Aldi’s new package holiday arm has temporarily been suspended as the supermarket group reviews what is on offer.

Any holidays that have already been booked will go ahead unaffected, but no further bookings will be made until it is established that they are offering the right packages.

By all accounts, Aldi’s holiday website was profitable in 2009, however, due to the changing face of the holiday industry, it is thought that changes may need to be made to future offerings.

Heavy fog in Delhi on Tuesday night led to disruptions to more than 50 flights. Fog dropped in around 10pm and visibility was reduced to as little as 50m. The minimum permissible is 150m

15 flights were cancelled and many international flights were delayed. Many others were diverted to Jaipur or Lucknow. Sadly, after a brief respite, the fog has now descended again with visibility not much greater than zero. Around 100 further flights have so far been disrupted and even trains have been delayed.

Delhi has suffered with fog frequently this year and forecasters believe the trend will continue until the end of the month.

Glasgow Airport is to benefit from an increased number of flights to Dublin as well as from a new Cork route thanks to an arrangement between Aer Arann and Aer Lingus.

This follows hot on the heels of the announcement of a summer schedule from Barrhead Travel which offers flight to Barcelona and Palma as well as flights to 12 European destinations through Kiss Flights.

The additional Glasgow to Dublin flights are thought to be particularly important with many Scottish exports heading through the Irish capital.

Aer Lingus says that the stake of it that is owned by Ryanair, some 29 per cent, is deterring would-be investors, including British Airways and United Airlines.

Christoph Mueller, Aer Lingus’ chief executive, said airlines had cited the large Ryanair stake as a reason why they could not invest. The airline is keen to attract interest as it is currently running at a loss and is looking to join a strategic alliance such as the ‘oneworld’ group of airlines.

Mueller went on to say they would be moving away from the budget airline approach of recent times, believing there is nothing to be gained from it.

The Unite union says that British Airways will be forced to cancel flights in the even that their members vote for a strike. Although BA has carried out an internal recruitment drive in a bid to train other members of staff to operate as cabin crew, Unite say that only 200 have signed up.

Unite believe this is far too few to operate a full service and say that BA will have to cancel flights as a result. A strike could take place from 1st of March if union members vote in favour, but a disruptive Easter strike ahs already been ruled out.

Major tour operator, Thomson Holidays, has announced that it is to begin offering a range of holidays geared towards gay and lesbian travellers.

Branded ‘the Freedom Collection’, these breaks will include a holiday advisor who can give information about the local gay scene and will also feature a GayComfort seal of approval that assures holidaymakers that staff at hotels are trained to deal with same sex couples, thus avoiding awkward or potentially embarrassing situations.

The Freedom Collection currently features holidays in seven different locations. Details can be found at the Thomson Holidays website.

Overweight Air France passengers are to benefit from a free second seat ‘for their own comfort’ so long as their flight is not full.

Seriously obese passengers can currently purchase a second seat at three-quarters of the normal price, but this could be refunded if not all the seats on the flight are occupied. It would also be at the captain’s discretion whether an individual is allowed to travel at all. In theory, the captain could cite safety reasons and exclude a passenger on the basis of their weight to ensure that the flight can be evacuated within 90 seconds.

Other passengers can also book a second seat for the knock-down price, however, they stand no chance of a refund.

British Airways‘ head of cabin crew has written to members of the Unite union warning them of the consequences should they vote in favour of strike action.

It outlines action that British Airways could take should a strike take place. Cabin crew would most likely see free flights disappear and there was also an indication that preferential hotel prices would be reviewed.

BA stafff currently benefit from free business class tickets once a year and 90 per cent discounts on flights. The benefits are one of the main reasons for working for British Airways and this development will be met with dismay by staff.

Sky News is reporting that only 200 British Airways staff have answered the airline’s request that they retrain as cabin crew.

In all, 26,000 staff were invited to undergo a three-week training course to help get them up to speed to cover for cabin crew who are likely to go on strike in March or April. However, only a fraction of them have accepted.

British Airways now faces the prospect of all Unite cabin crew striking, perhaps over the Easter weekend, with little in the way of cover.

For their part, Unite will welcome this news as they believe that BA’s plan to retrain staff was a show of contempt for their profession.

British Airways cabin crew who are members of the Unite union have begun voting as to whether to carry out strike action.

If they vote in favour, a strike could take place as early as the first of March, although a strike over the busy Easter weekend is also on the cards.

British Airways are already preparing to cope with a possible strike by rushing ground staff through an intensive training course intended to prepare them to carry out cabin crew duties.

With some pilots taking the course, this has led to a fall-out between Unite and pilot’s union, Balpa. Unite say that it is unacceptable that members of any union should act to lessen the impact of a strike.