Welcome to the October 2008 Issue of Travology Today

As the country gears up for Election Day, and questions about the economy remain at the forefront of peoples’ minds, the travel industry as well continues to be affected. As you will read below, due to the economic environment, Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines merged as Delta, but there are the benefits of increased routings and service.

We are sure that all companies to some degree have been impacted by this environment; travel policies have been tightened, budgets may have been revisited and the way we all do business is being looked for additional efficiencies.

We would like to reassure you that Directravel is working with the best interest of our clients in mind by continuing aggressive negotiations and partnerships with suppliers who will work with us on your behalf. The Senior Management team has been staying current with industry updates and our agency size has allowed us the flexibility to adapt to the changing environment without compromising service.

With this in mind, we want to once again ensure that you are taking full advantage of our resources to get the most from your travel budget. Our National Account Managers have been instrumental in achieving cost savings through:

• Travel policy revision
• Traveler education programs
• Implementation and increasing usage of all web-based tools available through Directravel
• Review of negotiated air, car, and hotel programs

In addition, Jim Hayes, Directravel’s Executive Vice President of Vendor Negotiations, is very experienced, from his tenure with Delta Air Lines, in the structure of airline contracts and how to maximize savings potential.

We look forward to our continued relationships with our clients and industry partners as we all work through this difficult time. Please feel free to contact us with any specific questions or concerns you may have about your travel program.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. and Northwest Airlines, Inc. merged on October 29th, creating a premier global airline with service to nearly all of the world’s major travel markets.

The new airline, called Delta and headquartered in Atlanta, will begin its first day as a combined company with a commitment to delivering excellent service to customers in 66 countries and more than 375 worldwide cities – more than any other airline; with a dedicated base of approximately 75,000 worldwide employees; and with a best-in-class cost structure and strong liquidity balance that better positions the company to adapt to the weakening global economy.

“The airline industry faces a very difficult economic environment around the world and this merger gives Delta increased flexibility to adapt to the economic challenges ahead,” said Delta CEO Richard Anderson. “With much of the work to bring our airlines together well under way, the new Delta will be at the front of the pack in achieving the benefits of consolidation and is well positioned to navigate the tough waters ahead in a difficult economy.”

With the completion of the merger, Northwest Airlines is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta. Customers should continue to check-in and do business directly with the airline operating their flight just as they did before the merger. Delta will continue operation of the airlines’ separate Web sites, www.delta.com and www.nwa.com, as well as the two airlines’ reservations systems and loyalty programs.

The companies will be integrated through a thoughtful process with customer benefits rolled out over the next 12-24 months, including:

• The addition of Delta’s code to nearly all of the Northwest system by the end of 2008, creating thousands of additional connecting opportunities.
• Immediate complimentary upgrade reciprocity for elite members of both airlines’ loyalty programs, with airport lounge reciprocity continuing as usual.
• The launch of a fully consolidated worldwide flight schedule in advance of summer 2009;
• The introduction of elements of Delta’s brand throughout the Northwest system beginning in spring 2009, including Delta’s popular Richard Tyler designer uniforms, Delta’s livery, “signature cocktails,” enhanced in-flight entertainment and other onboard amenities.
• The consolidation of the Delta and Northwest loyalty programs, ultimately including the ability to combine miles from SkyMiles and WorldPerks accounts at a one-to-one ratio.
• The full integration of Delta and Northwest Web sites, kiosks, and customer-facing technology to ensure a consistent worldwide travel experience.

Delta has already invested significant resources to ensure a seamless transition for customers, including receiving clearance from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the airline’s plan to achieve a Single Operating Certificate over the next 14-16 months; adding extra staffing and technology at check-in counters and kiosks to provide added customer assistance beginning today; and posting complete merger information at www.delta.com and www.nwa.com to provide customers added assistance.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the issuance of the Secure Flight Final Rule, which shifts pre-departure watch list matching responsibilities from individual aircraft operators to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and carries out a key recommendation of the 9/11 Commission. By bringing watch list matching responsibilities in-house, TSA can better remedy possible misidentifications when a traveler's name is similar to one found on a watch list.

"Secure Flight is a critical tool that will further improve aviation security and fix the major customer service issue of watch list misidentifications, a frustratingly common occurrence for travelers under the existing airline-based system," said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. "We know that threats to our aviation system persist, and Secure Flight will help us better protect the traveling public while creating a more consistent passenger prescreening process, ultimately reducing the number of misidentification issues."

Airlines will be required under Secure Flight to collect a passenger's full name, date of birth, and gender when making an airline reservation. This additional information is expected to prevent most inconveniences at the airport, and will be particularly important for those individuals with names similar to those on the watch list.

TSA will receive limited information for each passenger, as well as for certain non-traveling individuals, such as those escorting a minor or disabled passenger to the gate. TSA will determine if their information matches the No Fly or Selectee lists and will transmit results back to airlines. Data retention for the vast majority of individuals will be no more than seven days.

Secure Flight will be implemented in two phases. The program will initially assume the watch list matching responsibility for passengers on domestic flights from aircraft operators beginning early 2009. In a second stage of implementation, which is targeted to begin in late 2009, the Secure Flight program would assume, from Customs and Border Protection and the international air carriers, the watch list matching function for passengers on international flights.

Information on the Secure Flight Final Rule is currently available at www.dhs.gov.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced the expansion of its popular "Self-Select Lanes" to Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR). Self-Select Lanes are comprised of a series of lanes designated by signage that directs passengers based on their travel needs and knowledge –Casual, for passengers who travel less frequently, but are familiar with the security process; and Family/Special Assistance, for passengers traveling with small children or strollers, elderly passengers and passengers who may need special assistance.

Airports that have instituted the Self-Select Lanes have seen an overall increase in passenger satisfaction with the screening process. TSA officers are also discovering fewer prohibited items because families are given more time to prepare without feeling pressured. Currently 44 airports nation-wide have rolled out this program.

"Our goal for the Self-Select Lanes program is a calmer, more efficient checkpoint," said Newark Liberty International Airport Federal Security Director Barbara Powell. "We hope to see lower wait times for the most experienced travelers and reduce pressure on families and special needs passengers by giving them more time to prepare for screening."

The Transportation Security Administration screens on average 35,000 to 40,000 passengers each day at Newark Liberty International Airport. The TSA Self-Select Lanes are located in Continental Airlines' Terminal C at Checkpoint C-1. Continental Airlines continues to provide the EliteAccess lane for BusinessFirst, First Class and OnePass Elite customers.

TSA is in the process of selecting additional airports based on input from our partners. Airport selection is based on a number of factors, including checkpoint configuration, stakeholder support and passenger population.

For more information on TSA's Self-Select Lanes program, please visit www.tsa.gov.

ForbesTraveler.com released its 2008 ForbesTraveler 400, the most comprehensive expert-driven list of the top 400 hotels and resorts in the world.

A board of more than 75 luxury travel experts participated in the selection of the 400 properties that comprise the list, including respected business leaders, experienced travel professionals, elite travel agents, as well as renowned travel writers, editors and broadcasters.

To create the 2008 ForbesTraveler 400, available at www.forbestraveler.com/forbes400, the site’s editors compiled a list of nearly 800 of the world's top-ranked hotels from a variety of respected sources (brand-new hotels and hotels closed for renovations were excluded), allowing for individual nominations beyond the original pool of properties. The board experts were then asked to rate each property on seven criteria:

• Service
• Room & Bathroom
• Décor
• Food & Beverage
• Public Areas & Facilities
• Sports & Recreation
• Location

The survey results determined the world's top 400 hotels. Original 300-word reviews, the most extensive in the business, accompany each property, written by professional travel journalists who personally visited the properties, but did not receive any special treatment from the hotels they covered.

American Airlines relocated its operations to Raleigh/Durham International Airport’s new Terminal 2 on Sunday, Oct. 26…Austrian Airlines has placed first in the categories of Business class Catering and Cabin Staff in a worldwide survey conducted by Skytrax, a British Consulting Company. The results were drawn from more than 15 million air passengers from 95 countries around the world…The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Continental Airlines announced the rollout of the Paperless Boarding Pass pilot program to LaGuardia Airport (LGA). This innovative approach will allow passengers to receive boarding passes electronically on their cell phones or PDAs, which will then be scanned by TSA security officers at the checkpoint, eliminating the need for a paper boarding pass…Effective November 1st, Continental’s carry-on baggage requirement will be reduced from 51 linear incheas to 45 linear inches…Emirates, commenced its Los Angeles service marking the first non-stop operation connecting Dubai to Los Angeles…Qatar Airways has launched scheduled flights to New York’s JFK International Airport with a new non-stop service linking America’s financial center with Doha, capital of the State of Qatar…US Airways customers will have a new United Kingdom option and their first Norwegian offering next summer when the airline inaugurates service to Birmingham and Oslo from its international gateway at Philadelphia International Airport…

in August '08 increased to 78.4%, up 3.6 points vs. the running 12 month average of 74.8% and up 2.7 points from July’s 75.7%. To view the USDOT's Bureau of Transportation Statistics' (BTS) Air Travel Consumer Report, click here.

The United States Government has posted recent travel advisories and warnings for Afghanistan, Algeria, Bolivia, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Colombia, Cote d’lvoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, East Timor, Eritrea, Georgia, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Kenya, Lebanon, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Uzbekistan and Yemen.