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Started by Imperator; Last updated Feb 27, 08 6:28 AM CST by D Lim | View history

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Airline Industry

Business in the friendly skies hasn't been high-flying of late

It's been a long, hard, half-decade for much of the airline industry. Since 9/11, it has been trying to recover from the decrease in passenger travel, only to be clobbered by high fuel prices in recent years—landing several of the American ‘majors’ in bankruptcy. Some of the upstarts continued to do well, including Southwest and JetBlue in the US and Ryanair and easyJet in Europe. Yet even the new lean airlines stumble from time to time, as JetBlue learned the hard way in February 2007, when an ice storm in New York snarled operations for almost a week.

Stories

Stories 21 - 40 of 317

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August 2008
- FAA Glitch Causes Widespread Flight Delays
  
  Wall Street Journal | Aug 26, 08 4:00 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A computer glitch in an FAA computer system caused flight delays around the country today, the Wall Street Journal reports. The situation appeared to be easing this evening as airports—Atlanta, Chicago, and Boston were hardest hit—got back on track. The snag hit one of two FAA facilities that processes flight-approval plans. Air-traffic controllers said the error did not pose any safety risks, but it has raised questions about whether the FAA needs a better back-up system. More »
- Pilots' Union Warned Spanair: Operations Are a 'Disaster'
  
  Times (UK) | Aug 22, 08 1:10 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Pilots at Spanair, operator of the MD80 airliner that crashed in Madrid this week, killing 153, warned management repeatedly that passenger safety was compromised by the “chaotic” way the airline was operated, the Times of London reports. Emails from the Spanish pilots union claimed the fleet wasn’t being updated quickly enough and that “the operation continues to be a disaster and is getting worse by the day.” More »
- Airline Fees Wiping Out Surfers
  
  Los Angeles Times | Aug 22, 08 1:00 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Surfers may be a laid-back lot, but they're riding a wave of anger at airlines that have begun charging upwards of $150 to check their boards, the LA Times reports. It's a gnarlier price hike than those levied on any other kind of sporting equipment, surfers note, calling for boycotts on the worst offenders. On international flights, fees run as high as $300 a board—and surfers often travel with several. More »
- BA, American Hope 3rd Time Is the Charm
  
  New York Times | Aug 15, 08 6:48 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines and British Airways are making a third stab at a joint business agreement—and this time, reports the New York Times , the deal might actually go through. American, BA, and the Spanish carrier Iberia are applying for antitrust approval to form a global network. The CEO of American's parent company today predicted that the arrangement would win "swift approval" amid loosened regulations in a collapsing industry. More »
- American Airlines Faces $7M Fine for Safety Violations
  
  Wall Street Journal | Aug 15, 08 5:11 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines faces FAA fines of more than $7 million for a series of safety and maintenance violations and for deficiencies in its drug and alcohol testing, the Wall Street Journal reports. In proposing one of its biggest fines ever, the FAA accuses American of knowingly flying planes that needed safety repairs, including one MD-80 that flew several times in 2007 with a faulty autopilot. More »
- It May Be 'Mayday!' for Commercial Aviation
  
  New Republic | Aug 13, 08 9:05 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The end of cheap oil means it’s “springtime for gloomy futurists,” Bradford Plumer writes in the New Republic , but we’re not headed for a Mad Max scenario just yet—unless you like cheap seats on airplanes. Jet fuel is approaching twice the price of a year ago, and clamored-for carbon pricing could quintuple fares. And airplanes can’t run on solar or fuel cells presently, so look for a radical restructuring in commercial aviation. More »
- Rich Grouse as FAA Moves to Reroute Jets
  
  USA Today | Aug 12, 08 3:38 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Wealthy Northeasterners are fighting FAA plans to decongest air traffic by rerouting jets, sending them over many upscale suburbs, reports USA Today . The FAA says it can cut delays by 20% and save airlines $285 million by fixing routes around New York and Philadelphia, but the rich and politically connected citizens of Greenwich, Westport, and other towns don't want to hear about it. More »
- Singapore Air Is World's Best
  
  Reuters | Aug 12, 08 3:14 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - An 11-month survey querying more than 15 million airline passengers yields a clear winner, Reuters reports: Singapore Airlines is the world’s best. Asian and Gulf Arab carriers make up much of the rest of the list: Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific nabbed second place overall. It also has the best first class. More »
- Airline Shares Bounce Back as Oil Prices Fall
  
  Wall Street Journal | Aug 12, 08 2:30 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Airline shares rose yesterday following an analyst's prediction that the big carriers could be back in the black by next year, reports the Wall Street Journal . The stocks have been recovering since mid-July as oil prices started to slip downward and the industry's cost-cutting and revenue-boosting measures began to take effect. More »
- Airbus, Boeing Hindered by Wait for Seats, Toilets
  
  Wall Street Journal | Aug 8, 08 10:29 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Production delays are plaguing Airbus and Boeing as the airplane manufacturers wait for simple supplies such as seats, toilets, and gallies for their new widebody jets, the Wall Street Journal reports. Small firms charged with making such supplies have been slowed as demand has soared. The interrupted production means higher manufacturing costs for both jet makers and long waits for payments from airlines. More »
- American Stiffens Frequent-Flier Rules
  
  New York Times | Aug 7, 08 4:50 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - American Airlines has added stiffer fees and higher mileage requirements to its frequent-flier program as the airline struggles to cope with fuel costs, the New York Times reports. American, which posted a $1.16 billion loss for the second quarter, is following the lead of Delta, which tightened the purse strings for its frequent-flier program last week. More »
- Delta Adds WiFi to Whole Fleet
  
  Wall Street Journal | Aug 5, 08 10:46 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Unholster your Blackberry and sharpen your stylus; Delta will become the first major airline to offer Internet access across its entire 330-plane fleet by next summer, the Wall Street Journal reports, driven by the proliferation of handheld wireless devices and a desire among business passengers to keep working. Delta surveyed 15 of its largest corporate customers, finding “overwhelmingly they wanted to be more productive," Delta’s CEO said. More »
- JetBlue Adds $7 Fee for Pillow and Blanket
  
  Newsday | Aug 5, 08 2:04 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - JetBlue has begun charging passengers $7 for pillows and blankets, Newsday reports. Flyers can keep the items, but there's no guarantee they will be available. It's the latest in a litany of extra charges facing passengers as carriers deal with soaring fuel costs. "This nickel-and-dime stuff doesn't work," said a spokesman for a consumer group. "A lot of people view this as harassment." More »
- Foreign Airlines Soar Past US Carriers
  
  ABC News | Aug 4, 08 6:23 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - As US airlines flounder, and consumers pay the price in baggage fees and reduced services, foreign carriers have an antidote: Buy new, more fuel-efficient aircraft, offer more services, and watch the money roll in. Dubai-based Emirates, which introduced the Airbus A380 on the Dubai-to-New York route Friday, charges first- and business-class customers enough to offset money-losing coach seats, ABC News reports. More »