EMONG'S JOURNALS

Have you ever thought of boarding your next flight and having the whole plane to yourself? Austrian travel blogger Alex Simon, 28, had a private jet for the price of one ticket when he found himself alone after boarding a Philippine Airlines domestic flight from Manila to Boracay. Nobody showed up for the flight and the only people on board were the aircraft's two flight attendants and two pilots. One flight attendant said to him he "can sit anywhere, because (he is) the only passenger." In an interview from MailOnline , Simon said he was "surprised" and thought he was dreaming. "It was an unforgettable feeling to take a flight to one of the most beautiful islands of the world, but to be alone and to feel like a superstar made it more special," "I just had luck, I think, that no one else was interested on this day to fly to paradise." Boracay is an island in the Visayas region south of Manila. Well known for its sparkling white...

Expecting an awesome hoverboard this Christmas? Tell your relative not to send them via a US airline -- they've just banned these gadgets on board their flights. On Friday, at least three major US airlines - Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and United Airlines -- have enforced a ban against the so-called "hoverboards" amid concerns that the lithium ions batteries of these "self-balancing" devices are fire hazards on their flights. A UK carrier, British Airways, is also set to implement the ban soon. According to an article from CBS News , "the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is currently investigating 10 reports of hoverboard fires in nine states. Many of the hoverboard electric scooters have high-watt lithium batteries, which the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says can start fires in a plane's baggage compartments." Lithium Ions are also used on cell phones and laptops, but they are considered "low-watt" batterie...

Hurry up, book a flight and just go! AirAsia's superfantastic one-centavo seat sale happens until November 29, 2015, available both for local and international destinations within the travel period from May 1, 2016 until Feb 5, 2017. The one-centavo seats will be available for flights going to Kalibo (Boracay), Palawan, Tagbilaran (Bohol), Davao, Cebu, and Tacloban; and for international flights to Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu, Busan, Hong Kong, Macau and Incheon. While favorite tourist destinations such as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, China, Japan aren't included in the P0.01 sale, flights to these countries are still available via another company promo. See the AirAsia Facebook Page for more details. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your ideas by commenting.

People just can't resist the taste of the native Lechon tail! Just recently, an owner of a lechon (roasted pig) that arrived at the Manila airport cargo terminal filed a complaint saying the tail of the pork delicacy was missing. Officials at the terminal reviewed the CCTV footage and saw an airline cargo loader broke the tail off from the lechon and pocketed the delectable piece. According to a Manila Bulletin article, "The lechon had been transported from the Laguindingan Airport in Misamis Oriental, near Cagayan de Oro City. A review of the closed circuit television footage (CCTV) showed that an airline cargo loader had taken interest in the pork delicacy, broke the tail off and then pocketed the delectable piece," Because of the incident, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) is now seriously considering to prohibit "all airport employees from wearing pants or skirts with pockets or from taking with them gadgets, like cellular phones, ...

IF YOU'RE packing for a flight, be sure to know this new list of prohibited items that applies to all flights originating within the country. In an article from ABS-CBN News , it said the Department of Transportation and Communications-Office of Transportation Security already released memorandum circular MC2015-02, listing seven categories as among those prohibited inside airplanes. As follows: 1. Guns, Firearms and Other Devices that Discharge Projectiles PROHIBITED IN CARRY-ON AND CHECKED-IN BAGGAGE: air gun; ammunition shells, bullets and other component; bolt gun; component of guns and firearm; compressed air gun; firearms; flare gun; harpoon gun; nail gun; pellet guns; pistol; replicas and imitation firearms; revolver; rifle; shotgun; spear gun; sport-related firearm PROHIBITED IN CARRY-ON BUT ALLOWED IN CHECKED-IN BAGGAGE ONLY: slingshots; bow and arrow; and crossbows NOTE: All forms of firearms and guns prohibited must be endorsed to the appropriate law e...

H onda has always kept its wheels on the ground with cars and motorcycles. But now, the Japanese automotive giant is taking off to invade the skies with the unveiling of its first ever business jet. HondaJet, developed by the US-based subsidiary Honda Aircraft Company, was launched at Tokyo's Haneda Airport and will embark on a global journey spanning 48,000 kilometers and more than a dozen countries, which includes Switzerland, Great Britain, France and Germany. Specifications and design The high-end business jet, measuring about 42 feet long, comes with a tag price of $4.5 million. Its engines rests on top of its wings which means lesser air resistance compared to the conventional jets which carries its engines at the rear of the fuselage. It can travel 2,000 kilometers without refueling and makes a top speed of up to 778 kilometers per hour, faster than its current rivals. The HondaJet started in the company's drawing board 20 years ago and has been a long-tim...

They came, they saw and they conquered! This summer, Filipina pilots once again, establish their dominion over the skies, a territory once ruled and dominated by men. AirAsia Philippines on Friday launched its Manila-Davao flight with an all-female crew, led by a Cebuana captain, manning its Flight Z2 611. Meet Gisela Z. Bendong, the first woman pilot of AirAsia Philippines: INTERVIEW FROM SUNSTAR NEWS:  "I came from a family of pilots, so I grew up wanting to also fly planes since I was a child," said Bendong, a graduate of Cebu Aeronautical Technical School. She said she's happy to have excelled in the industry once dominated by men, but added that she did not experience discrimination in her job as a pilot. "I've been flying for years now, with flights from Cebu and Davao, pabalik-balik lang... I've been trained to command planes, and pareho lang naman ang training sa men and women pilots," she said. She said whether male or female pi...

T hey never learn. On Wednesday, a man was sent to jail after cracking a joke to a flight attendant that he's carrying a bag containing a bomb, according to a radio report. Surigao businessman Arnold Go, 42, was at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport and on board Cebu Pacific Flight 5J223 bound for Butuan City when a flight attendant requested him to place his hand-carried bag into the baggage compartment just above his head. Go said he cannot do so because his bag contains an explosive device. The flight attendant was quick to react. She ran to the cockpit and informed the pilot. Airport authorities arrived, arrested Go and immediately hauled him off the plane. It was later learned that the bag did not contain any bomb. Go will be charged with violation of Presidential Decree 1727, often referred to as the "Anti-bomb Joke Law" with penalty of 5 years imprisonment or a fine of P40,000 or both. Just last year, Kim Castillo, an OFW from Dubai, was also...