C
old weather disruptions are a real
pain and it’s a major annoyance
when you have unexpected delays
after a full day of meetings. In winter months,
when making your plane reservations, you must
factor in the weather. On days you may have
to deal with weather issues, you want to avoid
taking the first or last flight out because they
have the highest probability of being canceled.
When you have to travel for business in the
winter, consider a few of my insider secrets
before you decide on your itinerary.
THE AIRCRAFT YOU WANT
TO FLY IN WINTER
Some people may not realize how important
selecting the right aircraft is in your decision-
making when booking flights. If you’re flying
from a major airport to a small town, the
chances of a regional jet or prop plane
taking off in heavy weather are slim. The
big jets will take off deeper into a weather
event, while the smaller aircraft will either be
parked or repositioned to an area with sunny
skies. If you have a trip coming up and you’re
watching bad weather roll in, you will have
a better chance of flying if you’re booked
on one of the larger planes – Boeing 747s,
767s, 777s, Airbus 330s, 340s, 350s, and the
380. Or, simply rebook yourself to fly the day
before the weather is due to arrive.
AIRPORT OPERATIONS
As the seasons change throughout the
world, weather plays a critical role in airport
operations. When a major hub city has
weather issues, it will affect the airline’s entire
operation. Airlines start to make changes in
their operations in anticipation of a weather
event 24 to 48 hours in advance. The
airlines will notify their Travel Management
Company (TMC) partners first when
weather starts to affect their flights. They will
alert TMCs that waivers are being offered
that relax the rules on changing flights –
meaning, you don’t have to pay the change
fee to reschedule a trip. This time advantage
that airlines give to TMCs allows them to
move their customers immediately when
there are still seats available on their route.
The major airlines are likely to shut down
their operations quickly when a severe storm
is imminent. They want their own employees
to be able to get home safely using mass
transit. If a city decides to shut down its mass
transit systems due to weather emergency,
the airline is obligated to allow time for their
employees to get home. Another issue with
airport closures is that the airlines don’t want
to risk anything happening to their expensive
planes during extreme weather. The airline
will fly out empty planes to reposition them
to a warmer or non-impacted area to wait
out the storm. This will help bring the airline’s
operations back up and running faster than
if they’d left those planes on the tarmac
overnight. For example, if an airline’s planes
are in Florida and there’s snow in New York,
it’s easier to plow the runways when there are
no planes in the way. Clearing snow around
the gates is time-consuming. A weather
mess is easier to clean up when the planes
are elsewhere.
LONG-HAUL COMFORT
For those business trips that include a long-
haul flight to Europe or Asia, take the time
to consider the aircraft that serves your
destination. For maximum productivity when
you land, consider the Boeing 787, which
allows for more moisture in the cabin. The
aircraft is built with a composite material
(not metal) so it retains more moisture and
your eyes and sinuses don’t dry out in-flight.
Usually a major hub city for a certain
airline will offer a real variety in the choice
of jet you fly. If you’re on the east coast and
flying to Europe, you’ll likely find that the
airlines’ product offerings are vast. The key is
to fly newer, more ergonomic seats that have
more space to relax and work. For Business
Class passengers, a big consideration is
single aisle access so you don’t have to jump
over the person sleeping next to you. Choose
a seat far away from the galley, where there’s
too much noise and light, and the bathrooms,
for obvious reasons.
The A380 is the world’s largest passenger
plane and can be configured to offer a
luxurious First Class suite or Business Class
cabin. The only drawback is that if this huge
plane hits an operational snag, hundreds
of passengers will have to be rerouted.
If it happens to you, call your TMC when
you’re still on the plane so they can start to
rebook you.
AVOID DISASTER
At Travel Leaders Group, we track the
weather 24/7, watching everything from
snowstorms to typhoons. We always
have the radar up and our Revenue
Management team is constantly
evaluating weather issues. Once it’s
apparent that there is a weather event
coming to a certain city or region, we send
internal alerts to all of our travel advisors.
The advisor looks at their list of travelers
and makes a decision to proactively
contact them and say something like –
“You may have a delay, would you want
to leave earlier or later?”
We do our best to keep your business
trip on track by changing your itinerary
so you don’t board a flight that may be
canceled due to ice. And we watch out
for the seat assignment. If they won’t give
us a seat assignment for your new flight,
we know you won’t get on the plane. We
can track when a plane goes ‘no-op’ due
to a mechanical issue or a timed-out
pilot. Then, we’re switching your ticket
so you’re not waiting in a long line in the
terminal. My advice is that if you hear
an on-board announcement directing
passengers to deplane, call your travel
advisor immediately. The race will be on
for the few seats remaining on the next
flight. Don’t wait to deplane to start
rebooking! If the worst-case scenario hits
and bad weather grounds all the planes
and causes an airport to shut down, we
can usually beat the rush to get you a
room in the airport hotel.
Elevating the Art of Business Travel
11