airlines

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Airlines' Crowded Planes Slow Storm Recovery
Airlines' Crowded Planes
Slow Storm Recovery
analysis
Dec 28, 2010 1:38 PM CST

Airlines' Crowded Planes Slow Storm Recovery

Passenger jets flying at record 82% capacity this year

(Newser) - When a blizzard the size of this week's arrives on the scene, air travel is going to suffer . But Nate Silver points out something else that's contributing to the slow recovery: airlines are flying with more passengers these days. Through September, "load factors on domestic flights—essentially the percentage...

'Metal' Underwear Blocks Airport Scanners

Protect your privacy with powdered-metal 'fig leaves'

(Newser) - Fed up with the indignity of passing through an airport scanner? Colorado inventor Jeff Buske claims he has the answer: scan-proof underwear. His strategically placed fig-leaf designs on his men's and women's briefs are made of a powdered metal that blocks the scan's rays, he explains. The thin, removable inserts...

Airline Seat of the Future?

 Airline Seat 
 of the Future? 
Sep 10, 2010 4:52 PM CDT

Airline Seat of the Future?

It's kind of like sitting, kind of like standing

(Newser) - A new airline seat has riders straddling a saddle-like cushion, with just 23 inches of space between them and passenger in front of them, USA Today reports. The SkyRider, in which passengers are somewhere between standing and sitting, will be unveiled at an industry conference next week. Maker Aviointeriors hopes...

Baggage Fees Plump Airline Revenues
Baggage Fees Plump Airline Revenues
Jul 22, 2010 5:29 PM CDT

Baggage Fees Plump Airline Revenues

Charges aren't going away, even as carriers regain profitability

(Newser) - Extra fees were a way for airlines to combat the severe drop in air travel during the recession, and they've worked—United led the way with $1.9 billion of them last year. Worldwide, airlines collected $13.5 billion in 2009, most of it from baggage fees, a 43% increase...

Continental, United Merging Into World's Biggest Airline

New behemoth hopes to turn around losses

(Newser) - United and Continental Airlines are joining to form the world's largest airline in a $3 billion deal, the carriers will announce today. The merger will test the notion that the money-losing airline industry can work better on a large scale—and test the Obama administration's antitrust regulators. While the companies...

EU Holding Emergency Meeting on Flight Bans

'We can't wait for the cloud to vanish,' says official

(Newser) - EU leaders are meeting in an emergency session today to discuss continued flight bans in the wake of the volcanic eruption in Iceland. They're meeting by video teleconference because leaders can't fly anywhere. "We cannot just wait until this ash cloud dissipates," said EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas....

5 Airlines Agree Not to Charge Fee for Carry-On Bags

American, Delta, United, US Airways, JetBlue make a deal

(Newser) - Five major carriers agreed today not to follow the lead of a small Florida airline that plans to charge for carry-on bags. Their commitment comes just in time to keep travelers from running for the exits during the peak summer flying season, but it is doubtful that it marks a...

Airlines Beg for Break on 3-Hour Tarmac Rule

American joins JetBlue, Delta in petitioning DOT

(Newser) - Add American Airlines to the list of carriers that want out of the government's new rule that limits the time passengers can be held on the tarmac. American has joined JetBlue and Delta in filing for a temporary exemption with the Department of Transportation, saying delays caused by the closure...

1600 Cockpit Doors May Be Defective

Airlines ordered to repair anti-hijack doors

(Newser) - Doors designed to keep intruders out of aircraft cockpits may be faulty on at least 1,600 commercial jets, according to aviation industry insiders. Authorities in the US and elsewhere have ordered repairs be made to hundreds of Boeing 747s and Airbus A320s in the coming months, sources tell the...

Senate Bickers as Storm Bears Down on DC
 Senate Bickers as Storm 
 Bears Down on DC 
Tick ... tICK ... tICK ...
Dec 18, 2009 4:49 PM CST

Senate Bickers as Storm Bears Down on DC

Republicans vow to stall; Reid targets Christmas Eve health care vote

(Newser) - Even as Harry Reid plans for a Christmas Eve vote on the Senate health care bill, Republicans are vowing to stall, and a massive winter storm is roaring northeast from the Gulf of Mexico with Washington directly in its path. " It is our intention not to pass this bill...

Airlines Fined for Stranding Flyers on Tarmac

Dunne 175K for locking passengers on delayed flight

(Newser) - Three airlines have landed $175,000 in federal fines for stranding 47 passengers in a locked plane on a Minnesota tarmac overnight. The passengers were stuck on a Continental Airlines plane—without a working toilet—after crewmembers were told that passengers couldn't disembark because security staff had left for the...

Cockpit Recorder No Help in Northwest Flight Probe
Cockpit Recorder No Help in Northwest Flight Probe
runaway plane
Oct 23, 2009 3:30 PM CDT

Cockpit Recorder No Help in Northwest Flight Probe

Device captures just half an hour; record of 78-minute gap lost

(Newser) - Because the aircraft has an old cockpit voice recorder, the world may never know why the pilots of Northwest Flight 188 lost contact with ground control for 78 minutes. The recorder on the Airbus A320 has a maximum memory of 30 minutes, after which it tapes over itself. So investigators...

10 Ways to Game the Airlines

(Newser) - Airlines offer more than you know—and would rather you didn't know about it. The Chicago Tribune runs down a list of ways to benefit from airline secrets:
  • Complain early and often: Whatever the problem, "airlines tend to buy grouchy passengers off with frequent-flier miles."
  • Travel agents work
...

Singer's Complaint vs. United Proves Power of YouTube

(Newser) - When United Airlines baggage handlers broke Dave Carroll’s $1,200 guitar, he didn’t get mad—he got famous. Carroll and his band slapped together a $130 YouTube video titled United Breaks Guitars, which became so popular Oprah mentioned it. United eventually relented, donating $3,000 in Carroll’s...

Ryanair Passengers May Stand for Cheapest Tix

(Newser) - Passengers who really want to save money on Ryanair may soon be able to purchase "standing room only" tickets on the discount airline's flights, reports the Sun. Under the plan, passengers would huddle about "bar stools" with seat belts. Ryanair officials have already talked to Boeing about designing...

Baggage Fees Soar as Fuel Prices Drop
Baggage Fees Soar as Fuel Prices Drop
Jun 22, 2009 10:37 AM CDT

Baggage Fees Soar as Fuel Prices Drop

Budget-conscious passengers cram overhead bins

(Newser) - When airlines instituted new baggage fees, they said it was to offset high fuel prices. Since then, even though energy prices have fallen, the fees haven't gone anywhere but up. In the first quarter, airlines pulled in $566 million in fees, putting them on pace to double last year’s...

One in 3 Airports Hasn't Studied Bird-Strike Risk: FAA

150 haven't taken required steps

(Newser) - A third of US airports haven't completed a mandated study of their bird-strike risk, USA Today reports. "This problem has been ignored and shuffled to the side by the aviation community," said an airport wildlife-control expert. The 150 airports won't be named until the FAA has contacted each...

Aging Airlines Can't Catch Up to Younger Rivals
Aging Airlines Can't Catch Up to Younger Rivals
ANALYSIS
Apr 7, 2009 8:52 AM CDT

Aging Airlines Can't Catch Up to Younger Rivals

Recent changes haven't helped 'legacy' carriers

(Newser) - Despite many rounds of cost-cutting, so-called legacy airlines—United, Delta, US Airways—still face costs 35% higher than low-fare carriers like JetBlue and Southwest, the Wall Street Journal reports. The younger outfits have maintained a “cost gap” analysts thought their older peers could close over time. For one thing,...

Airlines Panic as Recession Grounds Passengers

Falling price of oil fails to make up for slump in demand

(Newser) - A steep slide in passengers has airline execs reaching for the panic button, reports the Wall Street Journal. Airlines had banked on the drastic drop in oil prices more than making up for falling demand caused by the recession, but the decline—especially in first and business class—has been...

Fear of Unforeseen Chaos Keeps Feds Bailing Out AIG

(Newser) - If you want to understand the phrase “too big to fail,” look no further than AIG, the Los Angeles Times reports. With $1.1 trillion at the end of 2007, operations in 130 countries and 74 million customers, AIG is so entrenched in the global financial system that...

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