A young violinist has been told by Ryanair that if she wishes to fly with her instrument, she will have to buy it a £190 seat. Returning to her home in Macclesfield with her family after a holiday in Germany, 12-year-old Francesca Rijks attempted to board a Ryanair flight in Dusseldorf with her violin. On arriving at the gate, the family was told that for a little extra the valuable instrument could travel in the hold.
Harman Rijks, Francesca’s father, explained that this was not an option as the violin could be destroyed by the changes in air pressure and temperature. [...]

As hurricane Earl threatens the east coast of the US, holidaymakers on Ocracoke Island, off the coast of North Carolina, are being evacuated. The only way off the island is by ferry, and vehicles are now queuing for the two-and-a-half-hour journey to the mainland. There are also 800 permanent residents on the island; however, they are not required to evacuate.
Hurricane Earl is the most powerful storm to threaten the eastern seaboard since 1991 and the arrival of hurricane Bob. Although the storm has weakened, winds of up to 125 mph are still whipping up the seas of the Caribbean.
Lindsey Mooney, [...]

UK motorists are facing hefty taxes from the EU to fund climate change policies.
A new study by the EU has argued that the imposition of aggressive policy measures are required in order to reduce transport emissions, with the plan including controversial road costs and increased fuel levies.
The Drivers’ Alliance Peter Roberts said British drivers were already paying out huge sums to cover the costs of pollution and congestion, while others have claimed than an EU-wide program would erode British sovereignty. UK motorists have already rejected road-pricing schemes, with 1.8 million motorists signing a petition against per-mile charges that the previous [...]

The BBC has lost its fight to keep the identity of The Stig a secret.
Former Formula Three racing driver Ben Collins, known to worldwide audiences for his masked role on the top rating Top Gear series, has been unveiled as the mystery man behind one of the great debates.
His autobiography, titled The Man in the White Suit, had been attempted to be blocked by the BBC who claimed that a cause in his contract prevented him from revealing his true identity. However, the High Court in London yesterday refused to grant an injunction to the BBC blocking the publication of [...]

Europe’s largest budget airline, Ryanair, has announced that at the end of October it will be pulling operations out of George Best Belfast City Airport. The move has been brought about by further delays being announced for runway expansion. The airline has been flying services from the airport since 2007.
Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s chief executive, said he was extremely disappointed that extensions to the runway at City Airport had never materialised. Ryanair’s decision to pull out will disappoint the 800,000 passengers-a-year it flies from Belfast, but is excellent news for local residents according to Belfast City Airport Watch spokeswoman, Liz Fawcett.
The [...]

A British couple, who have been living in Greece, have set up a Facebook page to campaign for better pet facilities to be provided by airlines after their cat went missing at Athens Airport. Megan and Kit Peel, who are returning to their North Yorkshire home of Nidderdale, had booked their cats Tancredi and Spartacus onto a British Airways flight bound for London’s Heathrow.
While the cat’s travelling basket was being x-rayed at Athens, Mr Peel was holding onto his pets. However, after allegedly becoming scared, Spartacus broke free of his owner’s grip and made an escape out into the airport’s [...]

The  Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group has declared that its 2010 earnings are likely to be higher than previously estimated.
Fresh from a lengthy takeover battle that has involved larger rivals Hertz and Avis fighting for the acquisition of the smaller Dollar Thrifty, the group announced Tuesday that it expected a significant increase to be seen in full-year 2010 adjusted earnings.
The result would represent a remarkable turnaround for the Tulsa-based car rental organisation, which began the year facing mounting debts that forced it to look to its larger rivals for survival. In April, the company signed an agreement to be bought out [...]

The New Zealand Commerce Commission has vowed to crack down on unscrupulous car hire organisations. The move follows two separate instances where local rental companies were prosecuted for ripping off visitors, prompting authorities to keep a closer eye on the tourism sector in accordance with consumer protection laws.
Two companies in the South Island city of Christchurch have been ordered to pay fines and reparations of NZD$43,710 (£18,000) to foreign tourists after they were found guilty of a range of offences including Levying charges not disclosed, advising customers they had damaged their hire cars when they had not, making up rental [...]

The Welsh Assembly Government has told members that they must be more conscientious when it comes to refuelling their hire cars before returning them to dealers. The announcement comes after it was revealed that Welsh civil servants ran up a bill of £23,000 last year through service charges because they did not fill up their tanks.
The refuelling charges are up by £2,000 on last year and more than twice what they were in 2004. Jenny Randerson, a Welsh Liberal Democrats transport spokesperson, said it was shocking that at a time when the government was trying to save every penny possible; [...]

British Airways passengers could once again be facing disruption as the dispute between the airline and its cabin crew rumbles on. Unite has accused BA of turning down its latest peace deal, but added it hoped to be able to sit around the table at the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) with BA sometime in the next week for talks.
Tony Woodley, the union’s joint general secretary, has sent an email to the 11,000 members who make up BA’s flight crew saying the airline had turned down Unite’s proposals of having all flight perks returned over a limited period of [...]