air travel – News Stories About air travel - Page 22

NASA Releases Pilot Gripes on Tired Crews, Air Traffic

Jan 1, 2008 4:58 AM CST

NASA Releases Pilot Gripes on Tired Crews, Air Traffic

Surveys uncover twice as many problems as official reports

(Newser) - Bowing to pressure from Congress, NASA has grudgingly released thousand of pages of pilot complaints, CNN reports. They include complaints about crowded skies, tired crews, and communication problems. The surveys of more than 30,000 pilots found twice as many collisions with bird, near-collisions with other aircraft, and runway incursions...

United Woes Pile Up 3 Days After Storm

Dec 27, 2007 9:06 AM CST

United Woes Pile Up 3 Days After Storm

Carrier blames pilot shortage for cancellations; pilots blame staff cuts

(Newser) - United Airlines cancellations yesterday continued to pile up for a third straight day, as the world's second biggest carrier blamed a Sunday storm that slammed its Chicago hub and a shortage of pilots. But the pilots' union pointed the finger at staffing cuts, saying, "The weather wouldn't have mattered...

Airplane WiFi Poses Sticky Situation

Dec 24, 2007 12:26 PM CST

Airplane WiFi Poses Sticky Situation

Crammed together passengers may not like neighbor's browsing material

(Newser) - Airlines getting ready to offer Internet access are grappling with how to enforce netiquette at 33K feet. "We think decency and good sense and normal behavior will prevail," said the CEO of one service. If it's not porn or violent images, its annoying ringtones and loud conversations that...

Deadly Storm Batters Plains

Dec 23, 2007 7:13 AM CST

Deadly Storm Batters Plains

At least five people die as massive crashes close several highways

(Newser) - A deadly storm packing a one-two punch of heavy snow and high winds delivered a pounding to the Plains, making travel treacherous on a busy pre-holiday weekend. Blowing snow dropped visibility to near zero at times, causing at least five deaths in a string of multi-vehicle crashes that closed portions...

US Caps
JFK Flights to Ease Delays

UPDATED

Dec 19, 2007 4:59 PM CST

US Caps JFK Flights to Ease Delays

Move designed to keep airports elsewhere on time

(Newser) - Transportation officials today capped the number of flights per hour at New York's JFK airport in a bid to keep flight delays from cascading around the country, the New York Times reports. Starting in March, JFK will be allowed up to 83 flights an hour, down from about 100 at...

Fliers Thankful for Few Delays

Nov 22, 2007 8:37 AM CST

Fliers Thankful for Few Delays

Planning and good weather ease holiday congestion

(Newser) - The Thanksgiving travel rush was smoother than expected, reports the New York Times, thanks to good weather, added airline agents, and the federal government giving commercial airliners access to military airspace for the holiday. Many travelers helped reduce the crush Wednesday, the busiest single travel day of the year,...

Tips for Tasty In-Flight Fare

Nov 19, 2007 6:04 AM CST

Tips for Tasty In-Flight Fare

In the era of no-frills flying, expert advice on how to pack a sandwich that will satisfy

(Newser) - With no-frills flying leaving the provisions up to you, packing your own sandwich beats stale airport fare by a mile. Sisha Ortuzar, executive chef at New York's 'Wichcraft, gives Budget Travel tips for a tasty sandwich that'll survive hard travel:

Use crusty breads like ciabattas or baguettes for tuna salad

...

Too Skimpy
for Plane,
Just Right
for Playboy

Nov 17, 2007 2:40 PM CST

Too Skimpy for Plane, Just Right for Playboy

Woman nearly kicked off flight bares all

(Newser) - Kyla Ebbert's outfits just keeping getting skimpier. The 23-year-old California woman who nearly got booted from a Southwest Airlines flight because she wore clothes deemed too revealing has now posed for Playboy in the nude. "They're very tastefully done," she said of the photos. Southwest holds no grudges....

Bush Outlines Plan to Combat Flight Delays

Nov 15, 2007 2:03 PM CST

Bush Outlines Plan to Combat Flight Delays

Military opens airspace to Thanksgiving commercial flights

(Newser) - The military will open some of its East Coast airspace to commercial traffic around Thanksgiving, President Bush announced today in a series of measures to cut down on air-travel delays, reports the Chicago Tribune's Swamp blog. “We can do better," Bush said in Washington. "We have an...

Surfers See
Red Over
Brit Airways
Board Ban

Nov 7, 2007 3:33 AM CST

Surfers See Red Over Brit Airways Board Ban

Petitioning to change gnarly new rule

(Newser) - Furious surfers hope to sink a gnarly new British Airways rule banning surfboards from the airline. Wave riders are petitioning the company to reverse its decision, which went into effect yesterday because the airline determined the boards are "simply not suitable for airport baggage systems," according to a...

No Love for Would-Be Mile-High Clubbers

Oct 31, 2007 1:25 PM CDT

No Love for Would-Be Mile-High Clubbers

Singapore Airlines asks passengers to 'observe standards' on Airbus beds

(Newser) - Singapore Airlines is throwing a wet towel on hopes that the double beds and private suites on the new Airbus A380 would revolutionize high-altitude romance. The airline today asked passengers to “observe standards that don’t cause offense.” Cabins are private, but not sound-proof or sealed, Reuters reports....

Air Traffic Control to Get a Makeover

Oct 25, 2007 11:10 AM CDT

Air Traffic Control to Get a Makeover

Crowded flight paths is forcing upgrade of old, slow tracking system

(Newser) - The FAA has unveiled a plan to relieve projected air traffic gridlock: a new tracking system called NextGen. The new system will take advantage of slicker GPS technology, which will gradually replace the current radar system, which is subject to delays in data and large margins of error that require...

Airline Profits Soar on Hellish 3Q

Oct 19, 2007 6:29 PM CDT

Airline Profits Soar on Hellish 3Q

Consumer groups are furious

(Newser) - The worst summer in a decade for the air traveler turned into the most lucrative for the airline industry. Carriers' profits soared on overbooking that led to cramped conditions and a quarter of all flights arriving late, the LA Times reports. Consumer groups are furious. "They're making money hand...

Turn Off the iPhone or
Go to Jail

Oct 12, 2007 7:33 AM CDT

Turn Off the iPhone or Go to Jail

Passenger detained for using phone in 'airplane mode'

(Newser) - An irate flight attendant attempted to have a passenger arrested for refusing to turn off an iPhone on a flight to Hawaii, even though it was reportedly in "airplane mode" and didn't violate any FAA rules. The mode turns off all cell, WiFi and Bluetooth signals, which could interfere...

Airlines Fail to Deliver at Baggage Claim

Oct 1, 2007 1:28 PM CDT

Airlines Fail to Deliver at Baggage Claim

This summer sees five-year high in lost luggage

(Newser) - As if delays and cancellations weren't enough of a headache, airline customers have another nuisance to deal with: a surge in lost bags. From May to July, US airlines delayed, lost, damaged, or confiscated a record 1 million pieces of luggage, the Washington Post reports. Airlines blame the air traffic...

Passport Regs Kick Back In

Sep 28, 2007 9:02 PM CDT

Passport Regs Kick Back In

As summer rush abates, tighter restrictions on North American air travel return

(Newser) - The deluge of passport applications that forced a suspension of new rules has eased, and starting Monday, US airline passengers must carry a passport when traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda. And after Jan. 31, documentation requirements for those destinations will apply to travelers on water and land...

Prez Orders Action to
Reduce Flight Delays

Sep 28, 2007 8:28 AM CDT

Prez Orders Action to Reduce Flight Delays

Panel will produce plan to cut traffic at Kennedy Airport by end of year

(Newser) - After a summer of nightmarish ordeals for airline passengers, President Bush yesterday ordered his transportation secretary to sit down with the airlines and do something to reduce delays and improve treatment of travelers by next summer. “There’s a lot of anger amongst our citizens about the fact that,...

Private Jet Demand Soars

Sep 24, 2007 1:39 PM CDT

Private Jet Demand Soars

Weak dollar, high oil prices fuel surge

(Newser) - The demand for private business jets is sky-high, with international buyers taking advantage of the weak dollar to propel a projection-beating trend expected to last at least a decade, MarketWatch reports. "Domestic demand is solid but it's not showing the type of growth rates going on outside the US,...

Southwest Tinkers With Seating

Sep 19, 2007 6:24 PM CDT

Southwest Tinkers With Seating

Airline will introduce boarding queue, keep free-choice seating

(Newser) - Southwest Airlines will keep its trademark open-seating policy but will assign a boarding order to cut down on passengers queuing up far in advance of boarding. Southwest currently boards its airplanes in a sequence of three groups, with passengers free to pick their seat. While Southwest fans enjoy the freedom,...

Airline to Offer Internet Access

Sep 19, 2007 5:17 AM CDT

Airline to Offer Internet Access

Alaska jet will have Wi-Fi hot spots for phones, laptops

(Newser) - Alaska Airlines will become the first US carrier to offer satellite-based Wi-Fi internet access to passengers, reports AP. The airline will install the wireless service on one 737 jet next spring with a view to outfitting the entire 114-plane fleet. American Airlines announced plans for internet access on some of...