American Airlines canceled nearly 300 more flights on Friday as it continues to repair hail-damaged aircraft following extreme weather at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) on Tuesday.

Aircraft and equipment sustained damage after hail storms hit DFW. About a dozen tornadoes were spotted in the area earlier this week. Despite significant damage, no casualties were reported.

American and American Eagle have canceled nearly 2,000 flights since Tuesday, including about 800 Tuesday, 500 Wednesday and 300 Thursday. 

Friday’s 296 cancellations are “good improvement” from earlier this week, Andrea Huguely, spokeswoman for American Airlines, told msnbc.com. “By tomorrow, operations will be close to normal.” The carrier put Friday’s cancellations in place late Thursday in order to contact and accommodate passengers who would be affected, she said.

American expects 27 flight cancellations on Saturday.

The hail storms knocked 80 planes out of service, 46 of which remain grounded and are being repaired.

American’s facilities at DFW are fine, and ground equipment suffered slight damage – “dings and dents,” Huguely said.

NBC-affiliate Click2Houston.com contributed to this story.

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• Mom recounts saving daughters from 'terrifying' tornado
• 800 homes hit in Dallas area during ‘very unusual’ tornado season
• Videos show flying semi-trailers, golf ball-sized hail

Beginning Wednesday, Allegiant Air will charge passengers up to $35 for carry-on bags.

“Under this new structure, passengers will be permitted to bring one personal item that can be placed under the seat in front of them (like a purse, briefcase, laptop, etc.) for free, and if they choose to bring a larger carry-on bag to be placed in the overhead bins, they may do so for a fee,” Andrew Levy, president of Allegiant Travel Company, wrote in a company e-mail.

Fees for travelers who book and pay online will be between $10 and $30, based on several factors such a trip’s origination, destination and length, said company spokesperson Jessica Wheeler. Travelers who pay for their carry-on bag at the airport will be charged $35.

Allegiant passengers who have already purchased their tickets will not be affected.

The carry-on bag fee is Allegiant’s solution to a falloff of fee growth the airline has seen in recent quarters, said aviation consultant Robert Mann of R.W. Mann & Co.

He does not expect larger carriers to follow suit.

Allegiant is “leisure in orientation,” and is unique in its ability to charge a carry-on fee, Mann said. “No business-oriented airline would do this to customers with a laptop and valet bag – they would drive them right off the airplane,” he told msnbc.com.

Allegiant already charges for checked bags, but some passengers feel like they are getting nickel and dimed.

"It's outrageous," Beth Kealy, a passenger flying to Palm Springs, Calif., from Bellingham, Wash., told KING5.com. "It's like they are trying to milk us any way they can."

In 2010, Spirit Airlines started charging up to $45 for carry-on bags. The airline earned an estimated $50 million in 2011 from the fee, according to a report released by IdeaWorks.

“Spirit Airlines has indeed created success from an à la carte fee that every other airline has refused to adopt and even fears to speak of,” IdeaWorks president Jay Sorensen told msnbc.com in December.

KING5.com, NBC News’ Seattle-based affiliate, contributed to this report.

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Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter.

UPDATED 12:15 p.m. PT: Customers of United Airlines saw improved service on Sunday as the airline worked through technology glitches during its combination of the United and Continental Airlines reservation systems.

On Saturday, United adopted the reservation platform of the former Continental Airlines after the companies merged to form the world's largest airline, now known as United Airlines and owned by United Continental Holdings.

But after spending months preparing for the change — including training about 15,000 employees on the new software — United said on Sunday that technical issues had flared up at airports across the system, causing delays.

In particular, problems with the company's airport check-in kiosks meant customers had instead to line up to see service agents, spokeswoman Megan McCarthy said.

"We did have some issues with our kiosks and at times that slowed the check-in process," McCarthy said, adding that the airline's performance had improved by Sunday morning as the company installed upgrades to the kiosks.

About 75.5 percent of United's mainline flights were on time — arriving within 14 minutes of their scheduled slot — on Sunday morning, as were about 87.1 percent of its Express flights, according to McCarthy. "Employees are working hard to take care of our customers," she said.

Original story: In a final step of its merger, United-Continental on Saturday performed a massive procedure consolidating two IT systems into one, a process called a “cutover.” The transition has gone relatively smoothly, though some fliers have been affected by missed connections and late departures and arrivals.

Some travelers reported about their experiences on Twitter:

• “Getting an upgrade on #United has never seemed less convenient or more expensive than it does now. Congratulations guys!,” tweeted @rogermud.
• “Flying on #United or #Continental today? Arrive early as they’ve completely bungled the debut of their new check-in system. #mergerfail,” wrote @owasow.
• “#United rolled out their new website today and it takes significantly longer to load,” @deanwampler tweeted.
• “If you’re flying #United/#Continental today & have the option to check in curbside, do it! Reading horror stories but curbside was a breeze,” said @ericschmoldt.

In an e-mail to msnbc.com, United Airlines spokesperson Rahsaan Johnson said one system is now supporting the carrier. "The system conversion involves moving millions of reservations and re-establishing numerous communications links. The vast majority of this work is going well, and we are resolving technical issues that we are identifying during this process," he said.

“As a letter grade, I give them a B-,” said Joe Brancatelli, frequent flier and publisher of business-travel newsletter JoeSentMe. Most problems, he said, have been reported at pre-merger United hubs such as Dulles International in Washington and O'Hare International in Chicago. Former Continental hubs, he observed, have not had as many problems.

As for the delays at Dulles and O'Hare, Johnson said the airline is working "to speed up airport kiosks, which at times have slowed check-in," but added "most of our flights have either departed on time or within 30 minutes of the scheduled departure time.

As of 5 p.m. ET, United's on-time percentage for departures out of O'Hare was at 16 percent, according to Flightstats.com. Out of 83 tracked departures, one was canceled, 28 were delayed between 15 and 30 minutes, 20 delayed between 30 and 45 minutes and 21 were delayed more than 45 minutes. By comparison, American Airlines' on-time percentage out of O'Hare was 85 percent.

“Barring an absolute meltdown, the electronic side has gone as well as expected,” Brancatelli told msnbc.com. “In fairness, I don’t see the gigantic problems we’ve seen with other cutovers.”

Recent history is littered with cutovers that didn’t go quite as planned. Perhaps the most infamous snafu took place in 2007 when US Airways tried to integrate the systems of merger partner America West. The result? Out-of-order kiosks, long lines, flight delays and lots of inconvenienced and angry customers.

More recently, Virgin America and Cathay Pacific have suffered IT-migration meltdowns that impacted travelers’ ability to manage reservations, access mileage plan accounts or talk to a reservation agent.

As for United's cutover, “people haven’t lost a seat or not been upgraded, but it’s not running as smoothly as it should,” Brancatelli said, adding that problems will be fixed in the days ahead, but said the issue today is moving people through the system.

Continental's last flight, 1267, departed from Phoenix at 11:59 p.m. PST on Friday and arrived on-time in Cleveland as United 1267 on Saturday morning.

The airline will stop using Continental's "CO" code. That means no more Continental Airlines tickets, or flights — even though the Continental name is still painted on some planes.

If you’re traveling today, Brancatelli urges carrying on your luggage if you can, printing out everything, leaving for the airport early and allowing plenty of time, and if you’re not flying over the next few days, staying off United.com.

“Don’t obsess that all the miles you’ve rode haven’t caught up. They will. Today is about people traveling now,” he said.

United and Continental have gone to great lengths to lay the groundwork for a successful transition. Earlier this week, United's Johnson said the carriers conducted four dress rehearsals, successfully migrating the data from United’s Apollo-based system to Continental’s SHARES-based one.

“As in any dress rehearsal, we figured out potential issues that might arise, fixed them and developed procedures in case they arise again,” he said.

Have you run into problems flying on United or Continental this weekend? Tell us on Facebook.

Information from the Associated Press and Reuters was included in this report.

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A Virgin America flight was delayed several hours Wednesday night after the accidental deployment of an emergency slide.

"A slide was inadvertently deployed by a maintenance worker during a routine check on a Virgin America Airbus A320 aircraft at the gate at JFK," airline spokesperson Abby Lunardini told msnbc.com via e-mail. No one was on board at the time.

Kate Gardiner, a New York-based journalist booked on the flight, said the snafu resulted in a lengthy delay. "Between rolling it up, finding a new air canister and filling out all of the paperwork ... four hours at JFK," she said.

Virgin America Flight 29 was scheduled to depart JFK for San Francisco at 6:55 p.m. According to Virgin America’s website, the flight left JFK at 10:53 p.m. and arrived in San Francisco at 2:29 a.m.

The 110 affected passengers were issued a $50 credit and a $10 food voucher, Lunardini said.

The pilot, Gardiner added, kept passengers apprised of the situation.

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• OMG! Alaska Airlines discontinues controversial prayer cards

Follow Joe Myxter on Twitter.

Travelers with disabilities or medical conditions who are nervous or uncertain about getting through airport security now have a helpline they can call for assistance.

The Transportation Security Administration launched TSA Cares on Thursday. "It is primarily to provide passengers — or families of passengers — with disabilities and medical conditions information about our screening procedures and what they should expect at the security checkpoint," TSA spokesperson Greg Soule told msnbc.com.

Travelers can call the helpline (1-855-787-2227, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. ET) for information about security procedures.

News of the hotline comes after some recent high-profile passenger-TSA run-ins:

• An 85-year-old New York grandmother claimed she was humiliated while strip searched at JFK Airport earlier this month after she asked not to go through a body scanner;
• An 88-year-old woman said she was pulled aside at JFK and asked to pull her pants down to show her colostomy bag;
• A mastectomy patient said a checkpoint screener at JFK patted down her chest after declining to review her medical information card.

Kate Hanni, the founder of FlyersRights.org, a nonprofit passenger-rights group, called TSA Cares a Band-Aid solution that won’t solve anything.

"There’s no way around this unless TSA actually changes its behavior," Hanni said.

She recalled the TSA unveiling medical notification cards last December whereby passengers could discreetly disclose health concerns, disabilities or medical conditions to agents.

"It made no difference — we still get the same number of complaints," Hanni said. "People are still going through the exact same indignities. I don’t see how this 800 number will change the experience of these passengers."

"TSA's priority is to provide the best possible security while treating all passengers with dignity and respect," Soule said, adding that the new helpline is an additional step to educate travelers.

You can learn more about TSA Cares by visiting the TSA blog. 

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• TSA agents fired for failing to properly screen bags

Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006.Follow him on Twitter.

Advancements in technology, tight regulations and aggressive training of crewmembers all are key components to air travel safety.

Even as accident rates on planes continue to decline, however, many people don’t know how to handle an in-flight emergency.

While they happen, “crashes and fatalities are rare,” Henry Harteveldt, co-founder of Atmosphere Research Group, told TODAY.com.

Once onboard, it’s your responsibility to take care of yourself, Harteveldt said.

In the case of US Airways Flight 1549, better known as the "Miracle on the Hudson," disaster was averted due to Captain Chelsey "Sully" Sullenberger's skillful water landing. However, it appears passengers were not equipped to deal with the emergency. "When the captain said 'brace for impact,' they did not know what that meant," Cynthia Corbett, a human research specialist for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told NBC News' Tom Costello.

In the event of an emergency, keep these tips in mind:

• Use seatbacks and floor lighting to find the nearest exit;
• Move quickly;
• If using an emergency chute, slide on your rear and don't lean back, and get out of the way once on the ground.

If you must evacuate the plane, leave your personal belongings behind. "The briefcase, the books, clothes -- none of that is important," said Mac McLean, an FAA safety researcher.

And be prepared. "Read the briefing card -- people need to really pay attention to it," McLean said.

Harteveldt agrees: “When the safety announcements [are made] or safety video is being played, put down the reading, stop talking … and pay attention because that information can save your life.”

More stories you might like:

• Common air travel myths -- busted
• Can mobile devices really interfere with a plane?
• Does airplane air really make you sick?

Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter. 

Courtesy Universal Studios Florida

Jaws, the ride at Universal Studios Florida inspired by the 1975 hit move with the same name, is closing on Jan. 2 after more than 21 years at the theme park.

They’re going to need a different ride.

Universal Studios Florida announced Friday it would close its Jaws ride on January 2.

Jaws has been in operation since 1990, and was one of the first attractions unveiled when Universal Studios opened its doors. The ride is based on the 1975, Steven Spielberg-directed hit movie with the same name.

“Jaws has been an amazing attraction and an important part of our history,” Universal spokesperson Tom Schroder told msnbc.com. “Jaws holds a special place in the hearts of our guests, but we always have to look to the future and dedicate ourselves to providing new, innovative entertainment experiences for our guests.

"A lot of thought and care went into this decision," he said.

Schroder didn’t offer details about what will replace the ride, saying park goers will have to stay tuned.

Universal Orlando has seen a significant increase in visitors following the opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in June of 2010, according to the Associated Press. Attendance at the park has jumped by 40 to 50 percent since last June, said Comcast executive vice president Steve Burke said in September.

(Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

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Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter.

Customers of American Airlines woke up Tuesday to news about the carrier’s parent company filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

The airline insists it will continue operating seamlessly.

“Our customers can rest assured that American will continue to offer the same great service, AAdvantage program benefits and industry-leading products and services that you’ve come to expect,” said Tim Horton, American’s chairman, CEO and president, in a video message.

But what about the people who closely monitor the airlines and travel industry? What do they think about the news?

Overhead Bin spoke with Tim Winship, a loyalty program expert and publisher of Frequentflier.com; Henry Harteveldt, a travel analyst who co-founded Atmosphere Research Group; and Joe Brancatelli, a veteran business traveler and publisher of JoeSentMe.com, about what the bankruptcy filing means for travelers.

OB: Are you surprised by the news?
“No,” Harteveldt said. “Its competitors have used bankruptcy to bring down costs. American tried to do that outside of bankruptcy, but they had no recourse but to file.”

“It had certainly been on my radar that they had been poised to do this and that there were internal discussions,” Winship said, but added he was surprised to wake up to the news.

OB: If you were a loyal American Airlines customer, would you continue to book and purchase tickets from the airline?
"Yes. Airlines go out of their way to convince you that everything's normal after a bankruptcy," Brancatelli said. "So for the next 30 days or so, you're fine. In fact, you may actually see an improvement at American as they struggle to project a sense of normalcy."

“Absolutely,” Harteveldt said. “There is no reason to book away from American” if it continues to meet travelers' expectations.

Winship agreed. “Not that I would take them or any other company at their word necessarily, but if we look back at the history of airlines going into Chapter 11 – especially major carriers of the scale of American – what we see … is that indeed they were able to operate normally while under the protection of Chapter 11. I would say to people that they maintain their relationship with American as it’s been in the past.”

OB: What actions, if any, would you recommend an American Airlines customer take?
“I am reluctant to suggest people do X, Y or Z because I don’t think there’s any action called for at this point,” Winship said. “As an industry watcher and airfare consumer, I will certainly be watching American closely in coming weeks and months to make sure that they are making progress toward resolving their internal financial issues. Beyond that, I think it would be premature and unnecessary for consumers to go beyond that as a result of this filing. I think the way to look at this filing is as a formality – something they need to do to get their house in order cost-wise and something they should have done some years ago.”

Harteveldt said travelers who have reservations on American will be OK. “I expect American to fly the flights it has scheduled,” he said. “The AAdvantage program will be fine. It is one of the most valuable assets of American,” Harteveldt said. But the carrier “will need to launch new promotions to keep people from defecting to other airline frequent flier programs.”

Brancatelli warns of booking too far ahead into 2012, but not because of the company's financial viability. “In January/February, the weakest months of the year for most travel, American will decide about routes to drop and service to change,” he said. “You might find yourself having booked an American flight and then hotels and tours and such only to learn that American is dropping the route.”

OB: American is looking for concessions from its work force. Will flight crews who make less money or get fewer benefits affect the overall flying experience for customers?
“I think that’s always a potential issue when there’s a scenario in which labor and management are at odds,” Winship said. “This falls under the heading of ‘wait and watch’ because it will depend on just how contentious those discussions become. It’s something consumers should be on the lookout for – things could turn ugly, especially when it comes to the customer-facing parts.”

Brancatelli expects the most experienced flight crews to leave the company. “American has been pushing them out anyway, so folks might now decide to jump ... I'd much prefer an experienced head who knows what s/he is doing in an emergency – I can't see how losing your best people is a benefit for travelers.”

OB: Ultimately, will bankruptcy protection prove to be beneficial, negative, or inconsequential for travelers?
“I honestly don't know,” Brancatelli said. “American's management has been so ham-fisted that I can't see what [its] post-bankruptcy strategy is,” he said. “None of the airlines that have gone into bankruptcy post-9/11 has come out whole. Many went out of business. Those that emerged (Delta, Northwest, US Airways, Frontier, United) all ended up merging with other carriers. But I don't know who is a logical merger candidate for American Airlines now.”

Harteveldt is more bullish. “I think it will be good,” he said. “Looking at United, Delta and Continental, they used it to become better and more profitable.”

In the short-term, Winship sees the filing as “neutral with some possible negative side effects, those being possible disruptions in terms of needing to cut back on schedules somewhat as a way of better controlling costs and also the potential employee morale issue.”

“Long-term,” he added, “I think this is a positive. American is finally stepping up and dealing with a set of problems that have been long festering, and I think for the future of the company, it is both a necessary and positive thing.”

More stories you might like:

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Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter.

A passenger on a US Airways flight said he was forced to stand for seven hours after he was squeezed out of his seat by an obese man sitting next to him.

“I didn’t fly from Alaska to Philadelphia on Flight 901,” Arthur Berkowitz told Christopher Elliott, a consumer advocate who operates elliott.org. “I stood.”

“His size required both armrests to be raised up and allowed for his body to cover half of my seat,” Berkowitz said. “It did not allow me to use my seatbelt during takeoff and landing as well as required me to stand in the aisle and galley area for most of the seven-hour-plus flight.”

The incident occurred on July 29 and was first reported by Elliott on Tuesday.

Berkowitz said he alerted flight attendants to the problem, but they were unable to accommodate him, according to his account on elliott.org. “They were sympathetic, but they could not do anything. No other seats existed on plane. They would not permit me to sit in their jump seats, and fully acknowledged the mistake by their gate agent, in allowing this individual on plane without requiring him to purchase and occupy two seats,” he said.

Liz Landau, a spokesperson for US Airways, confirmed that Berkowitz was inconvenienced by a passenger of size and told msnbc.com “it was his choice to stand.”

“His seatmate had the same right to his seat as Mr. Berkowitz did to his. So here’s where the diplomacy and cooperation of all passengers comes into play,” the airline said in a statement.

Berkowitz was unhappy with the $200 voucher the airline offered him for his experience, at which point he contacted Elliott.

"We have attempted to address this customer’s service concerns,” the airline statement said, “but offering increasing amounts of compensation based on a threat of a safety violation isn’t really fair — especially when the passenger himself said he didn’t follow crew members’ instructions and fasten his seatbelt.

“The way to ensure you have space available next to you — whether you are a person of size, or you would simply like to ensure you have more personal space to relax on a long flight — is to purchase that additional seat, or First Class, in advance.”

More stories you might like:

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• Common air travel myths -- busted

Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter.

It sounds like a plot from a situation comedy: a pilot gets trapped in a lavatory, a well-meaning passenger with a foreign accent tries to assist, an untrusting co-pilot is unconvinced behind the cockpit door …

But this scenario wasn’t imagined by any screenwriter.  The situation played out onboard Delta Flight 6132 between Asheville, N.C. and New York.

Only three people -- the captain, a co-pilot and a flight attendant -- were staffing the flight operated by Chautauqua Airlines, said Peter Kowalchuk, a spokesperson for the carrier.

"After using the lavatory, when he tried to leave to return to the flight deck, the captain realized that the lavatory door latch was broken and he was unable to open the door," Kowalchuk said in a statement.

A passenger heard the pounding and approached to assist. The pilot urged the passenger to alert the cockpit crew of the situation.

The first officer, in the cockpit with the flight attendant (adhering to security regulations), was skeptical.

“The captain has disappeared to the back and I have someone with a thick foreign accent trying to access the cockpit right now and I have to deal with the situation,” the co-pilot radioed to air traffic control. “I’m not about to let him in.”

“You guys ought to declare an emergency and just get on the ground,” a controller told the co-pilot.

Later, according to the airline, "the flight attendant checked the status of the passenger cabin and saw nothing of concern." She left the cockpit -- "acceptable to ensure the ability to safely land the aircraft," Kowalchuk said -- and opened the jammed lavatory door.

"There was no threat or danger at any time during the incident," Kowalchuk said.

“Negative,” the captain responded when asked by air-traffic control of a threat. “The captain, myself, went back to the lavatory and the door latch broke and I had to fight my way out of it with my body to get the door open.”

The pilot landed the plane safely. The FBI and Port Authority police were waiting for the jet when it landed.

Chautauqua Airlines is owned by Republic Airways Holdings.

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• Congressional report calls for drastic changes at TSA

Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter.

Remember when traveling included travel agents, paper maps that were impossible to fold into their original shape and clipped magazine articles or dog-eared notepads full of suggestions for a full, active itinerary?

That is so 1990s.

Thanks to websites, smartphones and apps,  tech-savvy travelers can easily research and book trips and store flight information, boarding tickets, maps and more on a mobile device that fits in a shirt pocket.

Some websites rise to the top when it comes to usefulness. On Friday's TODAY show, Nina Willdorf, editor-in-chief of Budget Travel, detailed six useful websites with Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb.

Willdorf endorsed Bing.com as a great site for researching airfares. "It's really hard to know whether the flight prices are going to go up, go down," she said. "Bing puts together historical data so it can predict whether or not that fare that you love is going to go down tomorrow."

(Msnbc.com is a joint venture between Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

Willdorf also touted Autoslash.com: "If you book through them, they will guarantee that any price drop that happens on a rental car, you will get refunded," she said. Over the holidays last year, she said four out of five people who booked with the website received a discount. "The average discount was $65. It's just money in your pocket that you weren't expecting."

Willdorf also mentioned Plnnr.com, a website that allows travelers to detail what type of vacation they're looking for (such as active or mellow) and puts together free, customized itineraries, and Tripit.com, a service that pulls together flight information, confirmation numbers, driving directions and more and presents it in an organized, easy-to-use itinerary that travelers can send to their phone.

Click here for Budget Travel's 10 most useful travel websites.

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• Need a room right now? Go mobile
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Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter.

Reporting from Future Travel Experience 2011 in Vancouver, B.C.

Note to travelers: Your experiences matter.

That’s the upshot from a panel of heavy hitters in the travel industry, including Kevin McGarr, president and CEO of the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA), David Sanchez, program manager of office and field operations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and David Vance, managing director of airport services for American Airlines, who spoke Friday about how their respective groups are approaching government issues surrounding security, immigration and border control.

McGarr acknowledged a renewed focus on customers’ travel experiences in the airline industry. McGarr noted the success of some of CATSA’s initiatives, including NEXUS, the trusted traveler program that is “working very well,” and special security lines that tailor to families and travelers with special needs.

Sanchez discussed CBP’s efforts, including the “Model Ports” initiative which aims to, among other things, improve the experiences of travelers arriving to the United States by speeding up lines and adding TV monitors that show pictures of America, allowing visitors to “visualize yourself being in Disneyland or a desert in Utah.” Sanchez also touted Global Entry, part of the government’s trusted traveler program, that vets frequent international travelers who volunteer. If deemed low risk, they can avoid lines and use kiosks to enter the United States.

American Airlines’ Vance, meanwhile, expressed a biometrics-based vision that would move travelers through traditional airport touchpoints, from curbside to plane seat. While some biometric technology, such as fingerprint scans and iris recognition, is slowly being adopted, Vance said public acceptance remains a challenge, and said there need to be proven benefits in order to overcome privacy concerns.

Whether already in use or just a fantasy, these initiatives all share a common theme of improving the experiences of travelers moving through airports. Or, as CATSA’s McGarr put it: “We want to make the customer the focus.”

More from Future Travel Experience 2011

• New initiatives put Amtrak on the fast track
• Self-service kiosks simplify the airport experience
• Air Canada tackles mobile's missing link
• Going through airport security? Keep your eyes open
• Next-gen check-in takes the 'queue out of Qantas'
• Better document checking through facial recognition
• Leaving Las Vegas: Self-boarding and stumbling blocks
• Self-boarding opens the gate to speedy boarding
• What does the future hold for travelers? 

Joe Myxter has been running msnbc.com's Travel section since 2006. Follow him on Twitter.