Business Books: Power tools for business travelers

By Gunna Dickson

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Who gets an upgrade and who gets bumped? What if your name is on a watch list? How can you avoid baggage fees? Why do airfares change several times in one day? Where to find the "blacklist" of airlines banned for safety reasons?

The answers -- along with tips on packing, insurance, lost bags, delays, rip-offs, compensation, and common security issues like prescription drugs and wrapped presents -- are tendered by Scott McCartney in "The Wall Street Journal Guide to Power Travel" (Collins Business, $16.99).

As the travel industry weathers financial turbulence and prices fall, McCartney's advice is to keep traveling as much as you can.

"You can get a lot more out of last year's budget," he told Reuters. "It can hurt your business if you clamp down too much."

McCartney, the Journal's "Middle Seat" columnist, has tips for everyone, from novices to elite-status CEOs.

He lists numerous websites for current travel news and government statistics, seven sites for flight information and tracking, 16 for destinations, five for frequent-flyer programs, and four for safety.

For fares, he lists 24 sites (not including individual airlines) -- from easy-to-navigate Orbitz to the sophisticated ExpertFlyer.com to FareCompare.com for comparison shoppers.

Interspersed are flight trivia, such as this one: With more than 5,000 flights over the United States at any given time, jets fly along designated highways between "fixes," each with five-letter identifiers so pilots and controllers can communicate their location.