Four months ago, the Department of Transportation banned e-cigs from being checked in baggage after a couple dozen fires and explosions. Now, the agency is taking another step toward safety by actually banning the devices from being used during flights. [More]
air travel
You Can Use Amazon Payments Instead Of Your Credit Card On Southwest Flights
By 2.24.16
Southwest Airlines could have partnered up with a number of online payment services to let passengers log in to their accounts instead of pulling out their credit cards to pay for in-air WiFi and entertainment, including on their own devices. [More]
Airbus Patents Adjustable Seats For People Of Every Size, In-Seat Storage That Eliminates All Legroom
By 2.17.16
Airbus — the company that patented the concept of stacking passengers on top of each other in a crowded tube flying at hundreds of miles per hour thousands of feet above the ground — has recently applied for a pair of airplane seat patents that simultaneously look to increase customer comfort while stripping away what little room remains. [More]
Are Airlines Deliberately Making It Too Difficult To File Complaints?
By 2.16.16
When you ask someone “How was your flight?” you never expect to hear too many positive things. At best, you’ll get an “Oh, fine,” but often the question will spark a detailed list of everything that went wrong. And yet, only about one out of every 43,000 air travelers in the U.S. ever file a complaint with the Department of Transportation. And airlines aren’t exactly leaping at the chance to tell customers how to file this sort of complaint. [More]
Don’t Get Stuck Paying For A Flight You Can’t Take; Know Your Airline’s 24-Hour Cancellation Policy
By 2.4.16
You can spend months, and thousands of dollars, putting together a trip abroad, but no matter how much effort you take to avoid travel trouble, unforeseen circumstances can force you to change your plans. Thankfully, most airlines flying to and from the U.S. have a policy that lets passengers cancel tickets within 24 hours of booking. Note that we said “most airlines” — not all. [More]
24-Hour Cancellation And Hold Policies For Major U.S. & International Airlines
February 4, 2016
Update: In March 2016, American announced that it was phasing out the hold option and transitioning to the 24-hour cancellation window option. [More]
Aviation Authority: No, You Can’t Put Your Supernatural Dolls In Airplane Seats
By 1.27.16
Earlier this week, a Thai airline made international news by allowing passengers to pay child ticket rates for trendy “child angel” dolls and telling its staff to treat these supposedly supernatural dolls like real passengers. But the country’s aviation authority is not pleased. [More]
Airline Lets Passengers Buy Child Tickets, Snacks For “Supernatural” Dolls
By 1.25.16
Do you feel compelled to travel with a supposedly supernatural-powered doll that not only gets its own seat, but a meal it can’t possibly eat? Then one airline is ready to cater to your very specific needs. [More]
Airline Temporarily Bans Checked Bags To Prevent Jets From Running Out Of Fuel
By 1.5.16
UPDATE: Malaysia Airways has now lifted the temporary ban on checked bags, saying that passengers flying to Amsterdam and Paris can now bring two pieces of checked bags each. [More]
Spirit Airlines Replaces Loudmouth CEO Ben Baldanza
By 1.5.16
For the last decade, Ben Baldanza has been the outspoken, often crass leader of Spirit Airlines, the bottom-dollar carrier that was easily the most complained-about airline in the U.S., but which Big Ben declared was the country’s “most consumer-friendly” carrier. It looks like Spirit has fallen out of love with Baldanza, who has stepped down from his gig as CEO. [More]
Before You Use “Star Shower” To Light Up Your Home For Xmas, Familiarize Yourself With Your Local Airport’s Flight Path
By 12.9.15 — Updated: 12.12.16
We’ve written before about jerks who deliberately point lasers at nearby planes, and we’ve also covered businesses that don’t realize that their rooftop light shows might present a hazard, but now some homeowners may be unintentionally blinding pilots by misusing their home decorations. [More]
Virgin America Passenger Says He Was Blocked From Flight Because Crew Didn’t “Feel Comfortable”
By 12.1.15
We’ve all heard stories of airline passengers being removed from planes because of apparently minor disputes with the flight crew, but a Dallas man says he wasn’t even allowed to board his Virgin America flight because he made the crew uncomfortable. [More]
Pilot Says He Was Fired For Evacuating Smoky Plane
By 11.12.15
Allegiant Air — already in the spotlight over repair issues, onboard fires, and safety concerns from those who fly the airline’s planes — now stands accused of firing a pilot because he evacuated his aircraft after crew and passengers detected smoke in the cabin. [More]
Some American Airlines Passengers Can Now Put 7-Day Hold On Ticket Purchase (For A Fee)
By 11.3.15
While other U.S. commercial carriers let customers cancel their reservations within 24 hours of purchase, American Airlines allows travelers to put a free 24-hour hold on their ticket purchases. Now American is testing additional options that let travelers put holds of three, five, or seven days on their tickets — for a fee, of course. [More]
Pinterest Doesn’t Own Exclusive On “Pinning” Things Online
By 10.23.15
Ages before there was an Internet, and certainly long before Pinterest ever came onto the scene, folks were pinning things — to bulletin boards, to computer dashboards and docks. But the folks at Pinterest believe they have an exclusive trademark of the online use of phrases like “pin it.” Unfortunately for them, a federal judge disagrees. [More]
Unintentionally Hilarious Airbus Patent Suggests Stacking Passengers On Top Of Each Other
By 10.6.15
Sick of fighting over the armrest on a flight? Or maybe your knees ache at the mere thought of squeezing into an airplane seat? While some patents seek to address those issues with clever design, a recently filed Airbus patent intends to cram more passengers into a plane by simply stacking them on top of each other. [More]
United Passenger Says Airline Suggested She Pump Breast Milk In Pet Relief Area
By 10.6.15
Over the years, airlines have been found to be less than welcoming when it comes to nursing mothers: a flight attendant shaming a women for breastfeeding during a flight or the carrier that made a mother check a bag containing her breast pump. That rocky relationship continued this week as a United Airlines passenger says she was instructed to use a “pet relief’ area for pumping purposes. [More]
Airlines Eager To Offer Flights To Cuba, So What’s The Delay?
By 10.2.15
Now that U.S.-Cuba relations are thawing, a lot of Americans would love to visit the nearby island nation that had been a no-go zone for five decades, and U.S. commercial airlines really want to start regularly scheduled flights to Cuba. But it’s not as simple as flipping a switch. [More]
