Airlines and Airplanes

I use Twitter a lot to keep up-to-date on what is going on with the airlines. Tweets - the public status updates on Twitter - are usually fresh, current and succinct, so it is easy to skim through quickly. As more airlines use Twitter to offer quick, short term specials - twares - its becoming a great way to keep up with the airlines and snag a deal. I've listed my top 10 in terms of airlines I follow on Twitter.

About Air Travel is on Twitter - @aboutairtravel.

Luggage fees and what is free for airlines - legacy carriers such as American Airlines; low cost airlines such as Southwest Airlines; and non-US airlines such as Air Canada. Includes not just regular luggage, but sports equipment, strollers, car seats, wheelchairs, and excess bags.

Tougher economic times, and fuel prices are often cited as reasons for this next story-maker of the past decade. Airline mergers seem all the rage. Rumors continue to fly on which airlines will merge next.

Star Alliance got the trend started in 1997, but airline alliances didn't fully blossom until after 2000.

Sometimes notoriously bad, but certainly cheaper and often even better than legacy airlines, the budget / low cost airline has revolutionized travel for many parts of the world.

Ever wondered about which airlines are the biggest? The following list names the largest airlines by the amount of passengers they flew.