Our weekly ‘Hot or Not’ series brings you some of the highs and lows in this week’s travel news headlines.
HOT, HOT, HOT!
1. Jennifer Aniston. The face of Emirates?
Marriage may not be the only commitment Jennifer Aniston enters this year, the Hollywood actress is reportedly working on a multi-million dollar deal to be the face of Dubai-based airline, Emirates.
The 46-year-old beauty made famous in the 90s for her portrayal of Rachel in hit sitcom Friends is allegedly set to appear in digital and television adverts for the carrier.
A senior Emirates officially is said to have told the New York Post that the campaign advertisements had already been filmed and are being prepared to be released on a global platform.
2. Nicole Kidman ‘strikes a pose’ for tourism
From the face of Etihad’s ‘Residence’ to the face of Australian tourism – Nicole Kidman’s latest photoshoot is expected to put Australia on the map for travellers across the globe.
Vogue Australia’s September issue went on sale this week featuring Nicole Kidman photographed at the sacred site of Mutijulu, at the eastern side of Uluru – one of Australia’s most iconic landmarks.
Inside the magazine, the five-page spread shows off the beauty of the ancient site as well as the local indigenous culture.
3. Canberra Airport lights up in rainbow colours
MPs flying into Canberra Airport last night received a colourful welcome as the gateway’s owners showed their support for same-sex marriage.
A display of purple, red, yellow, green and orange lit up the main entrance and highlighted the enlarged text: #WECANDOTHIS
Airport’s Managing Director, Stephen Byron, told Fairfax that the display aimed at supporting the end of ‘ridiculous’ discrimination.
He explained that he thinks its ridiculous that same sex couples, including his brother, are forced to travel overseas to tie the knot.
NOT, NOT, NOT!
1. The reason airport retailers want your boarding pass
Travellers around the UK are holding a mini-uprising on social media after discovering they aren’t legally required to show airport retailers their boarding passes.
Thinking it was a legal requirement, travellers for years have searched through their carry on luggage to produce that single pass every time they wanted to purchase a giant Toblerone bar or discounted perfume from a gateway.
But according to The Telegraph, all that effort in finding the right documentation was merely to help airport retailers claim back tax.
2. Boozy cabin crew grounded
Latvia’s flag carrier, airBaltic has not only issued an apology to customers, but recorded its sincerest apologies after four of its cabin crew were pulled from a flight for failing a breathalyser test.
Norwegian police prosecutor, Edith Ek Sorensen, said her team were acting on a tip-off from an anonymous caller when they decided to run the ran random breath check on all five crew members on flight BT7843.
The test confirmed that four out of the five, including one pilot and co-pilot were ‘above the legal alcohol limit’.
3. Pilot’s incredible emergency landing
A Delta Air Lines pilot has been praised for his incredible flying skills after successfully landing a beaten A320.
The plane was pelted with so much hail while flying from Boston to Salt Lake City this month, its nose cone broke off and nearly every inch of the windshield was cracked.
A passenger onboard, Beau Sorensen of Provo from Utah told the Denver Post that it felt like air was dropping from under the plane.
He explained that babies and other passengers were screaming and crying, despite not being able to see the actual damage to the plane.
After successfully landing the plane only one person was taken to hospital for minor injuries and passengers were transferred to another plane for the rest of their flight.
Mr Sorensen took to Twitter to thank the airline and the pilot for ‘saving our butts’.