Last week, a Delta Air Lines flight was delayed after an e-cigarette ignited itself in a passengers’ carry-on bag. Days later, an Alaska Airlines flight experienced a similarly explosive situation when the iPhone 6 of one traveler allegedly burst into flames midair. [More]
flight
Alaska Airlines Adjusts Plane’s Departure To Ensure Passengers See Total Eclipse
By 3.8.16
It’s not everyday that we get to see a total solar eclipse, and it’s not everyday that an airline will adjust a flight’s path and departure time just so passengers can get the best possible view of said solar eclipse. But that’s exactly what Alaska Airlines did for a flight from Alaska to Hawaii today. [More]
Mother Says American Airlines Failed To Tell Her When Unaccompanied Daughter’s Flight Was Diverted, Canceled
By 2.18.16
You put a lot of trust in an airline when you hand over your unaccompanied child for a solo flight. At the very least, you’d hope that someone might let you know when your kid’s flight is diverted and then canceled. [More]
United Airlines Flight Slides Off Chicago Runway After Landing
By 12.30.15
Winter storms have wreaked havoc on post-holiday travel this week, canceling thousands of flights across the country. Perhaps hardest hit was Chicago, where nearly half the flights in and out of the city were canceled Monday. Issues continued at O’Hare International Airport on Wednesday when a United Airlines flight slid off the runway. [More]
Southwest Flight Veers Off Runway After Landing; Eight Injured
By 12.16.15
A 90-minute Southwest Airlines flight went smoothly for 133 passengers, at least until the plane landed in Nashville Tuesday night, veering off the runway and injuring eight people. [More]
American Airlines Flight Diverted Because Of Yet Another Unruly Passenger
By 10.21.15
Unfortunately, reports of unruly passengers diverting flights has become somewhat of an unwelcome norm recently. The trend continued on Tuesday when an American Airlines flight made an unexpected landing after one traveler became disruptive, threatened crew members, and had to be restrained. [More]
Dear Travelers: Please Don’t Choke Your Fellow Passengers Over Reclined Seats
By 10.19.15
Last fall, airlines suffered a spate of incidents in which travelers just couldn’t agree on the proper etiquette regarding reclining seats, leading to a number of trips being diverted mid-flight. While that unfortunate trend seemed to dissipate for a time, it’s apparently back, and more violent than before: a Southwest Airlines flight made an emergency landing this weekend after one passenger choked another over a reclined seat. [More]
Turbulence On Hawaii-To-Philippines Flight Leaves 15 Injured
By 9.18.15
More than a dozen passengers flying from Hawaii to the Philippines on Friday were injured when the plane hit an unusually rough patch of air. [More]
British Airways Flight Catches Fire On Las Vegas Runway, 14 Passengers Injured
By 9.9.15
Fourteen people were injured Tuesday when a British Airways plane preparing for takeoff from Las Vegas’ McCarran International Airport suddenly experienced engine failure that resulted in an intense fire. [More]
United Airlines Passenger Tied To Seat After Becoming Aggressive On Transatlantic Flight
By 9.3.15
The long trip across the Atlantic got a bit longer for passengers on a United Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Newark after one passenger reportedly became aggressive and had to be restrained for much of the 11-hour journey. [More]
Airplane Door Panel Falls From Sky, Nearly Makes Hole-In-One On Golf Course
By 8.20.15
When playing a round of golf you might hear the occasional “FORE!” as a warning to watch out for a ball flying through the air. What you don’t expect is for the object hurtling though the sky toward the green to be a piece of metal once attached to an airplane. [More]
New “World’s Longest Flight” Connects Dubai To Panama City In Only 17.5 Hours
By 8.13.15
Are you someone who likes sitting for a long period of time inside a metal tube with scores of (maybe annoying) strangers while traveling hundreds of miles per hour in the air? If the 17 hour flight from Dallas to Sydney just didn’t do it for you, then there’s a new option that tacks on another 35 minutes. [More]
Proposed Hypersonic Plane From Airbus: Paris To Tokyo In 3 Hours (Instead Of 12)
By 8.4.15
Because we can not yet bend time and space to our will, time is valuable. Which is why travelers might like to save that important resource and spend much less time on the plane than they do now. Airbus may make that a reality with its idea for a hypersonic plane. [More]
FAA Halts All U.S. Flights To Israel For 24 Hours Due To Missile Concerns
By 7.22.14
The FAA has just issued an order prohibiting U.S. air carriers from flying into Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport for the next 24 hours. [More]
Flying While Fat: Research And Self-Awareness Mean Smooth Travel
By 5.17.12
Reader Mechpaul is a large man. He used to avoid flying, afraid of what would happen if he was too big for his seat, encroaching on his neighbors’ space and potentially being humiliated and marched off the plane. Instead of approaching his flight with fear, he armed himself with two essential tools: a measuring tape and the Internet. He used these to find out whether he would fit in a United Airlines seat, and to plan accordingly. [More]
House Passes Passengers Bill Of Rights, But Don't Rejoice Yet
By 5.24.09
The House this week finally passed the Passengers Bill of Rights, ensuring that delayed passengers will have adequate access to food, water, and even restrooms. The ironically delayed piece of consumer legislation has languished for years, but the bill that passed the House still isn’t good enough. Under the House legislation, airlines themselves get to decide what constitutes an “excessive delay,” allowing them to keep stranded passengers on the tarmac for hours. Let’s look at the bill and see what changes need to be made in the Senate…
US Airways: "Angry is One Of the Words We Look For"
By 11.20.08
If you are planning on flying US Airways, make sure you are either grumpy, perturbed, unhappy, or uncomfortable- anything but ‘angry’. As reader James learned, ‘angry’ people get grounded on a No-Fly list.
Airlines Have Bumped 343,000 Passengers This Year
By 8.23.08
Over a quarter-million passengers were bumped from flights in the past eight months, a number that is set to grow as airlines try to boost anemic profits by slashing fleets. The Department of Transportation requires airlines to compensate bumped passengers with cash or vouchers, but savvy passengers can leverage their situation to negotiate heftier payments…
