Recent news postings on the IFTTA website

• USA: Air France fined for unlawful baggage liability disclaimer
• Canada: Warsaw Convention applied on non-complinace with wheelchair request
• Brazil: Gol Airlines must compensate the victim's sister to crash for R$ 120,000
• USA: court ruling entitles American Airlines to pull its fares from Orbitz
• USA: reasonable standard of care applies on pilot decisions to disembark passengers under Tokyo Convention
• UK: OFT Strategy on Online Shopping - Consumer Protection
• Germany: Prussian foundation entitled to interdict commercial photos and film-shots of its castles and gardens
• Hotelstars Union: Baltic Countries joined
• Europe: Consumer Centres' Network publishes survey on European Ski Resorts
• USA: some websites fail to identify operating carrier
• US Airport search angers Indian diplomat
• Germany: new reference for preliminary ruling with regard to Reg. 261/200
• USA/Brazil: open skies agreement
• France: Continental liable for Concorde crash

Find more at iftta.org.

IFTTA Brasil has its first meeting

The Sao Paulo Convention & Visitors Bureau (SPCVB), received on July 14th at its headquarters, the first meeting of IFTTA Brasil - the International Forum of Travel and Tourism Advocates ( IFTTA ). The group will engage among other activities in development of technical and legal material, monitoring of bills (a draft of a proposed act of parliament), identifying colleges and universities specializing in previous studies, in addition to developing sustainable tourism projects in the country.

Brazil has consolidated its participation in the forum after the 21st World Conference of the Association, held in Sao Paulo and Ilhabela in October 2009. On this occasion the IFTTA license issued to establish the Brazilian chapter in the state capital. " We are happy to welcome the IFTTA and its proposals, involving a key issue especially for a town with intense tourist activity , "says Toni Sando, CEO of SPCVB .

The IFTTA Brasil is in training and brought associate attorneys from Minas Gerais, Parana and Sao Paulo , in addition to Ricardo Shimosakai consultant, specializing in tourism adapted. The participants were welcomed by Elizabeth Sorrentino, international events manager of SPCVB, who made a brief presentation of the entity.

(Source: Hotelier News. Text with adaptations)

See also:

IFTTA happens for the first time in Brazil in October

Tourism law is the theme of the congress in Buenos Aires

Brazil: ANAC extends the rights of air passengers.

The ANAC – National Civil Aviation Agency, tied to the Ministry of Defence, has enacted the Resolution 141 which enters into force on June 13th. It broadens the rights of passenger flights delayed, cancelled or in case of breach (preventing the need for boarding aircraft or exchange overbooking). The main innovations are reducing the period within which the company must assist the passenger, the expansion of the right to information and immediate rearrangement in cases of cancelled flights, disrupted, and passengers unsuccessful boarding flights with confirmed reservations.
















The air companies are prohibits to sale tickets for the next company's flights to the same destination until all passengers affected by delay cancellation or breach is rearrange themselves.
Breaking the rules infraction ANAC general conditions of carriage and may result in fines ranging from BR$ 4000 to BR$ 10,000 per occurrence.

Resolution No. 141 partially replaces Ordinance No. 676-5/2000, as regards the rights and guarantees of when the passenger transport contract signed with the airline is reneging on grounds of delay, flight cancellation or breach of passengers. The full text of the new resolution is available (in portuguese) on the ANAC on the Internet: http://www.anac.gov.br/biblioteca/resolucao/2010/RA2010-0141.pdf

Source in portuguese: http://www.anac.gov.br/imprensa/direitoPassageiro.asp

Qatar Airways announces new South American flights.

Qatar Airways announced that it will begin daily flights to Brazil and Argentina from June 24, marking the airline’s first online operations to South America. With the airline’s acquisition of two brand new Boeing 777-200 Long Range aircraft in the last three months, these will be deployed on the two South American routes – to the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo and Argentine capital Buenos Aires this summer.

The date announcement comes just weeks after the airline revealed plans to serve South America, and spread its wings to yet another Continent. The flights will offer convenient connections from key markets across Asia and the Gulf to South America.

Source: TravelDailyNews; find article here>>.

Travel Law Conference in Portugal

Next 7 May, the University of the Algarve at Faro will held an International Travel Law Conference focused on The 20 Years of the European Package Travel Directive.

With some of the most renown Experts from Portugal, Spain, Austria, Germany and Ireland, but also from the USA and Brazil, as invited Speakers, this intends to be the most relevant Academic event on the current Anniversary of the Directive.

Brazil: interactive online tourism experience

The Brazilian Tourist Board, EMBRATUR, announced the world's first Google/YouTube brand channel combining videos and Google maps to provide an interactive online Brazilian tourism experience. Accessible at www.youtube.com/visitbrasil, the site features more than 85 videos from Brazil. This is the first convergence of its kind involving Google Maps into YouTube to date.

Source: Brazilian Minstry of Toursim; find announcment in Portuguese here>>.

Brazil: Distribution of slots from Congonhas airport scheduled for trial this Thursday

The ministers of the Court of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) are set on Thursday, March 25, the distribution by the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) of the slots (spaces at the airport used by airlines to park / park aircraft) from Congonhas Airport (SP) will or not with the spaces in the Pantanal Linhas Aereas SA

ANAC rescheduled for the 1st of March, at 14h, in Brasilia, the public hearing for the distribution of 355 slots (time of takeoff and landing) that are not being used at the airport. The expectation of the regulatory agency is to include the redistribution of 61 slots that operated on the Pantanal Congonhas, which are of direct interest to TAM, in the process of acquisition of the company, the session was scheduled for February 10, after the postponement of the scheduled distribution, initially, to February 1.

The discussion in the STJ:

Last December, the president of the STJ, Minister Cesar Rocha, guaranteed to make the distribution ANAC, suspending the decision of the 2nd Bankruptcy Court and Judicial Recoveries. That decision permitted the holding of judicial auction sale to the Isolated Productive Unit (IPI) of the Pantanal, whose plan of reorganization provides for the integration of the slots as intangible assets of the company.

Its release was scheduled for 1st of February but was postponed after the minister, based on enterprise resource - a special appeal [kind of action against all appropriate internal decision-person] - have determined that the regulatory agency to refrain from distributing the slots of the Pantanal.

On the other hand, ANAC alleges injury to the public and the public economy, for the sale of UPI interfere with the legal competence of ANAC. In turn, for the Pantanal, is the claim of ANAC that interferes with the legal competence of the court of bankruptcy. According to the company, the right of users from Congonhas Airport will be better preserved with the sale to TAM, and not the opposite. For her, there is underutilization of space for takeoffs and no risk of increased price of tickets.

On appeal by the Pantanal presented new facts, such as selling the entire stake in the Pantanal Linhas Aereas SA to TAM away "once any risk of damage to the organization of the airport and damage to public order and economy, and remain intact the rights of users of air transport, even with the intention as expressed officially to ANAC, that the sub judice slots - designated by the Regulatory Agency as idle - return to be immediately used by the airline.

The Pantanal applied to the court to reform the decision to ANAC refrain from distributing solely the slots in the Pantanal which are housed in the process of reorganization, keeping the planned distribution of the remaining slots.

The president of the STJ grant the request of the airline. Applied to the ANAC to be revealed about the issue and that, refrain from distributing the slots pertaining to the Pantanal Linhas Aereas SA in the event of distribution that was scheduled for February 1, 2010.

The regulatory agency provided the information requested by the court in the last days 8 days. Two days later, the ANAC also brought special appeal, this time challenging the decision beneficial to the Pantanal. Minister Cesar Rocha Asfor will take your vote in both features to trial in the Special Session of the next 25 days.

Pending the decision from the Supreme Court on the right of ANAC include the redistribution of 61 slots that operated on the Pantanal Congonhas, which are of direct interest to TAM, in the process of acquisition of the company, the agency rescheduled for the 1st of March, the 14h, in Brasilia, the public hearing for the distribution of 355 slots (times of takeoff and landing) that are not being used at Congonhas Airport.

Reported to IFTTA by Ronaldo Armond

Brazil: One of every ten flights delayed over 30 minutes in 2009

Approximately one out of ten flights that took off from airports in Brazil in 2009 was delayed over 30 minutes (limit considered acceptable by the Brazilian Airport Infrastructure - Infraero). Despite the still high average of 11%, the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) said the airline industry in the country increased its efficiency, whereas in 2008 the percentage was 17.5% and in 2007, 28.6 %.

Moreover, according to ANAC projection based on data from Infraero by the end of November, more than 126 million departures and landings must have been made in 2009, a number well above the 113.3 million recorded in 2008 and 110 6 million in 2007. Only until the beginning of December last year had already been made 115 million arrivals and departures.

According to the director president of ANAC, Solange Vieira, increased efficiency is due to several actions taken during the year. "Increased competition, since the largest number of companies and airports available, led to an improvement in service. The Aeroporto Santos Dumont (RJ) had a significant effect on this process, including releasing the Galleon for new flights. Moreover, ANAC taken steps to distribute the flights outside of peak hours and tailor the operational capacity of Guarulhos (SP), "he said in a statement.

According to ANAC, passengers better informed about their rights and obligations also contributed to the normal at airports. Among the largest airlines operating in the country, the monthly average of flights delayed more than 30 minutes in 2009 was: Webjet (13.1%), Gol / Varig (10.1%), TAM (10%), Ocean Air (8.3%) and Blue (8.1%).

Danilo M

Agency Brazil

Brasilia


Forwarded to IFTTA by Ronaldo Armond

Brazil: 2007 Sao Paulo's crash caused by pilot error?

A military investigation into Brazil's deadliest air disaster reached no conclusion on blame, but officials said Saturday that pilot error rather than mechanical failure was the more likely cause.

A separate police investigation into the 2007 jetliner crash that killed 199 people blamed government and airline officials and recommended charges against 10 people — a case that is still tied up in courts.

Source: eTurboNews; full article by Bradley Brooks available here>>.

21st IFTTA Annual Conference: Brazil - Sao Paulo/Ilhabela

Again this year, IFTTA is organizing its “21st International annual Conference on Travel and Tourism Law” with the themes “”1.Accidents in travel and tourism sector: prevention, risk management and liability, 2.Recent national and international developments in travel and tourism law, and 3.Tourism and its impact on the environment". The conference will happen on October 3rd - 6th, 2009 at Parque do Ibirapuera, São Paulo-Brazil and Pier 151, Ilhabela. Held in a pleasant environment, the IFTTA's conferences became a traditional center of reference on travel and tourism law worldwide among its members. Also, it provides a good opportunity for networking with the global professionals of these industries. The conference will offer outstanding infrastructure of services and will be available simultaneous translation Portuguese/English/Portuguese. In the last edition in Beijing the international IFTTA conference on travel and tourism attracted participants from different countries and was one of the appealing encounters of the academics, authorities, experts and professionals in the areas travel and tourism, distinguishing itself by promoting debates and pointing high important questions about the sector growth and development.Please visit the conference website http://www.ifttabrasil.org/ where you will find the conference program, hotel information, and online registration.

21st IFTTA Conference in Brazil - Preliminary Programme.

Dear IFTTA members,

The 21st IFTTA Conference in Brazil is getting close. Toward that end the organizers would like to invite the IFTTA community to attend this annual meeting in Sounth America. About 22 experts from 10 countries are going to present papers, all of them with backgrounds in, or a strong interest in travel and tourism issues. The preliminary programme is already online into the Conference Website.

Moreover, the UNWTO representative will deliver a message on behalf of the UNWTO Secretary-General a.i. at the opening ceremony and talk about the "Current joint activities and future prospects " regarding IFTTA/UNWTO cooperation project.

To additional information about the Preliminary Programme click here.

5th Editur and the 1st Ibero-American Seminar of Tourism Law

Organized by IBCDTur - the Brazilian Institute of Tourism Sciences and Law, next week in Piracicaba SP, will take place the 5th Editur and the 1st Ibero-American Seminar of Tourism Law that will deal with the "Propedeutics and Tourism Law: epistemological foundations".

Sponsored by the Brazilian Ministry of Tourism, this event counts with the participation of the Presidents of other two National associations of MERCOSUL, Diego Benítez of AADETUR - the Argentinian Association of Tourism Law and Julio Facal of AUDETUR - the Uruguayan Association of Tourism Law.

The Education, Training and Congresses Committee of IFTTA is in charge of one of the Sessions with Uta Stenzel, from the University of Rostock in Germany, representing the Chairman of the Committee Prof. Klaus Tonner, and member of the Board of Directors of IFTTA, Manuel Masseno, from the Polytechnic of Beja in Portugal, also from the Board of Directors, and Graciela Guidi, from the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina.