The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has banned any electronic device larger than a smartphone from the cabins of flights from 10 airports in the Middle East and Africa, and is considering extending the ban to flights from Europe as well. This has airlines freaking out because it means banning laptops from thousands of flights, not hundreds, and a trade group representing the airlines estimates that an expanded ban would cost travelers $1 billion. [More]
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Could Badly-Behaved Airline Passengers Lead To A Better Flying Experience For Everyone?
By 12.6.16
Though it might be disheartening to hear that air rage incidents reported by airlines are on the rise, take heart, my fellow fliers: all those unruly passengers could, arguably, lead to positive change in the industry. [More]
Flying Uzbekistan Airways? You’ll Have To Get Weighed At The Airport
By 8.13.15
While Uzbekistan Airways won’t sell travelers different fares based on their weight, the airline has announced that passengers will need to step on the scale with their carry-on bags before flying, citing safety reasons. [More]
Your Overstuffed Carry-On Bag May Not Make The Cut On British Airways Planes
By 8.3.15
Facing the possibility of hefty checked-baggage fees, many travelers have resorted to testing the structural integrity of their carry-on bags — laptop bags packed with more clothes than electronics; purses bursting at the seams with shoes, food, books, and anything else that will fit. But one major airline is telling travelers to put some of their bags on a diet. [More]
Airline Group Backs Away From That Whole “Carry-On Bags Should Be Smaller” Thing
By 6.17.15
You might recall a recent suggestion from the International Air Transport Association that airlines should adopt a smaller carry-on bag standard, at which time the industry group showed off the “optimal” design to meet that purpose. But amid consumer outcry, the IATA says it’s taking a time out from the campaign to reconsider. [More]
New Airport Scanner Could Have You Through Security In Only Seconds
By 6.6.11
Air travel authorities have begun showing off a new type of airport security scanner that would allow travelers to walk through a tunnel-like device without having to remove coats, belts, shoes or even hand over their carry-ons for separate screening. [More]
Tarmac Regulations May Be Extended To Cover International Flights
By 2.14.11
Less than a year after the Dept. of Transportation introduced controversial regulations limiting the amount of time planes making domestic flights can sit on airport tarmacs, the agency is planning to expand those rules to cover overseas carriers that use American airports. [More]
IATA Creating Central Database For All Airline Fees & Rules
By 6.8.10
It’s not just air travelers who get confused by the variety of charges, weight limits and size regulations placed on baggage by all the airlines. The carriers themselves are often befuddled by their own byzantine systems, especially when it comes to travelers transferring between airlines over the course of a long flight. That’s why the the International Air Transport Association announced today the creation of a central database that will provide carriers, travel agents and passengers with all the info they need about their bags. [More]
