San Francisco airport may add hotel in international terminal

— -- Travelers in Europe and Asia are familiar with hotels in airport terminals, but the trend has been slow to take off at U.S. airports, where non-aviation real estate is mostly dedicated to shops and restaurants.

Now San Francisco International says it'll explore the idea by possibly building a new sleeping facility in the international terminal. It has issued a request for proposals from vendors that specialize in small sleeping units, similar to pods found in Japan or hourly rental capsules in Europe.

Targeted at international passengers with ample layover time, the airport's proposal calls for a 900-square-foot facility with units offering a work surface and electrical outlets. Officials hope to open the hotel by January 2010.

Europe's Yotel chain operates capsule hotels at London's Gatwick and Heathrow airports and AmsterdamSchiphol.

Seattle-Tacoma International

is turning to local resources to help combat laser-pointing at aircraft, an illegal and potentially hazardous prank.

Port of Seattle Police Department has partnered with local citizen group Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound and a local TV show to aid the investigation into finding those responsible for pointing lasers at aircraft. Since Feb. 26, at least 30 arriving aircraft have been targeted with lasers, including 14 in one half-hour period. The red and green lasers can temporarily blind pilots.

Crime Stoppers will offer a reward for information that leads to an arrest, and the investigation has been highlighted on a recent segment of Washington's Most Wanted. Punishment for pointing a laser at an aircraft is up to five years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine.

The average domestic airfare

in the fourth quarter of 2008 was $347, the highest for any October-December period on record, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

Fares generally rise in the winter from the third quarter due to holiday travelers. But with the economy slowing rapidly in the fall of 2008, fares in the fourth quarter actually fell 3.7% from the record average fare of $360 in the July-to-September period.

Cincinnati, a Delta hub, continued to report the highest average fare at $554, followed by Grand Rapids, Mich. ($459), and Knoxville, Tenn. ($447). The averages include round-trip fares and one-way tickets purchased without the return.

Not surprisingly, the lowest fares were reported by airports with a heavy discount carrier presence, such as Dallas Love Field ($241), Long Beach ($254) and Las Vegas ($261).

France has joined

other European Union countries in waiving the requirement for air travelers who have already been screened at another European airport to be screened a second time when making flight connections.

The so-called One-Stop Security, already allowed in the majority of EU countries, will be rolled out at French airports throughout 2009, says the International Air Transport Association.

IATA estimates that this will affect 6 million passengers and save $30 million a year. "It is a waste of time, effort and resources to ask passengers to stand again at security if they have already been checked by a competent screening authority a few hours earlier," says IATA's CEO Giovanni Bisignani, in a statement.

The United Kingdom and Ireland have yet to join the pact.

ROUTE NEWS

Alaska adds flights to Hawaii

Alaska Airlines

is expanding service to Hawaii from the West Coast. Beginning Nov. 9, it will start four-times-weekly service between Oakland and Kahului, Hawaii, on the island of Maui. It will begin thrice-weekly service between Oakland and Kona, on the Big Island of Hawaii, starting Nov. 10.

The airline will also expand its Seattle-Honolulu schedule from one daily flight to two, beginning July 2. The start of its Portland-Maui service will be moved up to July 3 from Aug. 7.

Alaska will also

start non-stop daily service between Seattle and Houston, beginning Sept. 23. Its new Seattle-Atlanta service will start Oct. 23.

On May 5,

AirTran launched new daily service between Milwaukee and Minneapolis-St. Paul.