Tag Archives: airlines

The Wall Street Journal reports: The Biden administration is planning a dramatic ramp-up of its airlift from Kabul by making preparations to compel major U.S. airlines to help with the transportation of tens of thousands of evacuees from Afghanistan, while expanding the number of U.S. military bases that could house Afghans. The White House is expected to consider activating the …

USA Today reports: Spirit Airlines CEO Ted Christie publicly addressed this week’s operational meltdown for the first time today, blaming the more than 1,700 flight cancellations on a variety of factors that left it short on pilots and flight attendants as August began. Bad weather at the end of July, a time when flight crews start to run out of …

CNBC reports: United Airlines will require its 67,000 U.S. employees to get vaccinated against Covid by no later than Oct. 25 or risk termination, a first for major U.S. carriers that will likely ramp up pressure on rivals. Airlines including United have so far resisted vaccine mandates for all workers, instead offering incentives like extra pay or time off to …

USA Today reports: Spirit Airlines apologized to passengers Wednesday after days of staggering flight cancellations and said cancellations should ease in the days to come as it reboots its operation. Help didn’t arrive on Thursday. The Florida-based carrier, which has blamed its operational meltdown on a series of issues, including weather, technology outages and staffing shortages, has already canceled 402 …

The New York Post reports: An apparently unhinged woman was duct-taped to an airplane seat last week after she allegedly attacked the flight crew and tried to open the door of the aircraft in midflight. Video posted on social media showed the gray-haired woman with silver duct tape over her mouth, and her arms and body seemingly taped to the …

Via press release: The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released a new public service announcement and levied $119,000 in civil penalties against passengers for alleged violations of federal regulations as part of its Zero Tolerance efforts against unruly behavior. As part of the FAA’s Zero Tolerance campaign, the web video features children explaining how to behave on …

Honolulu’s CBS News affiliate reports: A cargo plane crashed off Hawaii on Friday morning with two people on board. The state Department of Transportation confirmed the crash happened 2 miles off the coast near Kalaeloa Airport. According to CNBC, both crew members were rescued after making a belly landing in the ocean after attempting to return to the airport due …

The Daily Beast reports: A man who panicked on a moving plane at LAX, charged to the cockpit, then broke his leg after leaping out of an emergency exit told cops that he’d smoked “a lot” of crystal meth in the days leading up the incident. Court documents allege that Luis Antonio Victoria Dominguez, 33, leaned over to the passenger …

NBC News reports: A man tried to breach the cockpit of a United Express flight Friday night and after being unsuccessful, he opened the cabin door and fled the aircraft via the emergency slide at LAX, according to officials. In a statement from SkyWest, they confirmed that no one onboard the aircraft was injured, and that the aircraft was able …

Axios reports: United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby tells “Axios on HBO” that America could be headed toward a pilot shortage, because “the military produces far fewer pilots today than they did in the Cold War era.” Why it matters: The U.S. travel industry is roaring back, with leisure air travel exceeding pre-pandemic levels, and now must protect itself from future …

CNBC reports: American Airlines said it canceled hundreds of flights this weekend due to staffing shortages, maintenance and other issues, challenges facing the carrier as travel demand surges toward pre-pandemic levels. Delta Air Lines canceled more than 300 flights last Thanksgiving weekend and scores of others during Christmas during a pilot shortage. The weekend’s disruptions, reported earlier by the View …

CNN Business reports: Airlines, banks, stock exchanges and trading platforms suffered website outages early Thursday after a key piece of internet infrastructure failed, sparking the second major interruption of the past 10 days. The outages come just over a week after countless websites and apps around the world went down for about an hour when Fastly, another major content delivery …

The Independent reports: Witnesses have described the terrifying moment crew asked for ‘strong men’ to help subdue a passenger who tried to open a door on a Delta flight from Los Angeles to Atlanta. An eyewitness said on Twitter that passenger grabbed the public address system in the front galley and made an announcement telling others to take their seats …

CBS News reports: The FBI responded Friday after a Delta flight from Los Angeles to Nashville was diverted to Albuquerque after a passenger approached the cabin in a way that forced flight attendants to act. Delta said Flight 386 landed in Albuquerque without incident and the passenger was removed by law enforcement. According to Delta, the crew and passengers of …

Australia’s Today Show reports: Qantas CEO Alan Joyce [photo] is calling for more Australian companies to come forward with perks and incentives encouraging the public to get the COVID-19 vaccine. The airline’s vaccine incentive program, which launches in July, will offer several deals including unlimited travel for a year for 10 lucky families. “We are looking at giving 1000 points …

The Associated Press reports: A retired Southwest Airlines pilot was sentenced to probation Friday after pleading guilty to exposing his genitals to a female first officer and watching pornography on a laptop during a flight from Philadelphia to Florida last year. Michael Haak, 60, apologized and expressed remorse for his actions before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Mark Coulson sentenced him …

USA Today reports: Southwest Airlines has ditched its plans to resume alcohol sales in June and July given a spike in in-flight incidents, including a an altercation between a flight attendant and passenger that sent the flight attendant to the hospital Sunday. “Given the recent uptick in industry-wide incidents of passenger disruptions in-flight, we have made the decision to pause …

The Points Guy reports: U.S. airline customers are sitting on more than 20 million expiring airline vouchers and flight credits worth more than a combined $10 billion. Now, two U.S. senators are demanding that airlines waive those expiration dates for all credits issued during the pandemic. Sens. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) co-signed a letter to each of …

USA Today reports: With several states lifting mask mandates and COVID-19 vaccination rates on the rise, travelers are starting to ask when they will be able to fly without wearing a mask. It shouldn’t be anytime soon, flight attendants say. The federal mask mandate on planes and in airports, signed by President Joe Biden in January and due to expire …

Washington DC’s NBC News affiliate reports: Multiple federal law enforcement officials and sources confirm a former Southwest Airlines pilot is being charged with committing a “lewd” indecent act mid-flight from Philadelphia to Orlando in August. A court filing obtained by the News4 I-Team said Michael Haak “intentionally committed an act of lewd, indecent and obscene exposure of his genitals in …