See you in court: that was the riposte by Ryanair to its pilots on Friday afternoon. Next Thursday and Friday, 22 and 23 August, as well as on 2, 3 and 4 September (five of the busiest days of the year for returning holidaymakers), flight crew employed in Britain by Europe’s biggest budget airline are intending to strike. …
Whether it’s true that in London you’re never more than six feet from a rat, it’s definitely true that on the Isle of Skye you’re rarely more than a minute away by car from water: whether loch or sea. This ancient wing-shaped island – the “winged isle” in Gaelic – is 50 miles top to…
Leicester is the worst-connected big city in Britain in terms of rail links. Research by The Independent shows that the East Midlands city has a narrower range of train services than a village in Cornwall. Each of the 12 largest cities outside London was evaluated on four criteria. We’ll tell you what’s true. You can form…
All 234 passengers and crew onboard a Russian passenger plane survived after it crash landed in a cornfield very shortly after take-off from Moscow. The Ural Airlines Airbus A321 had just taken off from Zhukovsky airport when it reportedly flew through a flock of birds within three seconds of rotation. Both engines failed, and after…
Thousands of passengers booked on Ryanair between the UK and Ireland on 22 and 23 August may find their flights cancelled. Pilots employed by Ryanair in Ireland have just announced a strike on 22 and 23 August, coinciding with industrial action by UK pilots. The Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa) served strike notice on the…
Palm fronds bending in the breeze. The sun beating down. No one around for miles. We all have our desert island fantasies. How might you fare marooned on a strange land? Could you fend for yourself? In the spirit of Robinson Crusoe, I’ve decided to spend five days castaway on an uninhabited island in the…
14 Aug: Rail fares: Commuters will 'refuse to pay' if season ticket hikes continue, campaigners warn
Train commuters will “refuse to pay” if season ticket prices continue to be hiked, a rail campaign group has claimed. Railfuture issued the warning on the day passengers find out how much more expensive regulated fares could be from 2 January. The UK, Scottish and Welsh Governments set a cap on the annual rise in…
On the day when millions of commuters find out how much more they will be paying for rail travel in 2020, the Department for Transport (DfT) has announced a new half-price railcard for teenagers aged 16 and 17. The “16-17 Saver”, priced at £30, will halve the cost of many train tickets in England and…
Edinburgh Festival Fringe has been crowned the UK’s top experience in a new ranking. The largest arts festival in the world, taking place this month, topped Lonely Planet’s Ultimate United Kingdom Travelist. Also in the top 20 were two other unmissable Scottish sights: Glencoe in the Highlands and Arthur’s Seat, also in the capital. We’ll tell…
The worldwide grounding of the Boeing 737 Max, following two tragedies that claimed 346 lives, is set to cost Europe’s biggest holiday company up to £278m between March and September. Tui’s third-quarter results, covering the three months from April to June, warn that full-year profits will fall by around one-quarter to €1,177m (£1,092m). The firm says:…
Britain’s biggest budget airline, easyJet, is refusing to comply with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) rules on cancelled flights by failing to book seats on rival carriers where necessary. A family from Bristol were waiting at the city’s airport for easyJet’s 7am departure to Nice on Sunday, when the flight was abruptly cancelled 45 minutes…
The ramblers call it the deadliest walk in Britain, the “most perilous path”, and so for some it is as irresistible as a siren’s song. A yellow sign with a stark exclamation point at the trailhead announces that this ancient right of way – first recorded in the 15th century – is “hazardous to pedestrians”. We…
Rain, wind and thunderstorms are forecast for Saturday and Sunday, causing further disruption on many of Britain’s railways. The Met Office is warning: “Very windy across the south with both coastal and inland gales, with sunny spells and scattered showers. “Further north occasional heavy, slow-moving showers, with a risk of hail and thunder.” We’ll tell…
Until 10 minutes before the plane left, I had no idea I wanted to go to Edmonton. The Alberta provincial capital is not overflowing with appeal, but from the point of view of a budget traveller the relative weakness of the Canadian dollar meant a night’s stay would be cheaper than on the US side…
A widespread power cut is bringing transport to a standstill across the UK during rush hour, including airports, trains and ports, plus traffic lights in the capital. Thameslink, the network that services both Gatwick and Luton airports, has announced that “services running across the whole network may be cancelled or delayed” for the rest of the day. A…