Uh oh. It looks like Richard Branson’s foray into the African airline market is coming to an end. Virgin Nigeria will no longer be using the Virgin name, and Branson’s affiliation with the airline will be ending. Now, other than chaste Nigerians, the only virgins in the country will be a daily Virgin Atlantic Airbus from London.

The end of this relationship just shows how hard it can be to do business in Africa. Virgin Group’s relationship with Nigeria swayed with the changing winds of power. Under one regime, all was good yet under the next it became a nightmare. And the airline itself has been far from a beacon of stability.

In its short life, Virgin Nigeria has flown only 18 airplanes. So you might be surprised to know that those 18 airplanes have been split between A320s, A330s, A340s, ATR 42s, 737s, 767s, Embraer 190s, and Fokker 50s. Originally, they planned on serving domestic, regional, and long haul routes. But now, they’ve given up on long haul entirely and they’ve decided to center their fleet around the Embraers for regional routes. We’ll see if they even stick to this fleet long enough to take delivery of all of them.

It’s not really a surprise that Branson would be frustrated. What was once a promising partnership will now be dissolved, as soon as Virgin can sell its stake. Meanwhile, the airline will continue to operate but under a new Virgin-free name.

Anyone been paying attention to Midwest Airlines lately? It’s certainly understandable if you haven’t. They’ve spent the last few years shrinking into oblivion, but there actually have been some changes recently that are worth noting. It now seems quite likely that Midwest will stop flying any airplanes of its own, and that, I believe, would make them the first to actually convert from an operating carrier to simply a marketing carrier. Now the question is . . . what’s the point of their existence?

The plan rolled out last year had Midwest operating only 9 717s on its own alongside 12 Republic-operated Embraer 170s and 12 SkyWest-operated CRJs, all under the Midwest brand. Scrap that. Time for a new plan.

Now, SkyWest is out and Republic is expanding. SkyWest will pull its 12 airplanes and receive $400,000 each time an aircraft leaves the operation. In exchange, SkyWest will cancel a $9.3m unsecured note. So SkyWest will walk away, free to pursue a life of religious fulfillment, while Republic flexes it muscles.

Republic will begin operating 12 Embraers with 37 to 50 seats. Yep, it’s a one-for-one replacement for SkyWest, though some of these aircraft will have fewer seats. But wait, there’s more. Republic and TPG will each loan Midwest another $6m to keep them flying. I wonder if Republic feels like it has a deadbeat brother who is always asking for money? Then again, they are getting good at this since they’ve put money into Mokulele, US Airways, and I believe Frontier already.

But that’s only part of it. Republic also recently announced that it would start flying two Embraer 190 AR aircraft for Midwest. What the heck are those? They’re long range planes that can once again allow Midwest to fly from Milwaukee to the West Coast. Those routes had to be dropped last year when Midwest ditched their MD-80s.

So let’s get this straight. Midwest now will have 26 airplanes from Republic and 9 measly airplanes of their own. And how long will those last? They still claim that they have no plans to ditch the 717s, but I find that incredibly hard to believe.

Boeing has made a deal with Mexicana to lease 25 717s for its low cost Click division. They admit that 16 of those are ones that Midwest had returned last year, but according to Boeing, they don’t know where the remaining nine are coming from yet. Uh huh.

Mexicana, on the other hand, says all 25 are coming from Midwest. That means Midwest will be left with nothing but Republic-operated aircraft. And in that case, why even bother?

Sure, the Midwest name used to be beloved in Milwaukee, but does anyone really care anymore? The long, slow descent of the airline has really stripped much of the brand equity, as far as I can tell. Delta might as well just operate it under their name and throw in some fresh-baked cookies as a reminder of the days of old.

We’ve all heard about “NextGen” air traffic control, but besides the generic guarantee of shorter delays, do we really know what it will do for us? Sometimes the benefits to the traveler aren’t really all that clear, and that’s probably because the actual definition is more of a nebulous catch-all for change than anything else.

Today, I’m going to talk about Required Navigation Performance (RNP), a form of Performance-based Navigation (PBN), and what it can do to help airport arrivals. But instead of defining it in boring terms, I’ll look at a recent implementation high in the Andes to show how you can benefit from it.

RNP allows airplanes to fly precise, complex approaches without the need for any ground-based navigational aids. Today, the use of Instrument Landing Systems (ILS) hampers the ability to run complex approaches in some areas, because difficult terrain prevents these ground-based systems from adequately guiding the aircraft. Consequently, when visibility is bad, some of these airports see serious constraints.

One of those places is Cusco, Peru. Here is a picture I took looking east after landing there last year:

It may not look like much, but consider this. That runway is about 11,000 ft above sea level. It sits in a dead-end valley with only way good way out. As you can see, those mountains go up pretty quickly. And by the way, this view is actually of the GOOD way out of the valley.

Airplanes fly in from the west, descend into the valley, and then do a sharp loop to land back toward the west. It was a fairly dramatic arrival for us, though the clear blue skies made it seem routine. Combine that complexity with gusty winds and fog or rain and you’ve got one incredibly tricky arrival.

In fact, it’s so tricky that you’ll never experience it. When the weather gets bad, flights get canceled. Until now. LAN Peru, the largest operator at the airport, recently finished testing a system from Naverus that allows it to fly an RNP approach into the airport.

The added precision of the RNP approach allows LAN to fly with more accuracy on a very complicated approach, and that means they can land safely in lower visibility situations.

This isn’t a new thing. Alaska, for example, first tested RNP flying into San Francisco several years ago. When the fog rolls in, SFO has to spread out its arrivals because the two runways are too close for comfort using existing systems. Just imagine if SFO could actually operate at normal capacity during foggy days thanks to more precise approaches. Delays would disappear from the airport.

This is just a glimpse of the future. There are other systems that can have similar results, and of course there are other pieces of NextGen that impact other phases of flight. When you hear buzzwords about NextGen and RNP, this is the type of thing that will eventually be possible. If you’d like to learn more, take a listen to this podcast on the subject. (It’s a little dry, but the information is good.)

What exactly would you think when you saw a press release entitled, “Get Connected with Complimentary Wi-Fi from US Airways“?

Yeah, that’s what I thought. Sounds like US Airways is putting wireless internet onboard and offering it for free, right? Wow, the airline has really tried to jump the competition with this one. Er, um, wait a second. Maybe we should actually read the release.

US Airways is actually offering complimentary wireless internet in its airport clubs. That’s it. Oh. Well it’s a good benefit for sure, but I was somehow expecting more from that title. Now that Delta is working on beefing up the inflight entertainment options on Northwest, US Airways is sitting firmly in the rear of the industry when it comes to onboard customer offerings.

The airline still has not announced a single onboard wifi project. I believe that puts them in the same category as Allegiant, Spirit, Midwest, and the regional carriers. Every other US-based airline has announced at least a wifi test. So, just to make sure one more time that you’re not confused by the release, here is what US Airways is offering:

Things aren’t much different when it comes to other inflight entertainment options either. Remember that test with the Lumexis in-seat video system on a single aircraft? Well it performed flawlessly, but the airline has been silent on future plans. President Scott Kirby has made it clear that the airline won’t be installing inflight entertainment until it can obtain adequate financing. I guess that hasn’t become available yet.

This isn’t great news for Lumexis, but I wouldn’t worry about them. After 275 flights and 1,000 hours in operation on that one airplane, there wasn’t a single system failure. According to CEO Doug Cline, “We have never delayed a single flight and have never even required a system reboot.” Pretty impressive stuff, so even if US Airways doesn’t move forward, they very likely still have a bright future ahead with other airlines.

It will be interesting to see if US Airways sees any customers defect because of the airline’s lack of competitiveness in onboard offerings. If they do, they might need to make some quick adjustments. If they don’t, well, they might just end up looking like the smartest airline around. (My guess is that while it might look like the latter for a little while, eventually it will be the former.)

[Original photos via Flickr from runJMrun and marcoPapale.com]

Despite the title, this wasn’t actually a trip to Minnesota. It just so happened that the most interesting part of the trip happened while we were connecting there. Our destination on this trip was Indianapolis to visit with the in-laws and enjoy a little Indiana summer. This was our first time on Northwest under the Delta regime, and you know it? It was better. The crews were great, and some of the Delta product additions made for an excellent experience all around. Read on for details.

Between the time that we booked this flight and the time we took it, there were no fewer than five schedule changes. What a pain in the butt. When we booked in January for $219.20 a ticket (yeehaw!), we had a morning nonstop eastbound and a midafternoon nonstop westbound. First they canceled the afternoon westbound and put us on a connection. Then they changed the eastbound to a redeye so we went on a connection on that as well. Then we realized that the remaining morning westbound had been moved to an early evening trip so we switched to that. Add in a couple flight number and time changes and my head was spinning. But let’s get on with it.

We got to the airport about an hour before the flight, realizing that this would be our last time flying Northwest out of LAX Terminal 2. A Northwest employee confirmed that the airline moves to Delta’s Terminal 5 on June 29. The terminal was absolutely packed (at left), as they put a Detroit and Minneapolis flight side by side.

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June 4, 2009
Northwest #496 Lv Los Angeles (LAX) 810a Arr Minneapolis/St Paul (MSP) 142p
LAX: Gate 28, Runway 24L, Dept 29m Late
MSP: Gate F6, Runway 30L, Arr 21m Late
Aircraft: N589NW, Boeing 757-351, Silver NWA Colors, 99% Full
Seat: 22A
Flight Time: ~3h

The flight was a little late coming in from Honolulu so we were told we would be 10 minutes late on departure. Um, not quite. They started boarding early enough to get us out 10 minutes late but apparently the TSA planned otherwise. They were said to be doing some gate searches and that soon turned into a huge backup.

By the time we got to board (we were in the last group called) there were no more searches happening but the boarding line snaked out of the jet bridge. It took more than 40 minutes to board, and we didn’t get out of there until about a half an hour late.

This was my first time on a 757-300 and man, is that one long airplane. I’m pretty sure the last 10 rows were actually boarded from Burbank. Somehow, I failed to consult SeatExpert or SeatGuru when I booked and found myself in row 22 which was missing a window (at right). What a bummer.

It was shortly after takeoff that I got my first sign that Delta was making changes to the Northwest product (or lack thereof). They told us we had a movie onboard. Whoa.

Most Northwest aircraft that fly domestically have no inflight entertainment system installed. But the 757-300s have overhead screens for the Hawaii flights. They used to leave them dark when they flew over the Continental US but Delta has thankfully reversed that policy.

But that wasn’t the only change. The next one? The flight attendant came by and offered me peanuts or biscoff cookies . . . for free. This is not Northwest any longer.

The crews were great and they came by frequently with water refills and Delta’s fresh buy-on-board throughout the flight. I had a chance to talk to a couple flight attendants in the middle of the flight and they said that not much had changed yet, though they did love the new uniforms. They were really just waiting for the upcoming union election. Northwest flight attendants will be strongly pro union thanks to years of (earned) mistrust of their management. Delta, on the other hand, has a long history of its flight attendants going without a union. One of the groups will be in for a shock when the outcome is decided.

After the movie (decent family movie, Race to Witch Mountain), I just stared out the window at the beautiful scattered clouds over the plains below. It was a very smooth and peaceful ride, and soon it was time to descend. Once we got below 10,000 feet, the peacefulness was gone. It was sunny in Minneapolis with just a couple poofy clouds (that’s a technical term), but it was pretty gusty. We looped around and came in for landing, or so we thought.

Just as we passed over the airport fence, one wing dropped as a gust shook the plane. Within seconds, the throttles were up, the gear was retracted, and the flaps were stowed for our go-around. Now, if I’m not traveling in a storm, I like go-arounds. There’s nothing like feeling the power of those 757 engines as we rocket up before getting a low tour of the city. Besides, if the pilots have any doubt, I strongly prefer to go around and be safe.

Others, however, looked a little concerned. Within a few seconds, the flight attendant came on and told us that everything was fine, the captain just wanted to be “prudent” and go around. Then a couple minutes later, the captain came on and apologized and I think that calmed the uneasy passengers. Air traffic control actually had us circle around and land on a different runway this time so maybe we got caught in a shifting wind on our first attempt.

Once on the ground, we had about an hour to get to our connection (thanks to an extended connection time added during one of our schedule changes) but it was clear across the airport. If you ever need a workout, just go from the F gates to the C gates in Minneapolis.

MSP has all the Delta branding up these days and it looks really good. We got to our gate, caught our breath, and then boarded our next flight to Indianapolis.

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June 4, 2009
Northwest #1653 Lv Minneapolis/St Paul (MSP) 300p Arr Indianapolis (IND) 544p
MSP: Gate C10, Runway 30R, Dept 1m Early
IND: Gate A13, Runway 5R, Arr 14m Early
Aircraft: N302NB, Airbus A319-114, Silver NWA Colors, 95% Full
Seat: 14A
Flight Time: 1h12m

This was supposed to be a DC-9 originally, and I was bummed when they swapped us to a plain old A319 during one of the schedule changes. But of course, it would get us there just as well.

We took our seats behind the wing and taxied out on time. We may have had to walk a long way to get to the gate, but the runway was right next to the terminal so we were airborne quickly.

We bounced our way out of MSP and once again things smoothed out at altitude. It was a pretty standard 1 hour flight. One drink service and that was that. Peanuts and biscoff were handed out again, and other than that, the only thing remarkable was the excellent view of a very sunny Chicago off the left side.

Just as we passed Chicago, we started our descent into Indianapolis. We landed to the northeast and within a couple minutes, we were at the gate. For those who have spent hours upon hours taxiing back to the old terminal, you’ll know how nice it is with the new one.

Though I toured the new Indianapolis terminal before it opened, this was my first time actually flying into the airport. Over on the A side where Delta/Northwest lives, it was pretty empty. It looks like there are plenty of gates going unused right now.

But hey, it’s still a nice place. We headed out to the curb where my father-in-law picked us up. We drove for about 10 minutes before we arrived at the exit for the old terminal. Yep, the drive takes a little longer for most of the metro area.

After a fun-filled weekend of movies, food, and a visit to Conner Prairie, it was time to come home. The weather had been fantastic while we were there, but when it came time to leave, it clouded up and got more humid. Sounds like the perfect time to come home.

We arrived at the airport about an hour early. We had left a little extra time in advance since it now takes longer to get to the new terminal, but we arrived with plenty of time to spare.

When we walked in, I noticed that there were a lot of empty ticket counters. Plenty of room to grow in the future. We walked toward security and we were both surprised to see a lot of people eating and relaxing in the rotunda shopping area outside security. I figured people wouldn’t want to hang out outside security, but, at least yesterday, I was wrong.

Going through security here is a pleasure because they’ve really built the area big enough to handle TSA regulations. We were through in no time and we went to the gate to wait for the flight.

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June 7, 2009
Northwest #1607 Lv Indianapolis (IND) 500p Arr Los Angeles (LAX) 620p
IND: Gate A6, Runway 23L, Dept 6m Early
LAX: Gate 24, Runway 24R, Arr 4m Late
Aircraft: N326NB, Airbus A319-114, Silver NWA Colors, 100% Full
Seat: 10A
Flight Time: 4h11m

The flight was completely full (good news for those of us who hope to keep the nonstop flight around), but we boarded quickly. We pushed back early, and the pilots apparently decided to make up for it by taxiing slower than a snail to the runway. Fortunately, they decided to speed up when it was time to take off.

There were a series of storms on our way home, so there was plenty of zigzagging around the weather. Looking at our flight path, you’d think the pilots were drunk if you didn’t know that they were just working hard to stay away from the bumps. We actually had very little turbulence, though there was plenty of speeding up and slowing down as we encountered areas of predicted rough weather.

The flight attendants were up the whole time and they did frequent passes through the aisles. My wife wanted to get a glass of wine and the fruit and cheese plate. She noticed in the menu that when you order the two together, you get a $2 discount. The flight attendants didn’t know that. They were really thankful that my wife pointed it out so they ended up comping the wine for her. Great service (and totally unnecessary but welcome).

Once we got to the Rockies, we had a great view of the snow capped mountains down below (at left). The flight attendants did yet another service about an hour out of LA. This crew was really stellar. We passed the Grand Canyon and slowly descended into LA. There were some high clouds, but it was mostly clear when we touched down.

This is just the first of three weekend trips this month, so stay tuned for more trip reports.