Airfare

Low cost airfares to and within Europe

As the summer season approaches it is become quite obvious that for Americans travelling to the old continent 2007 will hold the record for the most expensive airline tickets. It is probably a mixture of high prices for oil, a low dollar and the fact that companies can still fill their planes with tickets that are being sold at a premium.

Who's had experience with low-cost airlines in Europe? What did you find the best websites to book them?

It's quite clear that summer tickets need to be bought early in the year if you want to get the best prices.

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu

The Battle of Dien Bien Phu (Ðiện Biên Phủ) occurred in 1954 between Viet Minh forces under Vo Nguyen Giap and French airborne and Foreign Legion forces. The battle was fought near the village of Dien Bien Phu in northern Vietnam and became the last battle in the Indochina War which had begun in 1947.

Background
In 1953 the French had started the process of strengthening its defenses in the Hanoi delta region and were generally preparing for a series of offenses against the Viet Minh staging areas in north-west Vietnam. They had also set up a number of fortifed towns and outposts in the area, including Lai-Chau near the Chinese border to the north, Na San to the west of Hanoi, and Luang-Prabang and Plaine des Jarres in northern Laos.