Air travelers are facing a new reality of higher fees, fewer flights and tough choices about whether a trip is worth the cost. The culprit is volatile oil and jet fuel prices that have been swinging since the war in the Middle East started and fighting near the Strait of Hormuz disrupted global oil shipments. Airlines around the world are responding by trimming schedules and raising fees and fares. Experts say budget carriers and the customers who rely on them will feel the pinch first, but even business travelers and front-cabin passengers won't escape higher costs. Relief may not come quickly even if oil prices start to drop, experts warn, because airlines can take months to adjust fares while they wait for energy markets to stabilize.
Anxious travelers across the U.S. felt a bit of relief as airlines mostly stayed on schedule while gradually cutting flights because of the government shutdown. More than 800 flights were called off on Friday to comply with the Federal Aviation Administration's order to reduce service. Some passengers were forced make last-minute changes and rebook on different flights. Plenty of nervousness remained, as more canceled flights are expected in the coming days. Airports in Chicago, Atlanta, Denver and Dallas led the way with the most disruptions, and long security lines added to travelers' woes. The upheaval will intensify the longer the shutdown lasts and could become chaotic if it extends into the Thanksgiving holiday, just weeks from now.
Homeland Security officials have arrested a pilot at San Francisco International Airport on charges related to child sexual abuse material. Federal authorities confirmed the arrest on Monday. Passengers on a Delta flight from Minneapolis to San Francisco reported seeing agents board the plane and enter the cockpit soon after landing on Saturday. A Department of Homeland Security official confirmed the arrest in an email. Further details about the case are not immediately available. Delta says the pilot has been suspended and that it is cooperating with law enforcement.
A preliminary report into why a Delta Air Lines jet burst into flames and flipped upside down as it tried to land in Toronto has been released. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada's report issued on Thursday said the aircraft's alert system indicated a high rate of descent less than three seconds before touchdown. The agency is continuing to investigate the Feb. 17 crash-landing in which 21 people were hospitalized. All 76 passengers and four crew members survived when the Delta Air plane arriving from Minneapolis burst into flames after flipping over and skidding on the tarmac. The TSB of Canada report says that when the plane's ground proximity warning system sounded 2.6 seconds before touchdown, the airspeed was 136 knots, or approximately 250 kilometers per hour.
Aeromexico is the most on-time airline in the world, according to a data company that compiled figures for 2024. Cirium said in its annual ranking released on Thursday that nearly 87% of the Mexican airline's flights were on time in 2024. That puts Aeromexico slightly ahead of Saudi Arabian airline Saudia and Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines. Delta was the best-scoring U.S. airline despite a July computer outage that caused thousands of flight cancellations. Canadian airlines WestJet and Air Canada, along with Denver-based budget airline Frontier, were at the bottom of Cirium's rankings among airlines in North America.
By MATT OTT and HALELUYA HADERO AP Business Writers
American Airlines briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical problem just as the Christmas travel season kicked into overdrive and winter weather threatened more potential problems for those planning to fly or drive. Government regulators cleared American flights to get airborne Tuesday about one hour after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a national ground stop, which prevented planes from taking off. American said in an email that the problem was caused by an issue with a vendor technology that maintains its flight operating system. Aviation analytics company Cirium said flights were delayed across American's major hubs, with only 37% leaving on time. Nineteen flights were cancelled.
