The briefing in brief: The European Union's Entry/Exit System (EES) is mandatory at airports beginning April 10. United unveils a raft of premium upgrades on transcontinental flights and short-haul markets via several new subfleets. GOL of Brazil will fly to New York/Kennedy starting this summer. ITA Airways of Italy will join the Star Alliance and Lufthansa Miles & More next week. Washington-area ATC evacuated twice in two weeks. And more.

HEADS UP! EUROPE MAKES EES MANDATORY ON APRIL 10
Thinking of getting away from the war, shutdowns and chaos by running away to Europe? You're out of luck. Effective April 10, the European Union's Entry/Exit System (EES) becomes mandatory. And EES has sown chaos and created mammoth delays at any airport or border crossing where it has been tried. The system requires border agents to capture fingerprints and photographs as well as a passport scan. There are self-service options because U.S. and Canadian passports are already biometric, but that hasn't sped up the process much. There's also a new EES app, but, at the moment, it only works for Sweden and partially for Portugal. And Portugal is worth mentioning because it was one of the earliest EES adopters--and where chaos ensued at Lisbon Airport. Lines at immigration were so long and confusing that the government suspended its implementation. It is running again, at least according to the Portuguese government. Other places aren't so lucky. The system was suspended this week at the Eurotunnel and the Port of Dover in England, which has its own entry-exit system as well as using the European version for travelers headed to France. Unless suspended elsewhere, the European EES will apply to 29 nations. Cyprus and Ireland have yet to adopt the EES. Hang tough, fellow flyers, this could be a rough one.

UNITED PLANS MORE PREMIUM SEATS, UPGRADED SERVICES
Disclaimer: This is based on what United Airlines says it will do with subfleets of new aircraft. But it is worth noting since United says some innovations will begin appearing as early as this summer. So stay alert.
        Coastliner aircraft will operate exclusively on transcon runs between LAX, San Francisco and Newark. (Should United again get New York/Kennedy access, assume these planes will run there, too.) The narrowbody A321neo aircraft will be configured with 20 all-aisle-access, lie-flat business class pods, 12 international-style premium economy seats and 129 coach chairs. The service will essentially replace United's aging transcon PS service. Business class flyers will receive in-flight amenities similar to United's international Polaris service and have access to Polaris lounges. There will be what United calls a snack bar at the rear of the plane serving coach passengers.
        CRJ450 commuter jets are a remake of the much-disliked, 50-seat CRJ200 aircraft. There will be just 41 seats with a (comparatively) spacious first class cabin. The overhead bins in first class will be removed to increase headroom and be replaced with a dedicated luggage closet. The remake appears similar to the CRJ550 commuter aircraft that United introduced in 2019 by refiguring CRJ700s.
        Airbus A321XLR narrowbodies will replace the aged Boeing 757s that United still flies on some secondary international routes. They'll feature Polaris seatbeds with privacy doors--the doors aren't currently approved to operate--and a coach class snack bar.
        Relax Row service is similar to the pseudo-beds comprised of three adjacent coach seats first introduced in 2010 by Air New Zealand. The Relax Row will be added to hundreds of Boeing 787 and Boeing 777.

BRAZIL'S GOL WILL FLY TO KENNEDY THIS SUMMER
There is never enough service between South America and the United States, so this is good news. GOL Airlines of Brazil will launch flights on July 8 from Rio de Janeiro/Tom Jobim to New York/Kennedy. There'll be three weekly flights using Airbus A330s, the carrier's first widebody aircraft. Until now, GOL has only flown to Orlando and Miami, destinations it could reach with Boeing 737s. The new JFK-GIG route will also feature GOL's initial business class service. No details yet.
        ITA Airways, spiritual successor to Alitalia and now a vassal of Lufthansa, will join the Star Alliance next week. Lufthansa, of course, is a founding member of Star. ITA also joins the Lufthansa Miles & More frequency plan. That one is a double-edged sword, however, The existing ITA Volare program will be closed and points will not transfer to the Lufthansa plan.

BUSINESS TRAVEL NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW
A United Airlines flight arriving at John Wayne/Orange County Airport on Tuesday evening (March 24) had a near-miss with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. If this sounds familiar, that's because the situation was what caused the fatal incident involving an American Airlines commuter aircraft last year at Washington/National airport. Ironically, the FAA last week imposed new rules to avoid military/commercial runway mishaps, but the procedures may not have been followed in the United incident.
        Washington airports have endured two ground stops in the last two weeks. The problem? A burning chemical smell in the Potomac TRACON, which controls air traffic at Washington/National, Washington/Dulles and Baltimore/Washington International. The tower was evacuated and flights briefly halted each time.
        American Airlines has received approval to resume flights to Venezuela. No details on service or schedules yet, however.