers buying expensive premium seats jumped 4% in 2013 and continued to grow thanks to improved business conditions around the world, according to the International Air Transport Assn., the trade group for the world's airlines.

More and more air travelers are buying expensive first-class and business-class seats, and airlines are coming up with some creative amenities to keep those big spenders happy. That includes scented pillows and chauffeur-driven SUVs. The number of passengers buying expensive premium seats jumped 4% in 2013 and continued to grow thanks to improved business conditions around the world, according to the International Air Transport Assn., the trade group for the world's airlines.

The addition of airline bag fees several years ago created another travel annoyance: people who cram all of their travel necessities into carry-on bags to avoid the fees. United Airlines recently began a crackdown on those passengers. And it seems that many fliers agree with United. Nearly half of recent fliers who were questioned said they support United's crackdown, according to an online survey of more than 1,000 adults conducted by the London-based research company YouGov.

Travelers protested when airlines began charging bag fees in 2008, claiming the extra charge was a blatant money grab. But a new study concludes that the nation's airlines quietly lowered fares slightly to make the bag fees more palatable to those fliers who would get stuck paying the new charge. Still, the airlines are coming out ahead because the drop in fares was so small that it did not totally offset the added cost of checking a bag, the study found. “The fact that the airlines are doing it must mean they are coming out ahead,” said Jan Brueckner, an economics professor at UC Irvine who co-authored the study with other economics experts.

The merger of American Airlines and US Airways was unusual when it was proposed last year because it seemed to have the support of all the major employee unions involved. But one of the biggest unions for US Airways is threatening to strike, and the group now has the support of its union brothers from American Airlines. The International Assn. of Machinists and Aerospace Workers -- which represents about 14,000 US Airways machinists, mechanics and fleet service workers -- has been trying to negotiate a new contract with US Airways for more than two years.

Has the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight 370 nearly two weeks ago had an effect on travel to the Asian country? It depends on who you talk to. A German-based travel website says it has seen a 22% drop in searches among U.S. users for hotels in Malaysia since the flight disappeared. But Malaysian tourism officials say they have seen no significant drop in travel to the country. The Boeing 777, carrying 239 people, disappeared March 8, sparking a massive search across miles of open sea and theories that range from terrorism to alien abduction.

China confirmed the bulk of a large order for Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner, but the aircraft manufacturer was trying to determine why the 50-plane sale was 10 short of what the Chinese had announced earlier. Airlines involved in the deal are the national flag carrier Air China, Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Xiamen Airlines and Shanghai Airlines, the official New China News Agency reported. The deal with Chicago-based Boeing Co.

The addition of airline bag fees several years ago created another travel annoyance: people who cram all of their travel necessities into carry-on bags to avoid the fees. United Airlines recently began a crackdown on those passengers. And it seems that many fliers agree with United. Nearly half of recent fliers who were questioned said they support United's crackdown, according to an online survey of more than 1,000 adults conducted by the London-based research company YouGov.

Travelers protested when airlines began charging bag fees in 2008, claiming the extra charge was a blatant money grab. But a new study concludes that the nation's airlines quietly lowered fares slightly to make the bag fees more palatable to those fliers who would get stuck paying the new charge. Still, the airlines are coming out ahead because the drop in fares was so small that it did not totally offset the added cost of checking a bag, the study found. “The fact that the airlines are doing it must mean they are coming out ahead,” said Jan Brueckner, an economics professor at UC Irvine who co-authored the study with other economics experts.

Has the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight 370 nearly two weeks ago had an effect on travel to the Asian country? It depends on who you talk to. A German-based travel website says it has seen a 22% drop in searches among U.S. users for hotels in Malaysia since the flight disappeared. But Malaysian tourism officials say they have seen no significant drop in travel to the country. The Boeing 777, carrying 239 people, disappeared March 8, sparking a massive search across miles of open sea and theories that range from terrorism to alien abduction.

The merger of American Airlines and US Airways was unusual when it was proposed last year because it seemed to have the support of all the major employee unions involved. But one of the biggest unions for US Airways is threatening to strike, and the group now has the support of its union brothers from American Airlines. The International Assn. of Machinists and Aerospace Workers -- which represents about 14,000 US Airways machinists, mechanics and fleet service workers -- has been trying to negotiate a new contract with US Airways for more than two years.

Shanghai Airlines Orders Boeing 767s: Boeing Co. said in Seattle that Shanghai Airlines had placed firm orders for five 767-300 wide-body jets, valued at about $450 million, to be delivered in the mid-1990s. Shanghai Airlines was launched in 1985 as China's first independent carrier. The airline operates eight 757-200s. It will use the new 263-passenger aircraft initially on heavily traveled routes to Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

Four of the candidates vying to replace Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky will face off this evening in the first major debate of the campaign. Scheduled to participate are former Santa Monica Mayor Bobby Shriver, former state lawmaker Sheila Kuehl, West Hollywood Councilman John Duran and former Malibu Mayor Pamela Conley Ulich. Yaroslavsky, who is leaving office after two decades, represents neighborhoods with some of the county's highest voter participation rates -- a district stretching from Santa Monica and Beverly Hills into the San Fernando Valley.  The event, starting at 7:30 at UCLA, is jointly sponsored by the Greater Los Angeles chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists and radio station KCRW-FM (89.9)