It has also formed an alliance with Emirates, with the two carriers agreeing to collaborate on pricing, sales and flight scheduling.

BBC: Qantas: Boeing compensation boosts first-half earnings

"Each pilot accessed and used his personal laptop computer while they discussed the airline crew flight scheduling procedure, " the report said.

CNN: Report: Stray jet's pilots were on laptops

It said the men were talking about the new monthly crew flight scheduling system put into place in the wake of Northwest's merger with Delta Air Lines.

CNN: Report: Stray jet's pilots were on laptops

It said the men were talking about a new monthly crew flight scheduling system that was put into place in the wake of Northwest's merger with Delta Air Lines.

CNN: Pilots of wayward jet lose licenses

The trick is writing software and algorithms that tackle industry-specific problems, such as flight scheduling that keeps pilots below flying limits and financial models that account for the cost of currency exchanges.

FORBES: From nuclear bombs to net assets

Earlier this month, she found the perfect strategy at a client lunch: a flight-scheduling glitch.

WSJ: Colleagues Who Can Make You Fat

They disrupt airline operations because the systems handle everything from flight dispatching to crew scheduling, from ticket sales to frequent-flier accounts.

WSJ: Delays Hit 1,300 American Airlines Flights

The FAA said it plans to exercise all available scheduling flexibility to try to minimize flight delays.

WSJ: Airlines Dispute Planned Air-Controller Cuts

If a flight is canceled for operational reasons (such as a mechanical problem or crew scheduling conflicts) most airline contracts stipulate that you have to be put on the next available flight, even if it's on another airline.

NPR: Don't Pack that Pumpkin Pie Just Yet...

Besides scheduling greater time intervals between flights, routes will be modified so flight paths do not cross, or so they cross only at different altitudes.

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