Nearly a week after the new Terminal 5 opened at Heathrow it is finally ready to operate a full schedule of flights making it the first day of normal operation. Until today flights have been cancelled every day to take pressure off the overloaded baggage handling systems.

BA has called in international couriers to help return customers bags. The airline has chartered planes from FedEx to take luggage back to the US and BA flights are also taking bags back across the Atlantic when there is spare space in the hold. Some bags have also been taken by road to Milan where they will be sorted and flown out to their owners.

CrossCountry Trains will run a high speed summer service between Manchester and Newquay and Newcastle and Newquay. The service will operate on Saturdays between May and September and is aimed at encouraging holidaymakers to the county. The trains will have large luggage compartments so will be able to easily accommodate surfboards. They are likely to prove popular with the hundreds of surfers who regularly visit Cornwall.

Plans to introduce fingerprinting for passengers travelling from Terminal 5 were suspended only 24 hours before they were due to open. BAA says that the measures are needed to distinguish domestic passengers from international ones but the data protection watchdog has said the plan may breach British law. Talks are now being held between the Information Commissioner and BAA which wants to bring in the checks in the future.

There is likely to be more disruption at Terminal 5 as BA struggle to sort out the problems that hit the opening week. BA is still struggling to clear the backlog of luggage and is still cancelling some flights and there are now reports that it could take months for things to get back to normal. BA has now postponed the switch of long haul flights to the terminal which was due to happen on the 5th of April and there could also be a threat of strike action which would hit service further.

The General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC) has plans to build 97 airports before 2020. The plan will see the number of airports in China increasing to 192 in 2010 and to 244 by 2020 meaning that most people will live within 90 minutes drive of an airport by 2020. The new airports will cost around 450 billion Yuan ($64 billion) and are being built to meet increasing demand.

If your flight has been delayed or cancelled you might want to have a look at this article. It has lots of useful information about what compensation you could be entitled to. For example if your flight is delayed for two hours on a journey of up to 1,500km you should be able to claim free meals and refreshments and two phones calls, whereas if you are delayed overnight you are entitled to hotel accommodation. Its definitely worth a read before you travel.

According to BA the baggage handling system at Heathrow is now working well. However there is a huge backlog of bags at the airport. BA has a team of 400 volunteers who are working to clear the backlog of around 15,000 bags which have now built up at the airport although reuniting passengers with their luggage is likely to take some time because the bags need to go through enhanced security screening This is now being done manually because BA has been unable to use the Terminal 5 baggage system to process the bags. 

The Post Office has announced 53 branches in Norfolk that are facing closure. Despite the closures The Post Office says that the cutbacks are necessary to make the service sustainable and that most people will still be within a mile of a post office.

The full list of proposed closures:
•    The Crown, Colby Road, Banningham
•    Barney, The Street, Fakenham
•    Beeston Village Stores, Beeston, Kings Lynn
•    Beresford Road, Great Yarmouth
•    The Post Office, Castle Rising, King's Lynn
•    Village Hall, The Street, Caston, Attleborough
•    Clint Green, Norwich Road, Clint Green, Dereham
•    65 Intwood Road, Cringleford, Norwich
•    Cromer Road, Sheringham
•    East Runton Stores, Cromer
•    The Post Office, East Walton, Kings Lynn
•    Village Hall, Church Road, Wretham
•    4 Harvey Estate, Gimingham, Norwich
•    Church Road, Great Plumstead, Norwich
•    Textile Centre, Great Walsingham Barns
•    Church Road, Griston, Thetford
•    The Pleasure Boat Inn, Staithe Road, Hickling
•    Ancient House, Wells Road, Holkham
•    Lichfield Road, Southtown, Great Yarmouth,
•    Post Office Road, Little Plumstead, Norwich
•    98 London Street, Swaffham
•    Chapel Road, Longham, Dereham
•    47 Lynn Road, Downham Market
•    High Street, Marsham, Norwich
•    Lovells, Market Place, New Buckenham
•    308 Bowthorpe Road, North Earlham, Norwich
•    North End, Loke Road, Kings Lynn
•    East View, Mill Road, North Tuddenham, Dereham
•    Northgate Street, Great Yarmouth
•    Norwich Road, Watton
•    Nuns Bridges Filling Station, Bury Road, Thetford
•    Downham Market Railway Station, Railway Road, Downham Market
•    Ringstead, High Street, Hunstanton
•    Rosary Road, Norwich
•    Sporle Community Centre, Kings Lynn
•    Springfield Road, Gorleston, Great Yarmouth
•    Bungalow Stores, Stokesby, Great Yarmouth
•    Norwich Road, Tacolneston, Norwich
•    Tittleshall Village Hall, Tittleshall
•    The Street, Trowse
•    Church Road, Upton
•    Suffolk Square, Norwich
•    Wells Road, Fakenham
•    Staithe Road, West Somerton, Great Yarmouth
•    The Street, Wattisfield, Diss
•    The Street, Scole, Diss
•    High Road, Bressingham, Diss

Several British airlines are facing increased costs which could amount to hundreds of millions of pounds after expansion plans have been set back because of problems with the new 787 Dreamliner plane. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and First Choice Airways have ordered 97 of the planes between them making them an essential part of the UK aviation industry’s new fleet. There are likely to be delivery delays of more than a year because parts of the plane have needed to be redesigned.

This weeks travel blog of the week is Family Travel. The blog is run by away.com and features  regular authors Steve Jermanok and Christine Loomis and other guest authors.  It aims to offer practical advice and tips for those planning a trip with the family.

One article written by Nathan Borchelt looks at the Copper  Mountain ski resort in Colorado which Nathan says is an ideal resort for the whole family. The reason he says this is that the resort has a large area which is dedicated to beginners but also has more challenging intermediate and expert runs which are situated well away from those who are just learning the ropes. The resort also holds classes for two age groups children aged 3 to 5 and another for children aged 5 and over, as well as having seasonal youth programs also separated by age group. It certainly looks like a great family destination.

Another useful article written by guest blogger Jennifer Michaels and entitled packing tips from the expert  looks at how to organise your packing and still stay within the airlines baggage allowance. Tips include things lie using a board to fold shirts and shorts and rolling bathing suits and underwear into cubes to save much needed space. Other tips include renting large items of baby equipment once you reach your destination and giving each child their own carry on kit for the plane journey with their special toys and some snacks included. This article is definitely worth a read before you travel.

Terminal 5’s third day has been hit by further cancellations. More than 100 flights were cancelled on Thursday and Friday because of problems with the baggage handling system with another 54 flights cancelled today. Customers are being advised to check on the BA website for a full list of cancellations. Those who do have their flights cancelled will be able to apply for a refund or rebook.

Things didn’t get any better on the second day of operations at Terminal 5. After the initial problems with the baggage handling system on the opening day the second day saw one in five flights being cancelled. 80% of the planned 534 flights were operating with passengers now able to check in hold luggage. BA has set up an information line for T5 passengers: 0800 727800. The airline has also advised customers to check its website, www.ba.com for service updates.