British Airways is riding out a 16-day walkout by London Heathrow-based cabin crews with the help of planes from top shareholder Qatar Airways. Aircraft from its Persian Gulf partner have been deployed on British Airways’ short-haul routes, allowing BA to operate almost all flights as normal Monday, the first working day since the strike began Saturday. Long-haul services from Heathrow airport have been combined to avoid cancellations, the airline said. All customers will reach their destinations, with just 4 flights scrapped over the weekend, it said. Qatar Airways, which holds about 20% of IAG, is operating flights for BA with 9 single-aisle Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft. The carrier said last month that excess jets from canceled Middle Eastern services are being redeployed to other destinations. <br/>
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Qatar Airways said Monday it would start flights to Sohar in Oman and Prague next month, the first new routes to be announced by the airline since a regional political crisis forced it to stop flights to 18 Middle East destinations last month. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut ties, including land, sea and air links, with Qatar in June in the worst diplomatic crisis in the region in years. Qatar Airways, which had said it would speed up expansion plans elsewhere, announced it would fly 3 times a week to Sohar in northern Oman from Aug 8 and weekly to the Czech Republic's capital from Aug 21. The launch of the Sohar and Prague routes had been brought forward, Qatar Airways CE Akbar al-Baker said. The new services will be operated by narrow-body Airbus A320 jets. <br/>
All those travel accessories that claim to help kids sleep on long-haul flights may become a thing of the past after airlines added them to their list of dangerous goods. Australian airlines have added kids' sleeping devices to their list of prohibited carry-on items, saying that they are a safety hazard. Qantas and Jetstar, which have the same dangerous goods policy, have banned popular travel accessories including bed boxes, leg hammocks and inflatable cushions. "Examples of prohibited in-flight accessories include, but are not limited to, inflatable cubes, 'bed boxes', and 'leg hammocks'. This list is not exhaustive, and the decision to permit use of a particular device rests with the cabin crew on-board," Qantas said. <br/>