Airberlin Bankrupt : Etihad Airways Issues A Statement. Flights Will Continue On Current Schedule.

Air Berlin, Germany’s second-largest carrier, has filed for bankruptcy today. This came after Etihad Airways announced all financial support.

The airline, which has accumulated debt for almost a decade, reported a record loss of 782m euros in 2016.

Flights will continue to operate thanks to a transitional loan of 150m euros from the German government.

It means: All flights from airberlin and NIKI are operating and the current flight schedule as well as booked flights are valid. airberlin and NIKI are continuing to accept future bookings.

Negotiations between airberlin and Lufthansa among others are continuing and are expected to finalize.

Air Berlin CEO Thomas Winkelmann said: “We’re working hard on this situation to do what is the best for the company, our clients.

 In the meantime UAE based Etihad Airways issued a statement:

“We have been informed that airberlin has filed for administration.

“This development is extremely disappointing for all parties, especially as Etihad has provided extensive support to airberlin for its previous liquidity challenges and restructuring efforts over the past six years.

“In April this year, Etihad provided EUR 250 million of additional funding to airberlin as well as supporting the airline to explore strategic options for the business. However, airberlin’s business has deteriorated at an unprecedented pace, preventing it from overcoming its significant challenges and from implementing alternative strategic solutions.

“Under these circumstances, as a minority shareholder, Etihad cannot offer funding that would further increase our financial exposure. We remain open to helping find a commercially viable solution for all parties.

“We expect airberlin operations to continue during administration. We have a commercial relationship with airberlin across a range of areas, including codeshare operations, and we will support airberlin’s management during these difficult times.

“Germany is an important market for Etihad and Abu Dhabi, and we remain committed to providing comprehensive air links as a key enabler of trade and tourism.

Europe Is At Your Doorstep With Airberlin’s “Discover Europe Special” With Rates At Low As $599 Round Trip Including All Fees

“Discover Europe”: With airberlin’s special promotion starting September 17^th valid through September 21^st, flights to Europe can be booked from $599 including all fees and taxes for a roundtrip ticket. Flights are available from November 1^st, 2015 till March 18^th, 2016 and depart from airberlin’s U.S. gateways Chicago, Fort Myers, Miami and New York to various cities in Europe within the airberlin network.

airberlin operates to premier cities throughout Europe that include Berlin, Budapest, Krakow, Milan, Oslo and Zurich just to name a few. The sale can be booked online at airberlin.com, through the airline’s service center at 1-866-266-5588 or through your travel agent. In addition, as a member of oneworld^® travelers will be able to accrue and redeem mileage with any airberlin oneworld partner such as American Airlines. Certain rules and restrictions apply which can be viewed on airberlin.com.

Travelers will enjoy European style service on board that includes cold and hot meals in addition to complimentary beverage service throughout the flight in both economy and business class. On demand entertainment system provides more than 200 hours of continuous movies, television programs, and more to make the hours fly by.  

For more information visit airberlin.com.

About airberlin

airberlin is one of the leading airlines in Europe and flies to 138 destinations worldwide each year. The second largest airline in Germany carried more than 31.7 million passengers in 2014. airberlin offers a global route network through its strategic partnership with Etihad Airways, which has a 29.21% share in airberlin, and through membership of the oneworld^® airline alliance. topbonus, the frequent flyer program of airberlin is one of the leading programs in Europe with more than 3.8 million members. The airline with the award-winning service operates codeshare flights worldwide with 22 airlines. The fleet is among the most modern and eco-efficient in Europe. Together with other airlines, airberlin belongs to Etihad Airways Partners, a new brand with which Etihad has been uniting shared activities since the end of 2014.

Fly In Comfort And Style With Airberlin’s Business Class Sale, As Low As $2,100 Including Taxes From The U.S. To Europe

Now through November 17th, 2014 book special business class fares starting from as low as $2,130 based on roundtrip travel including all taxes from New York to Copenhagen with airberlin, Germany’s second largest airline for travel from December 15th through January 7th, 2015. Other special business class fares offered are from Chicago to Vienna from $2,697 and from Miami to Moscow from $2,277.Additional cities offered include; Budapest, Oslo, St. Petersburg and Zurich.

Guests on board will experience European style service with a choice of gourmet meals, a vast selection of wines and spirits and delicious snacks and aperitifs. Refresh before landing with amenity kits featuring products for example from L’Occitane and Institute Karites and the hours will fly by with a state of the art entertainment system featuring over 200 hours of movies, television programs, musical performances and much more. Sit back and relax on Fullflat seats with massage function, slip on your personal pair of in-flight slippers and get ready for a good flights sleep on airberlin’s newly refurbished business class cabins with direct aisle access from every seat. 

To book visit airberlin.com, contact the call center at 1-866-266-5588 or your travel agent. 

*Sample fares are based on round trip travel and prices vary depending on dates of travel and final destinations.  Fares quoted are in US dollars.  Fares may not be available on all flights and dates. Other restrictions may apply.  

airberlin is one of the leading airline companies in Europe, flying to 171 destinations worldwide every year.
The second largest airline in Germany transported more than 31.5 million passengers in 2013. airberlin has a global route network by virtue of its strategic partnership with Etihad Airways, which has a 29.21 per cent stake in airberlin, and membership of the airline alliance oneworld^®, Along with 19 airlines, airberlin, an airline that offers award-winning service, provides flights across the globe that have a shared flight number. The fleet has an average age of five years and ranks among the most recent and most eco-efficient in Europe.

Air Berlin Offers Sightseeing Flights Over Berlin: 25 Years Of The Fall Of The Berlin Wall

airberlin celebrates 25 years of the fall of the Berlin Wall with special flights over Berlin

- Three sightseeing flights on 8 November over Berlin at a flying altitude of just 1,000 metres
- airberlin is the official international carrier of the celebrations and is transporting a total of 36,000 passengers to the capital city on the anniversary weekend
- Artist Thierry Noir is painting sections of the Wall for airberlin

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, airberlin is offering three sightseeing flights over Berlin during the evening of 8 November, tracing the course of the former Wall. The flights are being conducted using a Bombardier Dash Q400 with a seating capacity of 76 and will take of between 5.30 p.m. and 8.30 p.m. from Berlin-Tegel Airport. They are accorded flight numbers AB1989, AB1990 and AB1991, thus evoking the year of the fall of the Wall, the year of reunification, and the year of the relaunch of airberlin as a German airline following the watershed events. From the particularly low flying altitude of approximately 1,000 metres, the special flight passengers will be able to view the 15-kilometre-long "illuminated border" made up of 8,000 luminous balloons stretching from Bornholmer Strasse to the Oberbaum Bridge. The light installation will illuminate a section of the former course of the Wall from 7 to 9 November. An experienced city guide will accompany the special flights and narrate the history of the divided city of Berlin.

Airberlin Offering Europe Specials For Travel In Fall And Winter As Low As $699 From U.S. To Europe Inclusive Of Taxes And Surcharges

   

airberlin is offering special fares for travel to Europe starting now through September 16^th, 2014, for travel as of October 27^th through selected dates ending on March 25^th, 2015. Fares start as low as $699 including taxes and surcharges from New York (JFK) to Copenhagen or Moscow. From as low as $949 travelers can fly from New York to any city airberlin operates to in Germany. This special offer also includes departure cities Chicago and Miami with fares starting as low as $749 from Chicago and $849 from Miami to many premier destinations throughout Europe such as Helsinki, Krakow, Oslo and Warsaw just to name a few.

Flight guests will enjoy airberlin’s in-flight service featuring a selection of a free meal and beverage service throughout the flight, on-demand entertainment systems and much more. And as a member of oneworld^® airline alliance guests can take advantage of redeeming and accruing miles with any oneworld member airline.

To book this sale visit airberlin.com, contact the airline’s call center at 1-866-266-5588 or a travel agent.

airberlin is one of the leading airlines in Europe and flies to 171 destinations worldwide each year. The second largest airline in Germany carried more than 31.5 million passengers in 2013. airberlin offers a global route network through its strategic partnership with Etihad Airways, which has a 29.21% share in airberlin, and through membership of the oneworld airline alliance. The airline with the award-winning service operates codeshare flights worldwide with
18 airlines. The fleet has an average age of five years and is among the most modern and eco-efficient in Europe.

Oktoberfest 2014 Guide, Everything You Need To Know For Your Visit To Munich Between September 20th And October 5th

The Oktoberfest takes place in Munich between September 20 and October 5. Find out about the festival, booking hotels, tickets, locations and transport here

Visiting Oktoberfest this year? Here is our guide. Photo: Joerg Koch/Getty Images

The Munich Oktoberfest justly lays claim to being the largest of its kind in the world and the figures seem to back this up – last year more than six million people attended, between them consuming 6.7 million litres of beer and eating more than 114 oxen. The festival - which spans just over two weeks - is held annually in a meadow just outside Munich’s city centre. In addition to eating, drinking and dancing, visitors can enjoy colourful parades, a variety of fairground rides – and for those not themselves in traditional Bavarian gear, admire those that are, especially the more finely honed examples.

Its fame and popularity means that the Oktoberfest is a huge crowd-puller and as a rule accommodation and transport have to be booked well in advance. That said, it is still possible to plan a trip quite close to the time. Here’s a guide to how the Oktoberfest started, what exactly it entails and how best to plan a visit.

Oktoberfest guide

Just when does the Oktoberfest take place?

Although the festival concludes in October, most of it takes place in September. This year’s dates are September 20-October 5.

How did it start?

The original Oktoberfest in October 1810 was held in honor of the wedding between Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen, For five full days, the burghers of Munich were invited to eat, drink and be merry, and enjoy parades involving kettle drums and music, shooting displays and a horse race around a meadow on the edge of town. Such a good time was had by all that it was decided to stage the race (and the accompanying indulgence) again the following year, and then the next and the next. There has been the occasional pause in proceedings (usually at times of war), but this year will mark the 181st time the Oktoberfest is being held

Where is it held?

The main Oktoberfest is held on the original meadow, named, in honour of Ludwig’s bride, the Theresienwiese (shortened to the “Wiesn”), a short tram ride from the centre of Munich.

Munich's best beer gardens

The grand parade

The opening day of the festival is marked by a colorful parade of carriages, floats and people in a variety of costumes winding its way through the streets of Munich. The Costume und Riflemen's Procession takes place on the first Sunday of the Oktoberfest; a week later there's the open-air big band concert. Full programme here.

Is it really held in tents?

The structure erected to keep Ludwig and Therese out of the sun in 1810 may well have been a tent, but the vast ones used today are much more solid affairs with colourful façades, long wooden tables and benches, and frequently on more than one level. Some can hold up to 10,000 visitors.

German tourists: 'arrogant, boring and nude'

Best time to go?

General hours are 10.00am to 10.30pm (from 9am on Saturdays and Sundays). It is pretty packed at weekends; many locals prefer to pop in during the week. Full timings here.

Do I have to dress up?

Lederhosen for men and Dirndl (traditional Bavarian dress with full skirt, apron and tight bodice) for women are compulsory. Not really – but it’s nice to see so many Bavarians making the effort. If you want to join in, there are several shops in town specialising in such gear.

^{Lederhosen and Dirndl are not compulsory}

Isn't it full of drunken Australians and Brits?

No. While there is undoubtedly an Antipodean contingent (and indeed plenty of Britons), most tend to be found at the Hofbräu tent. The overwhelming majority of visitors are from Bavaria itself (about 70 per cent), or other parts of Germany (15 per cent).

Eleven reasons to go to Germany

So which tent should I aim for?

To get a more rounded feel of the event, try some of the other tents (there are 14 in total): try the the Hackerbräu (decked out in Bavarian blue and white) and the Winzerer Fähndl (complete with beer garden). The Augustiner Festhalle is more moderately paced and popular with families, particularly on Tuesdays. The largest tent is the 10,000-seater Schottenhamel, where the first beer of the season is poured to rapturous applause and cheering. The smallest is the Glöckle Wirt, has room for just 98 people, and its walls are lined with traditional instruments, cooking utensils and paintings.

Do I need to book a place in a tent?

It is advisable, particularly at the more popular ones - and best to apply to them directly (oktoberfest.de/en/navitem/Beer+Tents/). Failing that turn up in good time and stake a claim at one of the unclaimed wooden benches to be found in most of them.

^{The only beer served comes from Munich breweries}

Beer necessities

The only beer served comes from Munich breweries such as the Augustiner, Paulaner and Spaten. The most popular variation is the lager-like Helles. And there are no half measures: beer is served in one-litre glasses (ein Maß), several of which are typically carried at one time by buxom barmaids. The cost of a litre (ein Maß) will this year for the first time in some of the tents rise above the €10 (£8) mark – but you don’t need that many. If you want to pace yourself, ask for a Radler (beer with lemonade).

And to soak it up?

Typically, half a roasted chicken with a giant-sized pretzel. Additionally, Bratwurst (sausages), knuckles of pork, freshly smoked fish and lots of colourful gingerbread creations. Earlybirds may like to try an authenic Bavarian breakfast – Weisswurst (veal sausages served with a sweet mustard), on offer at the Kalbsbraterei (see What's new for Oktoberfest 2014? below).

What if I don’t like beer?

If you don’t like drinking beer the Oktoberfest is perhaps not the ideal place for you. That said, the Weinzelt (wine tent) is where you can choose from more than 15 different wines (and there are some excellent ones in Germany, especially from Franconia) in addition to different types of Sekt (sparkling wine) and champagne. Bodo’s Cafe tent is where you can find all manner of cakes and pastries (including strudel) to go with your coffee or, if it’s that time of day, cocktail.

Is there anything apart from eating and drinking?

Believe it or not, the Oktoberfest is also aimed at families – with lots of fairground attractions such as merry-go-rounds, the Olympia Loop ride, a Star Flyer, candyfloss stalls and shooting galleries. Most tents offer traditional Bavarian music (accompanying thigh-slapping is voluntary) and some, such as Bodo’s (see above) offer live band entertainment. Of course Munich itself has a welter of attractions – first-rate museums and galleries, a beautiful town hall, a skyline full of spires and domes, great shopping and nightlife, the beautiful Englischer Garten – oh, and, of course, in Bayern Munich, the football club from which came half of Germany’s winning World Cup team.

Fairground attractions are big at Oktoberfest

Sprechen Sie Bayerisch?

Bavarian (or Bayerisch) is a language all unto itself. But here are a couple of terms you might find useful: O’zapft is! (“It is tapped” – the phrase uttered by Munich’s mayor to mark the opening of the first beer barrel and the commencement of the drinking), Oans–zwoa-drei-gsuffa (“One, two, three, bottoms up!”) and I mog di (“I like/love you”). For more, see: oktoberfest.de/en/lexikon/

What's new for Oktoberfest 2014?

Although there will still be 14 tents, there will be two newcomers: the Marstall (successor to the Hippodrom), which will have a horsey theme and seating for up to 3,500 inside and 900 in the garden outside. The other newcomer is the Kalbsbraterei tent. The emphasis here will will be on adding a gourmet food element to the beer-drinking experience, with roasted veal dishes a particular speciality. In the fairground, the “Encounter” ride will transport visitors into the worlds of science-fiction and suspense, while the “Big Bamboo” zone will have a Caribbean feel.

Getting there

Independently

Several airlines including easyJet, British Airways, air Berlin and Lufthansa fly to Munich direct. For best fares try flight comparison websites momondo.com, skyscanner.net, kayak.co.uk andtravelsupermarket.com. Once there, many hotels will be full and those that aren’t will be charging heftily. Alternatively, try the popular accommodation websites booking.com and airbnb.com for plenty of options over the festival period.

The package

Fred Holidays (0808 274 5685; fredholidays.co.uk) has a two-night trip to Munich for the festival from September 29-October 1 from £489 per person. Includes flights from London Gatwick to Munich and two nights at the four-star Leonardo Royal Hotel (room only; two sharing).

Further information

For more information, oktoberfest.eu is the festival's official website (click on 'International' top right for English language version), complete with handy Wiesn map. Another useful site is oktoberfest.de, source of a welter of information on activities surrounding the period, how best to enjoy it and key numbers to call should you need help. The German National Tourist Office (germany-tourism.de) and Munich Tourist Office (muenchen-tourist.de) also provide useful steers.

By Adrian Bridge, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/
Follow us on Twitter: @TraveloreReport

The Best And Worst Airlines For Spending Frequent-Flier Points

Airlines Loosen Their Grip on Free Seats, but Biggest U.S. Carriers Trail International Rivals

A new survey from IdeaWorks ranked the world's 25 largest frequent-flier programs. Who came out on top? WSJ 'Middle Seat' columnist Scott McCartney discusses the results on Lunch Break. Photo: Getty Images.

It may not help you score a free ticket to Paris in July, but many airlines have started making it a bit easier for consumers to use frequent-flier miles for trips.

An annual survey found greater availability of award tickets at the lowest "saver" levels at more than half of the 25 airlines surveyed around the world.

"There's been a meaningful lift," said Jay Sorensen, president of Wisconsin-based consulting firm IdeaWorks, which conducts the annual survey. "Traditionally airlines cut back on award seats as they enter [financial] recovery because they can sell more seats for cash. But that's not happening this time."

Delta Air Lines  had one of the biggest changes. Delta has perennially ranked at the bottom of the five-year-old ranking.

The data show Delta has started to make small improvements. In this year's survey, Delta had two tickets available at the saver level on 55% of the 280 queries made, up from 36% last year. That put Delta on par with American Airlines. Both still trail Alaska, United, JetBlue  and Southwest among U.S. carriers.

Delta says on Jan. 1 it started to slowly change award seat allocations, telling inventory managers to be less tightfisted with saver-level seats. If flights aren't selling as well as planned, Delta says it now allocates more frequent-flier award seats rather than holding out longer for low-fare ticket purchases.

"We are taking a slightly less conservative approach in how we manage flights far out," said Delta Vice President Jeff Robertson, who said lack of award availability was Delta's top customer gripe. The airline has bigger changes coming for its program.

The survey, sponsored by technology company Switchfly Inc., checks online for two seats at the lowest possible mileage level on the busiest routes for each airline. That tends to be a coach ticket for 25,000 miles on U.S. domestic trips. The survey checked travel dates between June and October 2014 on 10 medium-length routes under 2,500 miles, plus 10 long-haul routes, a total of 280 queries for each airline.

By using each airline's busiest routes, the survey checks where airlines have the most seats to offer and where travelers most often fly. Savvy travelers know an experienced phone agent can help find award seats that might not show up on the airline's website, but this survey represents a more standard search.

Air Berlin and Southwest Airlines  had seats available on every query made in the survey, ranking them at the top for the third year in a row. JetBlue improved its availability a bit and had seats available for 93% of the requests.

Southwest has some natural advantages. Its short-haul, high-frequency network means that on its busiest routes, it may have a dozen flights a day or more. "If they can't find two seats, something is wrong," Mr. Sorensen said.

In addition, Southwest moved to a point-based system several years ago. Every flight is shown with a cash price and a point-based price. Since Southwest's credit card offers one point for every dollar spent, just like other airlines, IdeaWorks looks for trips on Southwest at 25,000 points or lower.

At the bottom of the rankings were US Airways and Avianca  Taca of Latin America. US Airways, with seats available on only 35% of queries, has consistently found itself around the bottom of the rankings, showing "a management philosophy toward stinginess" on frequent-flier awards, Mr. Sorensen said.

United

United boasts of seat availability in its advertising, but suffered a decline this year. Long-haul routes bore the brunt, with an 11% drop in award-seat availability. United said it hasn't changed how it allocates award seats, but thinks demand this year may be higher than last year, so more free seats have already been grabbed.

American

For several years US Airways has been the stingiest with free trips at the lowest mileage level. This year IdeaWorks found US Airways was the most expensive of North American carriers, at an average of 31,082 miles per round-trip ticket for trips under 2,500 miles. Most of the new leadership at American Airlines comes from US Airways as the two carriers merge. Will the stinginess carry over?

Delta

Out of the cellar, Delta says it began offering more award seats on Jan. 1 and will continue loosening up a tight grip on availability. So far, most of the improvement has come on domestic routes, IdeaWorks found.

Now those US Airways executives comprise most of the senior management team after the carrier's merger with American Airlines. Regular travelers on the airline may wonder if American will make it more difficult to get seats at saver-mileage levels after the US Airways and American frequent-flier programs merge.

A spokesman for American said as the two airlines merge frequent-flier programs, "we will offer a loyalty program that supports and reflects our industry-leading position."

Airlines have been under intense pressure from customers, accountants and banks to make more seats available for awards so consumers can use their miles. It's the accounting rule changes and pressure from banks that seem to be driving the most change now.

The majority of airline miles and points are sold to banks, which give them out as credit card rewards. When customers have a difficult time cashing in the miles, they may switch to other cards. In addition, accounting rules adopted by many airlines now let carriers record only a portion of revenue when miles are sold to banks and defer the rest until miles are redeemed.

Airline executives admit that Mr. Sorensen's five-year-old availability survey has also had an impact, quantifying seats available for the first time and comparing airlines head-to-head. United began advertising its strong showing last year; Delta says its low ranking prompted internal debate that pushed changes.

Many customers still aren't happy. Bob Anderson of Minneapolis boosted his mileage by getting a new American Express  credit card that offered a sign-up bonus in Delta miles. In January, he shopped for two seats to Acapulco, Mexico, telling Delta he'd take any flight any day in January, February or March. Nothing was available. When he complained in writing, Delta responded by urging him to be more flexible.

"I can't redeem them," Mr. Anderson said.

Delta announced a dramatic change in its SkyMiles program in February. Beginning in 2015, miles will be awarded based on the fare paid, not distance traveled, with hefty bonuses for elite-level status. As part of the changes, Delta promised to make more award seats available. Mr. Robertson said the airline wanted to ramp up availability over the course of 2014. Delta also plans to roll out enhanced search capabilities for awards on its website.

"I think customers will really see us start walking the talk over the next six to eight months," Mr. Robertson said. Most of the improvement at Delta came on domestic trips, IdeaWorks noted, rather than long-haul international flights.

Turkish Airlines posted the biggest turnaround in the IdeaWorks survey. It has used athletes Kobe Bryant, seated left, and Lionel Messi, seated right, in a high-profile U.S. ad campaign. Turkish Airlines

Turkish Airlines  saw the biggest turnaround. The carrier is pushing hard to expand, including new flights from North America. Turkish has employed star athletes Kobe Bryant and Lionel Messi in its advertising and promised more award seats after acknowledging in a news release that its frequent-flier program needed an upgrade. The airline plans to make more award seats available starting June 1.

Mr. Sorensen notes that airlines like United and Air France,  both of which are trailing competitors' profitability and both of which had declines in reward availability this year, sometimes reduce availability of reward seats to get more paying customers instead.

A spokesman for United said the airline's strategy on frequent-flier awards this year is consistent with past years. The decline in 2014 "may simply be the result of the change in booking demand in March of this year versus March of 2013." Air France didn't answer a request for comment.

Airberlin Offers Special Deals For Travel To Europe This Winter

Travel to Europe is more affordable this winter with airberlin, Germany’s second largest airline. Starting on December 9^th through December 16^th airberlin is offering an early booking sale with fares starting as low as $599 from New York to Budapest, Milan or Oslo via airberlin’ s hubs in Berlin or Dusseldorf . Also included in this special offer for example are fares from Chicago to Helsinki, Krakow or Warsaw from $759, from Miami to Helsinki, St. Petersburg or Zurich for $799 or from Fort Myers to Copenhagen, Dusseldorf or Milan for $859. Other destinations and city pairs are also included at slightly higher fares. The sale is valid for travel periods from January 6^th through March 30^th, 2014.  

Give a gift that will create lifetime memories this holiday season and book your loved ones a trip to Europe. airberlin provides its guests with European style service on board one of the youngest fleets in the air today and as a member of the award winning airline alliance oneworld^® you and your loved ones can accrue and redeem mileage with any airberlin oneworld partner.

To book visit airberlin.com, contact your travel agent or the service center at 866-266-5588.

airberlin is one of the leading airlines in Europe and flies to 147 destinations worldwide. The second largest airline in Germany carried more than 33 million passengers in 2012. airberlin offers a global route network through its strategic partnership with Etihad Airways, which has a 29.21% share in airberlin, and through membership of the oneworld airline alliance. The airline with the award-winning service operates codeshare flights worldwide with
16 airlines. The fleet has an average age of five years and is among the most modern and eco-efficient in Europe