BTN Expert Q&A

"Signaling the start of a new network which will provide regional feed to its long-haul service," Virgin Atlantic Airways last week announced plans to launch in March its first domestic U.K. service, three daily flights between London Heathrow and Manchester. Prior to that announcement, chief commercial officer Julie Southern... Keep Reading

Agency consortia and networks lately have experienced some big reflagging in the United States, with travel management companies like Travel Leaders Corporate, Ovation Travel and Travizon changing organizations. BTN editorial director Jay Campbell this week spoke with GlobalStar Travel Management executive director of... Keep Reading

Carlson earlier this month named CFO Trudy Rautio its new president and CEO, replacing departing chief executive Hubert Joly. Rautio, for 15 years a Carlson senior executive, recently spoke with BTN senior editor Michael B. Baker about performance and forecasts for both Carlson Wagonlit Travel and Carlson Hotels as well as... Keep Reading

To benefit issuers, merchants and corporate customers, Universal Air Travel Plan this year completed a multiyear modernization of the guts of its technology. UATP president, CEO and board chairman Ralph Kaiser said the technology changes were "another big jump forward" for the world's first charge card, which debuted in 1936.... Keep Reading

Hotel request-for-proposal service provider Lodging Logistics during the past few years has broadened its scope beyond the electronic RFP tool to more of a "full-service sourcing" approach, according to owner and CEO Bob Peper. He recently spoke with Business Travel News lodging editor Michael B. Baker about developing and... Keep Reading

British Airways parent International Airlines Group is integrating its latest purchase, British Midland. British Airways chief executive Keith Williams and executive vice president of the Americas Simon Talling-Smith recently discussed with BTN's Jay Boehmer the growth opportunities BMI affords the carrier as well as BA's... Keep Reading

Stamford, Conn. - Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide in recent years broadened a structure that incorporates regional "metro market" teams to cover sales across all its properties. Tim Roby, Starwood's senior vice president of sales for North America, in late June at the company's headquarters here updated BTN's Michael B.... Keep Reading

Meetings technology firm Cvent last month finalized the first two acquisitions in its 13-year history, and both were of mobile app developers. Cvent first bought Seed Labs, a developer of apps for music festivals, sports events and other consumer events, for $4.2 million and renamed it CrowdTorch. A week later, Cvent acquired... Keep Reading

Emirates is in the midst of a growth spurt in the United States, having launched service to its Dubai hub from Seattle in March and from Dallas in February. The carrier last week announced that Washington will become its seventh U.S. gateway, with Dulles-Dubai service scheduled to start in September. Senior vice president of... Keep Reading

MasterCard Worldwide in February hired former AirPlus International Inc. president Richard Crum as its group head of global travel and entertainment products and solutions. Crum came to MasterCard after eight years as head of the U.S. subsidiary of AirPlus International, preceded by nearly eight years at the airline-owned... Keep Reading