# MISC | Airline Delays



## EricIsHim

Well... Towns in Fairfield County rejected the new flight route proposal by FAA and possibly going to court. Major concerns are the possible noise and accidents. It's more than just the airports themselves but also nearby neighbourhoods along the flight paths. More flight paths may have relieved the problem for a little bit already.

The ultimate solution is not just upgrading the system, but less flights with bigger planes. The small jets take up as much time and air spaces as large aircrafts causing traffic jam just like on the highway with too much Single Occupancy Vehicle.


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## xylene

North America is where I have encountered most delays, but domestic carriers in the Philippines are pretty aweful also. 

No evidence, but I suspect in North America carriers purposely try to fill all of the seats on their planes, so they will outright lie about weather simply to consolidate flights. It's happened too many times to me on nice sunny days. If true this is pretty low since many people buys tickets not simply for seat space but for a desired time window.

Skys are also heavily congested in North America but inability to compensate is lack of or unwillingness of planning since air traffic has always been growing.

As far as 9-11 excuse, that excuse was valid after the attacks, but geesh, it's been 6 years.


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## hkskyline

*US Air Carriers' On-Time Arrival Rate 81.7% In Sep - DOT *
5 November 2007

WASHINGTON (AP)--Travelers' were less likely to be stuck on a delayed flight in September, but the airline industry's on-time performance so far in 2007 remained the worst in 13 years, according to government data released Monday. 

The nation's 20 largest carriers reported an on-time arrival rate of 81.7% in September, up from 76.2% in the same month a year ago and up from 71.7% in August, the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics said. 

Better weather was partly to credit for the improved results. More than 34% of late flights in September were delayed by weather, an improvement from a year ago when more than 40% of those flights experienced weather-related delays. 

Despite the improved September results, more than 24% of flights arrived late in the first nine months of the year. The industry's on-time performance this year remained the worst since comparable data began being collected in 1995. 

The statistics come amid increased concern about flight delays. Last month, federal aviation regulators held a two-day summit aimed at fixing "epidemic" delays at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, which had the second-worst on-time arrival record of any major U.S. airport through September, followed by Newark's Liberty International Airport. 

The latest government proposal to alleviate delays is to reduce JFK's hourly flight limit by 20%. 

But the airline industry's trade group, the Air Transport Association, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs JFK, both prefer flight-path changes and improvements aimed at increasing the airport's capacity. 

Not all airlines suffered through poor performance in September. Aloha Airlines had the highest on-time arrival rate at 95.4%, followed by Hawaiian Holdings Inc.'s (HA) Hawaiian Airlines at 93.7% and Frontier Airlines (FRNT) at 88.5%, according to government data. 

But more than 63% of flights on Atlantic Southeast Airlines were delayed, and one of its flights, from Atlanta to Myrtle Beach, S.C. was late 90% of the time. The Delta Connection carrier, which is owned by SkyWest Inc. (SKYW), had the lowest on-time arrival rate, followed by Alaska Airlines at 73.3% and Northwest Airlines (NWA) at 77.8%. 

Customer complaints rose in September to 895 compared with 627 in the same month last year, according to the government data. But the rates of mishandled baggage fell to about 5.5 reports per 1,000 passengers from 8.3 reports a year ago. 

Despite the improved statistics for September, the union representing air traffic controllers says that delays during the coming holiday season are likely to worsen. 

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association, whose members have been working under a contract imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration for more than a year, said Monday there will be 7.5% fewer fully trained air traffic controllers working over the winter holidays than last year. 

The union says the extended labor dispute and poor working conditions are driving veteran controllers out of the business. 

FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown said the agency doesn't expect that any flight delays in the coming months will be related to staffing levels among controllers. 

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y, blamed the FAA's former administrator, Marion Blakey, for engaging in a needlessly confrontational battle with the controllers. 

"She didn't fight for her agency so they're short of technology and air traffic controllers," Schumer said in an interview. Blakey's five-year term ended in September. 

Schumer said he hasn't yet made up his mind about acting FAA administrator Robert A. Sturgell who has been nominated by President George W. Bush to take the job permanently. 

The airlines and the FAA are pressing for a new, satellite-based air traffic control system that will cost about $15 billion and take nearly 20 years to complete. Airline traffic is projected to double by 2025. The FAA in late August awarded ITT Corp. a contract worth up to $1.8 billion to build the first portion the system.


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## FM 2258

Does anyone think there is a way to eliminate traffic related delays? More runways, better traffic patterns or something else? It always sucks to spend more time at the airport than actually being in the air. Also I don't think there's a way to eliminate weather related delays.


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## hkskyline

Airlines are not going to reduce frequencies and group passengers into bigger jets. The alternative is to make better use of regional airports, but unlikely an airline would want to split its hub into two airports or more. This is a tough one.


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## Tri-ring

Ah guys, you're forgetting to factor in the ever rising price of gas and that prices have nearly doubled in the last 3~5 years meaning flights that made profit at half full capacity then may not break even at 85% capacity now.
No company within their right minds are going to fly knowing it will bleed red from the start.
The only remedy for the situation is reduce frequency but probably the airliners have a quota with the DoT on how many flights they will fly to sustain a route so they come out with a lame excuse to delay and consolidate passengers.


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## hkskyline

Airlines hedge their fuel costs so the rising costs of fuel will not have as big of a direct immediate impact. 

*U.S. airline fuel hedging positions *

NEW YORK, Sept 14 (Reuters) - U.S. airlines have hedged their expected jet fuel purchases to protect themselves from rising fuel costs. 

Hedges typically involve buying financial contracts in a related product such as crude oil <CLc1> or heating oil <HOV7>. 

The financial gains from those contracts, if the price rises, can help offset higher costs for jet fuel, which vies with labor as an airline's largest cost. 

Other hedging strategies include so-called "collars," which are combinations of put and call options. They generally cost less to put in place and limit the risk if prices rise, but also limit the gain if prices fall. Within the band of put and call options, the airline is essentially paying the market price. 

Southwest Airlines for years has had the best hedging position in the industry, helping the low-cost carrier undercut competitors' fares and still post profits. 

Below is a table outlining the hedging positions at major airlines : 



Code:


                            PERCENT
AIRLINE               PERIOD   HEDGED   DESCRIPTION
American Airlines     H2 07      31     capped at about $62/barrel crude oil
 United Airlines       Q3 07      27     heating oil collars: upside protection
                                     starting at $1.96/gallon and capped at
                                     $2.14/gallon; payment obligations
                                     start if heating oil drops below
                                     $1.84/gallon
                   Q4 07      17     heating oil collars: upside protection
                                     starting at $2.04/gallon and capped at
                                     $2.22/gallon; payment obligations
                                     start if heating oil drops below
                                     $1.86/gallon
 Delta Air Lines       Q3 07      22     heating oil collars: rates undisclosed
 Continental Airlines  Q3 07      35     heating oil collars: avg put price
                                     $1.86/gallon, avg call price
                                     $2.02/gallon
                   Q4 07      27     heating oil collars: avg put price
                                     $2.03/gallon, avg call price
                                     $2.20/gallon
 Northwest Airlines    H2 07      25     crude oil collars: put options
                                     $53-55.95/barrel; call options
                                     $72/barrel
                              10     crude oil swaps: $62-$64.98/barrel
                   Sep-Dec    15     crude oil collars: put options
                                     $60/barrel; call options $78.70/barrel
 Southwest Airlines    Q3 07      90      at avg crude oil price of $51/barrel
                   Q4 07      90      at avg crude oil price of $51/barrel
                   FY 08      65      at avg crude oil price of $49/barrel
 US Airways Group      Q3 07      54      heating oil collars: weighted avg
                                      range $1.81 to $2.01/gallon
                   Q4 07      40      heating oil collars: weighted avg
                                      range $1.78 to $1.98/gallon
   
SOURCE: Airline filings. (Reporting by Chris Reiter)

***

For major trunk routes, frequencies are not likely to change to attract business travellers, who pay so much more than economy passengers and are a crucial profitability driver.


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## hkskyline

*FAA says flight caps at O'Hare won't be lifted next year *
10 November 2007

CHICAGO (AP) - The Federal Aviation Administration says a cap on flights into O'Hare International Airport won't be lifted next year when a new runway is scheduled to open. 

The Chicago Tribune reports Saturday that the agency's policy reversal may hamper the city's ability to pay for its planned $15 billion airport expansion. 

FAA official Henry Krakowski told the Tribune on Friday the decision to keep the cap is aimed at improving delays and cancellations. 

Rosemarie Andolino, director of the O'Hare project, says city officials want to speak with Krakowski about the change. 

The FAA originally pledged that the cap, limiting arrivals to 88 per hour, would be removed when the first new runway opened as part of the airfield expansion.


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## hkskyline

*On-time flights just a fancy idea, finds survey *
14 November 2007
The Economic Times

NEW DELHI: Flighty delays continue to dog passengers at almost all metro airports despite the recent steps taken to expand capacity and modernise traffic management. About 50% domestic and international flights from Kolkata, Hyderabad and Chennai run behind schedule, a survey by the civil aviation ministry has found. 

"A recent analysis on delay in flights over a week for three airports - Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata showed delays to the extent of 40% to 50%," an official in the ministry of civil aviation said. 

With foggy winter round the corner, the situation may aggravate. According to the winter schedule announced last month, the number of flights at Delhi and Mumbai airport have been increased by about 7%. Last year, the Delhi airport operator, Delhi International Airport (DIAL), had to put up tent and shamianas outside the domestic terminal to accommodate passengers. As many flights could not take off due to low visibility, hundreds of passengers remained stranded at the airport. 

To keep the situation in control, the government has this time warned airlines to train their pilots on CAT III instrument landing system (ILS). CAT III allows planes take off and land at a visibility as less as 50 metres. The government has said that airlines not sticking to their schedule may lose their slot for the entire season. The Delhi airport has the advanced CAT IIIB landing system that can handle 28 aircraft per hour during the peak season. 

Earlier, the civil aviation minister Praful Patel had also said that delay in departure of the flights lead to cascading effect and caused delay to other flights. He had indicated that airlines may be penalised for not taking off on time. 

The slot selection committee headed by the joint secretary in the ministry of civil aviation, K N Shrivastava, while allocating slots for the winter season said that airlines should adhere to approved flight schedule and maintain 'on-time' performance. Defaulters stand to lose their slots in the next season.


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## GlasgowMan

*Budget Airline Panned Over Delays*

Exclusive Official Flights Report Brands Flyglobespan Worst Budget Airline For Delays

BUDGET airline flyglobespan have been branded the worst in Scotland for delays.

Civil Aviation Authority statistics put them bottom of the league for budget airlines operating daily out of Glasgow and Edinburgh.

They lagged behind Ryanair, Easyjet, Jet2, Flybe, Bmi baby and Monarch.

Over the summer thousands of angry passengers faced delays of up to 18 hours with flyglobespan - Scotland's airline of the Year in 2005.

The fast-growing firm have 21 aircraft on more than 70 routes. CAA figures for July show:

One in six flights from Glasgow to Palma, Majorca, was delayed by three to six hours.

Return journeys were worse with one in five flights delayed by three to six hours.

One in four flights from Glasgow to Canada was more than three hours late and three in five at least one hour late.

Figures for the first six months of 2007 show passengers were delayed by an average of 40 minutes - compared to 17 minutes last year.

One in seven delayed flights was more than an hour late, compared to just one in 20 last year.

Fergus Maclean, 49, of Fort William, Invernessshire, was held up in Palma with his family.

The civil engineer said: "Our flight was due to depart at 7.30pm but it was after midnight when we finally took off. A five-hour delay on a two-and-a-halfhour flight is unacceptable.

"In June, a relative going to Palma was eight hours late and compensated with a £4 meal voucher.

"Given we live two-and-a-half hours away from Glasgow, any delay makes things worse." Last month 140 passengers - many families with young children - were stranded at Palma for 141/2 hours waiting for their flight to Edinburgh.

On July 20, hundreds were stranded in Palma, Barcelona and Ibiza for up to 18 hours on flights to Glasgow.

And a doctor returning to Glasgow last week was held up at Barcelona for four-and-a-half hours.

This month the airline were the first in the UK to have a licence for direct transatlantic flights suspended after investigations by aviation safety authorities.

Average delays on flyglobespan's Glasgow-Vancouver service during May were six hours.

Average delays on the Gatwick to Toronto service were nearly two hours. James Freemantle, of official watchdog the Air Transport Users Council, said: "All complaints will be investigated and taken up with the firm."

Website forum Skytrax claims in June they got more complaints about flyglobespan than other UK airlines put together.

Flyglobespan said: "The unusually high level of technical problems with two aircraft leased from another carrier put a huge strain on our fleet.

"The domino effect resulted in delays.

"With the leased planes operating more smoothly, we remain committed to a punctual, value-for-money service."

They added: "In August our flights between Glasgow and Palma had an average departure delay of eight minutes and an average arrival delay of just four minutes."

The Glasgow-based airline were formed by Tom Dalrymple, 62, and employs over 1000 staff.

_Source: Glasgow Sunday Mail_


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## hkskyline

*Bush To Address Effort To Ease Air Traffic Congestion Thurs *
14 November 2007

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--A week before the Thanksgiving rush clogs U.S. airports and highways, President George W. Bush will unveil steps to try to ease holiday travel congestion. 

Bush will receive an update on the government's effort to alleviate air congestion and reduce flight delays from Transportation Secretary Mary Peters and acting FAA Administrator Bobby Sturgell Thursday. They've been tasked with bringing relief to frustrated air travelers before next summer, an effort that focuses on easing congestion above the New York metro area, which sees a third of the nation's air traffic. 

"The federal government is taking steps to address the concerns of air travelers and will put measures in place to try to alleviate possible congestion over the busy holiday travel period," Stanzel said Wednesday. "Secretary Peters and DOT officials have been working to implement stronger consumer protections and have been meeting with airline officials regularly to discuss ways to reduce congestion in the N.Y. Metro airspace." 

Stanzel didn't provide details of the measures the government is implementing. 

In September, Bush asked Peters to report back to him by the end of the year with proposals to make air travel more palatable. Thursday's meeting won't be Peters' final report, but rather a look-ahead at the looming holiday travel season. 

The administration offered legislative proposals in February that included a redesign of Northeastern traffic patterns. But it complains that lawmakers haven't addressed the issue quickly enough. Bush has called on Congress to overhaul the FAA's financing structure and introduce "market-based mechanisms," like congestion pricing and auctions, to reduce delays and free up airspace. 

"There's a lot of anger amongst our citizens about the fact that, you know, they're just not being treated right," Bush said in September. "Endless hours sitting in an airplane on a runway, and there's no communication between the pilot and the airport is just not right." 

The White House believes part of the issue can be addressed administratively, without involving Congress. The Transportation Department has initiated rulemaking to boost compensation for passengers involuntarily bumped from oversold flights to approximately $624 from around $200 currently. And Sturgell said the plan to redesign New York's airspace could decrease delays by 20%, cut carbon emissions and result in a net noise reduction for around 600,000 people.


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## hkskyline

*Bloomberg backs call for NY air congestion charge *
14 November 2007
Financial Times

The New York City mayor has backed the introduction of an -airborne congestion charge to tackle delays at the city's airports. 

Michael Bloomberg, who is pushing for a street congestion charge to limit traffic in Manhattan, has been lobbying the US administration about the consequences for the city's financial services and tourism sectors of federal proposals to restrict flights into New York's John F Kennedy airport. 

The Federal Aviation Administration is considering capping the number of flights into JFK at 80 per hour instead of the current uncapped level of up to 115 because of delays that reached record levels during the summer. 

It has also raised the idea of introducing market-based measures such as charging airlines a tax for landing at peak hours. 

Dan Doctoroff, New York's deputy mayor for economic development, said the -congestion problem was "acute" but capping flights was not the answer. 

"We believe that we can reconfigure runways more effectively, airspace can be redesigned, even market-based pricing strategies could be employed before we have to go to caps," he said. 

Congestion pricing would be resisted by airlines, Mr Doctoroff acknowledged, "but whatever we do isn't going to please everyone". 

Eliot Spitzer, New York's state governor, and Jon Corzine, his New Jersey counterpart, both oppose caps on JFK and warned the FAA that one of the consequences would be to simply push flights on to the already crowded Newark airport. 

Other cities fear any caps on JFK would have knock-on effects for their -airports. 

Mary Peters, US transportation secretary, last month began talks with airlines and called on them to make voluntary reductions in flights. The FAA's preference is for market-based solutions. 

It regards scheduling reductions as a last resort. 

New York officials warn that the impact of flight caps would be felt by the business community and tourism. 

George Fertitta, chief executive of NYC & Company, the mayor's marketing agency, said passenger flight costs would increase as a result of a cap. 

"The number of visitors coming into the New York market will be decreased. It seems like a lose-lose situation," Mr Fertitta said. Business travellers were already plagued by visa and customs problems. *Airlines rounded on European parliamentarians yesterday after they voted to toughen proposals curbing greenhouse gases, which the carriers claim threaten the industry's future. 

MEPs also brought a clash with the US closer by pressing for all flights entering and leaving the EU to be included in the bloc's emissions trading scheme from its launch in 2011, a year -earlier than the European Commission proposed.


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## hkskyline

*Defense Department turning over unused military air space to relieve flight congestion *
15 November 2007

WASHINGTON (AP) - Ahead of the holiday travel crunch, President Bush ordered steps Thursday to reduce air traffic congestion and long delays that have left passengers stranded. 

The most significant change is that the Pentagon will open unused military airspace from Florida to Maine to create "a Thanksgiving express lane" for commercial airliners. It will be open next week for five days -- Wednesday through Sunday -- for the busiest days of Thanksgiving travel. 

Officials said the chief benefit would be to speed takeoffs from New York airports, particularly during bad weather. 

Bush called holiday travel "a season of dread for too many Americans." He said the problems with delayed flights are "clear to anybody who's been traveling. Airports are very crowded. Travelers are being stranded and flights are delayed, sometimes with a full load of passengers sitting on the runway for hours. 

"These failures carry some real costs for the country, not just in the inconvenience they cause but in the business they obstruct and the family gatherings they cause people to miss,' the president said. "We can do better." 

The new plan also will be in effect for the Christmas travel season. White House press secretary Dana Perino said the Federal Aviation Administration was imposing a holiday moratorium on nonessential maintenance projects, allowing all FAA personnel and equipment to be focused on keeping flights on time. 

Further, the Department of Transportation will propose doubling the bump fee that airlines must pay to travelers who buy tickets but wind up without a seat. The penalty now is $200 or $400, depending on long the passenger has been inconvenienced. The proposed increase would make the fee $400 to $800. Perino said that rule, if it becomes final, wouldn't be in place until next summer's travel season. 

Further, officials said the FAA would take other steps to increase efficiency such as rerouting airspace, using technology to fill unused space in the air and on the ground, and using more precise routes for takeoffs and landings. 

Another proposed rule would make airlines liable for penalties for chronically delayed flights. 

The president said other steps were under consideration to reduce crowded skies, such as charging airlines higher landing and takeoff fees at peak hours, and auctioning off landing and takeoff rights to the highest bidder. 

Transportation Secretary Mary Peters acknowledged that airlines would pass along to passengers some of the costs of the higher fees and penalities. 

Domestic carriers are expected to fly roughly 27 million passengers worldwide over 12 days beginning Nov. 16, with planes about 90 percent full, according to the Air Transport Association. 

Several airline executives, testifying before the House Transportation Committee Thursday on holiday travel prospects, said they were preparing to care for passengers in the event of weather or air traffic control-related delays. 

Jetblue Airways CEO Dave Barger acknowledged that "we let our customers down" last February when hundreds of passengers were stranded on parked JetBlue planes for up to 10 1/2 hours. "In fact, to be candid, we failed them." 

He said that with added deicing equipment and crew and expanded customer service personnel, " JetBlue is ready for the holidays." 

But Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., said there was "some very bad news for people who think there is going to be a quick cure to congestion." He said that even if everything went smoothly, implementation of the next-generation air traffic control system that should reduce disruptions was at least 15 years off. 

Bush, on Sept. 27, announced that his administration was looking at ways to reduce air traffic congestion. The president urged Congress to look at legislation to modernize the FAA, and instructed Peters to report back to him quickly about ways to ensure that air passengers are treated appropriately and progress is made to ease congestion.


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## hkskyline

*Airlines look to avoid winter weather delays *

CHICAGO, Nov 15 (Reuters) - U.S. airlines, hoping to ease the pain of winter weather delays, are beefing up services, staffing and flight schedules as part of a concerted effort to avoid the operational meltdowns that made last winter especially messy for some carriers. 

Unpredictable winter weather is a yearly nuisance for airlines. But major delays and strandings for passengers at JetBlue Airways Corp and AMR Corp's American Airlines last winter revealed shortcomings in an airline industry that is flying packed planes with little margin for error built into schedules. 

With pressure from unhappy passengers finding some backing in Washington, and holiday air traffic likely to surpass last year's, carriers are moving to minimize weather-related delays and ease the strain for affected travelers. 

"I think everybody is a little bit more attuned to all the mistakes that were made last year," said airline consultant Darryl Jenkins. 

"There is absolutely no slack in the systems," he said. 

President George W. Bush planned to outline steps on Thursday aimed at relieving airline congestion.

In February, JetBlue suffered a major service disruption and public relations nightmare when an ice storm prompted the cancellation of more than 1,000 flights and stranded passengers for days. A similar incident in December stranded American Airlines passengers on the tarmac for hours. 

NO LET-UP 

Despite economic weakness, rising ticket prices and the well-publicized debacles of last winter, airlines see no let-up in travel demand this season. 

In fact, the Air Transport Association said on Monday it expects a 4 percent year-over-year increase in the number of passengers traveling globally on U.S. carriers during the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Major carriers are promoting the steps they are taking to ensure smooth travel year round. But they acknowledge that this year is shaping up to be the worst in memory for flight delays and are urging travelers to be prepared. 

"If you always expect the worst and you don't have the worst then your frame of mind will be more positive," said Jim May, president of the industry's lead trade group, the Air Transport Association. 

Northwest Airlines last week announced several initiatives to blunt the impact of storm delays. The airline said it would waive rebooking fees for customers delayed by weather and mechanical problems. 

The carrier, which has been criticized for insufficient staffing, said it increased the number of reserve pilots by 30 percent. Northwest also said it has increased staffing of flight attendants and reservation agents. 

American Airlines has said it is reserving seats in key markets on peak travel days for use by passengers whose flights have been canceled or delayed due to weather. 

EARLIER INFORMATION 

Other initiatives at American include providing customers with earlier weather information and invoking storm policies earlier to accommodate passengers whose flights have been affected by hurricanes. 

United Airlines, a unit of UAL Corp , has invested in self-service technology to keep inconvenienced travelers informed about their delays and to help them rebook quickly. 

Barbara Higgins, United's vice president in charge of customer experience, said it improves the image of the entire airline industry if carriers attempt to head off snafus. 

"We certainly don't take delight in any other carrier not performing well," Higgins said. "We believe that any positive service is good for the industry, regardless of who the carrier is." 

Carriers this year also are scheduling more flights to accommodate demand. Industry scheduling practices, however, have been criticized by regulators, some congressional lawmakers and passenger advocates for aggravating congestion and delays at big airports. 

Airlines are working with the Federal Aviation Administration to minimize delays nationwide, but the agency has said it is prepared to cut flight schedules at New York's John F. Kennedy airport, the worst for long delays. Congestion and delays in New York often ripple through the system and ground flights elsewhere. 

Carriers blame the outdated air traffic control system for much of their problems and say their scheduling practices only reflect demand. (Additional reporting by John Crawley; Editing by Brian Moss)


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## hkskyline

*'Express Lanes' to Ease Air Congestion *
15 November 2007

WASHINGTON (AP) - In a year of record delays, President Bush stepped forward Thursday to try to speed American air travelers to their Thanksgiving gatherings and back home on time. 

Declaring that "business as usual is not good enough for American travelers," Bush announced at the White House a series of detailed technical steps to reduce air traffic congestion and long delays that have left passengers stranded and turned holiday travel into "a season of dread for too many Americans." 

In the most innovative move, the Pentagon will allow commercial airliners to use two air corridors off the eastern seaboard that are normally restricted to military flights. Supplementing the dozen air routes regularly used from Florida to New England, they will create "a Thanksgiving express lane" for commercial airliners from 4 p.m. EST Wednesday through Sunday -- the busiest days of Thanksgiving travel. 

For the second time since September when he ordered the Transportation Department and the Federal Aviation Administration to come up with solutions, Bush personally intervened in the intractable problem of air congestion that previous presidents avoided and many aviation experts believe has only long-term solutions. 

Crowded airports, stranded passengers and delayed flights "carry some real costs for the country," Bush said, "not just in the inconvenience they cause, but in the business they obstruct and family gatherings they cause people to miss." 

Bush's moves were applauded by trade groups representing the airlines and airports but derided as ineffective by air traffic controllers who said their ranks have been thinned too much to handle the holiday crush efficiently. The pilots union called some long-term steps too drastic. 

Democrats in Congress characterized Bush's actions as "better late than never," in the words of Rep. Jerry Costello, D-Ill., House aviation subcommittee chairman, and not nearly enough in the view of Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. 

Even Transportation Secretary Mary Peters acknowledged, "If we get an ice storm on the eastern seaboard, it probably won't be pretty." 

Americans traveling through one of the main chokepoints, New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport, remained skeptical Thursday afternoon. 

"It's probably a good idea, but are the airlines going to be able to handle it?" asked Dawn East, 52, as she waited for her flight to Miami, which had been delayed for two hours. "It's not a problem of the lanes up there. It's an industry problem. There's no efficiency." 

Mike Young, 60, who plans to travel to Arkansas over Thanksgiving to see his daughter, doesn't expect Bush's plan to help. "In theory, it sounds nice, but given his record, I don't trust it to work," said Young, a consultant, headed home to Seattle. 

Garth Ehrlich, 51, a molecular biologist waiting for a delayed flight to Pittsburgh, also expects to travel over Thanksgiving to Los Angeles, and hopes the "Thanksgiving express lane" will ease delays and that "it doesn't in any way jeopardize national security." 

On Capitol Hill, airline executives told the House aviation subcommittee they will reduce overbooking during the holidays and add ticketing staff. Airport association executives said they are finding places to sleep, including cots, and food and water for people who are stranded. 

The chief benefit of using the military air routes would be to "get people out of the New York area quicker, especially if we have (bad) weather up and down the East Coast," said Nancy Kalinowski, systems operations vice president at the FAA. This could have a wider impact because 75 percent of the nation's air traffic delays are traced to congestion problems in the New York area. 

Through September, more than 24 percent of U.S. flights arrived late, the worst on-time performance since comparable data began being collected in 1995. In these Transportation Department figures, on-time means less than 15 minutes late. 

Many of the new moves also will be in effect for Christmas but even some of the short-term steps Bush announced -- like doubling the penalties airlines have to pay passengers bumped from overbooked flights -- won't take place until next summer at the earliest. 

Bush acknowledged these short-term steps "do not cure the underlying problem: In certain parts of our country, the demand for air service exceeds the available supply. As a result, airlines are scheduling more arrivals and departures than airports can possibly handle." 

He called on Congress to pass his FAA reauthorization bill, which would finance a multibillion-dollar modernizing of air traffic control by replacing radars with global positioning satellites. The House has passed a reauthorization, but Bush objects to some provisions. The Senate has yet to act. 

Among the short-term steps: 

--The FAA is imposing a holiday moratorium on nonessential maintenance projects, so all its personnel and equipment will be focused on keeping flights on time. 

--New runway use patterns have been instituted at New York's Kennedy International that allow four to six more planes to arrive each hour, and Newark is about to add new takeoff routes. 

--An FAA Web site, http://www.fly.faa.gov , will provide up-to-date information about airport delays. Passengers can sign up to have delay notices sent to their mobile phones. 

The Transportation Department proposed new rules to double the bump fee that airlines must pay to travelers with tickets but no seat from $200 for those delayed less than two hours and $400 for those who wait more than two hours to $400 and $800. It also proposed that airlines devise legally enforceable plans to provide food, water, lavatories and medical care to passengers stranded in planes on airport taxiways. 

Long-term, Bush expressed support for so-called "congestion pricing" proposals that would charge airlines higher fees to take off and land at peak hours in overcrowded airports to encourage them to spread flights throughout the day 

Transportation Secretary Peters acknowledged airlines would pass along to passengers some of the costs of the higher fees and penalties. But she said, "Travelers already pay now for the lack of reliability, the lack of knowing they'll get there on time." She said her former private sector employer paid the extra cost of having employees travel a day early to be sure to be on time. 

------ 

Associated Press writers Janet Frankston Loring in Newark, N.J., and Jim Abrams in Washington contributed to this story.


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## hkskyline

*Airlines plug in new computer systems to keep planes from bunching up * 
16 November 2007
International Herald Tribune

FORT WORTH, Texas -- At any given moment, the airline industry's powerful networks of computers are setting fares, tracking reservations and calculating how much fuel each plane needs to reach its destination. 

So when a storm shut down Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport last Dec. 29, forcing American Airlines to divert 130 planes to other airports in the region, what high-technology system kicked into gear at the world's largest airline? 

''A legal pad,'' said Don Dillman, managing director of American's operations center here, where dispatchers direct flights around the world. 

Lacking any mechanical system for keeping track of all those diverted planes, Dillman and his colleagues furiously scribbled down details of where they had gone, how long they had sat there, and whether pilots had enough time left on their daily work limits to keep flying when the weather cleared. 

Ultimately, 44 of the planes sat out on tarmacs for more than four hours. 

That episode and others - including when JetBlue Airways stranded 21 planes for more than four hours in New York in February - exposed industry weaknesses, and set off consumer protests and calls for tougher airline regulations. 

It also sent many airlines into a computer-programming frenzy to reduce embarrassing service lapses. And now, after upgrading their software, airlines claim they can make good on promises not to strand passengers. 

Those vows will be tested as the holiday travel season begins and winter storms descend on airports across the United States. 

The technology improvements at American Airlines are, in one sense, encouraging. Pen-and-paper have been replaced by computer programs that display flight information in ways that are supposed to help prevent long waits on tarmacs and other service disruptions that most infuriate passengers. Top managers now automatically receive text messages when things begin to go awry. 

Similar improvements have been made at JetBlue and at United Airlines. Other big carriers either have similar software or are in the process of acquiring it, they said. 

But, in another sense, the improvements are troubling because they reveal the industry's relatively primitive approach to dealing with service disruptions. 

''What took so long?'' said Mark Mogel, a retired software engineer who was stranded for five hours on an American flight in 2001, and then recently joined with others who had been stranded to lobby Congress for a limit on tarmac waits. 

The kinds of programs American and others are installing are neither terribly expensive nor ''a great leap'' in technology, and thus could have been in place years earlier, Mogel said. 

Not stranding passengers ''is just a matter of will,'' he added. 

Airlines also promised not to strand passengers on tarmacs after a Northwest Airlines flight sat for hours in Detroit in 1999, but then the industry backslid. 

Monte Ford, American's chief information officer, acknowledged that programs to help the airline recover quickly from storms and other disruptions had been developed too slowly. 

''Why didn't it happen before?'' Ford said. ''There wasn't as much a sense of urgency. There wasn't as much concern about delays.'' 

American and other airlines built state-of-the-art computer systems prior to 1990. But investments did not keep up after that, he said. By the time he arrived in 2001, ''the back-end systems were antiquated, the network was small,'' Ford added. 

And as American was preparing to make big investments in computers, the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, occurred, and sent the airline industry into a deep decline. Spending on technology was reduced. ''That changed our investment profile from innovation to survival,'' Ford said. 

So when a storm descended over the Dallas-Fort Worth airport Dec. 29, dispatchers at American's operations center did what they had been doing for years: They ordered planes to circle in hopes the storm would pass, and then sent them on to other airports when it did not. 

But with no single computer program keeping track of the diversions, and dispatchers too busy to compare notes, smaller airports were soon overwhelmed. 

''We had 16 or 18,'' said Bonnie Sutton, the airline's general manager in Little Rock, Arkansas, where the carrier has just two gates and typically handles only smaller regional jets. 

The storm camped over the Dallas-Fort Worth airport. Austin, Texas, took 11 diverted American flights. Workers there opted to keep using their four gates for on-schedule flights headed to airports that were not closed down. 

''We had an attitude that was pretty much a brick wall,'' said Dillman, the operations chief. ''You don't want the diverted flights to pull your normal flights down.'' 

So, the 11 planes sat in Austin, away from the terminal, four of them for more than six hours, and one for 9 hours and 16 minutes. 

Trying his keep his legal-pad list up to date as Dec. 29 wore on, ''the list just keeps getting longer and longer,'' Dillman said. ''The way you find out something is you pick up the phone and someone starts yelling at you: 'What the heck are you doing letting five planes divert to Abilene - and they all arrive within 20 minutes?' '' 

In the wake of Dec. 29, American promised not to leave passengers on grounded planes for more than four hours and began searching for ways to keep its word. 

At an internal postmortem with top executives after the episode, one of Ford's technology lieutenants mentioned software under development at American that could track diversions and display them on a single screen. 

When could he have it? Ford asked. 

The program, in the works for two years, was rushed into the operations center in two weeks. The work of Tim Niznik, a senior manager who has a postdoctorate degree in operations research, it is called diversion tracker and uses color codes to warn dispatchers that an airport is receiving too many diverted flights. Little Rock's limit now, for instance, is six. Austin's is eight. 

Other color codes warn when planes have sat too long on the ground. 

Crew time limits, whether the lavatories have been serviced on the ground, whether the plane has been to a gate - all are tracked and automatically updated. 

A companion program, called taxi monitor, shows all the planes that have pulled away from the gate but have not yet taken off, listing the time they have sat. 

American had occasion to use the new software almost immediately. On Feb. 24, 101 flights were diverted as severe wind gusts closed Dallas-Fort Worth for more than five hours. 

This time, the diverted flights were divvied up more evenly among surrounding airports. None took more than nine planes. Only one plane sat for more than four hours, according to the Transportation Department's inspector general. 

Through the summer, Niznik worked with dispatchers to train them and add features to the diversion software. 

On Sept. 10, a storm moved over Dallas-Fort Worth early in the morning. By 7:30, four flights had been diverted; by 8:15, 15 flights had been sent to five surrounding airports; by 9:15, 56 flights had been diverted and the software was showing that five airports had reached their limit. 

There were long waits, to be sure. By noon, planes at five airports had been on the ground for more than three hours. But passengers had been taken to the gate and let off, Niznik said, looking at the program's account of the day. 

What if all this stuff - the new software and training, the new procedures and corporate commitment to getting passengers off stranded planes - had been around last Dec. 29? On a scale of 1 to 100, how much of that day's misery might American's passengers have been spared? 

Charlie Mead, a manager in dispatch, pondered the question. 

American could reduce the suffering ''maybe 20 to 25'' percent, he said. ''It's not like we want to trap people in these airplanes.''


----------



## hkskyline

*Questions and answers about military air routes and opening some up for holiday travelers *
16 November 2007

This year, if you're flying up or down the East Coast around Thanksgiving, you might be passing through airspace that's usually reserved for the U.S. military. 

But as you're dozing off in that airspace during your flight home -- groggy from that third helping of turkey -- you might start to wonder: Why can't I fly in this part of the sky all year round? 

President Bush announced Thursday that this Thanksgiving season, from 4 p.m. EST Wednesday through Sunday, the Pentagon will allow commercial airliners to use two corridors that cut through airspace that's usually restricted to the military. It's part of a plan aimed at easing flight delays around the holiday. 

Why does reserved military airspace exist in the first place? And when it comes to flight delays, will the opening up of the flight paths be a Thanksgiving treat -- or a turkey? 

Here are answers to those questions and others. 

------ 

Q: Why does the military need its own airspace? 

A: The military needs the space to conduct exercises -- anything from flight maneuvers to simulated combat to dropping practice bombs -- where they want to keep their distance from civilian flights for safety reasons. (Some of the swaths of airspace cover tens of thousands of square miles.) 

Fred Pease, executive director of the Department of Defense's Policy Board on Federal Aviation, offered the example of fighter planes conducting combat practice. 

"You wouldn't want that activity to by carried out -- because it's very dynamic -- close to an airliner that's trying to travel from point A to point B. So you segregate that activity." 

------ 

Q: How much use does the military get out of its reserved air space? 

A: That varies quite a bit, based on geography and what's going on at nearby military bases. If a given base is conducting an elaborate exercise, a large area of reserved airspace will get busy for a stretch of time. 

------ 

Q: Can civilian flights use military-reserved flight space when no military exercises are taking place? 

A: Sometimes, yes. So the administration's plan may not be as revolutionary as it may sound. 

While it's unusual for military flight paths to be made available for civilian use days in advance -- as is happening this Thanksgiving -- the military and the Federal Aviation Administration will often agree to let this happen on a case-by-case basis. 

Military officials "don't just keep everybody out for no reason," said Cass Howell, chairman of the aeronautical science program at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Fla. "If the airplanes from the military are not there, then the FAA would typically ask and they would get permission." 

------ 

Q: Where are the two air corridors that are being made available to commercial flights? 

A: They're just off the East Coast, extending from an area near Long Island in New York to a spot in the Atlantic east of the Florida-Georgia border. From that point, the corridors meet up with flight paths already available to civilian aircraft. One of the paths goes north, the other goes south. In both corridors, commercial airliners are allowed to fly at altitudes of 24,000 feet and higher. 

------ 

Q: What is the administration hoping to accomplish? 

A: It's all about reducing congestion in the crowded skies around New York -- which is to blame for 75 percent of the nation's air traffic delays. 

The chief goal is to "get people out of the New York area quicker, especially if we have (bad) weather up and down the East Coast," said Nancy Kalinowski, systems operations vice president at the FAA. 

------ 

Q: Why is the airspace around places like New York, Atlanta, Chicago and Los Angeles so congested? 

A: Howell, of Embry-Riddle, attributes this to the airlines' "hub and spoke" system, where large numbers of flights converge on a handful of airports, where passengers are then redistributed on connecting flights. 

"Whenever you have that kind of system, where people are going to all go through one of those chokepoints, at some point, you reach capacity. And some of these places reached capacity years ago." 

------ 

Q: Will the availability of the two corridors of military airspace help solve this problem? 

A: It might help somewhat. But congestion in the skies is one of many issues causing delays -- a relatively minor one, some say. 

"It's not an airspace issue," Howell said. "It's a lack-of-concrete issue, in my view. We just don't have enough airports for the activities that we need to do in terms of air commerce." 

David A. Castelveter, vice president for communications at the Air Transport Association -- a trade group representing major airlines -- says the use of the military airspace is "a very good first step that will help us should we run into any severe weather over the holiday." But he adds, "There is no one solution to reducing delays at JFK (Airport) or in the congested New York airspace." 

Doug Church, spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association -- a union representing controllers -- doesn't think opening the military airspace will help reduce delays at all. 

"The reason is we just don't have enough staffing," he said, saying there are 7.5 percent fewer fully trained veteran controllers on staff now than this time last year. 

"Any time you open up a new route of airspace ... it takes an extra position to be able to handle that," he said, adding that large air traffic centers are "working short-staffed as it is, over the course of the summer having to combine positions, having to combine sectors of airspace, which slows things down because you just can't run more traffic with fewer controllers. It's not safe." 

------ 

Associated Press writer Michael J. Sniffen in Washington contributed to this report.


----------



## hkskyline

*US Airways: 40% Of Flights Could Depart Late During Holidays *
16 November 2007

PHOENIX (AP)--The holiday travel season will be so hectic this year that US Airways says even if goals are met, it expects about 1,400 flights to depart late each day. 

According to its November employee newsletter, the Tempe, Ariz.-based carrier says its goal for the holiday season is to have 60% of its 3,500 daily flights depart on time. That means about 1,400 wouldn't push off from the gate according to schedule. 

"We of course want as many planes to go on time as we can," US Airways Group Inc. (LCC) spokesman Morgan Durant said. But with possible winter storms delaying flights and the expected flood of passengers during the holidays, Durant said the airline decided that 60% was "a challenging but achievable goal." 

Last year, 53% of US Airways mainline flights departed on time in November, and 47% departed on time in December, according to the employee newsletter. 

Durant added that if a flight departs late, that doesn't necessarily mean it will land late as well. He said some planes can fly a little faster and make up time they lost sitting at the gate. 

According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, US Airways slightly lagged the national average of on-time arrivals during November and December of 2006, with 73% of its flights arriving within 14 minutes of the posted schedule. The national average was 74%. 

Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, an advocacy group, said the US Airways goal "certainly doesn't suggest there is much to look forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas." 

Mitchell said many people are "very apprehensive" about flying this holiday season. 

His advice to travelers: "Really lower your expectations and build a lot of time into it, because it's going to be ugly in certain circumstances." 

US Airways' goal of 60% on-time departures was announced as part of the carrier's "Holiday Hustle" employee incentive program. The airline also hopes that no more than seven bags are mishandled per 1,000 customers. 

If the departure and mishandled baggage goals are met, the airline says it will give each employee a $100 bonus. If only one of the goals are met, employees will get $50. 

To help the winter travel season go smoothly, US Airways says it will add staff to airport lobbies, check-in counters, baggage areas and airport towers.


----------



## hkskyline

*Gatwick and Heathrow worst in Europe for delays*
17 November 2007
Financial Times

Gatwick and Heathrow had the worst records for delayed flight departures among all leading European airports this autumn. The two airports were also among the worst performers for delayed flight arrivals, along with Istanbul. 

Gatwick, which has just one runway, and Heathrow, with two runways, are the most congested airports in Europe. 

According figures from the Association of European Airlines yesterday, 41 per cent of flights at Gatwick and 39 per cent of flights at Heathrow were delayed for more than 15 minutes on departure during the period from July to September - the busiest months of the year. 

The two London airports were followed by Rome and Dublin, which also performed poorly, while the other big European hub airports at Paris Charles de Gaulle, Frankfurt and Amsterdam Schiphol all had significantly better punctuality. 

At Charles de Gaulle 29 per cent of departures were delayed by more than 15 minutes, at Frankfurt 22 per cent and at Amsterdam 21 per cent. 

The AEA's data on airport delays come just two weeks after it published figures showing that British Airways had the worst performance among leading European airlines for flight delays and misplaced baggage in the same period from July to September. Heathrow is BA's global hub, while the company is one of the two biggest operators at Gatwick. 

The latest AEA report shows that the average delay on departure at Gatwick was 33 minutes and at Heathrow 32. 

The ranking of London's two leading airports among the worst performing in Europe, and the dismal punctuality and baggage record of British Airways, will add further urgency to the publication by the government next week of a public consultation on controversial plans to build a third runway and a sixth passenger terminal at Heathrow. 

Heathrow was designed for 45m passengers a year but is handling 67m. The airport, the busiest in Europe measured by passenger numbers, has no spare runway capacity and is operating on the same two runways it had when it opened 60 years ago. 

BA warned earlier this month that it was "vulnerable to short-term operational disruption" and that there was little it could do to mitigate against the risk. 

The public consultation will put forward proposals to change operating procedures at Heathrow to maximise use of the present runways as well as long-term plans for the third runway. 

Any such moves will be subject to long planning inquiries and will meet fierce opposition from environmental campaigners and local residents groups. It has been estimated the runway construction would need the demolition of 700 homes. 

Even if objections can be overcome a third runway is unlikely to be operational before the second half of the next decade.


----------



## hkskyline

*Transportation Secretary promises to reduce holiday delays *
18 November 2007

DENVER (AP) - With the first major winter holiday just four days away, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters reaffirmed President Bush's pledge to make travel as painless as possible Sunday. 

"The holidays should be a time of cheer," not of glum passengers waiting for flights that will never come, she said at a news conference at Denver International Airport. 

Last Thursday, Bush disclosed he would make two lanes of military airspace available off the East Coast to commercial airlines, as well as other measures meant to curb congestion that had turned travel into "a season of dread for too many Americans." 

This year's delays are the worst on record. 

Denver and the Colorado ski resorts have been going through an unusually warm and dry spell. Some major resorts will not be open for Thanksgiving. However, enough snow is expected this week to cause travel delays. 

Peters said she has suspended all construction at airports and urged carriers to schedule as many flights as possible in no-peak hours, KUSA-TV reported. She also said the ground-based radar system is a vestige of World War II that needs to be replaced. 

Turner West, executive director of DIA, said musicians will be brought into the teepee-shaped terminal to get people into the proper holiday spirit. The Denver Post reported that the airport security company will add two new inspection lines, and airport workers will offer water bottles and diapers to those waiting in line. 

Denver invested millions in new snow removal equipment after blizzards last year keep DIA clogged for weeks after blizzards. "We are very hopeful it will be a very efficient operation," West said. 

Doug Church, spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, told the Post he expected delays to increase this year. He said there are 7.5 percent fewer veteran controllers in towers, than two years ago, and they will be handling 4 percent more traffic. 

"The FAA tried this notion of increasing airspace on a large scale once before, two years ago," Church said. "It didn't work in terms of reducing delays. So clearly, airspace is not the problem. Staffing is the problem." 

U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo., urged Peters to immediately hire the 58 additional screeners the airport managers have asked for. "As the country's fifth-busiest airport, the prolonged security wait-times are unacceptable, especially during the holiday season," she said in an e-mailed statement.


----------



## hkskyline

*Equipment problem at DFW delays flights, fog hampers flights elsewhere before holiday rush *
19 November 2007

DALLAS (AP) - Radio communications were disrupted at both Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport towers early Monday, while fog, snow and wind threatened to hamper one of the busiest travel holidays of the year elsewhere. 

Flights in and out of Dallas were delayed by as much of an hour. Airport spokesman Ken Capps said in an e-mail that the problems was repaired at both towers after about 30 minutes. 

The outage, at about 7 a.m., affected both incoming and outgoing flights, according to the Federal Aviation Administration's Air Traffic Control System Command Center. The FAA declared a "ground stop," which cuts incoming flights by holding planes on the ground. 

In Atlanta, fog reduced visibility across the metro area to a quarter-mile and delayed flights by as much as 30 minutes during the morning rush. 

The FAA said flights bound for New York's LaGuardia International Airport and Chicago's O'Hare International Airport were experiencing delays of more than an hour. 

While temperatures in New York hovered around 40 degrees Monday morning, the National Weather Services predicted that steady rain could turn to snow. The area was also experiencing winds of 21 mph, with gusts of 26 mph. 

Meteorologists in the Midwest eyed weather fronts that could bring an onslaught of snow and cold that could snarl air traffic at O'Hare. Rain was expected to turn to wet snow Wednesday night, just before thousands board flights out of town or pass through one of the nation's busiest travel hubs. 

Weather and wind were cited for delays in Newark, N.J., and Philadelphia.


----------



## hkskyline

*Plane delayed? 
It might be Philadelphia airport's fault, thanks to poor design, bad weather *
20 November 2007

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - In a terrible year for flight delays nationwide, this city's outdated airport has become a hub of the East Coast maelstrom. 

Holiday travelers from Maine to Florida shouldn't hold their breath, either. It could be decades before passengers see significant improvements at Philadelphia International Airport, routinely one of the nation's most delayed. 

Federal Aviation Administration officials, airlines, air traffic controllers and others say Philadelphia plays a major role in delays up and down the coast thanks to poor airport design, bad weather, heavy traffic and close proximity to New York. 

"If you wanted to show an airport that shows the opposite of what efficient is, Philly would be the poster child," said Don Chapman, local president of the National Air Traffic Controllers union. 

Through September, 68 percent of departures were on time in Philadelphia, better only than New York's JFK International, Chicago's O'Hare International and Liberty International in Newark, N.J. Fewer than two-thirds of arrivals were on time in Philadelphia during that period. 

Nationwide, the airline industry suffered its worst on-time performance in 13 years through September. Over that period, the nation's 20 largest carriers reported that nearly a quarter of all flights arrived late, the most since the industry started keeping track in 1995. 

The FAA has deemed Philadelphia a "pacing" airport that, because it sits in the middle of the busy East Coast air corridor, causes delays nationwide. It is debating how to improve the airport, which last year ranked 16th in the nation by passenger volume, but is consistently near the bottom of the 32 largest airports in on-time performance. 

"It seems like if somebody sneezes in Harrisburg, we've got delays in Philadelphia," said Morgan Durrant, a spokesman for US Airways, the airport's dominant carrier. 

There is little hope of major relief for this year's holiday travelers. Rain and fog on Monday and Tuesday caused delays leading up to the Thanksgiving rush. 

Airport officials are working on extending one runway to accommodate bigger planes. That project, slated for completion by the end of next year, is expected to help ease delays somewhat. 

The FAA is considering three options for a major airport redesign aimed at realigning runways to allow more planes to take off at once. Construction would take 10 to 15 years and would not start until 2010 at the earliest, at an estimated cost of between $5 billion to $6 billion. 

Meanwhile, the search for more immediate solutions has created an uproar. 

Neighbors in the Philadelphia suburbs, and other areas along the East Coast, are angry over an airspace redesign meant to give planes more room. They say the change, which could go into effect next month, will force more flights over their homes and reduce property values. 

The FAA also is moving toward alleviating congestion with new navigational technology that would get more planes in the sky at once by allowing them to fly closer together. But air traffic controllers say that would only make the problems worse. 

"The cause of delays is not in the air," Chapman said. "The cause of delays is on the ground." 

Poor runway arrangement limits the number of planes that can take off from the airport at once, especially during bad weather, Chapman said. Although a small runway was added in 1999, most of the layout dates back to the 1970s or earlier. 

But FAA officials call the changes a must for improving the region's clogged system. 

"What you have to do is look to use technology and airspace design," FAA spokesman Jim Peters said. "How we improve things in New York and Philadelphia ultimately improves things in the rest of the country." 

Meanwhile, on the ground, baggage handling remains a major struggle three years after a Christmas 2004 disaster. That year, US Airways had to cancel hundreds of flights and thousands of pieces of luggage were stranded in Philadelphia after scores of flight attendants and baggage handlers called in sick. 

The airline has since allocated $20 million toward improving baggage handling facilities, but it's still trying to streamline the operation. Eventually, Durrant said, a new system will be able to process up to 1,200 bags an hour, up from the current 700. 

In the meantime, Philadelphia's mayor-elect urged travelers to be patient and beseeched them not to allow delays at the city-owned airport to tarnish Philadelphia's image. 

"None of these challenges are insurmountable," Michael Nutter said the morning after he was elected Nov. 6. "I'd like to remind many of you that the city of Philadelphia does not handle baggage, nor do we fly airplanes."


----------



## rilham2new

I travel a lot domestically in Indonesia. ANd last time experiencing delay was during my YOG-CGK flight, it was for one hours,,, in fact the flight duration is only 55 minutes hno:


----------



## FM 2258

hkskyline said:


> *Plane delayed?
> It might be Philadelphia airport's fault, thanks to poor design, bad weather *
> 20 November 2007
> 
> PHILADELPHIA (AP) - In a terrible year for flight delays nationwide, this city's outdated airport has become a hub of the East Coast maelstrom.
> 
> Holiday travelers from Maine to Florida shouldn't hold their breath, either. It could be decades before passengers see significant improvements at Philadelphia International Airport, routinely one of the nation's most delayed.
> 
> Federal Aviation Administration officials, airlines, air traffic controllers and others say Philadelphia plays a major role in delays up and down the coast thanks to poor airport design, bad weather, heavy traffic and close proximity to New York.
> 
> "If you wanted to show an airport that shows the opposite of what efficient is, Philly would be the poster child," said Don Chapman, local president of the National Air Traffic Controllers union.
> 
> Through September, 68 percent of departures were on time in Philadelphia, better only than New York's JFK International, Chicago's O'Hare International and Liberty International in Newark, N.J. Fewer than two-thirds of arrivals were on time in Philadelphia during that period.
> 
> Nationwide, the airline industry suffered its worst on-time performance in 13 years through September. Over that period, the nation's 20 largest carriers reported that nearly a quarter of all flights arrived late, the most since the industry started keeping track in 1995.
> 
> The FAA has deemed Philadelphia a "pacing" airport that, because it sits in the middle of the busy East Coast air corridor, causes delays nationwide. It is debating how to improve the airport, which last year ranked 16th in the nation by passenger volume, but is consistently near the bottom of the 32 largest airports in on-time performance.
> 
> "It seems like if somebody sneezes in Harrisburg, we've got delays in Philadelphia," said Morgan Durrant, a spokesman for US Airways, the airport's dominant carrier.
> 
> There is little hope of major relief for this year's holiday travelers. Rain and fog on Monday and Tuesday caused delays leading up to the Thanksgiving rush.
> 
> Airport officials are working on extending one runway to accommodate bigger planes. That project, slated for completion by the end of next year, is expected to help ease delays somewhat.
> 
> The FAA is considering three options for a major airport redesign aimed at realigning runways to allow more planes to take off at once. Construction would take 10 to 15 years and would not start until 2010 at the earliest, at an estimated cost of between $5 billion to $6 billion.
> 
> Meanwhile, the search for more immediate solutions has created an uproar.
> 
> Neighbors in the Philadelphia suburbs, and other areas along the East Coast, are angry over an airspace redesign meant to give planes more room. They say the change, which could go into effect next month, will force more flights over their homes and reduce property values.
> 
> The FAA also is moving toward alleviating congestion with new navigational technology that would get more planes in the sky at once by allowing them to fly closer together. But air traffic controllers say that would only make the problems worse.
> 
> "The cause of delays is not in the air," Chapman said. "The cause of delays is on the ground."
> 
> Poor runway arrangement limits the number of planes that can take off from the airport at once, especially during bad weather, Chapman said. Although a small runway was added in 1999, most of the layout dates back to the 1970s or earlier.
> 
> But FAA officials call the changes a must for improving the region's clogged system.
> 
> "What you have to do is look to use technology and airspace design," FAA spokesman Jim Peters said. "How we improve things in New York and Philadelphia ultimately improves things in the rest of the country."
> 
> Meanwhile, on the ground, baggage handling remains a major struggle three years after a Christmas 2004 disaster. That year, US Airways had to cancel hundreds of flights and thousands of pieces of luggage were stranded in Philadelphia after scores of flight attendants and baggage handlers called in sick.
> 
> The airline has since allocated $20 million toward improving baggage handling facilities, but it's still trying to streamline the operation. Eventually, Durrant said, a new system will be able to process up to 1,200 bags an hour, up from the current 700.
> 
> In the meantime, Philadelphia's mayor-elect urged travelers to be patient and beseeched them not to allow delays at the city-owned airport to tarnish Philadelphia's image.
> 
> "None of these challenges are insurmountable," Michael Nutter said the morning after he was elected Nov. 6. "I'd like to remind many of you that the city of Philadelphia does not handle baggage, nor do we fly airplanes."


I had to spend the night in the O'Hare terminal one time due to my plane getting a late start from Philadelphia. Good cheesesteak sandwiches though.


----------



## hkskyline

*Holiday Travel Will Test NYC Airports *
20 November 2007

NEW YORK (AP) - Nearly 1.7 million travelers are expected to pass through New York's three major airports over the next five days, and if things go poorly, the airlines may have more to worry about than snarling passengers. 

U.S. transportation officials have been saying for months that air carriers may be scheduling more flights through the metropolitan region than the airspace can handle. 

Almost three of every four flight delays in the country can now be traced back to a problem at greater New York's major airports, John F. Kennedy, Newark Liberty and LaGuardia. At nearby Philadelphia International Airport, poor airport design aggravates the coast-to-coast delays. 

JFK, Newark and Philadelphia, along with Chicago's O'Hare International, had the worst on-time performance among the nation's airports through September. 

Nationwide, nearly a quarter of all flights on the 20 largest airlines arrived late, the industry's worst performance since it started keeping track in 1995. The delays were so bad, President Bush has gotten involved in trying to solve the problem. 

Federal officials are threatening to forcibly thin congestion by capping the number of hourly flights at JFK. The airlines have fought the proposal, saying it could drive up fares and force them to reduce service to smaller cities. 

But momentum has been building for some type of restriction on flights. A critical Federal Aviation Administration report on the problem is due in early December. 

With the decision looming, the region's airports face a critical test this week. The three New York airports and Philadelphia all had delays of about an hour on Tuesday afternoon, according to the FAA. 

Air carriers have scheduled a crush of 3,492 takeoffs and landings Wednesday at JFK, Newark and LaGuardia. Another 3,398 flights are scheduled for Sunday, the day many Americans return from their Thanksgiving holiday. 

Things are expected to be at their worst after 3 p.m. Sunday at JFK, when 194 flight operations are planned in a two-hour window. That's one takeoff or landing every 37 seconds. 

The U.S. Department of Transportation suggested this fall that Kennedy could handle a maximum of 80 or 81 aircraft per hour. That's about 20 fewer than scheduled for each hour during that window. 

But officials at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airports, say they are up to the challenge. 

The Bush administration and the FAA announced a number of initiatives last week in an attempt to help with the rush. 

Commercial flights will temporarily be able to use military airspace off the Atlantic coast that is usually restricted. 

Jets leaving Newark, Kennedy and Philadelphia will be able to use some new takeoff patterns that have the potential to help aircraft leave the area more quickly. Some changes have been authorized that may also speed landings. 

JetBlue CEO David Barger said those measures will help. 

"You get 1 percent here, 2 percent there ... It doesn't sound like a big deal, but they are a big deal when you add them together," Barger said. 

The Philadelphia airport's problems are so extensive, significant improvements could take decades. 

Poor runway arrangement limits the number of planes that can take off from Philadelphia at once, especially during bad weather, said Don Chapman, local president of the National Air Traffic Controllers union. Although a small runway was added in 1999, most of the layout dates back to the 1970s or earlier. 

"If you wanted to show an airport that shows the opposite of what efficient is, Philly would be the poster child," Chapman said. 

The FAA is considering three options for a major airport redesign aimed at realigning runways to allow more planes to take off at once. Construction would take 10 to 15 years and would not start until 2010 at the earliest, at an estimated cost of between $5 billion to $6 billion. 

In the shorter term, airport officials are working on extending one runway to accommodate bigger planes. That project, slated for completion by the end of next year, is expected to help ease delays somewhat. 

Meanwhile, other proposed solutions that could be implemented more quickly have created an uproar. 

Neighbors in the Philadelphia suburbs, and other areas along the East Coast, are angry over an airspace redesign meant to give planes more room. They say the change, which could go into effect next month, will force more flights over their homes and reduce property values. 

Two congressmen, one from Pennsylvania and another from New Jersey, on Tuesday called for emergency litigation to stop the plan. They said it was being rushed and could pose safety concerns. 

The FAA also is moving toward alleviating congestion with new navigational technology that would get more planes in the sky at once by allowing them to fly closer together. 

Chapman said that would only make the problems worse. 

"The cause of delays is not in the air," he said. "The cause of delays is on the ground." 

But FAA officials call the changes a must for improving the region's clogged system. 

"What you have to do is look to use technology and airspace design," FAA spokesman Jim Peters said. "How we improve things in New York and Philadelphia ultimately improves things in the rest of the country." 

------ 

Patrick Walters reported on this story from Philadelphia.


----------



## hkskyline

*NYC Comptroller Reports Area Flight Delays Getting Worse *
2 December 2007

NEW YORK (AP)--Flight delays at New York airports are getting worse every year at a rate much faster than other U.S. cities, polluting the air and eroding the city's ability to compete in the global marketplace, a city official said Sunday. 

In a 36-page report, City Comptroller William C. Thompson Jr. said the on-time performance of commercial aircraft at the three major regional airports was 13% below the national average - or nearly three times more than in 2003, he said. 

"One of New York City's major competitive advantages is its outstanding air connections with the rest of the nation and the world. This advantage is now being degraded by the declining reliability of air travel into and out of New York," Thompson said in a statement. 

Thompson said the Federal Aviation Administration needed to modernize an "antiquated" air traffic control system, train more controllers and stop overscheduling airline flights during peak hours. 

He recommended temporary caps on flight numbers at John F. Kennedy and Newark-Liberty International Airports. Three of four of the nation's delayed flights come from Kennedy, Newark and LaGuardia Airports. 

He said his recommendations could ease delays and save airlines and passengers nearly $260 million a year at Kennedy Airport alone. 

FAA spokesman Brian Turmail said the White House announced last September that New York airport delays would be given "special priority" to speed changes. The agency, he said, has taken several steps including a redesign of East Coast flight routes to ease congestion at peak hours. 

"What we are looking for are more suggestions as to how the situation might be improved," Turmail said. "There have been some, but this is a little like relying on a handkerchief when a parachute is needed - it's not going to be enough."


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## hkskyline

*Airline Oct On-Time Rate Improved Over Year-ago, DOT Says *
3 December 2007
Dow Jones News Service

Airlines improved their on-time performance in October, recording an on-time rate of 78.2%, better than 72.9% in the same month last year but below September's 81.7%, the Department of Transportation said Monday. 

For the first 10 months of the year, the on-time arrival rate was the second-worst in 13 years, breaking a trend in prior reports of reaching the worst level in 13 years. 

Also, the DOT said an investigation into six airlines operating 25 chronically delayed flights resulted in improved arrival performance in the third quarter.


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## hkskyline

*US Airways Offers Employee Bonus If Flight, Baggage Goals Met *
11 December 2007

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)-- US Airways Group (LCC) is offering its employees $100 bonuses if flights leave on time and bags don't get lost this holiday season. 

After a summer full of flight delays, the airline wants to meet specific performance goals in November and December: at least 60% of all flights must depart at the scheduled time or earlier, and mishandled bags must be limited to no more than seven bags per 1,000 bags. 

If both goals are met, the company's roughly 36,000 employees will get $100. That includes about 5,300 people who work at the airline's largest hub in Charlotte, N.C. If one goal is met, employees will get $50. 

US Airways spokesman Phil Gee said as of Sunday, both goals were being met with 60.9% of flights leaving on time and 6.15 mishandled bags per 1,000.


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## hkskyline

*Plan to ration flights in NYC could slow airline growth *
12 December 2007

NEW YORK (AP) - British billionaire Richard Branson wants Virgin America to be the next JetBlue, an upstart that challenges the big boys with low prices and dazzles passengers with stylish mood-lighting, black leather seats and an in-flight entertainment system. 

But any hope the new airline has of becoming a major player in one of its premier markets -- New York -- could be dashed if federal regulators go ahead with a plan to cap the number of flights at the city's major airports. 

The company is one of several whose future business plans may be at stake as the government shapes a plan to battle chronic flight delays by forcing airlines to trim their schedules in New York, where runway bottlenecks now cause problems nationwide. 

U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters is scheduled to deliver a report to the president on the problem next week, and officials have told the airlines she is all but certain to recommend reinstating hourly flight limits at John F. Kennedy International. 

Industry experts said that, depending on the program's final shape, flight caps could make it harder for new carriers to expand in New York and force established airlines to be more selective about where they fly. 

The end result, Bear, Stearns & Co. analyst Frank Boroch said, could be a cooling-off of the fare wars that have made air travel to the city relatively cheap. 

"While airlines may be unhappy with the restraints on some of their opportunities, if they are actually able to deliver their product on time to customers, and reduce costs (related to delays), the industry could benefit," he said. 

Passengers may see prices go up slightly, but Boroch suggested the sacrifice might be worth it if their planes, now routinely hours late, arrive on time. 

That opinion is not shared by officials at airlines hoping to grow in New York. Caps, they say, will almost certainly mean limited availability of slots to newcomers. 

"What this basically means is that if you have a small airline and you want to serve New York, you can forget it," said Edward Faberman, a spokesman for the Air Carrier Association of America, whose members include AirTran, Frontier and Spirit. 

U.S. transportation officials have been saying for weeks that Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty have been pushed past their breaking points by the fast expansion of carriers like JetBlue. Fare wars have lured so many fliers that runways at all three airports are now essentially overbooked for several hours each day. 

Prior to Jan. 1, the airlines were not allowed to schedule more than 86 operations per hour during peak travel times. Transportation officials have suggested Kennedy can actually handle no more than 81 flights per hour, far fewer than the 100 or more that are now scheduled during the busiest times of day. 

Hourly flight limits already exist at LaGuardia, and officials said similar caps are also likely to be added to Newark. 

The caps could, in theory, reduce delays by keeping the airlines from over-scheduling, but the restrictions would raise the question of how the government would go about distributing the available slots. 

Department of Transportation spokesman Brian Turmail declined to comment on the agency's plans, saying they were still being developed. But DOT officials have told airline executives that one option could be auctioning slots to the highest bidder. 

It is not yet clear who could legally collect the money from such a scheme, or what it would mean for airlines with questionable ability to pay prices likely to exceed $1 million (euro680,000) per slot. 

Any auction plan would likely face a legal challenge from major carriers, who have spent billions of dollars developing terminals and establishing routes. The Air Transport Association said that if the slots for those routes were then auctioned off, it would make those investments worthless. 

Flight caps and slot auctions are also opposed by politicians representing small cities that could see less service if the airlines are forced to pay top dollar for each takeoff or landing. 

"I think flight caps should be the very last resort," said Sen. Charles Schumer, who recalled the days when flights out of cities like Buffalo and Rochester cost as much as a ticket to Europe because of a lack of competition. 

A number of airlines have asked federal authorities to instead try boosting the capacity of New York's airports -- steps that the Federal Aviation Administration already hopes to take by redesigning airspace and upgrading navigational technology. 

Even with those changes, however, the DOT's Turmail said some type of flight cap may be unavoidable. Airlines have informed the DOT that they intended to boost their schedules at JFK by as much as 22 percent next summer -- an increase Turmail said the airport cannot possibly handle. 

If rationing has to happen, larger air carriers and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airports, favor the adoption of a scheduling system similar to one used abroad. 

Under that plan, carriers already established at an airport are basically guaranteed the same number of spots they had the previous year. Unused slots, or new ones created by capacity improvements, could be distributed to newcomers by lottery, auction or some other means. 

That type of rationing, however, creates problems for newcomers like Virgin America, which began its first flights between the west coast and New York in August. It now has eight flights per day that touch down in New York. 

"Certainly it is a key market for us," said Virgin America spokeswoman Abby Lunardini. "We hope to have a presence there going forward. Our main concern is not being effectively locked out."


----------



## hkskyline

*Airline industry seeks to block NY's passenger 'bill of rights' *
18 December 2007

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - In a case that could affect passengers delayed on planes at airports nationwide, an industry trade group is challenging New York's law requiring airlines to provide food, water, clean toilets and fresh air to passengers stuck on the ground for more than three hours. 

New York lawmakers passed the "airline passenger bill of rights" -- the first law of its kind in the nation -- after a series of delays last winter at John F. Kennedy International Airport that left some passengers stranded for more than 10 hours with no food or water, overflowing toilets and no air conditioning. 

Industry lawyers told a federal judge Tuesday that their challenge isn't about not wanting to provide for delayed passengers. 

"The only question in this case is whether the state of New York can tell airlines what to provide," said Robert Span, an attorney for the Air Transport Association. 

The industry group is trying to stop the law from taking effect on Jan. 1, arguing that only the federal government can regulate airline services. 

State legislators and passenger rights advocates said they pushed for the law because federal regulators have long failed to address what they say has become a chronic problem, particularly at New York airports. 

"I would love for Washington to step forward, set a standard for the whole country and take care of business once and for all," said Michael Gianaris, a Queens Democrat who sponsored the legislation in the state Assembly. "They didn't do it. We had to step forward as the state which is dealing with the greatest delays in the country." 

A recent federal report showed that about 24 percent of flights nationally arrived late in the first 10 months of the year, which was the industry's second-worst performance record since comparable data began being collected in 1995. 

JFK had the third-worst on-time arrival record of any major U.S. airport through October, behind the New York area's other two major airports, LaGuardia and Newark, according to the report. 

In a court hearing Tuesday, airline industry association lawyers said they're worried that if New York's law is upheld, other states will follow with their own laws, which would result in a confusing patchwork of state regulations. 

Paul Hudson, an attorney with the nonprofit Aviation Consumer Action Project who appeared in court alongside a lawyer from the state attorney general's office, said other states likely would pass similar laws. 

"Other states will copy it with some slight variations -- but nothing is going to be ridiculous," he said after the hearing. 

If enough states pass airline passenger rights laws, the federal government would probably create its own version, which would provide the uniform set of rules the airlines want, Hudson said. 

In response to questions from U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence Kahn, the Air Transport Association's Span acknowledged that there are currently no federal rules governing services airlines provide during ground delays. He said the federal Transportation Department is considering establishing some. 

After the hearing, Span said many airlines -- including JetBlue, whose delays after grounding more than a thousand flights during a Valentine's Day ice storm last year were the main impetus behind New York's law -- have established their own policies to provide better service to delayed passengers. 

Charles Fuschillo Jr., a Long Island Republican who sponsored the legislation in the state Senate, said the law passed only after the airlines proved that they weren't doing any better and were unresponsive to state lawmakers' concerns. 

"The airline industry said, 'We can do this,' but I made it very clear to them that they had failed to provide consumers with basic necessities," Fuschillo said. 

The airline industry has asked Kahn for a summary judgment in the case -- meaning he would decide based on legal arguments without a jury trial -- and to block the law from taking effect on Jan. 1. 

The judge said he plans to make a decision within a week.


----------



## hkskyline

*Analysts say plan to cap NYC flights will benefit carriers *
19 December 2007

NEW YORK (AP) - Analysts view established carriers such as JetBlue Airways Corp. and Continental Airlines Inc. as winners -- and smaller startups or any carrier looking to grow as losers -- under the federal government's plan to limit the number of hourly flights at New York area airports. 

Under new Transportation Department rules set to take effect in March, John F. Kennedy International Airport will be allowed only 82 to 83 flights per hour at peak times, down significantly from 90 to 100 per hour at peak times this past summer. Newark Liberty Airport faces similar caps, though the exact number has yet to be determined. Flight caps are already in place at LaGuardia Airport. 

For carriers that already have significant operations at the airports, flight caps help by keeping competitors out. 

"It discourages new entrants," said Michael Derchin, an analyst at FTN Midwest Securities Corp., in New York. 

That's good for incumbent airlines, but not for consumers. 

"A tighter seat supply could enable airlines to raise prices," said Ray Neidl, an analyst at Calyon Securities in New York. 

Obvious beneficiaries include JetBlue and Houston-based Continental, the largest carriers at JFK and Newark, respectively. Hurt by the plan are small carriers hoping to launch flights to or from JFK or Newark at peak morning or afternoon travel times. Foreign carriers looking to take advantage of the Open Skies agreement between the U.S. and European Union may find they can serve JFK only at undesirable off-peak times. 

Left in the middle are carriers such as Delta Air Lines Inc., which has already ratcheted back plans to add more flights at JFK during peak periods, anticipating flight caps. 

"The (Federal Aviation Administration) and (Department of Transportation) must respect our efforts to address delays in the New York area through schedule reductions and ensure that new entrant carriers are not allowed to add new flights in the congested period," said Delta CEO Richard Anderson in a statement. 

Bob Cortelyou, Delta's senior vice president of network and planning, said the airline's overall number of flights will not change under the plan. Aircraft will simply fly later in the evening, or during the late-morning to early afternoon lull. 

JetBlue spokesman Bryan Baldwin said the airline is confident it can shuffle its schedule to meet the cap without trimming service. 

Larger, established carriers would also be the likely winners in any slot auction process, analysts say. If, in the future, technological or capacity improvements let JFK increase its hourly flights, the government's plan calls for additional slots to be sold off in a slot auction. 

"The guys with the biggest pockets," would have the best chances of winning those auctions, Derchin said. 

------ 

Associated Press Writers David Caruso in New York and Devlin Barrett, in Washington, contributed to this report.


----------



## hkskyline

*US air passenger group welcomes rules for stranded travelers *

NEW YORK, Dec 21, 2007 (AFP) - A group representing US air travelers claimed victory Friday after a New York judge ruled that airlines in the state must provide essential services to passengers stranded for long periods of time. 

The decision means that from January 1, any passengers stuck in planes on runways at New York's airports for more than three hours must be given food, water, fresh air and given access to working toilets. 

Airlines face fines of up to 1,000 dollars per passenger for not adhering to the new rules. 

Campaigners urged other states to follow suit, in what they hope will eventually become a nationwide bill of rights for air passengers. 

"This represents a major victory and positions us to move forward with similar measures in other states," said Burt Rubin, from the Coalition for an Airline Passengers Bill of Rights. 

"If the federal government won't enact a uniform standard, states must fill the void," added Kate Hanni, the group's president. 

Increased security at US airports since the September 11 attacks of 2001, a reduction in services provided by airlines and an increase in passenger numbers have combined to make air travel difficult for millions of people every year. 

"Profit and economics are the primary reasons that the airlines make decisions that are not passenger based," Hanni told AFP. 

Airlines opposed Thursday's decision and the Air Transport Association said it was considering appealing the ruling.


----------



## hkskyline

*FAA plan to reduce flight delays faces political fight over noise; jets wil be re-routed *
10 January 2008

NEW YORK (AP) - For years, jets taking off from Newark Liberty International Airport have performed an act of mercy as they roar south. 

Moments after leaving the ground, the planes bank left, out over an industrial port district, and away from the residential streets of Elizabeth, N.J., the working-class city that sits right up against the busy airport. 

Maneuvers like this are a common method of sparing citizens from the window-ratting noise of jets passing overhead. 

But now such practices are being dropped in some places in the Northeast as part of a federal plan to ease record flight delays. And some neighborhoods that fear they will be subjected to more noise are fighting back in court. 

On Dec. 19, the Federal Aviation Administration began its first overhaul in decades of the jet routes that crisscross the country's most congested airspace -- a 31,000-square-mile area around New York and Philadelphia. 

The corridor has been criticized for years as one of the worst problem spots in the nation's beleaguered air traffic system. Most the paths were laid out in the 1960s. Some date from the earliest days of air travel, and airlines have been complaining for years that they are horribly outdated. 

Over the next five years, the FAA will be rolling out new routes it believes can cut flight delays by as much as 20 percent. Some aviation experts say improvements are essential; nearly three quarters of all flight delays nationally are caused by backups in New York and Philadelphia. 

But a closer look at the revamped flight routes shows that the changes will lead to more noise for tens of thousands of people, many of whom are already are subject to the whine of jet engines because of their proximity to airports. 

In Elizabeth, N.J., the changes will mean that some planes will fly straight over the center of the city. 

"The FAA plan will do more harm to the city of Elizabeth than any terrorist incident," said Mayor Chris Bollwage. 

"We live next to the airport, so we have to take some noise," he said. But the FAA plan, he added, stretches fairness. "There are places in town where you can touch the tires." 

At least 12 lawsuits have been filed so far in an attempt to stop the plan. Congress ordered the Government Accountability Office to examine the FAA's method for choosing the new routes. Top lawmakers from several states have demanded changes. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., threatened to block Senate confirmation of acting FAA administrator Robert Sturgell if the agency doesn't halt implementation. 

So far, the complaints haven't stopped the FAA. Last month, the agency began phasing in new traffic patterns at the Newark and Philadelphia airports that allow departing planes to fan out in several directions as they climb, rather than stick to a single path. 

In theory, the change will allow more takeoffs per hour, but outside Philadelphia it will also mean more planes over a cluster of suburbs in Delaware County, just west of the airport. 

Since the first of the changes went into effect in Philadelphia on Dec. 19, the airport said it has been getting three complaints a day about noise, compared with about one every two days in the previous three months. 

FAA officials say the airspace redesign will actually lead to a reduction in noise for a majority of people, largely because the changes will allow planes to fly at higher altitudes. 

But sound-modeling data released by the agency reveals that the gains and losses will not be spread evenly. Loud neighborhoods will, on average, be getting louder, while the biggest improvements will be in places that aren't that noisy to begin with. 

According to the FAA, an additional 30,600 people will find themselves living in neighborhoods where the average daily aircraft noise level is 60 to 65 decibels -- considered the high edge of tolerable for a residential area. 

Noise at that level is far from earsplitting; experts say it is less than residents might experience if they lived next to a busy road. But it is loud enough that people have to raise their voices as a plane passes overhead. 

The number of people living in areas where the average decibel level is between 55 and 60 will rise by 79,813. 

The big losers will be a few communities near Newark and Philadelphia that already hear a good deal of airplane traffic because of their proximity to the airports. There will also be a slight to moderate increase in noise in parts of Morris and Sussex counties in northern New Jersey. 

The big winners are people who live a little farther away, and now hear a medium amount of noise. 

By 2011, the FAA estimates that there will be nearly 728,650 fewer people living in areas where the daily noise level is between 45 and 55 decibels -- louder than a refrigerator hum, but quieter than two people talking in a room. 

Many of those people are in a corridor running southwest from New Brunswick, N.J. There will also be noise benefits in pockets of densely populated Essex County, N.J., which includes Newark, and parts of northeastern Pennsylvania. 

The opposition is not just coming from areas likely to see big changes. 

Fourteen municipalities in western Connecticut have been trying to get the plan blocked, largely because it will shift an arrival path for New York's LaGuardia Airport eastward, creating what the FAA says will be slightly more noise for some towns in Connecticut. 

"It's a quality-of-life issue," said Rudy Marconi, a spokesman for the Alliance for Sensible Airspace Planning and a selectman in Ridgefield, Conn., 40 miles northeast of LaGuardia. "Will I get used to it? Probably. But should I have to get used to it?"


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## hkskyline

*Federal policy will let airports charge landing fees based on time of day, traffic volume *
14 January 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) - Congested airports nationwide can charge landing fees based on the time flights land and traffic volume instead of on the plane's weight, according to a federal policy introduced Monday. 

U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters said the policy will make it easier for airports to reduce delays by encouraging airlines to spread their flights more evenly throughout the day. 

Some analysts say while the new fees will encourage competition among airports, consumers ultimately will foot the bill. 

Airline arrival rates through November were the second worst since comparable data began being collected in 1995, the Transportation Department said earlier this month. The new policy will encourage congested airports in New York and elsewhere to include the cost of projects designed to expand capacity in the new landing fees now instead of after construction has been completed, Peters said. 

The policy also will allow operators of multiple airports, such as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, to distribute landing-fee revenue among facilities, she said. 

But the Port Authority, which runs John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia and New Jersey's Newark Liberty, said the new policy is a minor fix for a major problem. Through November, those three airports had the lowest on-time arrival rates, and aviation officials say delays there cascade throughout the system, causing 75 percent of the nation's flight delays. 

"It's good the (Federal Aviation Administration) is focusing on the delays issue, but these small steps don't address the fundamental problem when dramatic action is needed," according to a Port Authority statement. "The right solution is expanding capacity through 21st century technologies, working with the airlines on more rational schedules and better customer service." 

The Air Transport Association, which represents the nation's largest airlines, cast the policy as "congestion pricing disguised as an airport fee," and echoed the call for a more comprehensive fix. 

"Unfortunately, (the policy) does nothing to fix the primary cause of delays -- our nation's increasingly antiquated air traffic control system," ATA President and CEO Jim May said in a statement. "Additional fees ... will only increase the cost of flying for the consumer." 

But, the association representing airport owners and operators welcomed the change, lauding Peters for recognizing that "airport proprietors are in the best position to manage the use of the facilities they planned, financed, built and currently operate," Airports Council International-North America President Greg Principato said in a release. 

Consumers flying at peak travel times should not be singled out just because the airports are charging airlines more for their flights, but all travelers likely will see ticket prices rise as carriers distribute the additional cost, said Terry Trippler, a travel expert who's had air fares on his radar for decades. Still, he welcomed the new policy. 

"The best part about this is that it opens up competition among airports," Trippler said, adding that airports in Memphis or Philadelphia who see their counterparts in Atlanta or New York raising landing fees may opt not to follow suit as a way to attract more business. "That's what we want and that's what we need." 

The proposed landing fee policy will be open to public comment for 45 days before finalized. 

To avoid another summer of record delays, Peters last month said flight caps will begin in March at New York City area airports. 

JFK will be allowed 82 or 83 flights per hour at the peak times, down from about 100 that had been scheduled last summer. Similar caps, which already exist at LaGuardia, also will go into effect at Newark, but the exact number hasn't been determined. 

In its criticism of flight caps, The Port Authority has said they may raise ticket prices or force some travelers to fly at inconvenient times. 

Meanwhile, the airlines and the FAA are pressing for a new, $15 billion satellite-based air traffic control system to improve operations. In late August, the agency awarded ITT Corp. a contract worth up to $1.8 billion to build the first portion of a system that will take nearly 20 years to complete.


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## SA BOY

Emirates to paris on Monday 1hr delay out of DXB
Emirates to Dubai on Thursday 3hr delay out of CDG

Emirates are the worst delayed carrier around and if I dident have over 250 000miles with them Id start flying Etihad


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## hkskyline

*2007 Airline Delays 2nd Worst Ever *
5 February 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) - A quarter of domestic flights failed to arrive on time in 2007 -- the industry's second poorest performance on record -- and analysts say it is likely to get worse. 

More than 26 percent of commercial flights in the U.S. arrived late or were canceled last year as rising passenger demand and an industry preference for smaller planes intensified congestion in the skies and on runways. The air-travel logjam, reported Tuesday by the Department of Transportation, comes as a growing number of air traffic controllers near retirement age -- a trend the controllers' union says will magnify the problem. 

The only time passengers had more difficulty getting to their destinations on time was in 2000, when more than 27 percent of flights were tardy or canceled. Back then, there were 31 percent fewer flights than in 2007, when carriers operated nearly 7.5 million one-way trips. 

Excluding cancellations, however, 2007 was the worst on record for flight delays, with 24.2 percent arriving late, compared with 23.9 percent in 2000, according to government statistics that date back to 1995. The worst month of the year for the nation's 20 largest airlines was December, when more than a third of all flights were late or canceled, mostly because of the weather. 

There is no sign of improvement on the horizon, analysts said, because airlines continue to replace larger aircraft with smaller ones. The practice is intended to maximize profit margins by flying with fewer empty seats, but it also means more flights and more congestion and delays. 

The use of smaller planes also increases airlines' exposure to rising fuel prices, since it costs them more money per seat to operate, said Robert Mann, an airline consultant in Port Washington, N.Y. The industry has said that rising fuel prices are expected to again cut into profits this year and some airlines have raised their fuel surcharges to compensate. 

President Bush has demanded action to avoid another summer of record delays, but there is little consensus among airlines, airport operators, Congress and the administration on what should be done. 

The Federal Aviation Administration has been locked in a contract dispute with the union representing air traffic controllers since 2006. While the agency insists staffing has no impact on flight delays, the union says congestion problems will worsen unless the government hires more air traffic controllers and pays them better. 

"A smaller, less experienced work force will have an adverse impact on system efficiency," said Paul Rinaldi, executive vice president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. 

In an effort to address the airline delay problem, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters earlier this month said congested airports can charge landing fees based on the time flights land and traffic volume to encourage carriers to spread operations more evenly throughout the day. 

But the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs John F. Kennedy International Airport, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty, said the new policy was a minor fix for a major problem. In 2007, those three airports had the lowest on-time arrival rates, and aviation officials say delays there cascade throughout the system and cause three-quarters of all flight delays. 

The Air Transport Association, which represents the nation's largest airlines, also said a more comprehensive fix is needed. 

The trade group and the Port Authority prefer flight-path changes and improvements aimed at increasing the flight capacity at airports. 

Under another federal plan, New York City area airports will start flight caps in March with JFK limited to about 80 flights per hour at peak times, down from about 100 that had been scheduled last summer. Similar caps, which already exist at LaGuardia, also will go into effect at Newark. 

The airlines and the FAA, meanwhile, are pressing for a new $15 billion satellite-based air traffic control system, dubbed NextGen, that will take nearly 20 years to complete to improve operations. 

Peters on Monday said the Bush administration's $68 billion fiscal 2009 budget proposal for the department would more than double the investment in NextGen technology to $688 million. But airport operators criticized the proposal for cutting the FAA's airport improvement program to $2.75 billion in funding, which is $765 million less than this year. 

Atlantic Southeast Airlines, a subsidiary of SkyWest Inc., had the worst on-time arrival rate last year at 64.7 percent, while Hawaiian Airlines topped the list at more than 93 percent. American Eagle Airlines, which operates regional flights for AMR Corp.'s American Airlines, had the worst December with more than 46 percent of its flights delayed by at least 15 minutes. Aloha Airlines had the best on-time arrival rate in December at 93 percent.


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## Assemblage23

If there's something that I hate, is being delayed by someone else's fault.


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## hkskyline

*Airline group says London's Heathrow airport saw more flight delays than other EU hubs *
19 February 2008

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The world's busiest airport, London Heathrow, saw more delays than any other major European airport last year -- for the second consecutive year, an airline group said Tuesday. 

The Association of European Airlines, which represents more than 30 European carriers, said flights from all airports were still seeing an increasing number of delays, a trend that started in 2003 even before new security checks lengthened lines at airports two years ago. 

Some 35 percent of flights at Heathrow were delayed last year, the AEA said. Heathrow handles more than 480,000 flights a year and is Europe's main hub for flights to the rest of the world. 

In general, the airlines say 40 percent of flights at all airports see delays because the aircraft is not ready to depart -- either because bags and passengers have not been loaded on time or there is a small problem with the plane. 

Most other flights are delayed because of bad weather, too much traffic at airports or failure to win speedy approval from air traffic control to allow take off. 

"This last category of so-called 'slot delays' highlights the perennial problem of European airspace congestion," the AEA said, blaming bottlenecks at a few key European airports. 

It said it was hopeful that things would change as regulators try to reduce zigzag flight route through European airspace controlled by a patchwork of national governments -- which makes air travel over Europe some 70 percent less cost efficient than the U.S. 

An EU experts' group said last year that fragmented air traffic control placed an unnecessary financial burden on airlines and passengers amounting to 3.3 billion euros ($4.4 billion) annually and also added to air traffic bottlenecks and increased air pollution. 

After Heathrow, London's Gatwick, Rome, Dublin and Paris Charles de Gaulle saw the worst delays, the AEA said. 

For a timely flight, Brussels wins over the other 26 major airports as the most punctual air hub, the AEA said. Just under 17 percent of Brussels flights saw delays. Germany's Duesseldorf; Vienna; Oslo and Milan-Linate also scored well for punctuality.


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## hkskyline

*NY judges: Passenger law might interfere with aviation rules *
5 March 2008

NEW YORK (AP) - A federal appeals panel seemed impatient Wednesday with arguments supporting the first law in the nation requiring airlines to provide food, water, clean toilets and fresh air to passengers trapped in a plane delayed on the ground. 

All three judges expressed skepticism that states should be allowed to impose such a law on an industry already subject to extensive federal oversight. It was likely, they implied through their questions, that federal authority would pre-empt state laws on the issue. 

New York's law requires relief for people who have been trapped in a plane on the ground for at least three hours. It was passed after passengers at Kennedy International Airport were stranded on planes for more than 10 hours with no food and overflowing toilets. 

The court did not immediately rule on the constitutionality of New York's Airline Passenger Bill of Rights. 

The judges said they were sympathetic to the needs of passengers on planes, but they seemed to agree that only the federal government can regulate airline services. 

Judge Brian M. Cogan said New York's law might lead to multiple solutions by states nationwide that would subject airlines to all kinds of requirements. 

Judge Debra Ann Livingston agreed. "There is a patchwork problem in that every state should be concerned about this and probably would write different regulations," she said. 

Even though the judges had not yet ruled, Judge Richard C. Wesley defended them. 

"This is a pre-emption issue. Judges aren't heartless people in black robes. Three judges must decide whether New York stepped over the pre-emption line," Wesley said. 

The law was challenged before the appeals court by the Air Transport Association of America, the industry trade group representing leading U.S. airlines. 

Seth Waxman, a lawyer for the trade group, told the judges that a dozen other states were considering laws similar to New York's law. He said Congress was considering its own legislation. 

"If regulation is required in this area, it must be national to avoid what otherwise is a patchwork solution," Waxman said. 

Barbara Underwood, arguing in defense of the law, said it required minimal standards and protected the public. 

She said planes in line for takeoff might, after three hours, be forced to return to the gate to pick up more food and water and empty its restrooms or need to summon a delivery service that can take care of it. 

A recent federal report showed that about 24 percent of flights nationally arrived late in the first 10 months of last year, which was the industry's second-worst performance record since comparable data began being collected in 1995. 

Kennedy airport had the third-worst on-time arrival record of any major U.S. airport through October, behind the New York area's other two major airports, LaGuardia and Newark, according to the report. 

Wesley called it a health and safety issue. 

"What it really is about is human dignity," Underwood said. 

Assemblyman Michael Gianaris, D-Astoria, the prime sponsor of New York Airline Passenger Bill of Rights, said after the arguments that he was not discouraged by the questions posed by the judges. He said he would welcome a national law protecting airline customers. 

"I'm hopeful the judges will preserve the law," he said.


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## hkskyline

*After action on flight delays, some improvement at NYC's Kennedy *
6 March 2008

NEW YORK (AP) - A year's worth of hand-wringing about flight delays may be paying off at one of the nation's most congested airports. 

John F. Kennedy International Airport saw some mild improvements in its chronically awful on-time record over the autumn and winter holiday seasons. About 73 percent of all arrivals and departures were on time in the period between Nov. 1 and Jan. 31, compared to 67 percent during the same period a year earlier. 

While the gains weren't earth-shattering, they were enough that in January JFK found itself off the list of the 50 most delayed airports in the country, among hubs with at least 1,000 departures per day. The Queens airport spent most of last year near the top of the most-delayed list. 

JFK's better showing came amid an intensive effort to tackle the city's air congestion problem, which has been blamed for causing delays nationwide. 

Around Thanksgiving, the U.S. Department of Transportation began a series of initiatives that included tinkering with takeoff routes and taxi patterns and allowing commercial aircraft to avoid traffic by using military airspace. 

An aviation task force identified scores of steps that could be taken to boost efficiency at JFK, LaGuardia and Newark (N.J.) Liberty International airports. In December, the Federal Aviation Administration also began its first tentative steps at implementing a major overhaul of the region's airspace. 

Aviation officials aren't yet sure if those efforts helped the problem, and it's possible that better weather may explain some of the improvements. But acting FAA Administrator Robert A. Sturgell said Thursday the agency is seeing some positive signs. 

"Even with those limited changes, our initial data is promising," Sturgell said. 

Aviation authorities aren't through attacking the delay problem in New York. 

Starting March 15, the Department of Transportation will begin restricting the number of flights at JFK in an attempt to reduce congestion. No more than 83 flight operations will be allowed per hour, down from as many as 100 last year. 

The rule has led to fewer flights being scheduled at peak hours, when delays were worst, and more during the middle of the day. 

Similar caps are expected to be announced soon for Newark Liberty International Airport. 

"The caps will decrease delays," Sturgell said. He added that the FAA is also accelerating plans to install new equipment at JFK that should allow airlines and controllers to direct planes more efficiently while they are still on the ground. 

The FAA's attempts to tackle the flight delay problem haven't been greeted with universal warmth. 

Politicians representing communities beneath some of the new flight paths have raised complaints about engine noise, and the union representing air traffic controllers has questioned whether the rush to implement the changes has led to safety compromises. 

The changes have yet to produce gains at either LaGuardia and Newark Liberty, which continued to rank among the country's most delay-prone this winter. Philadelphia International Airport, which has also been the subject of a delay-reduction effort, saw a small improvement. 

It is possible that the gains at JFK were mostly due to better weather this winter. 

Last summer, flights in and out of New York were repeatedly hampered by thunderstorms. Last winter was just as bad. A Valentine's Day ice storm last year overwhelmed Kennedy's busiest domestic carrier, JetBlue, and stranded planes on the tarmac for as long as 10 1/2 hours. Flights were disrupted for days. 

"We haven't seen the kind of severe, systematic weather in the Northeast that hit the region last year," said Delta Air Lines spokeswoman Betsy Talton. 

JetBlue spokesman Bryan Baldwin said the airline believes, however, that it is seeing benefits of new operating procedures put in place last year. 

"Our delay reduction initiatives are definitely showing up in improved operational numbers," Baldwin said. 

He predicted more improvements once JFK's flight caps take effect. The changes will mean the airline will be operating near to a full schedule as late as 10:30 p.m., rather than trying to jam all of its takeoffs into the early evening rush hour.


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## hkskyline

*US opens air lanes to Thanksgiving traffic *
18 November 2008
Agence France Presse

US President George W. Bush Tuesday opened military air lanes to commercial air traffic ahead of the next week's busy holiday season and announced new consumer protections for air travelers.

"This year we are going to expand what we call the Thanksgiving express lanes in the areas of the Midwest, the Southwest and the West Coast, including the skies over Phoenix and Los Angeles," he said.

Noting that congested holiday travel can be especially difficult, Bush said officials were working with agencies and airlines "to make more staff available to speed check-in and boarding, and to help passengers affected by cancellations and delays."

The president also announced increased compensation for lost bags and "tougher penalties when airlines fail to notify travelers of hidden fees."

"These efforts represent our commitment to making this year's holiday travel season as smooth as possible," he said.


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## hoosier

If we want to reduce congestion in the skies over America's biggest cities, we must fund the full scale implementation of GPS navigation and flight control technology and rid ourselves of the dinosaur radar technology that airplanes and air traffic controllers currently use.

Second, building HSR from the major air hubs to smaller markets would reduce congestion in the skies. And building HSR between the major markets would do the same as well.


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## hkskyline

*EU begins developing new air traffic system *
8 December 2008

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Union launched a program Monday to develop a new air traffic management system to help cope with an increasing number of flights over Europe.

Europe's air space has reached its limit with 28,000 flights a day, but that number is nevertheless expected to double by 2020, according to the Eurocontrol air traffic management agency.

The EU is developing the euro2.1 billion ($2.7 billion) "SESAR" system using satellite navigation and data links that would transmit digital messages directly to cockpit displays.

The new system is expected to be up and running by 2020, replacing the radar and radio-based system that dates back to World War II. The current system forces planes to take longer, zigzagging routes that cost airlines about euro4 billion ($5 billion) annually in wasted fuel.

The EU said the new system should make flights safer, shorter and less polluting by helping air traffic controllers direct planes more efficiently.

In addition, the EU hopes the new system will enable a tripling of capacity, cut air traffic management costs by 50 percent, curb greenhouse gas emissions and achieve an overall punctuality rate of 95 percent, officials said.

"This is one of the most complex research and development programs ever launched in (Europe)," said Antonio Tajani, vice president of the European Commission, the EU head office. Its impact will include fewer delays and increased airport capacity, he added.

The new program will enable so-called "continuous-descent approaches" to the runway -- effectively coasting down from cruising altitudes with the throttle on idle -- thus decreasing fuel consumption and minimizing CO2 emissions.

"Compared with today's way of managing aircraft, SESAR represents a paradigm shift," said Eurocontrol's director general David McMillan. "We will change the way we manage air traffic -- no more skyways, just the most efficient trajectory to save fuel and time."

The planned system will be similar to the new NextGen network being set up in the United States by the Federal Aviation Administration. NextGen also aims to replace the obsolete method of air traffic management where jetliners move in single-file lines along narrow highways in the sky marked by radio beacons.

The European project, like NextGen, has been planned for years but faced repeated delays due to funding shortages and the complexities of the switch-over to the new technology.


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## hkskyline

*Carrier has best on-time percentage since 2005 *
11 December 2008

PHOENIX (AP) - US Airways posted an on-time percentage of 87.5 percent in October, its best since the 2005 merger with America West Airlines.

The percentage put Tempe-based US Airways third among the nation's 10 major airlines, behind Northwest at 90 percent and Southwest at 89.6 percent, according to the Department of Transportation's monthly Air Travel Consumer Report released Wednesday.

A flight is considered on time if it arrives within 14 minutes of schedule.

US Airways' 34,000 employees are paid $50 each month the airline ranks in the top three among its peers in on-time arrivals, baggage handling or fewest customer complaints.

In October, the airline ranked 6th of 10 in baggage handling and had the most customer complaints of all carriers in the report.

Company executives have pinned the blame on the airline's poor recovery from bad weather and other factors that force flight cancellations and long delays and frustrate customers.


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## hkskyline

*UAL offers bonuses for top on-time performance *
19 December 2008

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - United Airlines, which struggled in on-time rankings over the summer, said it would offer rank-and-file workers up to $1,200 bonuses in 2009 for top-rated performance.

Of the six big hub-and-spoke carriers, UAL Corp.'s United was last or second-to-last in on-time rankings in July, August, and September. It improved to third place in October, when 86.3 percent of its flights met the government's definition of on-time. Government numbers for November aren't out yet, but United said its on-time performance for the month was 85 percent, an improvement of 9 percentage points from November 2007.

United said the new payments are designed to strengthen the connection between pay and performance on goals like on-time arrivals.

On Friday, United said it would pay its workers an extra $100 in each month it ranks first for on-time performance among its competitors. They'll get $65 in each month where the airline is in second place or meets an internal goal.

United Teamsters, Machinists, and flight attendants have all approved the program. Pilots are set to discuss it at their next Master Executive Council meeting in January.

The program is aimed at U.S. union workers. United said its salaried and management workers, as well as many of its overseas workers, would get a different incentive based on financial goals.

United shares rose 8 cents to close at $11.09 on Friday.


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## hkskyline

*Flight Cuts Are Slated for New York's La Guardia *
23 December 2008
The Wall Street Journal

Washington -- The Federal Aviation Administration is reducing the number of flights at New York's La Guardia Airport in a bid to improve the airport's dismal on-time record.

Transportation Secretary Mary Peters on Monday said the FAA will reduce the number of takeoffs and landings permitted each hour to 71 from 75. The number of hourly flights at the New York area's Kennedy and Newark airports is also capped, but at higher levels.

The FAA's move to further reduce capacity at La Guardia is an acknowledgement that little can be done over the near term to cut into the airport's chronic delay problem other than limiting the amount of traffic it can handle. In 2007 and so far in 2008, La Guardia ranks last among the 32 largest U.S. airports in on-time arrival performance, with only 61% of flights arriving on time, Ms. Peters said. Reducing the number of flights to 71 from 75 will reduce delays by as much as 41%, she said, saving up to $178 million in delay-related costs each year.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates La Guardia as well as Kennedy and Newark, criticized the move.

"Our position on this issue has not changed: Reducing capacity, especially in the current economic climate, is the wrong way to go. Instead, the FAA should focus on replacing its 1950s-era air-traffic-control system to provide travelers with the relief they need," the Port Authority said in a statement.

The administration has tried other steps to reduce congestion in New York, including opening a new westbound departure route out of the area. Another Bush administration idea -- taking some takeoff and landing rights from airlines serving New York and auctioning them to the highest bidder -- has been blocked by a federal court. The new La Guardia restrictions will be open to comment for 10 days. They are scheduled to take effect in April and last until October.


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## hkskyline

*Airlines ask US to withdraw NY airport slot sales *

WASHINGTON, Jan 23 (Reuters) - U.S. airlines have asked the Obama administration to withdraw a government plan for boosting competition and reducing congestion by auctioning takeoff and landing rights at New York-area airports.

The chief lobbying group for the major carriers asked Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood to swiftly rescind last year's Bush administration initiative.

"As you noted at your confirmation hearing, auctioning slots does not make sense as a tool to address congestion," James May, chief executive of the Air Transport Association, said in a letter to LaHood dated Jan. 22.

May urged LaHood to act before further litigation on the matter. Airlines sued to block the auctions on grounds the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lacked the authority to carry them out.

A U.S. appeals court stayed the auction plan last month pending further court review.

The Bush administration had sought to sell up to 10 percent of rights for takeoffs and landings at LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy airports in New York, and Newark in New Jersey, as a way to streamline operations and facilitate new service.

LaGuardia, Newark and JFK, all popular with business travelers, are among the worst airports in the United States for delays and congestion. Airlines tend to pack their schedules and run many flights with feeder aircraft, especially at LaGuardia.

The tie-ups add millions of dollars annually in industry operating costs, and tend to ripple across the country and affect flights in other cities.

US Airways Group , Delta Air Lines , Continental Airlines Inc , American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp , and United Airlines, a unit of UAL Corp , all have hubs or other operations at one or more of the three airports.


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## hkskyline

*A look at US airlines' on-time performance in February *
By The Associated Press 
9 April 2009

The following are the rankings of 19 airlines' on-time performance in February, according to data provided by the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics:

Carrier On-Time Arrival Pct.

Hawaiian 91.20

Southwest 88.33

Pinnacle 86.79

Frontier 83.32

Delta 82.62

US Airways 82.21

American Eagle 81.98

United 81.81

SkyWest 81.75

Northwest 81.48

AirTran 81.46

American 81.29

JetBlue 81.18

ExpressJet 79.89

Mesa 79.82

Atlantic Southeast 78.96

Continental 77.68

Comair 76.58

Alaska 76.29


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## hkskyline

*Airlines' on-time performance, baggage handling improves in February, compared to year ago *
9 April 2009

ATLANTA (AP) - U.S. airlines' on-time performance and baggage handling improved in February, while cancellations declined, compared to the same month a year ago, government data released Thursday showed. Complaints to the Department of Transportation also dropped year-over-year.

Alaska Airlines, a unit of Seattle-based Alaska Air Group Inc., had the worst on-time arrival rate in February, while Hawaiian Airlines had the best on-time performance in the month.

The DOT's Bureau of Transportation Statistics said the 19 carriers reporting on-time performance recorded an overall on-time arrival rate of 82.6 percent in February, an improvement over both February 2008's 68.6 percent and the 77 percent recorded in January of this year.

In February, the carriers canceled 1.2 percent of their scheduled domestic flights, a lower rate than both the 3.6 percent cancellation rate of February 2008 and the 2.3 percent rate posted in January of this year.

The airlines overall had a mishandled baggage rate of 3.56 reports per 1,000 passengers in February, an improvement over both February 2008's rate of 6.41 reports per 1,000 passengers and the rate of 5.2 reports per 1,000 passengers posted in January of this year.

The DOT said that in February it received 576 complaints about airline service from consumers, down 38.5 percent from the 937 complaints filed in February 2008 and 34.8 percent fewer than the total of 884 complaints received in January of this year.

Alaska Airlines had the lowest on-time arrival rate in February, at 76.3 percent. The most frequently delayed flight in the month was Delta Air Lines flight 2008 from Savannah, Ga., to Atlanta, which was late 94.1 percent of the time.

Regional carrier Comair Inc., a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Delta, had the second-lowest on-time arrival rate in February, at 76.6 percent, while Houston-based Continental Airlines Inc. had the third-lowest, at 77.7 percent.

Hawaiian Airlines had the highest on-time arrival rate in February, at 91.2 percent, while Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co. had the second-highest, at 88.3 percent, and Memphis, Tenn.-based carrier Pinnacle Airlines had the third-highest, at 86.8 percent.

Among legacy carriers, Delta's on-time arrival rate was highest in February, good for fifth-best overall. For discount carriers, Southwest had the best on-time arrival rate in February.


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## hkskyline

*Summer air-travel forecast: Easier ; New York hub seen as major traffic hump *
5 May 2009
USA Today

Travelers this summer can expect recent record airline delays to ease as sharp cuts in flight schedules reduce congestion across the nation, according to federal data and aviation experts.

Airlines cut schedules by 8%-10% in September. On-time performance has improved significantly in all but one month since then, according to federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics data. The two years before September 2008 saw record-breaking flight delays.

From September to February, the most recent period available, 80% of flights arrived within 15 minutes of their scheduled time. In the same period a year earlier, 74% of flights were on time.

Even with the improvements, airlines and federal aviation managers are girding for the usual disruptions that occur when thunderstorms block normal flight routes.

Nancy Kalinowski, the Federal Aviation Administration's vice president for air-traffic operations, said the agency has opened new flight routes for spring and summer in the New York region in an attempt to stem delays during bad weather.

Despite the reductions, New York City's three congested airports could trigger delays that ripple through the aviation system -- particularly when thunderstorms hit the area.

The New York region, where Newark Liberty International, John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia airports are packed closely together, is particularly susceptible to weather complications because its clogged airways allow limited flexibility for rerouting planes, Kalinowski said.

"It's becoming more and more clear that the key constraint in the system right now is New York," said John Hansman, an aviation professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "That's where most of the problems are going to center over the summer, and there will be some bad days."

In January and February, only 59% of flights arrived on time in Newark, despite federally imposed flight reductions at the airport last year designed to reduce delays, according to federal data.

Airlines said they welcomed recent improvements, but said the government needed to speed the pace of improvements to the air- traffic system.

"We have to address the matter now," said David Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, which represents large carriers. "And we have to see improvement for the summer travel period."


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## hkskyline

*Downturn Creates Drag on Traffic at Region's Airports *
25 May 2009
The Washington Post

The recession has landed at Washington's local airports.

All three major hubs -- Dulles International, Reagan National and Baltimore-Washington International Marshall -- have reported drops in the number of passengers and fewer flights departing their runways this year as the global economic downturn leaves some business travelers and pleasure hoppers sitting at home.

The result for these local economic engines has been tight budgets, staff cuts, furloughs and the delay of certain construction projects. Dulles and National have both instituted hiring freezes while BWI has had layoffs.

"Airports all over the country are experiencing the same decline in traffic as we are locally," said Debby McElroy, executive vice president of policy and external affairs for the Airports Council International-North America, a trade association. "As all responsible businesses do when confronted with a decrease in revenues, airports are looking to cut their expense levels."

For passengers, there has been one silver lining: The number of delays has declined. Last week Nancy D. LoBue, an administrator with the Federal Aviation Administration, told Congress that the economic downturn has resulted in lower passenger demand across the country and a decline in delays, though certain heavily congested areas are not experiencing as much of a drop.

In the Washington area, airport managers said most airlines continue to serve all of the major cities they did before the slump began, though some carriers have dropped routes, scaled back the number of flights offered and, in some instances, used smaller planes.

At Dulles, the largest of the region's airports, the number of commercial passengers dropped by 10.2 percent in March, the most recent month for which data are available, compared with a year ago.

"March was not a particularly robust month," said Mark Treadaway, vice president of air service, planning and development at the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority.

The number of flights declined 2.44 percent for the first two months of the year compared with the same period last year, according to the most recent data kept by the Transportation Department's Bureau of Transportation Statistics, to 22,512 from 23,074.

One of the biggest carriers scaling back at Dulles is Continental Airlines. The airline cut the number of scheduled departing flights for June by 57 percent, to 157 from 365 in June 2008, according to an analysis by the consultancy Official Airline Guide.

The cut is the result of Continental's decision to serve only Newark from Dulles last year, thus eliminating its service to Cleveland and Houston, OAG's vice president of market intelligence, David Beckerman, said in an e-mail.

Low-cost carriers JetBlue and AirTran Airways also cut their scheduled flights.

Some airlines are adding flights. Northwest is increasing flights by 21.8 percent, to 285 from 234, as it adds a flight to its third-largest hub, Memphis, and increases its Detroit service, Beckerman said.

The declines began last year, and as a result, the local airports authority began to cut back on spending at Dulles. Last September the authority's board of directors voted to defer several construction projects, the largest being a new midfield concourse at Dulles.

Reagan National, the closest airport to the District, reported a drop of 8.5 percent in the number of commercial passengers in March.

Flights declined 3.51 percent during the first two months of the year when compared with the same period last year, to 20,954 from 21,716, according to the government, while U.S. Airways, Reagan National's largest carrier, is cutting its scheduled flights for June by 4.6 percent, to 5,295 from 5,551, according to OAG.

BWI logged a 7.5 decline in passengers in March.

"That is pretty grim," said Timothy L. Campbell, executive director of the Maryland Aviation Administration. "Revenues are down this year and probably will continue to be down for the rest of this year until we get to see a turnaround in passenger numbers."

The number of flights declined by 8.8 percent during the first two months of the year, to 16,659 from 18,266.

Midwest Airlines, facing competition from AirTran and Southwest, dropped service out of BWI. American Airlines and the leisure carrier USA 3000 Airlines also cut scheduled flights.

BWI's largest carrier, Southwest, cut its scheduled flights for June by 4.5 percent, to 4,668 from 4,890, but that airline has said it will increase service to Boston and New York.

To deal with the drops, Campbell said that BWI has cut or frozen 16 positions this year and that his employees have also taken furloughs, or unpaid days off. The airport has also delayed replacing some fire trucks, as well as upgrades to its terminals and its parking ticket system.

"We have reduced travel to just the bare minimum. Our marketing budget has taken pretty severe cuts this year," he said. "We just don't see a lot of uptick in passenger activity until 2010."


----------



## Go Ahead Eagles

*Stranded China Eastern Airlines passengers finally depart for Shanghai*

More than 70 China Eastern Airlines passengers stranded in Los Angeles since the weekend because of mechanical problems with their plane finally departed for Shanghai Tuesday night.

The Airbus A340 took off at 11 p.m. and is scheduled to land in China in about two hours, according to an airline spokesman. The plane was originally scheduled to take off at 1:30 p.m. Sunday but was grounded after problems with its landing gear were discovered. 

Many of the initial 282 Shanghai-bound passengers took direct flights to Beijing on Monday and Tuesday, while others canceled their trip.

After mechanical problems were discovered on the plane Sunday, passengers remained onboard for about four hours while crews tried to fix the landing gear. The passengers were eventually told to disembark.

Crews worked through the night to fix the plane. Passengers returned Monday, but the same problems arose when the plane began to taxi, according to officials with China Eastern Airlines in Los Angeles.

Some of the passengers on Monday staged a mini sit-in at the ticket counter after they were told to disembark for a second time. Airport police were called, but there were no arrests.

The stranded passengers were put up in a hotel and given meals by the airline, but there were complications in giving full refunds because many of the tickets were sold through agents who added their own markups, according to officials with the airline. 

Passengers had the option of getting a refund on a one-way fare, buying their own tickets to China on another airline or waiting until the problem was resolved.


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## hkskyline

Ah ... another sit-in for a mainland airline ... seems more and more common nowadays.


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## hkskyline

*US court refuses to block new jet routes around NY, Philadelphia; residents worry about noise* 
12 June 2009

NEW YORK (AP) - A plan to modernize jet routes in the country's most congested airspace has cleared a key legal hurdle.

A federal appeals court in Washington this week rejected several lawsuits challenging the Federal Aviation Administration's plan to alter the paths airliners use as they fly in and out of major airports in Philadelphia, New York and Newark, N.J.

The changes are designed to help reduce flight delays throughout the Northeast, but residents in several states worry the new routes will expose them to more aircraft noise. They had asked the court to block the plan.

A three-judge panel said in a decision filed Wednesday that the FAA had followed proper procedures for making the changes. The court did not weigh in on whether the project would either help with congestion, as the FAA claims, or result in unacceptable noise.

The New Jersey Coalition Against Aircraft Noise called the ruling "highly biased."

Some airspace redesign opponents, including Connecticut's attorney general, have vowed to appeal. Other plaintiffs in the lawsuits include more than a dozen cities, towns or counties in northern New Jersey, western Connecticut, southern New York and southeastern Pennsylvania.

The FAA maintains that the new routes, drawn across a 31,000-square-mile area, are sorely needed. Many of those air highways were laid out in the 1960s and airlines have been asking for upgrades for many years. In recent years, nearly three quarters of all flight delays nationally have been caused by backups in New York and Philadelphia.

Some changes called for in the program have already been implemented.


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## hkskyline

*United Air says O'Hare computer outage addressed*

ATLANTA, July 2 (Reuters) - United Airlines said on Thursday that a computer outage that had caused flight delays with its operations at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport was being resolved, but advised travelers to continue to check the status of flights on its Website.

"United's check-in systems have been addressed and the number of flights arriving and departing O'Hare is improving," United spokeswoman Jean Medina said in a statement.

"While we continue to expect some delays, we expect to resume scheduled operations this afternoon," she added.

Earlier on Thursday, local media had reported that long lines of passengers were stretched from inside United's terminal to the sidewalk outside O'Hare after a computer problem resulted in flight delays and some cancellations ahead of the busy July Fourth holiday.

The carrier, a unit of UAL Corp, said customers could take advantage of United's travel waiver, which would allow changes without some penalties, if they wanted to change their travel plans.

"We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience this morning and recommend they continue to use united.com to check flight status and check-in," Medina added.


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## hkskyline

*Airlines' on-time arrivals improve 
80.5% of flights landed on schedule in May *
10 July 2009
USA Today

U.S. airlines are doing a better job this year of getting passengers to their destinations on schedule.

The Transportation Department reported Thursday that 80.5% of the flights operated by the nation's 19 largest airlines arrived on time in May, compared with 79.1% of the time in April and 79% in May 2008.

The airlines improved their on-time arrival performance every month this year except March and did better than in the first five months of last year, the department's Bureau of Transportation Statistics reported.

Helping drive the improvement: a reduced number of flights, which eases airport congestion. Airlines are making fewer seats available because fewer people are traveling during the recession.

Despite the improvement, there's no guarantee fliers are getting to their destinations any faster.

Aviation consultant Michael Baiada says airlines have lengthened the estimated flight time published on their schedules. That makes it easier for the airlines to report being on time, though it takes longer to travel than in the past, he says.

Also, flights are considered on time if they arrive within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival. Baiada estimates that if that time is counted, then the airlines' on-time arrival rates would drop by 12 to 15 percentage points.

It's "an industry that delivers 40% of its products late," he says.

Comair, a regional carrier owned by Delta, posted the worst arrival rate in May, being on time 65.7% of the time. Atlantic Southeast Airlines, a Delta connection carrier, followed with 70.8%. Among major carriers, AirTran (75.6%) had the worst rate. Alaska posted the best on-time rate among major carriers, with 85.7%.

Also reported:

*Tarmac delays. In May, 25 flights waited three hours or more in taxi lanes before departing. Mesa, American Eagle, Southwest and JetBlue each reported a flight that had a ground delay of four hours or more. Two of them occurred at the congested New York JFK airport.

*Mishandled baggage. The airlines posted a rate of mishandled baggage of 3.56 per 1,000 passengers in May. That was an improvement over both the May 2008 rate of 4.6 and April's 3.79 rate.

*Customer complaints. The department received 656 complaints from consumers about service in April. That's down from 885 in May 2008 and 781 in April.

*Cancellation. The carriers canceled slightly less than 1% of their scheduled domestic flights in May. That's lower than the 1% in May 2008 and 1.5% posted in April.


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## hkskyline

*Can anyone here fix this plane? Passenger repairs aircraft fault *
7 July 2009
The Guardian

Scottish holidaymakers were spared an eight-hour delay on their flight after a passenger fixed a mechanical problem on their plane, it was revealed yesterday.

The Boeing 757-200 was on the runway on the Spanish island of Menorca on Saturday when the captain announced that there was a "technical problem".

Passengers on board Thomas Cook flight TXC9641 were told to expect an eight-hour wait while an engineer was flown from Manchester. One Scottish passenger then identified himself as a qualified aircraft engineer and offered to try to remedy the fault.

After a few minutes it was announced the Scot had been successful and the plane could take off. The plane landed at Glasgow only 35 minutes late.

Grateful fellow passengers told how they greeted the man back on board with "rapturous applause".

Keith Lomax, 62, who was on the plane with his wife, said yesterday the man had "worked a miracle".

Lomax, from Stirling, said: "We were due to leave Menorca at about 10.40am and everything was going great.

"We were told the delay could be six to eight hours. But a man from further forward in the plane put his hand up and told cabin crew he thought he could fix it.

"They did some checks and within about 40 minutes he'd managed to fix the fault and we were told we could leave.

"When he got back on, there was a great big round of applause.

"I hope he was well looked after on the way home and that they've offered him a really good holiday in return for his handywork."

A Thomas Cook spokeswoman said strict procedures were followed to ensure the man was qualified to fix the aircraft.

She said: " We are very grateful that he was on the flight that day."


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## hkskyline

*Airport suffers on-time drop *
10 July 2009
The Atlanta Journal - Constitution

Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport's on-time performance declined in May, when storms contributed to delays. The airport fell to 26th among the nation's major airports, down from No. 6 just a year earlier.

About 69.8 percent of flights arrived on time at Hartsfield-Jackson in May, down from 84.32 percent in the same month of 2008.

Among airlines, Atlanta-based Delta ranked No. 14 for on-time performance, with 77.4 percent of flights arriving on time in May. At the bottom of the rankings were Delta regional subsidiary Comair at No. 19; Atlanta-based Atlantic Southeast Airlines, a Delta partner, at No. 18; and AirTran Airways, which has its largest hub in Atlanta, at No. 17. Delta's merger partner Northwest Airlines took the No. 7 spot.

Comair also had the two most frequently delayed flights in the nation in May: a flight from New York's John F. Kennedy International to Minneapolis-St. Paul (late 96.8 percent of the time) and a flight from Kansas City to New York LaGuardia (late 92 percent of the time). An Atlantic Southeast Airlines flight from Baton Rouge to Atlanta was late 88.5 percent of the time.

Comair also had the highest rate of chronically-delayed flights, with 6.5 percent of its flights running late at least 70 percent of the time. The list of the longest tarmac delays included a Delta flight from New York JFK to Cincinnati, delayed on the tarmac for nearly five hours.

The report also showed AirTran had the best baggage handling performance among airlines ranked. Delta performed worst in the complaints category.


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## hkskyline

*Japan Airlines flight aborted for a second time in Mexico *
8 July 2009
Agence France Presse

A Japan Airlines plane bound for Tokyo on Wednesday failed a second time to take off from Mexico City's airport after experiencing problems in one of its engines, the airline said.

"Yesterday and today we could not leave because of a problem with the engine. We're going to bring another plane tomorrow" so passengers can complete their journey to Tokyo, Yasushi Kimura, manager of Japan Airlines in Mexico, told AFP.

The Boeing 747-400 attempted its first take off on Tuesday, while carrying 322 passengers and 15 crew.

"It had just begun moving along the runways when the takeoff was aborted by mechanical failure in one of the plane's two engines," an airline source told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The plane was inspected and then set for a Wednesday takeoff, carrying one less passenger, but the pilot identified the same problem again before the aircraft even got to the runway, the source said.


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## hkskyline

*Flights briefly delayed at NYC airport after 78 turtles emerge from bay, crawl onto runway*
8 July 2009

NEW YORK (AP) - A runway at New York City's Kennedy Airport was shut down Wednesday morning after 78 turtles emerged from the bay and crawled onto the tarmac.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey says grounds crews rounded up the wayward reptiles in about 35 minutes and deposited them back in the water, further from airport property.

The shutdown disrupted flight schedules, though, with delays climbing to nearly 1 1/2 hours.

Pilots reported the first turtle sightings at around 8:30 a.m.

The Port Authority identified the turtles as Diamondback Terrapins. They appeared to be about 8 inches long and weigh 2 to 3 pounds each.


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## hkskyline

*Senators back limit on tarmac strandings, accelerating air traffic control modernization *
14 July 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) - Airline passengers could be stranded on tarmacs no longer than three hours under legislation introduced Tuesday in the Senate.

The protection for stranded passengers is part of larger bill that provides a blueprint for Federal Aviation Administration programs for the next two years, including an acceleration of the agency's timetable for modernizing the nation's air traffic control system.

The bill was introduced by Sens. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., chairman of the Senate's commerce committee, and Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., chairman of the aviation subcommittee.

Congress has been trying unsuccessfully for more than two years to reauthorize FAA programs and has had to pass temporary funding extensions.

The tarmac provision would require planes delayed more than three hours to return to a gate to give passengers the opportunity to get off. The proposal has been championed by passenger rights advocates but opposed by the airline industry and airports.

"A hard and fast inflexible timeframe for returning to the gate will have unintended consequences for customers, including the likelihood of more cancellations and inconvenience," said David Castelveter, a spokesman for the Air Transport Association.

"We believe that we have made great progress in reducing lengthy tarmac delays and improving service while on board as reflected in Transportation Department statistics," Castelveter said.

But passenger rights advocate Kate Hanni called the provision "extremely positive for airline passengers."

The bill would also require airlines to provide passengers with food, potable water, comfortable cabin temperature and ventilation, and adequate restrooms while a plane is delayed on the ground, Hanni said.

The nearly $35 billion bill would require the FAA to speed up its plans to switch from a radar-based air traffic control system to a system based on GPS technology. The new system is expected to increase the number of planes that can safely take off and land at airports and allow controllers to track planes in areas where there is no radar coverage.

The bill requires FAA to have the system in operation at the nation's 35 largest airports by 2014 and the rest of the country by 2018. FAA's current plan puts full modernization more than a decade off.

FAA inspections of foreign repair stations that perform maintenance on U.S. planes would be increased from once a year to twice a year under the bill. A similar provision is included in a version of the bill that passed the House in May.

A report last year by the Transportation Department's inspector general said nine big U.S. airlines are farming out aircraft maintenance at twice the rate of four years earlier and now hire outside contractors for more than 70 percent of major work. While most of the outsourced work is still done in the U.S., often at nonunion repair shops, more than one-quarter of the repairs are done overseas.

The European Commission has threatened to pull out of an aviation safety deal over the requirement. A U.S.-European Union agreement says each will have comparable safety requirements and inspection systems.

Another provision would increase funding for a program that underwrites the cost of air service to small airports in communities where there would otherwise be no commercial air service by $48 million, for a total of $175 million. That is the same size increase President Barack Obama called for in his budget proposal earlier this year.


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## hkskyline

* How a New Runway At O'Hare Makes Travel Easier for All *
23 July 2009
The Wall Street Journal

Chicago's O'Hare International Airport is no longer the tar pit of the nation's air-transportation system.

In the eight months since a new runway opened at the U.S.'s second-busiest airport, plagued for decades with lengthy flight delays, O'Hare has operated with above-average on-time arrivals -- better than Dallas, Atlanta and Denver in 2009, according to FlightStats.com. O'Hare's on-time arrival rate improved by 27% so far this year compared with the same period of 2008. That was twice the improvement of any other big U.S. airport.

The new runway, opened last Nov. 21, gets much of the credit. While airline reductions in flight schedules have eased congestion and reduced flight delays, the ability to now land three planes simultaneously in most weather conditions instead of two jets at a time has turned O'Hare from a choke point into a reliable airport.

Over the past year, the FAA has also been redesigning routes for planes departing and arriving in the Chicago area. Both O'Hare and Chicago Midway Airport used to share just three departure routes for southbound jets; now each airport has five different departure routes of their own.

Because of the enormous cost and heated legal battles with neighbors and environmentalists, building runways at big airports is a rarity -- and a major reason air travel has been bogged down in the past 10 years. Last fall, three major runways opened with much fanfare on the same day in Chicago, Seattle and Washington, D.C. Seattle's new runway took two decades of planning, approval, court fights and construction. O'Hare's new runway was the first at that airport in 37 years.

And yet the changes at O'Hare show just how important new concrete is to improving air travel. Reducing delays at a major hub helps unclog air travel nationwide. "Any improvement we can get at O'Hare has impact all over the country," says Christina Drouet, manager of the FAA's Chicago-area modernization program office.

Passengers have detected a difference. Tim Snyder, a Chicago-based sales and consulting executive for a software company, began noticing that his flights in and out of Chicago were more frequently on time, and arrivals frequently used the new runway. He started keeping track and had a streak of 26 consecutive on-time flights before bad weather in Chicago delayed his flight for two hours. But the streak resumed, and now he's been on time for 36 of his past 37 flights.

"Those are tax dollars I like to spend," says Mr. Snyder.

The new runway is on the north end of the airport, so far from the rest of the airport that a new control tower had to be built with it. The runway and tower cost $457 million and took about three years to construct, including demolition of property on 126 acres of land in Des Plaines, Ill., the airport acquired. A creek was rerouted and terrain raised for the expansion.

It's the first phase of a major modernization program at O'Hare; more runways are planned. By 2014, if the project stays on schedule, the airport will have six parallel east-west runways, up from three today. (O'Hare has a total of seven runways, some of which are used primarily for takeoffs and others are used mostly when winds shift directions.) Dallas-Fort Worth and Atlanta, two of the nation's three biggest airports, already have five parallel runways each.

Chicago Airport System Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino says the new runway reduced O'Hare's average delay to 16 minutes from 24, and when the entire modernization program is completed, "it will take the delay factor down to six minutes."

The FAA says O'Hare's maximum capacity before the new runway was 96 arrivals per hour in good weather; that's now up to 112 per hour with the new runway. Within a month of opening the new runway, "they were consistently hitting that," says Joseph Kolshak, senior vice president of operations at UAL Corp.'s United Airlines. "We saw improvement right away in our operation."

In bad weather, controllers dropped the arrival rate into the mid-70s per hour, according to the FAA's Ms. Drouet. But now even in bad weather about 85 planes are landing per hour.

That's where the big impact is felt -- when low clouds, rain or snow reduce visibility and force airlines to hold planes on the ground all across the country because of a slowdown at O'Hare.

According to the FAA, 30,000 flights at O'Hare were delayed because of weather in the first five months of 2008. This year through May, only 8,800 weather-delayed flights were recorded "and we had a crazy winter this year with all kinds of snow," says Ms. Drouet.

One example: During snowstorms, O'Hare often would shut off landings on one of two arrival runways while trucks plowed snow. With the new runway, landings can continue on two runways constantly while plows do their work.

"I was skeptical, but a combination of factors have really improved things in Chicago," says Robert Cordes, vice president of operations planning at AMR Corp.'s American Airlines.

Mr. Cordes believes flight-schedule reductions due to the recession have been the biggest factor reducing delays, but says the new runway has helped, too. O'Hare went from being scheduled to 100.8% of its capacity at the beginning of 2008 to now being scheduled to 80% -- the combination of fewer flights and higher capacity.

New York airports, by comparison, have seen only slight schedule reductions. Newark Liberty International Airport is currently scheduled to 99% of its capacity, he says. New York's La Guardia Airport is scheduled to 97% of capacity and Kennedy International Airport is at 89% of capacity.

"Eighty percent is the sweet spot. Get above that and things worsen," Mr. Cordes says.

At Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, delays typically stacked up in the frequent fog and rain because the two existing runways were too close together to have planes landing side-by-side in poor visibility. So the airport wanted a third runway far enough from the existing runways so planes could land two at a time in any weather.

The project took more than 20 years and cost more than $1 billion. Heavy construction started in 2004. One mile of public road had to be relocated, office buildings and warehouses were torn down, a creek had to be rerouted and 14 million cubic yards of fill had to be brought in from 25 different sources to build up the embankment of the hill where the airport sits. Six massive retaining walls were constructed to hold it all together. One rises 130 feet high and extends 20 feet below ground and is said to be the largest retaining wall in the Western Hemisphere.

"This is a serious engineering feat," says Scott Kyles, a project manager at Sea-Tac.

Once opened, Sea-Tac promptly closed its oldest runway for repaving -- something it had put off for many years to avoid massive flight disruptions. Then the middle runway will be rebuilt and the airport will finally expand capacity.

"We couldn't survive long-term with just two runways," said Mark Reis, Sea-Tac's managing director.


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## hkskyline

*Narita airport to alter taxiway to relieve flight congestion *
26 July 2009
Kyodo News

NARITA, Japan, July 26 -- The operator of Narita airport, an international gateway to Tokyo, is preparing work to alter an L-shaped section of a taxiway that have caused flights to back up, airport sources said Sunday.

Although a curved taxiway is rare for an international airport, Narita's second runway has one with two curves and another that is almost M-shaped as they have to circumvent plots of land owned by long-standing opponents of the airport's construction.

The curves have not only provided a headache for pilots and air traffic controllers but have restricted traffic on the B runway to 14 takeoffs and landings per hour, less than half of the main A runway's 32.

In a historic move since the airport opened in 1978, Narita International Airport Corp. has acquired about 85 square meters of land that has prevented the curved taxiway from being altered, the sources said.

In January last year, the Supreme Court ordered opponents, who have campaigned against the airport for 40 years, to abandon land they owned, clearing the way for the airport operator to purchase the land.

Improving the taxiway has become a pressing task as the operator has rescheduled the opening of the B runway's extended section to Oct. 22, five months ahead of the previous plan.

Under International Civil Aviation Organization regulations, emergency evacuation areas for departing and arriving planes are set up along runways but the curved taxiway arches out into this area of the B runway, forcing taxiing planes to wait and causing planes to back up when takeoffs or landings are under way.

The planned improvement work will move the taxiway far enough from the runway so that planes will no longer be forced to wait, according to the sources.

Taxiways linking passenger terminals and aircraft parking aprons to are normally about 20 to 30 meters wide.

Curved taxiways at Narita are notorious for requiring pilots to be more careful than at other airports when maneuvering, airport officials say.

When an airplane is backed up, it wastes fuel as engines are repeatedly halted and restarted as it progresses.

In October, the B runway will extend to 2,500 meters long, as required for landings by wide-body aircraft, compared with the current 2,180 meters. The longer runway will clear the way for an increase in the annual number of landings and takeoffs at Narita to around 220,000 from 200,000 at present when the flight schedule is updated next March.


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## hkskyline

*Bumped from your flight? You've got rights *
29 July 2009

DALLAS (AP) - Airlines are operating fewer flights this summer, meaning that planes are packed even with the slump in travel.

Often the airlines sell more tickets than there are seats on the plane. Last year, more than 63,000 passengers were bumped, according to government figures, and this year is shaping up as more of the same.

So what should you do if you get bumped? What if your flight is delayed so long that you miss your niece's wedding?

Before bargaining with the gate agent over travel vouchers and upgrades, it pays to know your rights and the airline's responsibilities.

The federal government sets rules on bumping and occasionally fines airlines for breaking them. This month, the Transportation Department fined Delta Air Lines $375,000, although it may waive about half if Delta improves its procedures for handling oversold flights.

Airlines must ask for volunteers first, and pay passengers who are bumped against their will.

If you are bumped from a domestic flight, the airline must pay you the price of a one-way ticket up to $400 cash if you are rescheduled to reach your destination between one and two hours of the original arrival time. The maximum doubles to $800 if it takes longer.

Some passengers with time to kill don't mind getting bumped. They hope to get cash, travel vouchers or an upgrade to first-class in exchange for taking a slightly later flight.

Chris McGinnis, a travel consultant in San Francisco, says the best flights to haggle over are late-afternoon or evening ones popular with business travelers who can't afford to be stranded overnight. Airlines are likely to offer more for passengers who give up a seat on a New York-Chicago run than on a flight full of vacationers from Atlanta to Orlando, he says.

Gate agents may put out a sign or simply tell passengers that they're looking for volunteers to skip the flight. McGinnis says it's often best to ignore their first offer and wait until departure time nears.

"The bidding gets stronger," he says. "That's when it goes from $100 off your next flight to maybe $300 and a business-class seat on the next flight out."

Experts warn about accepting travel vouchers. They might be hard to redeem, especially at peak travel periods. Make sure you understand any limitations.

Travelers are often baffled why airlines can sell more tickets than they have seats. Airlines oversell flights because some passengers buy costly fully refundable tickets on more than one flight and then only use one. Other flights are overbooked because the airline had to substitute a smaller plane with fewer seats.

While there are federal rules on bumping, there is no sweeping requirement for airlines to provide hotel rooms and meals for passengers who are stranded overnight, even if it's the carrier's fault, according to the Transportation Department. But you can haggle.

"It's up to the discretion of the carrier and the (gate) agent," says George Hobica, who operates airfarewatchdog.com. "Some airlines will do their best if you ask nicely and you ask privately you'll do better than if you make a scene." He says when a long delay appears obvious, you should ask to be rebooked on another airline.

Charlotte, N.C., real estate broker Mathew Bessette says Delta put him up in a hotel after his flight home from New York was canceled and a second flight spent four hours on the tarmac. He says he gained bargaining power by knowing the cause of the problem with his first flight no flight attendants.

"If their plane breaks down or their crew doesn't show up, that's their problem and it's their responsibility to accommodate you within reason," he says.

Veteran travelers say if a long delay will cause you to miss the reason for your trip a wedding or business meeting, for example ask for a refund. However, there is no law requiring the airline to give you a refund.

Airlines and passenger-rights groups are fighting over how the carriers handle long delays, and Congress may settle the issue. This month, a Senate committee passed a bill that would require airlines to let passengers off planes that are stuck on the tarmac for three hours.

The airlines say such a law would make things worse by forcing planes that might be near the front of the takeoff line to taxi back to the gate, then go to the back of the pack. More flights would be canceled, says David Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, a Washington trade group for the largest U.S. carriers. Consumer groups aren't buying it.

"No one believes that the airlines will fix the problem themselves," says Kate Hanni, a California real estate agent who created a passenger-rights group after being stranded on a grounded American Airlines jet for more than eight hours in December 2006. "They haven't yet."

Since airline travel is often stressful, and summer always brings many delays, experts advise you have a Plan B. Know what flights are available if yours is canceled. If your flight is pushed back or scrubbed, hop on your laptop or phone to see if you can rebook.

"Prepare for the worst," says Hobica, the travel expert. "Bring a good book."


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## hkskyline

*DOT says more flights arrived late in June than in preceding months; weather a factor *
4 August 2009

NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. airlines in June turned in their worst on-time performance since December, the Department of Transportation said Tuesday.

The airlines had a combined on-time arrival rate of 76.1 percent compared with 80.5 percent in May. But the carriers had fewer delayed flights this June than in the same month a year ago. The on-time rate in December was 65.3 percent.

The most frequent reasons for flight delays included airport congestion, equipment problems and weather.

June was a bad month for severe weather across the nation. The National Weather Service recorded more than 6,400 incidents involving hail and high winds, almost twice the number reported in May.

Hawaiian Airlines had the best on-time performance in June, while Comair -- a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines Inc. -- had the worst.

Among legacy carriers, Houston-based Continental Airlines Inc. reported the fewest delays, and Fort Worth-based American Airlines posted the worst on-time performance.

Legacy carriers are those airlines that had a large presence in a number of regions before the industry was deregulated in 1978.

19 Airlines report monthly on-time data and the causes of delays and cancellations for nonstop flights to the Department of Transportation in broad categories -- such as "Extreme Weather" and "National Aviation System Delay" -- that were created by the airlines, industry groups, travel agents and government officials.

Delays had eased in recent months as carriers reduced flights and flew smaller planes because of fewer passengers.

A flight is considered on-time if it arrives within 15 minutes of the scheduled arrival time shown in the carriers' computerized reservations systems. Canceled and diverted flights are counted as late.

Reports of mishandled baggage fell 20 percent in June from a year ago, DOT said, but there were more complaints in June than in May. AirTran had the fewest complaints, while Fort Worth-based American Eagle Airlines -- a regional affiliate of American Airlines -- had the most.

DOT said overall complaints were also down from a year ago. Passengers complained most about cancellations, delays and missed connections.


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## hkskyline

*A look at airlines' on-time performance as reported by the DOT *
By The Associated Press 
4 August 2009

The following lists 19 airlines' on-time performance in June and overall on-time performance since the beginning of the year, according to data from the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

Carrier On-Time Arrival Pct.

Hawaiian Airlines 93.3

Alaska Airlines 84.5

ExpressJet Airlines 82.0

Pinnacle Airlines 80.7

Continental Airlines 80.5

SkyWest Airlines 80.4

Southwest Airlines 78.1

US Airways 78.0

Delta Airlines 76.1

AirTran Airways 75.3

Northwest Airlines 75.3

American Eagle 74.4

Mesa Airline 74.2

Atlantic Southeast Airlines 73.2

United Airlines 72.6

JetBlue Airways 71.2

American Airlines 69.2

Frontier Airlines 68.0

Comair 59.8

All Airlines

Monthly On-Time Arrival Pct.

June 76.1

May 80.5

April 79.1

March 78.4

February 82.6

January 77.0


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## hkskyline

*Analysis: Will latest airline passenger stranding clear government reforms for take off?*
14 August 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) - When Washington learned 47 people were stuck overnight aboard a small plane at a Minnesota airport, Capitol Hill reverberated with demands to protect the public from a recurrence, and the Obama administration launched an investigation.

But in its hunt for blame, the government isn't owning up to the fact that it had a hand in letting the mess happen, too.

Over recent years, nightmare strandings on the runway have prompted lots of political posturing, but few results.

The problem continues. From January to June this year, 613 planes were delayed on tarmacs for more than three hours, their passengers kept on board, the government says.

None created the stir that Continental Express Flight 2816 from Houston did after it was diverted Friday night to an airport in Rochester, Minn. Passengers were forced to sit for more than six hours in a cramped plane with crying babies and a stinking toilet, even though the plane stood only 50 yards from a terminal.

"It strikes me as very dysfunctional that neither the Department of Transportation nor the Congress has seen fit to bring some meaningful guidelines to this area," said Ken Mead, a former Transportation Department inspector general. "I have to ask myself, what does it take?"

Congress and the Clinton administration tried to do something after a January 1999 blizzard kept Northwest Airlines planes on the ground in Detroit, trapping passengers for seven hours. Some new regulations were put in place but most proposals died, including one that airlines pay passengers who are kept waiting on a runway for more than two hours.

Later episodes left the status quo in place, despite attempts by some in government to find a remedy.

In December 2006, lightning storms and a tornado warning shut the Dallas-Fort Worth airport, causing American Airlines to divert more than 100 flights and stranding passengers on some planes for as long as nine hours.

Two months later, snow and ice led JetBlue Airways to leave planes full of passengers sitting on the tarmac at New York's Kennedy International Airport for nearly 11 hours.

After those incidents, Transportation Department Inspector General Calvin Scovel recommended that airlines be required to set a limit on the time passengers have to wait out travel delays grounded inside an airplane.

Mary Peters, who was transportation secretary under former President George W. Bush, proposed requiring airlines to have contingency plans for stranded passengers. The idea was that if airlines include these plans in their "contract of carriage" -- the fine print on an airline ticket -- consumers can hold them responsible in court if they break their promise.

An industry-dominated panel set up by the government debated the matter for 11 months, then issued a report in November 2008 that offered only guidelines for what a model plan should look like.

Neither those guidelines nor Peters' still-pending proposed rule contain a specific limit on how long passengers can be kept waiting before being allowed to return to a gate. The airlines and Bush administration officials said each company is so different that a single time limit would cause more problems than it solves.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Peters' successor, has said he will consider the experience of Flight 2816 as he weighs what action to take on the pending rule.

After the JetBlue strandings at JFK, New York state lawmakers enacted a "passenger bill of rights" requiring airlines to provide food, water, working toilets and fresh air for passengers held on tarmacs more than three hours. The law was thrown out last year by a U.S. appeals court, which ruled that individual states cannot make laws regulating airlines. That discouraged other states from trying.

In Congress two years ago, Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., and Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, introduced a bill similar to the New York law. It attracted only 12 co-sponsors, including the junior senator from Illinois, Barack Obama. That bill, however, also lacked a specific time limit on strandings.

This year, Boxer and Snowe have reintroduced their bill and added a three-hour time limit, among other consumer protections. The bill would give airline captains the power to extend a tarmac wait by a half-hour beyond the three-hour limit if there is reason to believe takeoff clearance is likely to come soon. The captain could also keep passengers from returning to the gate if doing so is deemed unsafe.

The bill, now part of larger legislation governing the Federal Aviation Administration, is expected to be voted on by the Senate in September, with the possibility the time limit will come out of it. A House FAA bill passed in the spring has no time limit.

The airline industry, in opposing a limit on tarmac delays, argues that more flights will be canceled and passengers will spend more time in terminals trying to get on a flight to their destination than if they had continued to wait in the plane.

Kenneth Quinn, a former FAA general counsel, said there is no reason for the Transportation Department to further delay requiring airlines to put contingency plans in their contracts of carriage. He said the department has the power to fine airlines that engage in deceptive practices, which would include violating a contingency plan.

"Somebody needs to step into the void before more passengers get stranded without any recourse," said Quinn, an attorney with the Pillsbury law firm in Washington.

Passengers' rights advocates said voluntary guidelines and allowing airlines to write their own contingency plans won't work. They want a time limit.

"No one believes the airlines are going to make any effort to fix this on their own," said FlyersRights.org founder Kate Hanni, who was a passenger on one of the Dallas planes in 2006. "The only time they have made any effort is when the threat of legislation was very real."

------

EDITOR'S NOTE -- Joan Lowy covers transportation for The Associated Press.


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## hkskyline

*Sun Country to limit waits on planes to 4 hours *
24 August 2009

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Sun Country Airlines, under fire for keeping 150 passengers on the tarmac for nearly six hours, says it will start sending planes that sit on the runway for four hours back to the gate to let people off.

While passenger advocates said the move is a beginning, Kate Hanni, executive director of FlyersRights.org, said four hours is still too long. Lawmakers and several groups like hers are trying use a series of similar incidents this summer to build support for an Airline Passengers' Bill of Rights that is pending before Congress.

Sun Country's Flight 242 from New York's John F. Kennedy Airport to Twin Cities International Airport had been scheduled to take off about 11 a.m. last Friday. It started boarding at noon but then didn't take off until after 6 p.m. because of airport construction and weather delays.

Stan Gadek, chief executive of Mendota Heights-based Sun Country, called that delay unacceptable. He said Monday that the airline's new policy is modeled on the proposed legislation, which is aimed at ensuring that people aren't trapped on airplanes for long periods without adequate food, water or restrooms. It would limit such delays to three hours.

Gadek said Sun Country could live with a three-hour limit anywhere but JFK, which has chronic problems with long delays.

"Until airlines start imposing some discipline on themselves, these events are going to continue to occur," he said.

Gadek said Sun Country won't necessarily wait four hours before making a decision. A plane might head back to the gate after two hours if the flight crew determines they probably won't be able to make the four-hour deadline, he said.

Sun Country is not the first airline to set a time limit for getting people off delayed planes, though Gadek said other airlines' policies strike him as "wishy-washy." A 2007 report by the Transportation Department inspector general said eight airlines it checked had limits for departing flights that varied from two to five hours.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who sits on a Senate committee that oversees the air travel system, said she would continue to push the legislation. Friday's delay also led U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and New York State Assemblyman Michael Gianaris, D-Queens, to call Sunday for it to be passed.

Government statistics show that from January to June, 613 planes nationwide were delayed on tarmacs for more than three hours and their passengers were kept on board.

Friday's incident marked the second six-hour delay for Minnesota-bound planes in two weeks. Severe thunderstorms had forced a Continental Express flight from Houston to Minneapolis to land in Rochester, where 47 passengers were stranded on the tarmac overnight. That incident triggered a federal investigation.

Hanni expressed hope that the recent incidents will boost the chances for the passengers rights legislation.

"We need to take these discretionary decisions out of the hands of airlines and their employees," she said.

The Business Travel Coalition also said the incidents should improve prospects for the proposal. "It would appear that unstoppable momentum is building behind passenger rights legislation," the group said in a statement this weekend.

------

On the Net:

Sun Country Airlines: http://www.suncountry.com


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## hkskyline

*FAA to restructure New York air space *

WASHINGTON, Sept 2 (Reuters) - U.S. aviation regulators plan to reorganize air space over New York's Hudson River to eliminate the type of crowding that contributed to a collision of a small plane and a helicopter that killed nine people.

The Federal Aviation Administration said on Wednesday it would create altitude corridors for different aircraft to streamline traffic around Manhattan and prevent congestion.

The agency also plans to develop new training for pilots, air traffic controllers and businesses that operate helicopters and other aircraft in the area. A key change would require pilots to use specific radio frequencies for the Hudson and East rivers.

"These steps will significantly enhance safety in this busy area and create crystal clear rules for all of the pilots who operate there," FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt said in a statement.

The agency hopes to have the changes in place by mid-November.

Under current guidelines, pilots are mainly responsible for safety when flying over the river. Navigating the river can require multiple radio frequencies, a problem noted by crash investigators.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the Aug. 8 collision.


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## hkskyline

*Fliers on delayed planes get more support 
More travel groups want Congress to set time limit *
8 September 2009
USA Today

Airlines are losing another ally in their fight to stop Congress from passing a law that would allow passengers to get off planes delayed at least three hours on airport tarmacs.

The Business Travel Coalition, a group that represents about 300 corporate travel departments, is coming out today in support of such a law after having opposed congressional action.

The coalition's shift comes after it surveyed 649 corporate travel departments, travel agents and business travelers and found that more than 90% of travel departments -- and about 80% of travel agents and business travelers -- say passengers should have the option to get off flights delayed three hours or longer.

It also follows a similar shift in positions by two other business travel groups -- the National Business Travel Association and the American Society of Travel Agents. And it comes as Congress is poised this fall to vote on so-called passenger rights legislation that would force the airlines to give passengers stuck on flights options.

The survey results "reveal a striking change in thinking in the mainstream business community about the need for congressional intervention," says Kevin Mitchell, the coalition's chairman.

"Some of the largest corporations on the planet, for whom government involvement in free markets is anathema, overwhelmingly have concluded that legislation is the best choice after 10 years of shattered promises of self-policing by airlines," he says.

Airlines don't want legislation

Although rare, more than 200,000 domestic passengers have been stuck on more than 3,000 planes for three hours or more waiting to take off or taxi to a gate since January 2007, a USA TODAY analysis of U.S. Transportation Department data has found.

In June, 278 flights waited on the tarmac for at least three hours, the most recent numbers from the department's Bureau of Transportation Statistics show.

The issue has attracted greater attention after an incident last month in which 51 passengers were stuck overnight on a delayed Continental Express flight at the Rochester, Minn., airport. The incident, in which passengers complained of a smelly toilet and not having food or drink, also has drawn greater attention to the legislation.

The House and Senate must decide on final wording of any passenger-rights provisions that now are in a bill to reauthorize and fund the Federal Aviation Administration.

A Senate committee voted in July to require airlines to let people off planes delayed for more than three hours. The House earlier had passed a less specific version that requires each airline to submit to the Department of Transportation a plan to let passengers off.

The Air Transport Association, which represents major U.S. airlines, says long delays "are unacceptable," and it understands why they frustrate passengers. But, the group says, it opposes legislation that would force airlines to return planes to terminals after a set time to let off passengers.

Airlines have established "contingency plans" to deal with long tarmac delays and can handle the problems themselves without government intervention, says David Castelveter, the group's vice president.

"We continue to believe that a hard-and-fast mandatory rule for deplaning passengers will have substantial unintended consequences, leading to even more inconvenience for passengers and, ultimately, more flight cancellations," Castelveter says.

Airlines have spent a lot of money to improve service, he says, "including the use of new technology, the purchase of the most modern aircraft and facility improvement projects."

But passenger-rights groups -- and now business groups -- are saying they cannot count on the airlines to solve the delays, and Congress must step in and force the airlines to let passengers off planes.

Congress must set 'clear standard'

Kate Hanni of FlyersRights.org says three should be the maximum number of hours before a passenger is allowed off a plane, but many members of her group wonder if the limit should be one or two hours.

"Why in the USA do we even have to ask for a three-hour limit on the ground in a sealed, hot, sweaty metal tube?" she asks. "We thought this country was founded on freedom -- freedom to move, freedom to breathe, freedom to eat and drink and have hygienic toilet facilities."

The Business Travel Coalition, which for years has testified at congressional hearings in support of airlines remedying the tarmac- delay problem on their own, now agrees with FlyersRights.org. The two groups have scheduled a Sept. 22 conference in Washington to discuss the issue.

About 80% of the respondents to the coalition's survey, many of whom handle travel for Fortune 500 firms, said the airlines haven't made a compelling case against the legislation.

It was the Aug. 7 delay in Rochester, in which the passengers were held on the Continental Express jet for 5 1/2 hours, that turned the National Business Travel Association around. The association, which represents about 4,200 corporate travel departments and suppliers, had previously taken the position that the airlines should solve the problem.

In July, the American Society of Travel Agents reversed course and urged Congress to act "in the face of continuing delays and the evident lack of concrete efforts on the part of airlines to create a meaningful solution."

Paul Ruden, the society's senior vice president, was on a Transportation Department task force last year that recommended airlines establish time limits at each airport for letting passengers off planes.

But that hasn't worked, he says, and Congress now needs to set "a clear standard for the airlines to follow."


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## hkskyline

*Airlines July on-time arrival ratings improve, with Southwest tops among big carriers *
8 September 2009

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Airline passengers got to their destination on time a little more often in July.

The Transportation Department said on Tuesday that 77.6 percent of airline flights arrived on time, up from 75.7 percent during the same month last year. July's showing was also an improvement over the 76.1 percent on-time rate in June.

Airlines have generally been flying less because of the recession, and that seems to be helping them get their remaining flights to their destinations on time.

Among the largest carriers, Southwest Airlines flights were on-schedule 80.7 percent of the time, followed by US Airways at 80.6 percent and United Airlines at 79.6 percent. United's ranking was a big jump from June's on-time performance of 72.6 percent, among the worst of the big carriers.

American Airlines was last-place among major carriers, with 72.2 percent of its flights arriving on time. Delta Air Lines was a little better at 75.5 percent, and its subsidiary Northwest Airlines came in at 76.4 percent.

Airlines said the biggest cause of delays was the late arrival of the airplane to be used on the delayed flight. Other big causes included delays from airport operations and heavy traffic, as well as delays the airline could control, such as maintenance or crew. Weather was cited as a factor in less than 1 percent of all flights.

Nineteen Airlines report monthly on-time data and causes of delays to the Department of Transportation. The delays are labeled under categories such as "Extreme Weather" and "National Aviation System Delay" that were created by the airlines, industry groups, travel agents and government officials.

A flight is considered on-time if it arrives within 15 minutes of the schedule shown in the carriers' reservation systems. Canceled and diverted flights are counted as late.

Among all 19 carriers, Hawaiian Airlines topped the list, with 93.6 percent of its flights arriving on-time. Comair, a regional subsidiary of Delta, was last at 63.6 percent.

The airlines lost less luggage in July, too. The rate of lost bags dropped to 3.98 per 1,000 passengers in July, down from 4.87 in July 2008. Baggage fees became more widespread during that year, causing many travelers to cut back on the amount of luggage they haul to the airport. That has helped airlines do a better job with the remaining bags. The total number of baggage reports fell 21.4 percent to 215,276, even though the number of passengers fell only 3.8 percent.

AirTran Airways had the best performance, with 1.78 mishandled bags for every 1,000 passengers. American Eagle, the regional carrier owned by American Airlines parent AMR Corp., was in last place with 7.9 mishandled bags per 1,000 passengers.

Among the biggest carriers, US Airways had the best performance with 2.75 lost bags per 1,000 passengers, while American was at the bottom with 4.73.


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## hkskyline

*Flying just got faster with shortest plane delays for 14 years *
10 September 2009
The Scotsman

PASSENGERS at Britain's busiest airports experienced the shortest delays for 14 years this spring, with marked improvements at Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Average hold-ups for scheduled flights at Scotland's two main airports were cut by one-third to nine and ten minutes respectively in April to June compared with a year ago, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said.

A total of 84 per cent of such flights - more than four in five - arrived on time at both airports, some 10 per cent better than a year ago. "On time" is classed as within 15 minutes of schedule.

News of the improvement comes days after Network Rail reported a record 91.1 per cent of trains across Britain arrived within five minutes of scheduled times over the last year.

BAA Scotland, which runs Edinburgh and Glasgow airports, said cuts in flights caused by the recession had helped improve time-keeping by reducing congestion at airports including Heathrow.

The CAA said the improvement had coincided with a 9 per cent reduction in flights - to the lowest level for six years - and a 6 per cent cut in passengers.

Charter flight punctuality also improved at Glasgow, with average delays nearly halved to 18 minutes, and three in four planes on time compared with only just over half a year ago.

At Edinburgh, where charter flights account for a far smaller proportion of flights, punctuality slipped by 2 per cent to 70 per cent, with average delays unchanged at 19 minutes.

A BAA Scotland spokesman said: "We are pleased to see such a significant improvement in flight punctuality at Edinburgh and Glasgow airports.

"The vast majority of delays are caused by problems outwith the immediate control of our airports, such as bad weather, air traffic control restrictions and delays from inbound aircraft.

"However, we have taken steps to improve the operation of our airports, including better stand planning and, in the case of Edinburgh, the use of improved taxiing. The reduced schedule of flights at some congested airports has helped to reduce delays to inbound aircraft."

The spokesman said a 14 per cent punctuality improvement at Heathrow to 80 per cent was likely to have had a positive impact on the Scottish airports as the London hub was their number one destination.

Overall, 81 per cent of scheduled flights at ten major airports - including all five around London - were on time.

This was 11 per cent better than in spring 2008 and the best April-June figure since 1995.


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## hkskyline

*Bumped Passengers Learn a Cruel Flying Lesson *
17 September 2009
The Wall Street Journal Online

Air travel has gotten a lot bumpier this year on the ground.

Passengers are getting bumped from flights at the highest rate in at least 14 years, even though the U.S. Department of Transportation last year doubled the penalties airlines have to pay passengers who have tickets but are denied seats. Among the reasons: Passengers are more reluctant to voluntarily give up seats when flights are oversold for fear of being stranded for a day or two. And some airlines have made their vouchers less generous to save money.

Bumping is still relatively rare, affecting fewer than two passengers out of every 10,000. But the rate at which passengers were bumped in the second quarter skyrocketed 40% compared with a year ago, and airlines say the higher rate will likely continue.

As carriers have slashed capacity, grounding airplanes and cutting flights from schedules, they have packed more people into their remaining flights sometimes too many people.

"It's pretty simple: It's just because planes are more full than last year," says Tom Trenga, vice president of revenue management at US Airways Group Inc., which had the highest bumping rate among major airlines, at 1.88 passengers per 10,000 in the second quarter.

This summer, the nine major airlines filled 85.5% of their seats, up from 84.1% last summer. The peak was July, with 86.7% of seats filled. This fall, airlines are aggressively cutting back capacity even further, worried that continued weak business travel could cripple them financially.

That means increased bumping will continue, Mr. Trenga says, until airlines see enough of a pickup in demand to begin bringing flights back into schedules, easing the logjam.

In the second quarter, the most recent reported by the DOT, 20,916 passengers, or 1.39 for every 10,000, were involuntarily denied boarding at major and regional airlines, up from 15,119, or 1.0 per 10,000, in the same period of 2008. (Ten times as many people gave up their seats voluntarily in return for airline vouchers toward future trips.)

If you do get bumped, you are entitled to cash compensation under the DOT's penalty rules, though the airline will likely offer you vouchers. You can insist that the airline pay you on the spot. Do it. Vouchers can have blackout dates, require you to purchase higher fares to use the voucher or even require you to cash in the voucher and buy a ticket in person at an airport rather than booking online.

Desperate for Revenue

Federal rules allow airlines to sell more tickets than there are seats on a plane because customers occasionally change flights or don't show up. Carriers have to balance the cost of compensating customers who get bumped with the cost of having an empty seat when a ticket could have been sold. With the economic downturn, airlines are desperate for any revenue and may be willing to take on more overbooking risk.

Several airlines say they have bumped more people from flights because they have had a harder time getting travelers to voluntarily give up seats. Because flights have been so full, a passenger who gives up a seat voluntarily in return for a voucher toward a future trip may have to wait a day or more to get a seat on another flight.

That means airlines end up refusing boarding to more ticketed passengers, Mr. Trenga says.

In addition, airlines often place heavy restrictions on vouchers. Sometimes vouchers worth $100 or $200 off a ticket can't be applied to the airline's cheapest fares, for example, or they have blackout dates or require customers to buy tickets in person at an airport instead of online.

Alaska Airlines, a unit of Alaska Air Group Inc., tried to cut the value of vouchers in December and saw the rate at which it bumped passengers soar 269% in the second quarter to 1.66 per 10,000, from 0.45 per 10,000 in the same period of 2008.

Before the change, Alaska and its Horizon Air regional-airline unit gave a free ticket to anyone voluntarily giving up a seat when a flight was oversold. But Alaska switched to a two-tier voucher system passengers got a $200 voucher to apply to a future ticket for giving up a seat on a shorter flight and a $400 voucher for a longer flight.

"The perception among those customers on shorter flights was that $200 wasn't enough to offer up their seats as a volunteer," a spokeswoman says. In June, Alaska upped the offer for volunteers on shorter flights to a $300 voucher, "and we've seen a steady decline in the number of involuntary denied boardings since," she says.

UAL Corp.'s United Airlines saw its bumped-passenger rate climb 73% this year to 1.71 passengers per 10,000, second only to US Airways. United says bumping increased because a greater number of leisure passengers have been filling planes than in the past as a result of the downturn in business travel. "They show up for their flight much more often than a business traveler typically does," a spokeswoman says. "As a result, we had fewer no-shows than what we typically see."

The DOT says it isn't concerned about the rise in bumping because the rates are still lower than historical highs. During the 1970s and 1980s, bumping rates were routinely four times as high as today's rate.

Penalties Doubled

Still, the agency doubled compensation penalties for denied boarding last year, the first change in 30 years.

Passengers who are involuntarily bumped will receive compensation equal to their one-way fare up to $400 if they are rescheduled to reach their destination within two hours of their original arrival time for domestic flights and four hours for international flights. The mandatory compensation, depending on ticket price, doubles to $800 if passengers reach their destination later than the two- or four-hour limits.

The best way to avoid getting bumped from a flight is to buy tickets only for flights on which you can reserve a seat and to print your boarding pass early to lay claim to that seat. Passengers should be especially vigilant with regional airlines, which generally have the highest bumping rates in the industry.

And if you're not in a hurry and want to game the system as many passengers do you should book flights with few open seats at peak travel hours and tell gate agents early that you are willing to give up your seat if volunteers are needed. For some passengers, vouchers can cut the cost of future trips dramatically. Just make sure you know what you are getting from the airline, what strings are attached, and when your next flight out will be.


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## Girona Airport

Sidekicker said:


> is this only happening in America?


dont worry .it is happening everywhere.


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## hkskyline

*Former American Airlines CEO joins passenger rights advocates backing tarmac stranding limit *
22 September 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) - A former CEO of American Airlines on Tuesday backed imposition of a three-hour time limit on how long airlines can strand passengers on airport tarmacs, but he also warned of unintended consequences.

Robert Crandall parted company from his former industry colleagues and joined passengers rights advocates as they took their case to Congress, staging a hearing in a meeting room provided for the event by a House committee.

Crandall said he supports legislation pending in the Senate that would require that passengers be allowed to deplane after a three-hour wait. The bill makes an exception for instances when the pilot believes the plane will takeoff in the next half-hour or it might be unsafe to leave the plane.

"I think the airline industry should have led the way in responding to this problem rather than having resisted it," Crandall said. "Every responsible airline executive I know thinks these things are an outrage."

However, he said returning passengers to terminals likely will result in more flight cancellations and modest fare increases.

Since flights are increasingly full or nearly full due to airlines' cutbacks in schedules, passengers who opt to deplane may have difficulty finding seats on other planes and may be delayed longer than if they had continued to wait on a runway, Crandall said.

He recommended an initial four-hour time limit to give airlines time to make adjustments before ratcheting down to a three-hour limit in 2011.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., co-sponsor of a "passengers bill of rights" containing the three-hour limit, rejected Crandall's suggestion. There are "a lot of folks behind the scenes who don't want this legislation," Boxer said. "I'm going to fight for the three hours because it will get watered down -- it always does."

The Air Transport Association, which represents major airlines, declined invitations to attend the hearing. The association has warned there will be more inconvenience and delay for passengers if a hard time limit is imposed.

Passengers right advocate Kate Hanni called that assertion a "myth." She said advocates only want passengers to be given the option to deplane every three hours, and that doesn't require the plane to return to a gate. She said airport people movers or other equipment could be used to help people leave planes still in takeoff queues.

Hanni, executive director of FlyersRights.org, pointed to the example of Sun Country Flight 242, which sat on the tarmac at Kennedy International Airport in New York for nearly six hours last month before it was allowed to take off for Minneapolis.

Of the 136 passengers aboard the flight, 96 were connecting through Minneapolis and most likely missed their connections and had to spend the night there before they could get other flights to their destinations, Hanni said. Those passengers might have been better off if they'd had an opportunity to get off in New York after it became apparent they would no longer make their connections, she said.

Two weeks earlier severe thunderstorms forced a Continental Express flight from Houston to Minneapolis to land in Rochester, Minn., where 47 passengers were forced to sit in a cramped plane for six hours overnight amid crying babies and a stinking toilet before they were allowed to deplane.

A Transportation Department investigation found that employees of a Delta Air Lines subsidiary -- the only workers still at the airport -- refused to make a gate available to the plane because the airport was closed and security personnel had gone home.


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## hkskyline

*Continental Airlines Hit With DOT Fine For Stranding Passengers On Tarmac -CNBC*
24 November 2009
Dow Jones News Service

Continental Airlines Inc. (CAL) on Tuesday was fined $100,000 by the U.S. Department of Transportation over the carrier's handling of an Aug. 7-8 incident in Minnesota in which 51 passengers aboard a flight operated for Continental by ExpressJet Holdings Inc. (XJT) were stranded for hours on the airport tarmac, NBC News reported. The fine, which the report said was to be formally announced later Tuesday by the DOT, is believed to be the first against a U.S. airline in connection with a passenger-stranding incident. Flight 2816, flying from Houston to Minneapolis-St. Paul late the night of Aug. 7 when bad weather in the Twin Cities forced it to land 150 miles away in Rochester, Minn. The passengers were forced to spend nearly six hours overnight on the plane with little food or water.


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## hkskyline

*Long flight delays drive down airline stocks-study *

NEW YORK, Nov 24 (Reuters) - Extensive flight delays irritate travelers, but investors do not like them much either.

A study this summer by researchers who teach at business schools in the United Kingdom and the United States found that airlines stocks tend to drop sharply when flights are delayed two hours or more or are canceled.

That is not only because the industry incurs huge fuel and labor costs by sitting on the tarmac. Delays and cancellations can also lead to a sharp losses in revenue as passengers flock to competing carriers when they make future travel plans.

"Customers make future buying decisions based on the service they experience," said Kamalini Ramdas, a professor of management science at the London Business School and one of four authors of the study, which has not yet been published.

U.S. airlines have been under fire in recent years for extensive delays and a few particularly egregious events.

Flight delays cost U.S. airlines roughly $9.6 billion in 2008, according to the Air Transport Association.

On Tuesday, the U.S. government fined three U.S. airlines Continental Airlines Inc , ExpressJet and Mesaba, a unit of Delta Air Lines Inc , for an incident on Aug. 8 that left passengers stranded overnight in a Minnesota airport because of bad weather. [ID:nN24308284]

"If an airline performs poorly in January, after a month or two it starts to affect sales," Ramdas said. "The stock price will incorporate the idea that you will lose future revenue."

That revenue tends to return after about six months, Ramdas added. The study focuses on delays occurring between January 1990 and December 2006.

The paper, 'Can Stock Price Movements Inform Operational Improvements Efforts? Evidence from the Airline Industry," is based on research done by the University of Virginia and the University of Georgia.

Through September this year, nearly 19 percent of all flights were delayed, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation, which defines a delay as more than 15 minutes after scheduled arrival.


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## hkskyline

*US airlines can face big fines for long delays *

WASHINGTON, Dec 21 (Reuters) - U.S. airlines could face stiff fines for stranding passengers aboard grounded planes for more than three hours, according to a regulation that officials said on Monday was aimed at upholding passenger rights.

The Transportation Department initiative tries to address public and government frustration with lengthy runway delays, especially those that leave passengers without food, water or adequate bathroom facilities.

"Airline passengers have rights, and these new rules will require airlines to live up to their obligation to treat their customers fairly," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told reporters.

For the first time, the government will require airlines to let passengers get off planes that have been at a gate or on a taxiway waiting to take off or get access to a terminal.

Exceeding the three-hour limit could result in fines of up to $27,000 per passenger, the Transportation Department said.

Airlines also would have to ensure that passengers get food, water and adequate bathroom facilities during long delays.

There were 1,100 tarmac delays of at least three hours between October 2008 and October 2009, government figures show. There were more than 7 million flights during that period.

In November, the Transportation Department proposed $175,000 in fines against Continental Airlines Inc, its ExpressJet Airlines affiliate and Mesaba Airlines, a unit of Delta Air Lines, for a nearly six-hour ground delay at Rochester, Minnesota, in August.

Overall flight delays cost U.S. airlines roughly $9.8 million in 2008, according to industry figures.

Shares of most major carriers were up slightly on Monday despite significant weekend cancellations and delays due to the Northeast snowstorm and higher oil prices. Analysts have been more positive about the sector recently.

PILOTS MAKE THE CALL

The decision to let passengers off planes rests with the captain, who could exceed the three-hour limit because of security or safety concerns. Crews could also keep people aboard if letting them off would disrupt air traffic.

The regulation would take effect just at the start of the spring and summer travel season, the worst for delays.

Major airlines, through their trade association, said they would comply even though they say it will lead to more canceled flights and more passenger inconvenience.

"The requirement of having planes return to the gates within a three-hour window or face significant fines is inconsistent with our goal of completing as many flights as possible," said Jim May, CEO of the Air Transport Association.

Airlines have fought congressional efforts to craft similar rights legislation. Two lawmakers leading the attempt, Senators Barbara Boxer and Olympia Snowe, applauded the administration's regulation. But the pair said they would push ahead with their bill to put requirements and penalties into law.

The rule, tougher than one proposed by the Bush administration a year ago, also prohibits airlines from scheduling chronically delayed flights. Continuing to do so could result in fines. It also requires airlines to display flight delay information on their websites.

The regulation does not apply to international airlines. Most cases involve domestic airlines.

Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition trade group, said airlines must reevaluate scheduling practices at busy airports, especially in New York. "Over the long term, however, passengers will move throughout the aviation system much more efficiently."


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## siamu maharaj

WTF is up with US aviation? 1100+ delays of 3 hours or more in a year? I know they have like thousands of flights a day, but still!


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## hkskyline

*Airlines Fight EU Rule on Passenger Delays *
3 March 2010
The Wall Street Journal 

BRUSSELS—European airlines are battling against consumer advocates over recent changes to the European Union's air-passenger protection rules that carriers say could cost them up to €5 billion ($6.8 billion) annually, deepen their losses and force up ticket prices.

The change stems from a November ruling by a top EU court, which was applied for the first time last month by authorities in Germany and Spain. The ruling, by the European Court of Justice, significantly increased the number of flights for which passengers can claim compensation because it equated a delay of more than three hours with an outright cancellation.

The EU's original air-passenger protection law, passed in 2004, spelled out clear penalties for flight cancellations but was less specific about delays. The law covers all EU airlines and any flight departing from an EU airport. Payouts can range from €250 to €600 per passenger, no matter the price of the ticket.

The European court, whose decision is now law, reasoned that the impact of a delay is comparable to that of a cancellation: A passenger arrives late. It ruled both should therefore be treated equally. Significantly, the ruling is retroactive to 2005, when the law came into force.

European airlines were stunned by the decision, which they argue effectively rewrote the legislation. Carriers are lobbying European authorities to amend the law or return the case to the European Court through another test-case. But either path could take two years and holds an uncertain outcome, lawyers say.

The issue promises to be a focus of a conference Wednesday at the European Parliament organized jointly by Brian Simpson, chairman of the parliament's transport committee, and the Association of European Airlines, a trade group. The session, which is outside the legislative process, comes as the EU considers updating its passenger-rights law. Officials from airlines including Air France-KLM SA and British Airways PLC are slated to square off against representatives of several consumer groups over how airlines operate and treat customers.

Consumer advocates have lauded the European court decision as a victory for passengers. "We wholeheartedly welcome the ECJ decision," said David McCullough, spokesman for BEUC, an umbrella organization for European consumer groups in Brussels.

But a group of British airlines in December warned their government that "this judgment calls into question the viability of the industry in its current form." Eight members of the British Air Transport Association wrote to the country's transport secretary to attack the ruling, arguing it would add between €3 billion and €5 billion annually to European carriers' liability for delay compensation.

The total amount airlines currently pay in compensation isn't tallied by either the EU or airlines. Carriers generally don't publish figures on their payments.

Airline critics say carriers are exaggerating the impact. EUClaim, a Dutch company that processes filings under the EU legislation and takes a 27% cut of any payout, estimates the ruling will add roughly €850 million annually.

Still, European airlines overall are deeply unprofitable and industry officials say the ruling will increase their losses. They predict higher ticket prices and a wave of knock-on lawsuits by carriers against government-run air traffic control systems and other industry players, who are ultimately responsible for many delays.

Mr. Simpson, the European Parliament member hosting Wednesday's conference and a framer of the original legislation, said in an interview that he and other parliamentarians believe airlines skirt rules to put profits ahead of passengers' convenience.

"Members believe the airlines are flouting the law" by using technicalities to avoid paying compensation claims, said Mr. Simpson, a member of Britain's left-of-center Labour Party. The EU court ruling, he noted, resulted from lawsuits over passenger claims that airlines had balked at paying.

"The industry brought this ruling upon themselves by desperately trying to find loopholes," Mr. Simpson said. "You could say the industry was hoisted by their own petard."

Airline-industry officials argue that the 2004 law is ambiguous. They say the recent EU court decision has worsened the situation by rewriting the law in ways its creators had explicitly rejected.

"The regulation is poorly drafted," said Anthony Concil, spokesman for the International Air Transport Association, a global trade group. "That a court can interpret a delay of three hours as a cancellation goes back to the ambiguity of the legislation."

Mr. Concil said that when the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, first officially proposed the legislation in 2001, it explicitly cited "a difference" between long delays and cancellations because delays are often beyond an airline's control.

Mr. Simpson in the European Parliament said the court ruling is "well within the scope and the spirit of the law." He said the legislature is likely to include the court ruling in any revision of the rule. "I think the members will look to tighten the regulation, not slacken it," Mr. Simpson said.

Airline officials are trying to prevent that by arguing that competition already creates strong incentives to provide good customer service, and that delays or cancellations are very costly to carriers. "What airlines need to do is explain to the regulators what we do in delay situations," said Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus, secretary-general of the Association of European Airlines, the co-sponsor of Wednesday's conference.


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## hkskyline

*New delay rule comes too late for Virgin fliers *
17 March 2010

NEW YORK (AP) - A new federal rule that is supposed to prevent travelers from being stranded on airport tarmacs will be implemented too late to help Virgin America passengers marooned for 4 1/2 hours at a little-used New York airport.

Virgin America Flight 404 was forced to land at Stewart International Airport in Newburgh at about 5:30 p.m. Saturday after fierce winds made it impossible to land in New York City. The jet originated in Los Angeles and was bound for John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Once on the ground, the pilot and crew quickly found themselves in a pickle while they waited for permission to get back in the air.

Virgin doesn't normally operate out of Stewart, meaning it had no staff to bring the passengers food, unload their bags, or arrange ground transportation for the 90-mile drive to Kennedy.

Just getting people off the plane was a problem, airline spokeswoman Abby Lunardini said.

"There was nowhere for us to go to get to a gate," she said. The airline doesn't rent gates at Stewart and didn't seek immediate help from competitors who do.

As the hours ticked by, the airline periodically asked the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport, to give small groups of passengers rides to the terminal, but fliers were told that if they left they couldn't return.

There was also confusion about who was allowed to go and who had to stay aboard, said passenger David Martin, the CEO of a social networking site called Kontain, who posted live video updates on the ordeal as the episode unfolded.

"We felt like we were stuck out there on the moon," he said.

Martin said he had fun anyway during the delay, mostly because he happened to be sitting next to "Dancing With the Stars" judge Carrie Ann Inaba.

"We had a fantastic time," he said. "I'm serious. We were just giggling and laughing. We talked abut the movie 'Alive' and how we'd have to eat each other to survive."

Still, one passenger had a panic attack, he said. Food ran short, and the crew resorted to rationing handfuls of potato chips and nuts. Some crew members snapped at passengers, Martin said.

A new Department of Transportation rule scheduled to go into effect in late April could mean fines of up to $27,500 per passenger if a plane is stuck on the tarmac for more than three hours, but it only applies if fliers aren't given the opportunity to disembark.

There are also exceptions for instances in which returning to the terminal would disrupt airport operations.

There is no fine for airlines that deplane passengers and then reboard them later when the weather clears.

It is unclear whether the situation at Stewart, in which some passengers got off, but others did not, would have qualified as a violation.

The Department of Transportation said it is investigating.

Of the 126 passengers on the plane, 20 opted to head for the terminal courtesy of Port Authority vehicles. Many hailed a taxi and were home in short order.

"Obviously, those people made the right decision," Lunardini said.

The rest remained aboard until about 10 p.m., when a ground crew from JetBlue, which flies regularly out of Stewart, came aboard, announced that the flight had been canceled and said they were there to arrange bus transportation to Kennedy.

A JetBlue spokeswoman said the airline was responding to a call from the Virgin America crew requesting assistance. Its workers also unloaded the passengers' bags.

Virgin America CEO David Cush phoned some passengers Sunday night, including Inaba and Martin, to apologize and all passengers have been offered refunds and credits toward a future flight, Lunardini said.

"Certainly we learned some lessons," she said.

Inaba posted on her Twitter page that the apology and refund had restored her faith in the airline.

The flight was one of eight diverted to Stewart because of bad weather.


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## siamu maharaj

Can someone please explain to me why they don't simply use stairs to plane and return to the lounge if none of the gates are available? And why exactly are planes boarded if they can't fly? I just don't understand.


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## caelus

The plane's code is "404"................ lol, reminds me windows error code 404


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## hkskyline

siamu maharaj said:


> Can someone please explain to me why they don't simply use stairs to plane and return to the lounge if none of the gates are available? And why exactly are planes boarded if they can't fly? I just don't understand.


If the airline doesn't operate at the airport, then it has no contract with the airport authority so everything from loading baggage to handling disembarking passengers would not be covered. That's why they had to appeal for help from another airline that has such a contract.


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## hkskyline

*Plane Posturing Has a Price*
26 April 2010
Forbes

In a fit of pique last December the Transportation Department issued a rule to punish airlines that keep passengers waiting on the runway for more than three hours. Carriers could have to pay fines of $4 million for a plane with 150 passengers and $8 million for a fully loaded 777. "That'll show 'em," crowed Congress and passenger rights groups.

Well, the airlines have made it clear that when the decree becomes effective at the end of April they will be quick to simply cancel those flights threatened by bad weather or congestion. You don't need a sophisticated cost-benefit analysis to arrive at that conclusion when you face an $8 million fine versus a revenue loss of $100,000. Carriers will just say, "Too bad; book another flight." And passengers will be more inconvenienced than ever. Only a minuscule fraction of flights (one out of every 7,000) ever reaches that three-hour deadline anyway.

Maybe transportation bureaucrats will come to their senses and mandate that passengers receive, say, a full refund or, perhaps, a 150% fare refund if the plane eventually does take off, instead of imposing these draconian, counterproductive fines. Given Washington's current weird mood, however, don't count on it.

Of course, if Washington were truly serious about clogged airports it would have modernized our air traffic control system years ago. Astonishingly, if we had the most up-to-date system ATC could handle more than twice the traffic it does today. Washington politicians should be paying big fines for their obstructionism on modernization, not the carriers.


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## siamu maharaj

The US should make a policy that only widebodies can fly between major airports (both serving 8m+ passengers). Give a 5 years deadline to the airlines. Between airports like JFK and LAX (basically 20m+) only 380+ seat airplanes should be allowed. No more narrowbody and crazy frequency BS. It'll bankrupt Southwest though.


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## hkskyline

Adding larger planes and reducing frequencies will greatly diminish the survivability of the already weak US aviation sector. Business travellers are big revenue earners and they crave frequency.


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## hkskyline

*5 flights on tarmac more than 3 hours in May, month where airlines' on-time performance falls*
9 July 2010

NEW YORK (AP) - There were five flights stuck on the tarmac for three hours or more in May, the first month under a new rule banning lengthy tarmac delays, the government said Thursday.

It will be several weeks to a month before any fines may be levied against the airlines for violations, as the Department of Transportation investigates. The maximum fine is $27,500 per passenger for airlines that do not return their planes to the terminal when they are delayed on the tarmac for three hours or more. There are exceptions for safety and security reasons.

Tarmac delays have fallen significantly since the government announced the new rule. While there were five flights stuck for more than three hours in May, that compares with 35 three-hour delays in May 2009. Tarmac delays also dropped in April compared with a year earlier.

United Airlines operated four of the five flights that were stuck this May. One of those United flights stayed on the tarmac for almost five hours. All four of the United flights were bound for Denver on May 26 when severe thunderstorms and hail swept through Colorado. Denver International Airport had 30-to-60-minute delays on average that day and limited use of runways.

United spokeswoman Jean Medina said all four of the flights were diverted to Colorado Springs where weather caused additional delays. She added that all the customers were given the chance to get off the planes.

Thunderstorms are one of the main causes of flight delays because they are difficult for airlines and airport officials to predict.

The fifth was a Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to Dallas-Fort Worth on May 28. That flight sat for two hours in Atlanta when the tarmac was closed for lightning. Delta spokesman Anthony Black said air traffic control denied the pilot's request to turn back to the gate, and the plane sat on the tarmac for another hour before it ultimately took off.

Overall the on-time performance of U.S. carriers declined in May from the same month a year ago. Flights were on-time 79.9 percent of the time in May, down from 85.3 percent in April and 80.5 percent in May 2009.

US Airways was the most successful major airline in getting travelers to their destinations on time, 85.3 percent of the time. Hawaiian and Alaska Airlines had the highest on-time rates overall in May.

Comair, which operates as Delta Connection, had the worst ranking in May with 67.1 percent of its flights arriving on-time.

Airlines also canceled more flights in May compared with the month or year before. Carriers canceled 1.2 percent of their scheduled domestic flights during the month, compared with 0.9 percent in May of last year and 0.7 percent this April.

Customers also appeared to be less satisfied with their air travel experiences during May. DOT received 801 complaints from customers about airline service in May, up 22 percent from a year ago.

----------

AP Airlines Writer Joshua Freed in Minneapolis contributed to this report.


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## hkskyline

*Airlines late more often in July, passenger complaints climb from a year ago*
14 September 2010

NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. airlines were late more often in July than a year earlier, but there were only 3 planes stuck for more than three hours, the government said Monday.

Although there were more late flights in July, the on-time rate for the country's biggest airlines in the first seven months of this year was the third best in 16 years.

The nation's largest airlines operated 76.7 percent of flights on time in July, down from 77.6 percent in July 2009. The on-time rate in July was better than the month before, as incidents of severe weather that delayed planes declined from June to July. The airlines canceled more flights than a year ago, but there were fewer cancellations in July than in June.

The best at getting customers to their destinations on-time was Hawaiian Airlines, which traditionally holds the top spot. Hawaiian was followed by Alaska Airlines and United Airlines, operated by parent company UAL Corp. The airline with the worst on-time rate was ExpressJet Airlines, which operates regional flights for United and Continental. Comair, Delta's regional unit, and Delta's main operations were only slightly better.

Passenger complaints to the DOT soared in July from a year ago, up 32.3 percent to 1,094. Some of the spike can be attributed to a recent option added to the DOT website that allows travelers to e-mail complaints about airlines. Most of the complaints in July were about problems with cancellations and delays. Gripes were down about 23 percent from June.

Airlines got more bags where they were supposed to go in July compared to a year earlier, but the mishandled baggage rate was up from June.

Only three planes were stuck on the tarmac for more than three hours in July, compared with 161 a year earlier. All three were American Eagle flights leaving Chicago's O'Hare on July 23, a day when a severe thunderstorm in the area kept many planes sitting on runways. All three flights went back to the gate and were canceled.

Three flights also were stuck for more than three hours in June, all on the same day -- June 18 -- at O'Hare when thunderstorms and strong winds battered the area. Weather accounts for a large portion of air traffic delays. In May, the first month a new DOT rule took effect threatening hefty fines for tarmac delays of three hours or more, DOT originally said that five planes were stuck on the tarmac for more than three hours. After an investigation DOT said four of the five flights -- all operated by United -- didn't count as violations because passengers were given a chance to get off the plane. That leaves one possible violation in May, a flight run by Delta.

DOT still hasn't said whether it will fine airlines that violated the three-hour limit. Although the government rarely imposes maximum fines, the rule calls for penalties as high as $27,500 per passenger.


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## hkskyline

*Delta objects to new rules: DOT wants airlines to disclose fees, limit tarmac delays.*
30 September 2010
The Atlanta Journal - Constitution

Delta Air Lines says several new measures proposed to improve passenger protections are unnecessary and would hurt carriers' flexibility and do more harm than good.

In comments filed with the U.S. Department of Transportation, Delta said new rules proposed by the agency "introduce inflexibility... that can harm consumers" and that the measures compromise the airline's ability to "distinguish itself from other carriers."

The proposed rules would require disclosures of certain fees, expand requirements aimed at limiting tarmac delays and increase compensation to passengers involuntarily bumped from flights, among other measures.

Atlanta-based Delta also said it already meets a number of the proposed federal requirements through current practices, including giving updates on flight status changes, providing a peanut-free zone when requested in advance, refunding fees when tickets are refunded and giving voucher compensation for baggage fees for bags lost or delayed 12 hours or more.

"Consumers do not need the government to decide for them what levels of service airlines should provide any more than they need the government to decide for them how much airlines should charge, or what schedules they should fly," Delta said in its DOT filing. Delta added that the proposed rules would increase airlines' costs.

The airline opposes proposals to require "full fare advertising," including government fees, saying they may confuse consumers. It also objected to a proposed requirement to display the full fare as well as the full fare plus baggage fees, saying unbundled pricing allows consumers to buy options they want.

The airline also said the DOT should modify its tarmac delay rule to require airlines to start returning to the gate three hours into a tarmac delay, rather than arrive at the gate at that time. Further, Delta said any increases in compensation for involuntarily bumped passengers should not be retroactive.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said in June airline passengers "have rights and should be able to expect fair and reasonable treatment when they fly."


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## siamu maharaj

LOL. What boloney. Showing the actual fare will confuse consumers!! Yeah, coz consumers feel right at home thinking that a flight costs $99, when it actually costs $499 coz of all the taxes, surcharges, etc.


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## Kubajzo

siamu maharaj said:


> The US should make a policy that only widebodies can fly between major airports (both serving 8m+ passengers). Give a 5 years deadline to the airlines. Between airports like JFK and LAX (basically 20m+) only 380+ seat airplanes should be allowed. No more narrowbody and crazy frequency BS. It'll bankrupt Southwest though.


Since when is it a good idea to regulate a free market?


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## hkskyline

Well, airlines are going to resist bitterly since they need high frequencies to attract business passengers, especially the trunk routes.


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## KB

You can't force airlines to use wide body jets. The best is to both increase capacity (hopefully nextgen will do this) and also limit the flight congestion by regulating the number of flights per airline from an airport.

The airlines will themselves shift to wide body planes if the need so demands.


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## hkskyline

Up the cost of slots and the airlines will obey.


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## siamu maharaj

Kubajzo said:


> Since when is it a good idea to regulate a free market?


Show me a country where everything is totally unregulated... If free markets don't work, you need regulation. Sometimes the invisible hand takes a break. 

Secondly, American aviation is probably the best case you can present in favor of some sort of regulation.


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## siamu maharaj

hkskyline said:


> Well, airlines are going to resist bitterly since they need high frequencies to attract business passengers, especially the trunk routes.


Of course they would! But this madness has to stop! I've this habit of just looking at flight information screens when I'm at airports and it totally drives me nuts when I see 3 flights from the same carrier leaving within 20 minutes to the same destination. I mean WTF! Just imagine the humongous cost savings of consolidating that into just 1 flight. As for attracting biz customers, yeah, for some time slots there'd be competition and some carriers will lose. But it'd be great for the customers. I mean fierce price competition for morning flight to LA from NYC for example. You just can't add more planes to get a part of the pie.

As for businessmen, I'm sure they'll adjust. I'm sure there's not a constant stream of narrowbodies flying every 15 minutes between pairs like London-NY, Sin-HK. Feel free to correct me though.


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## Kubajzo

siamu maharaj said:


> Show me a country where everything is totally unregulated... If free markets don't work, you need regulation. Sometimes the invisible hand takes a break.
> 
> Secondly, American aviation is probably the best case you can present in favor of some sort of regulation.


What you are proposing would quite easily destroy smaller carriers or regional carriers. 

And by the way, the route with a highest frequency (in terms of aircraft movement) in the world is Madrid-Barcelona and I have never heard anyone complaining about it. So it can't be that bad overseas.


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## hkskyline

siamu maharaj said:


> Of course they would! But this madness has to stop! I've this habit of just looking at flight information screens when I'm at airports and it totally drives me nuts when I see 3 flights from the same carrier leaving within 20 minutes to the same destination. I mean WTF! Just imagine the humongous cost savings of consolidating that into just 1 flight. As for attracting biz customers, yeah, for some time slots there'd be competition and some carriers will lose. But it'd be great for the customers. I mean fierce price competition for morning flight to LA from NYC for example. You just can't add more planes to get a part of the pie.
> 
> As for businessmen, I'm sure they'll adjust. I'm sure there's not a constant stream of narrowbodies flying every 15 minutes between pairs like London-NY, Sin-HK. Feel free to correct me though.


Businessmen do not adjust. Business moves 24/7, and it has to flow unhindered as much as possible for the economy to properly function. London and New York actually has *a lot* of flights which could be consolidated into large jumbo jets. Sure, it will save landing charges, fuel costs, and labour, but airlines don't do it that way.


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## siamu maharaj

hkskyline said:


> Businessmen do not adjust. Business moves 24/7, and it has to flow unhindered as much as possible for the economy to properly function. London and New York actually has *a lot* of flights which could be consolidated into large jumbo jets. Sure, it will save landing charges, fuel costs, and labour, but airlines don't do it that way.


Most of the flgiths are wide-body, I never said they should use the largest possible plane. Put it this way, imagine using almost all narrow-bodies on LHR-JFK. I know some airlines use narrow-bodies for EWR-LHR, though.

Having said that, I shouldn't try to pass judgment on what on what businessmen want or not!


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## hkskyline

siamu maharaj said:


> Most of the flgiths are wide-body, I never said they should use the largest possible plane. Put it this way, imagine using almost all narrow-bodies on LHR-JFK. I know some airlines use narrow-bodies for EWR-LHR, though.
> 
> Having said that, I shouldn't try to pass judgment on what on what businessmen want or not!


I think businessmen would love it, because it'll increase frequencies and choice! But whether the airlines can find the slots to land so many more flights is another story!


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## hkskyline

*US Airlines' On-Time Performance Increased For August*
12 October 2010
Dow Jones News Service 

U.S. airlines' on-time performance improved in August, the Department of Transportation said Tuesday. Additionally, carriers mishandled fewer bags than a month earlier but received more complaints.

Airlines have reported improvement in on-time performance in recent months even as most have been modestly increasing capacity, which makes airports and skies more crowded, increasing vulnerability to flight delays and cancellations.

The DOT's Bureau of Transportation Statistics said the 19 carriers reporting on-time performance had an overall on-time rate of 81.7%, up from 79.7% a year earlier and 76.7% in July. The agency said carriers canceled 1% of their scheduled flights, compared with 1.4% in July and 1% in August 2009.

A flight is counted as "on time" if it operated less than 15 minutes after the scheduled time shown in the carriers' computerized reservation system.

Delta Air Lines Inc.'s (DAL) regional Comair line had the worst on-time performance in August at 76.4%, while Hawaiian Holdings Inc.'s (HA) Hawaiian Airlines again had the best, with a 95.6% rate. JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU) had the second-worst rate, at 77.1%.

Meanwhile, the industry had a mishandled baggage rate of 3.5 per 1,000 passengers in August, down from 4.11 a year earlier and July's 3.79 figure. The DOT also received 1,200 overall complaints in August, compared with 1,094 in July and 891 in August 2009.


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## hkskyline

*Study says flight delays cost airlines, passengers, the economy $33 billion in 2007*
19 October 2010

WASHINGTON (AP) - Airline flight delays cost passengers more than inconvenience -- $16.7 billion more -- according to a study delivered to the Federal Aviation Administration on Monday.

The FAA-funded study looks at the cost to passengers for flight delays in 2007, the latest year for which complete data was available when researchers began working on the study.

Unlike past studies of the impact of flight delays, researchers looked more broadly at the costs associated with flight delays, including passengers' lost time waiting for flights and then scrambling to make other arrangements when flights are canceled.

The cost to airlines for delays was $8.3 billion, mostly for crew, fuel and maintenance. Overall, the cost was $33 billion, including to other parts of the economy. But one finding of the study is that more than half the cost associated with flight delays is borne by passengers.

Those costs likely were lower in the three years since 2007, due to the weakened economy. Air travel peaked in 2007 before the economy went sour. And so did flight delays and cancellations. In 2007, 1.3 million domestic flights were delayed and 119,000 flights canceled, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

Last year, 85,000 flights were delayed and 63,000 canceled. Mark Hansen, a civil and environmental engineering professor at the University of California, Berkeley, who led the study, said he believes 2007 is a more representative year "since we think that the weak economy isn't a permanent thing."

There will always be flight delays due to mechanical problems or weather, but they can be significantly reduced by expanding the capacity of the nation's airports and air traffic control system. The FAA is in the midst of a program to modernize the air traffic control system, replacing World War II-era radar with satellite-based technology. The program is expected to cost government and industry about $40 billion.

The FAA has said the program is necessary to meet an anticipated greater demand for air travel.

The Washington Post first reported the study's findings on Monday.


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## hkskyline

*Airlines' on-time performance slips a bit 
Companies are adding flights as customer demand increases *
10 November 2010
USA Today

U.S. airlines saw their on-time performance dip slightly in September from a year ago as they ramp up capacity to accommodate a rebound in customer demand.

The nation's 18 largest airlines reported that 85.1% of their flights were on time in September, down from 86.2% a year ago, says a monthly report released by the Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Flights are considered on time if they arrive within 15 minutes of schedule.

Hawaiian Airlines, which operates inter-island flights that are largely unaffected by weather, had the highest on-time arrival rate at 95.8%, followed by AirTran Airways and Alaska Airlines. Comair, a regional carrier owned by Delta Air Lines, fared the worst at 78.2%.

The federal data showed that airlines are starting to unleash more planes and adding seats and new routes. The number of domestic flights scheduled during the month rose 3% to 526,100. But with higher traffic, cancellation rates rose, as well. The carriers canceled 0.9% -- or 4,754 flights -- in September, vs. 0.6% a year ago.

The new aviation consumer rule that went into effect on April 29 - - it fines airlines for tarmac delays longer than three hours -- continues to show results. Four flights reported tarmac delays longer than three hours in September, vs. six a year ago. All four lengthy delays took place on Sept. 22 at New York JFK and Philadelphia, where storms were reported. From May to September, there have been 12 delays of more than three hours, vs. 535 during the same five-month period of 2009.

Among other findings:

*Year-to-date. On-time arrival performance during the first nine months of this year was the third best for the January-September period in 16 years. Only 2002 and 2003 -- when traffic slowed following the Sept. 11 attacks -- posted better numbers.

*Best and worst airports. More than 90% of flights to Denver arrived on time, the highest among the 29 busiest airports in the country. San Francisco had the worst rate, at 75.8%. For departures, Portland scored the best with 91.8%, while New York JFK fared the worst at 78.1%.

*Customer complaints. Formal complaints have been rising sharply in recent months, and September was no exception. The Transportation Department received 755 complaints about airline service in September, vs. 603 a year ago. In the first nine months of the year, complaints totaled 8,811, vs. 6,676 a year ago.

*Baggage handling. The carriers reported a mishandled baggage rate of 2.89 reports per 1,000 passengers in September, an improvement over September 2009's rate of 3.06.


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## hkskyline

*US Airlines' On-Time Performance Worsens In November - DOT *
12 January 2011
Dow Jones 

U.S. airlines' on-time performance deteriorated in November, the Department of Transportation said Tuesday, as they mishandled a higher rate of bags but received fewer complaints than a month earlier.

The DOT's Bureau of Transportation Statistics said the 19 carriers reporting on-time performance had an overall rate of 83.2%, down from 88.6% a year earlier and 83.8% in October. The agency said carriers canceled 0.7% of their scheduled flights, compared with 0.5% a year earlier and 0.97% in the prior month.

A flight is counted as "on time" if it operated less than 15 minutes after the scheduled time shown in the carriers' computerized reservation system.

Airlines' on-time performance has wavered in recent months as the industry has been increasing capacity amid a recovery in demand for flying. That makes skies more crowded, leaving them more vulnerable to delays.

Skywest Airlines Ltd. (SKYW.LN) had the worst on-time performance in November at 78%, while Hawaiian Holdings Inc.'s (HA) Hawaiian Airlines again had the best, with a 93.1% rate, followed by United--now part of United Continental Holdings Inc. (UAL)--with 91.4%.

Meanwhile, the industry had a mishandled baggage rate of 2.93 per 1,000 passengers in November, up from 2.83 a year earlier and October's 2.91 rate. The DOT also received 667 overall complaints in November, compared with 555 and 749, respectively.


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## hkskyline

*Fog, runway repairs affected 1.5 lakh fliers last month *
20 January 2011
The Times of India

Flights delayed by more than two hours, whether due to fog in northern India or runway repairs in Mumbai, affected at least 1.5 lakh passengers across the country in December 2010. This was double the number affected in November.

Civil aviation ministry estimates show the number of passengers distressed by delays more than doubled in just one month, from 70,000 in November to 1,55,016 in December. Analysts say this number would have been much higher had Air India submitted its estimate of delays. AI has not provided data on passengers affected by delays for the past three months.

November recorded a 50% rise in delayed flights compared to August and September. Figures for October were not available. Of those affected in December, more than 70,000 passengers were booked on GoAir, around 43,000 on Spicejet, and more than 19,000 on Jet Airways and JetLite.

Flight cancellations too were manifold in December, affecting 30,950 flyers in the country. In November, only 7,464 fliers were affected by flight cancellations. Spicejet fliers were hardest hit followed by Jet Airways.

Major factors contributing to delays and cancellations were the fog in Delhi and other north Indian cities and the runway repair work in Mumbai. Besides, the number of passengers in December was higher as it was the Christmas and New Year season. Mumbai airport alone saw a record 2.6-million passenger traffic in December 2010. "Fog in Delhi sent all flight schedules haywire. On December 24, flight operations were suspended for a long time due to very low visibility. Many flights were cancelled. Fog was a major contributor to delays even in Jaipur, Bangalore, Hyderabad,'' said an official at Mumbai airport. "Runway maintenance work at Mumbai airport was a secondary reason. Due to unavailability of the main runway, flights were delayed as the secondary runway cannot accommodate as much traffic,'' he added.

The ministry report shows most of these passengers were compensated by the airlines. While those on delayed flights got refreshments, fliers who faced cancellations or were denied boarding due to overbooking were either refunded the full fare or booked on other flights. Many were given accommodation.

Industry insiders said the figure could be much higher. "First, AI hasn't provided its data. Secondly, these are figures recorded by airlines. There are instances where passengers are not provided any compensation. Many are unaware of their right to a refund or ask for a refreshment,'' said a senior ministry official.


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## hkskyline

*No 3-hour tarmac delays in March, but fewer flights on time than a year earlier *
10 May 2011
(c) 2011. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. 

The government reported Tuesday that airlines ran fewer flights on-time in March than the same month a year ago. Here's how the country's 16 largest airlines stacked up:

Airline On-Time Arrival Percent

Hawaiian 88.4
United 84.0
Mesa 83.5
US Airways 82.8
AirTran 82.8
Alaska 82.6
American 80.8
Southwest 79.9
American Eagle 79.8
Frontier 79.6
Delta 78.4
Continental 77.6
SkyWest 76.9
ExpressJet 76.6
Atlantic Southeast 72.2
JetBlue 71.3
All Airlines 79.2


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## hkskyline

*Foreign airlines ask US government to delay new rules on tarmac delays and passenger issues*
24 June 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) - The global airline industry is presenting a united front as it tries to delay new regulations favored by consumer groups.

Trade groups representing foreign airlines asked the U.S. government for a six-month delay in regulations that include new penalties when international flights are delayed on the tarmac for several hours.

The groups said the Transportation Department regulations, set to take effect later this year, impose unprecedented requirements on their member airlines.

The filing Thursday was made by the International Air Transport Association and groups representing airlines in Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.

It was similar to a request for a delay by the Air Transport Association of America, which represents the big U.S. airlines, and two groups that represent smaller U.S. operators.

The filing by the foreign airline groups said the new requirements would impose "complexities and costs" on their members.

They cited new penalties if international flights are stuck on the tarmac for more than four hours -- a similar rule limits U.S. flights to 3-hour delays -- and requirements to more fully disclose airfares and bag fees.

The Transportation Department announced those and other requirements in April. Some take effect Aug. 23 and others on Oct. 24.


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## hkskyline

*Airports prepare for flight delays, long security lines*
USA Today
February 28, 2013 

Airport officials across the country say they're bracing for flight delays and longer security lines in April, even as details remain scarce about precisely where $85 billion in federal spending cuts will hit.

"We're planning for the worst and hoping for the best," says Edward Freni, director of aviation at Boston's Logan airport.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has warned that furloughing 10% of air-traffic controllers could delay flights 90 minutes at the busiest airports. He also says furloughs could force the elimination of midnight shifts at 60 smaller airports and the closing of towers at 100 of the smallest airports.

Janet Napolitano, secretary of Homeland Secretary, says furloughs at the Transportation Security Administration and Customs and Border Protection could lengthen security lines at the busiest airports. Lines at TSA security checkpoints could get an hour longer, according to House Democrats. And Napolitano says two-hour Customs lines could grow to four hours.

Federal workers get 30-days notice of furloughs, so none of these problems are expected to begin until April. Congress and President Obama could still reach a compromise that spares the FAA and TSA from the cuts.

But based on daily meetings with federal officials, Freni is preparing the same as for a major storm.

If planes get stuck on Logan's tarmac from delays, Freni says he can get passengers back inside the terminal. If too many planes arrive at full gates, he can move passengers through another terminal to reunite them with luggage and get them home.

Inside, volunteers will answer questions for people waiting in lines. The airport works with concessionaires to stay open longer if travelers get stuck. The airport has 700 cots.

"We'll make people as comfortable as possible, providing water and blankets and food – if it gets to that," Freni says. "I liken it to a big snowstorm throughout the whole system."

In Atlanta, airport general manager Louis Miller says air-traffic control furloughs could force him to close one of five runways at the world's busiest airport.

"That would cause arrival delays and departure delays during the busiest parts of the day," Miller says. "It's a ripple effect."

The typical 10-minute wait at TSA checkpoints could stretch to 30 or 40 minutes during the busiest periods, Miller says. Average Customs waits of 16 minutes for Americans and 19 minutes for foreigners could also grow, he says.

"To us, that's just unacceptable," Miller says of longer TSA lines.

As furloughs approach, Miller says, the airport will urge travelers to arrive earlier for security and to have patience with airline delays. Customer-service workers will be at security lines to answer questions and perhaps direct travelers to another of the airport's four checkpoints.

"People really need that -- they need to know what's happening," Miller says. 

John Albrecht, spokesman Oakland International Airport, says staffers are taking a fresh look at contingency plans in case there are any disruptions. In working with federal agencies, he says, the goal remains the same for safe, secure, on-time travel.

Victoria Lupica, spokeswoman for Philadelphia International Airport, says staffers are working with the FAA, TSA and Customs and Border Protection about possible changes in operations.

"While the safety of air travelers will never be compromised, we will continue as always to work collaboratively with our federal partners to keep the impacts on our travelers at a minimum," Lupica says.

At smaller airports, closing towers isn't enough to shut down traffic because planes can still take off and land on their own. But FAA Administrator Michael Huerta says the lack of controllers makes airports less efficient, especially in bad weather, as planes wait for each other to alternate landings and takeoffs.

Airports that could lose midnight shifts include some popular destinations, such as Chicago's Midway and Reno, Nev.

Southwest Airlines, a major carrier at both those locations, is working with the airports and federal agencies to protect travelers, says Chris Mainz, an airline spokesman.

"We do not expect any immediate delays to our operation, but we are closely monitoring the situation for potential customer disruptions," Mainz says. "As always, we encourage customers to check Southwest.com or AirTran.com for specific flight updates."


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## hkskyline

June 20, 2018
*European passengers set for more flight delays by 2040: Eurocontrol*
_Excerpt_

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The number of European flights delayed by up to 2 hours is set to increase seven-fold by 2040 due to greater travel demand and a lack of capacity on the ground and in the air to keep up with the growth, European network manager Eurocontrol said.

Eurocontrol, which manages Europe’s air traffic network, said in a report on Tuesday that flights in its region are due to increase 53 percent by 2040, but that airport capacity is set to rise by only 16 percent.

It predicts that by 2040, around 470,000 passengers per day will be delayed by up to 2 hours, compared with around 50,000 passengers today.

Airports therefore need to construct more runways or deploy technology to make better use of the runways, Eurocontrol Director General Eamonn Brennan said.

“By 2040, there will be 1.5 million flights we can’t handle, that’s 160 million passengers who can’t fly,” he told Reuters on the sidelines of the ACI airports conference in Brussels.


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## hkskyline

Feb 28, 2019
*FAA fines American Airlines, Delta for long tarmac delays*
_Excerpt_

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday it had fined American Airlines $1 million and Delta Air Lines Inc $750,000 for violating federal rules prohibiting lengthy tarmac delays at U.S. airports.

Under most circumstances, airlines are prohibited from allowing domestic flights to remain on the tarmac for longer than three hours, and international flights for more than four hours, without giving passengers an opportunity to deplane.

Of the $1 million assessed to American, $450,000 was credited to the airline for compensating passengers.

Delta was credited with $450,000 for compensating customers and establishing a backup data center and an automated aircraft-parking guidance and jet-bridge positioning system, the FAA said.

More : https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...es-delta-for-long-tarmac-delays-idUSKCN1QH2AP


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## hkskyline

* EU governments to review flight compensation as delays grow *
_Excerpt_
Feb 4, 2020

BRUSSELS, Feb 4 (Reuters) - The European Union will consider raising from three hours the minimum flight delay for which passengers can receive financial compensation, a move that could cut airlines' costs, according to a document seen by Reuters.

Under EU rules, travellers are entitled to up to 600 euros ($663.24) if a flight is delayed by at least three hours or cancelled less than 14 days before departure. They can also receive compensation if they are denied boarding.

But some national authorities and courts have criticised the rules, saying member states struggle to process the large number of claims they receive, and airlines' compensation payments have grown because the number of delays and cancellations has risen.

Croatia, which holds the six-month EU presidency, has proposed amending the rules on compensation for delays and cancellations at talks among EU governments on revising passengers' rights that are due to start in the coming weeks.

The European Commission, the EU executive, submitted a revised proposal in 2013 to increase the minimum flight delay from three to five years but negotiations stalled after that.

In an informal document circulated among member states, Croatia has proposed keeping the level of compensation the same as now for passengers, but suggested increasing the minimum flight delay for which airlines must make payments.

Zagreb made the proposals "in order to take account of the high financial burden for airlines and of the fact that delays are less and less imputable to airlines," the document said.

More : https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...ght-compensation-as-delays-grow-idUSKBN1ZY2L4


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## hkskyline

* US plans to make airlines refund fees if bags are delayed *
July 2, 2021
AP _Excerpt_

The Transportation Department will propose that airlines be required to refund fees on checked baggage if the bags aren't delivered to passengers quickly enough.

The proposal, if made final after a lengthy regulation-writing process, would also require prompt refunds for fees on extras such as internet access if the airline fails to provide the service during the flight.

A department official said the agency will issue the proposal in the next several days, and it could take effect by next summer.

The proposal will require refunds if airlines fail to deliver a bag within 12 hours of the passenger's U.S. flight touching down or within 25 hours after an international flight.

Current regulations require refunds only if bags are lost, although airlines must compensate passengers for “reasonable” incidental expenses incurred while their bags are delayed. The government does not know how often airlines keep fees even when bags are significantly delayed.

More : US plans to make airlines refund fees if bags are delayed


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## hkskyline

* Wave of Airline Flight Delays This Year Mostly Self-Inflicted *
Bloomberg _Excerpt_
July 15, 2022 

The share of US flight delays caused by airlines, as opposed to weather or air traffic control, has surged to the highest level on record, reflecting carriers’ struggle in the post-Covid rebound.

Through April, airlines triggered about 58% of late flights so far in 2022, surpassing those that were tardy due to storms, the government’s air-traffic system and security glitches, according to data reviewed by Bloomberg News. 

Airlines acknowledge struggling with a “Covid hangover” as demand for travel surged and they attempted to bring on and retrain employees to replace those who had gone on leave or left. But they say they have no incentive to delay flights, and that factors such as bad weather and similar issues with the nation’s air-traffic system have also contributed. 

More : Bloomberg - Are you a robot?


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