After my comment yesterday about the travel market being relatively “recession” proof it seems Thomas Cook agreed with me, as did the holiday makers of the nation.
The second largest travel company in Europe are doing better this year than in years before with the announced slump in the economy still not deterring holiday makers. In fact the travel agent has 19% less holidays to sell than last year and more people after trips to Spain than it can offer breaks to. With the company predicted strong trading over the summer and already gaining on the stock market, things are looking sunny this summer for Thomas Cook indeed.
So, does this bare testament to my claim that the more stressful life gets at home, the greater the need to get away? I think and hope so. I also hope that the continued urge to travel and getaway helps keep prices down on those all important air fares.
I also read today that Japan Airlines is planning to test a second generation of biofuel. The airline is working with Pratt & Whitney Commercial Engines whose president said the company is “aggressively researching and testing alternative fuels for the aviation industry in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve engine efficiency and reduce airline operating costs.”
While it seems strange to read of “aggressively” searching for alternative fuels – I still have an almost certainly outdated view of such renewable energy workers and researchers as long-haired hippies – it is great news and will be even better when the research yields results. If airline operating costs dropped then yesterdays report of an expected cost rise turned out to be nothing.
While I know that so much of this green fuel talk is, indeed, a lot of gas, I’m all for the move to find alternative fuels. Of course it will of extreme benefit to the environment if we can all bring our carbon footprints down by about 1000% and plant a handful of trees each time we climb on plane but it would also be great to stick a certain finger up at the oil companies and their ever growing prices, thus reducing the cost of air travel. One can hope.
I honestly wish more companies would research in such a way. The more ideas you throw at a wall the more likely it is something will stick. No?
