Back in June, we learned that a small wasp’s nest had the power to divert a plane full of passengers. Today, we discovered that a swarm of bees outside the aircraft has the ability to delay a flight. [More]
airlines
American Airlines, US Airways Merge Reservation Systems This Weekend
By 10.14.15
American Airlines and US Airways officially become one on Saturday. Okay, they finalized their $17.7 billion merger nearly two years ago, but this weekend they integrate their reservations systems. As we all know from experience, that can be a pain for travelers. [More]
Union Claims Air Traffic Controller Shortage Could Lead To Widespread Flight Delays
By 10.13.15
Bad weather, aircraft maintenance, computer glitches, crew not showing up on time: these are just a few reasons why a flight might be delayed. But you may soon have to add “not enough air traffic controllers” to that list, as the union representing controllers says a lack of manpower will result in more late and canceled flights. [More]
Allegiant Airlines Plane Is Second To Catch Fire At Las Vegas Airport In Two Months
By 10.13.15
For the second time in two months, a commercial airplane full of passengers caught fire at the Las Vegas airport. An Allegiant Airlines flight bound for Fresno was evacuated after a fire broke out in the plane’s engine. [More]
Southwest Airlines Says Travel Should Return To Normal After Fixing Glitch That Delayed Hundreds Of Flights
By 10.12.15
Southwest Airlines says everything should be back to normal this morning after a system glitch on Sunday caused quite a headache for thousands of passengers, prompting hundreds of flight delays. [More]
New “Space Bins” Increase Aircraft Carry-On Capacity By 48%
By 10.9.15
Earlier this year, airline groups proposed a plan that would have required airlines to adopt a smaller carry-on bag standard. That idea was eventually scrapped, and that’s probably a good thing considering airlines are now looking to add roomier overhead storage bins through cabin upgrades. [More]
Delta Is Taking Seats Out Of 179 Planes To Give Flight Attendants Some Extra Space
By 10.8.15
The good news: an airline is actually trying to make someone more comfortable on airplanes, instead of less. The still good news but not really for travelers news: Delta is removing seats on 179 aircraft to give flight attendants some extra room to work with. [More]
Norwegian Air CEO Wants To Offer $69 Tickets To Europe By Flying Out Of Cheaper Airports
By 10.7.15
Though it sounds so easy, hopping over the pond can be quite an expensive jump for many travelers. Norwegian Air Shuttle’s CEO thinks he can make it a lot cheaper to fly between the U.S. and Europe — as low as $69 per one-way ticket — by flying out of regional airports that charge lower fees than busier, bigger airports. [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]
Five People Injured During Unexpected Turbulence On American Airlines Flight
By 10.2.15
Five passengers aboard an American Airlines flight from the Caribbean island of Grenada to Miami were taken to a local hospital for minor injuries on Thursday, after experiencing some unexpectedly rough air along the way. [More]
Virgin America To Offer Free In-Flight WiFi For Netflix Subscribers
By 9.30.15
Netflix customers who’ve wished they could download content to bring with them on their mobile devices when they fly still won’t be able to do that, but they will be able to stream video on some Virgin America planes by way of a new partnership that gives Netflix subscribers free WiFi. [More]
American Airlines Launches Real-Time Baggage Tracking Service For Travelers
By 9.29.15
After a long day of traveling the last thing you want to deal with is lost baggage, but, unfortunately, that’s a very real situation for millions of consumers: over the last five years, the Transportation Security Administration paid out $3 million for lost, stolen and damaged baggage. American Airlines is trying to give travelers piece of mind that their bags are well within reach by launching a new bag tracking service. [More]
Man Tries To Open Airplane Door At 30,000 Feet, Says He Thought It Was The Bathroom
By 9.28.15
There aren’t many doors to choose from on an airplane, so if you don’t want to find yourself suddenly flying solo*, you better be darn sure you’re picking the right one. Easier said than done for one man who says he mistook the exit door for the bathroom on a recent flight. [More]
Delta Flight Delayed Three Hours After Tarantula Escapes From Carrier
By 9.25.15
Idea for a new movie: All Your Nightmares On A Plane, featuring every kind of creepy, crawly slithery thing that’s ever gotten loose on a plane and freaked the heck out of everybody. Joining that old standby of a snake on a plane — and we’ve seen a few of those — and its pal in arachnid creepiness, the scorpion, is a familiar fuzzy guy that might make your skin crawl: a tarantula, who got loose from its carrier and delayed a recent Delta Air Lines flight while humans scurried around trying to find it. [More]
United Airlines Apologizes To Couple Who Found Full Barf Bag In Seat-Back Pocket
By 9.24.15
Perhaps the only thing worse than actually having to use a barf bag on a flight is finding out that someone else used it before you got to your seat… and it’s still sitting in the seat-back pocket. What’s a totally grossed out passenger to do? One couple turned to the media after a recent United Airlines flight that found them dealing with another traveler’s leftovers. [More]
NASA Creates App Aimed At Shortening Commercial Flights, Saving Fuel
By 9.23.15
There’s an app for just about everything. And that now includes one created by NASA and aimed at helping commercial airlines shorten flight times and conserve fuel. [More]
American Airlines Apologizes After Veteran Says He And His Service Dog Weren’t Allowed To Board Their Flight
By 9.22.15
American Airlines says it’s apologized to a retired U.S. Marine, after the veteran said he wasn’t allowed to board a flight he’d booked out of Los Angeles because he had his service dog with him. [More]
Another Computer Glitch Grounds American Airlines Flights
By 9.17.15
For the second time this year, American Airlines is blaming a computer glitch for grounding dozens of flights in several airports across the U.S. [More]
