(Source: stltoday.com)

Believe it or not, you had a better chance of reaching your flight destination on time last year than in 2007 because major airlines are cutting back their schedules.

Passengers flying in and out of Lambert-St. Louis International Airport benefited as well, according to annual numbers published this month by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Slightly more than 77 percent of inbound flights reached Lambert on time in 2008, compared to just under 75 percent in 2007. Nationally, about 76 percent of flights operated by the 19 largest airlines landed on time last year.

Slightly less than 70 percent of flights left St. Louis on time in both years — with a slight improvement in 2008.

Flight cancellations also dropped last year compared to 2007.

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(Source: CNN)

Airline: Please Turn On Cell Phones

Love it or hate it, the person next to you on your flight may be able to use their mobile phone. CNN’s Jim Boulden reports.

Source: Seattle Times

Boeing delivered the first freighter version of its 777 jet Thursday to Air France Cargo, and the airline said it is deferring deliveries of two of the five such freighters it has on order as it copes with the global economic downturn.

Air France Cargo picked up the keys Thursday for the first of a new breed of big, modern twin-engine cargo jets: the 777 freighter.

As French airline officials, Boeing executives and guests sipped Champagne and milled around the airplane at Paine Field, the second 777 freighter in the same colors took off on a test flight. It will be delivered next week.

But the celebratory air in Everett was marred by the widening global economic downturn. In an interview, Pierre Vellay, Air France executive vice president for fleet development, said the air-transport business is “in very bad shape.”

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(Obtained via Reuters)

GENEVA, Feb 19 (Reuters) – More than 500 people died in air crashes on Western-built jets in 2008 and safety lapses at airlines contributed to nearly a third of accidents, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said.

The toll of 502 was down from 2007, when 692 died, but the number of crashes rose slightly.

The 2008 industry-wide accident rate, measured in hull losses per million flights, was 0.81, or one accident every 1.2 million flights. This compared with 0.75 in 2007.

“Runway excursions”, when an aircraft left the runway on take-off or landing, accounted for one-quarter of accidents last year and ground damage was reported in another 17 percent, according to IATA on Thursday.