London’s Big Ben to be renamed Elizabeth Tower
msnbc.com
It’s one of the most famous names in the world, up there with the Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty. But now London’s Big Ben clock tower is to be renamed Elizabeth Tower to mark the queen’s 60th year on the British throne.
The announcement on Tuesday followed four days of celebrations earlier this month to mark 86-year-old Queen’s Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee.
The landmark, part of Britain’s Houses of Parliament, is officially called the Clock Tower but is commonly known as Big Ben, the name of the giant bell in the tower that chimes the famous bongs in the capital.
Wildfires threaten summer Rocky Mountain tourism
CBS News
Brutal wildfires across the West have put tourist destinations from Montana to New Mexico in danger just at the height of midsummer family road-trip season, putting cherished Western landscapes at risk along with hordes of vacationers.
In Colorado, the $5 billion tourism industry is on edge as images of smoke-choked Pikes Peak and flaming vacation cabins near Rocky Mountain National Park threaten to scare away summer tourists.
Singapore Airlines clings to luxury as budget carriers thrive
Reuters
Tony Fernandes, the flamboyant chief executive of budget airline AirAsia, joked last month that he could buy Singapore Airlines and even displayed an artist’s impression of his competitor’s plane painted in AirAsia colours.
It was a tongue-in-cheek jab, but one that struck at a painful truth for Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI). The company has stuck to its luxury image even as low-cost carriers picked off passengers in a weak global economy, and profits have suffered.
The airline reported an unexpected loss in the January-March quarter, its first since the tail end of the global financial crisis in 2009 which crushed global air travel. Its shares are down 29 percent in the past 12 months, while AirAsia’s (AIRA.KL) are up 10 percent.
No free beer: Alaska airline modifies promo
USA Today
There’s no such thing as a free beer.
That was the unfortunate realization for passengers of a small Alaska airline, which had to roll back a free-drink promotion earlier this month after fears that the offer for a complimentary Single Engine Red beer might run afoul of state law.
The airline – Era Alaska – had been offering one free 6-ounce Single Engine Red to adult passengers on several of its intra-Alaska routes.
However, the airline pulled the plug on the promotion after Alaska officials expressed concern the promo could violate a state law that prohibits companies from offering free alcohol as marketing tool, radio station KMXT of Kodiak reports
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