If you’re the type to shun whichever viral video is currently makings its rounds, you might not know that the “Harlem Shake” phenomenon of filming yourself and friends dancing in costumes to that particular song is totally all the rage. The Federal Aviation Administration sure knows it now, as it’s launched a probe into a recent filming of the craze aboard a Frontier Airlines flight. [More]
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DOT Head Ray LaHood Paints Nightmarish Travel Picture If Sequestration Hits March 1
By 2.22.13 — Updated: 2.25.13
Maybe you haven’t been paying much attention to all the hullabaloo surrounding automatic government spending cuts that could go into effect next week, known as sequestration. It’s a lot to take in, as those cuts will be across-the-board and could be a problem for a wide variety of government agencies, including the Federal Aviation Administration. As such, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is painting a potentially annoying picture for air travel in the future. [More]
Former Spirit Airlines Mechanic: I Was Fired After Complaining To FAA About Service Issues
By 2.19.13
A New Jersey man who had worked at Spirit Airlines for more than a decade claims he was fired last year after he and a group of his fellow aircraft mechanics filed a complaint with the Federal Aviation Administration about allegedly sketchy service practices at the carrier. [More]
Transportation Secretary: Dreamliners Won’t Fly Again Until They’re Deemed “1,000% Safe”
By 1.18.13
Just one week after he said he would be comfortable taking a spin in a Boeing 787 Dreamliners, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has changed his tune. After numerous reports of problems with the jets’s batteries, LaHood now says none of them will take to the skies again until officials are “1,000% sure” they’re safe to fly. [More]
FAA Opens Probe Into The Beleaguered Dreamliner & Its Recent Spate Of Problems
By 1.11.13
For all the years we heard whispers and excited buzzing about the Boeing 787 Dreamliner before its debut, it seemed sort of like a mythical flying beast. And since its inaugural U.S. commercial flight in November it’s definitely becoming legendary — but for all the wrong reasons. The Federal Aviation Administration has launched a probe into the beleaguered plane after a recent spate of problems. [More]
DOT Issued Record-Setting Number Of Violations To Airlines In 2012
By 1.2.13
Up until the very end of 2012, it looked like the Dept. of Transportation was only going to tie the record it set in 2011 for the number of fines handed out to airlines. But a pair of Dec. 31 violations pushed 2012 into a spot on top of the charts all on its own. [More]
FCC Makes Changes To Improve Availability Of In-Flight Internet Access
By 12.28.12
For more than a decade, the FCC has been approving individual applications from companies to provide in-flight Internet access. But this burdensome process will soon be cut in half thanks to new rules issued by the Commission. [More]
FCC Asks FAA To Lighten Up About In-Air Wireless Device Restrictions
By 12.10.12
With pilots approved to use iPads as flight manuals in their cockpits, and the FAA’s own studies finding “no evidence saying [wireless] devices can’t interfere with a plane, and… no evidence saying that they can,” FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski has asked the FAA to ease up on restrictions against wireless device use on planes. [More]
FAA: Sorry That Holes In Your Roof Are Maybe From Frozen Waste Falling From The Sky
By 9.11.12
Blue ice or frozen airplane waste? Potato, pot-ah-to but for two homeowners on Long Island, it all boils down to the same result — gaping holes in the roof. The Federal Aviation Administration is trying to figure out how the homes got damaged and whether or not homeowners are correct in thinking that something super gross fell from a plane passing overhead. [More]
Tell The FAA What You Think About Using Electronics During Take Off
By 8.29.12
We’ve mentioned this before, but if you’d like to keep playing Fruit Ninja (or whatever people are doing now) while you ascend into the heavens, you’ll probably want to take note of these instructions for letting the FAA know your feelings about electronics use during take off. [More]
FAA Puts The Kibosh On Traffic-Reversing Operation That Almost Led To Mid-Air Plane Collision
By 8.7.12
When I’m in an airplane, I have no idea what air traffic control is doing or how they manage to make sure every single plane gets off the ground or lands without running into each other — but I know it’s a tricky dance. And to make it less tricky, the Federal Aviation Administration is banning airport air traffic controllers from using a method of running things that contributed to last week’s incident at Ronald Reagan National Airport where three planes almost collided in mid-air. [More]
FAA Fines Delta Almost $1M For Flying Two Planes Without Making Necessary Repairs
By 7.11.12
The Federal Aviation Administration is cracking down on Delta Air Lines, after the agency claimed the carrier failed to make or took its time making necessary repairs to two planes after inspections found damages on the aircrafts. The grand total for such infractions is close to $1 million. [More]
FAA Decides It’s About Time We Put Oyxgen Devices Back In Airplane Bathrooms
By 6.26.12
You might recall that the Federal Aviation Administration ordered all emergency oxygen supplies be removed from airplane bathrooms, to deter would-be terrorists from dismantling them and starting fires. And now it’s time to get that oxygen back in the lavatories. [More]
Are Heavier Airline Passengers At Greater Risk For Harm?
By 5.8.12
Usually when we bring up the topic of weight and air travel it involves either passenger comfort or controversial airline policies regarding “customers of size.” But some worry that outdated safety standards are actually putting people at risk while flying. [More]
FAA Scolds Passenger For Using iPad To Shoot Video Of Bird Strike
By 5.2.12
Remember that bird strike in April that forced a Delta flight to make an emergency landing? The actual incident was caught on video by author Grant Cardone, who is now on some FAA “you’re a troublemaker” list because he shot that video when his iPad was supposed to be turned off. [More]
Federal Aviation Administration Might Let You Keep Your Kindle On
By 3.19.12
There are those who don’t question flight attendants’ requests to shut off all electronic devices during landing and take off, and those who just don’t think a Kindle or iPad is going to disrupt the plane’s systems whatsoever. For the latter, the Federal Aviation Administration is listening — they’re reviewing the ban on personal electronic use on airplanes. [More]
Senator Calls Out Spirit Airlines For Trying To Mislead Public About Airfares
By 1.26.12
You may recall that earlier this week, bottom-dollar carrier Spirit Airlines launched an e-mail campaign to convince customers that the new FAA regulations requiring truth in airfare advertising was really just a ruse by the federal government to hide taxes and tax hikes in airfares. Well, that didn’t go over well with Senator Barbara Boxer of California, who threw off the gloves and sent a bare-knuckles letter to Spirit in response. [More]
Consumer Groups Scold Airlines For Pocketing Tax Money During FAA Shutdown
By 9.14.11
Surely you remember the recent FAA shutdown, during which the government couldn’t collect taxes on airfares, leading the airlines to temporarily raise their base prices and pocket an estimated $70 million a day. Now a coalition of consumer groups, including our benevolent benefactors at Consumers Union, are voicing their displeasure for this and other anti-consumer behavior. [More]
