After several turbulent days, flight disruptions ease despite worries about 5G signals
Airline passengers who have endured tens of thousands of weather-related flight delays this week got a welcome respite from the headaches Saturday, despite concerns about possible disruptions being caused by new wireless 5G systems rolling out near major airports.
Feds will appeal mask ruling only if mandate still needed
The Justice Department says it will not appeal a federal district judgeโs ruling that ended the nationโs federal mask mandate on public transit unless the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believes the requirement is still necessary.
Airlines, cruise lines and hotel stocks fall on virus fears
Air travel in the United States hit another pandemic-era record over the weekend as vacationers jammed airports, but shares of airlines, cruise lines, hotels and almost anything else related to travel are tumbling on growing concerns about highly contagious variants of coronavirus.
Under pressure, some Ga. corporate leaders slam voting bill
The sweeping rewrite of Georgia's election rules that was signed into law by Republican Gov. AdThe reaction wasnโt much friendlier from voting rights groups that fought the legislation and criticized corporate players for not trying to block it altogether. Quincey noted on CNBC that Coca-Cola, even before Georgia's action, already had paused its PAC activity and would consider politicians' position on voting rights as part of future contributions. Bishop Reginald Jackson, who presides over more than 400 African Methodist Episcopal churches in Georgia, said too many corporate leaders have been โsilentโ on voting laws. Civil rights groups have filed federal lawsuits seeking to overturn the Georgia law.
Delta to resume selling middle seats on flights
Airlines hope such a document would allow countries to relax travel restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the virus. The airline says every seat on its flights will go on sale starting May 1. [TRENDING: Gaetz investigated over relationship | Disney paying workers who get vaccine | Dozens get COVID after vaccine shots]During the height of the pandemic, many U.S. airlines blocked middle seats on flights as a safety precaution. The announcement means Delta will let the policy expire on April 30 as scheduled. AdTo keep up with the latest news on the pandemic, subscribe to News 6โฒs coronavirus newsletter and go to ClickOrlando.com/coronavirus.
Airlines return to old ways; Southwest drops boarding change
Delta is the only airline still blocking middle seats, but there's no guarantee that'll continue past April 30. Southwest Airlines has gone back to boarding passengers in lots of 30. Southwest and several other airlines that once blocked middle seats now sell out flights if they can. The last holdout is Delta Air Lines, which has extended empty middle seats through April 30. Tuesday marked the 13th straight day that more than 1 million passengers went through U.S. airport checkpoints, according to the Transportation Security Administration.
US airlines adding jobs, extending rebound from October low
The Transportation Department said Tuesday, March 9, 2021, that the airline industry employed 713,949 people full-time or part-time in January. Cargo airlines have added jobs while passenger airlines have shed workers, mostly through incentives for workers to quit or take early retirement. The Transportation Department said Tuesday that 713,949 people held full-time or part-time jobs at airlines in mid-January, up from 694,638 in December and the low of 673,278 in October. American Airlines eliminated 8,700 jobs, or 8% of its workers, and Southwest shed more than 4,600 jobs, or 7.5%. FedEx's express-delivery division grew by about 24,000 jobs, or 9.8%, United Parcel Service added 183 jobs, or 2.9%, in its air-shipment business, and smaller cargo carriers such as Atlas Air also added jobs, according to the Transportation Department.
FAA seeks $27,500 from passenger it says hit attendant during mask dispute on Florida flight
(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)WASHINGTON โ Federal officials are seeking a $27,500 civil penalty against an airline passenger who allegedly struck a flight attendant who asked the passenger and a companion to leave the plane after a dispute over wearing a face mask. Delta, like most airlines, requires most passengers to wear masks except when eating or drinking. The first passenger began yelling at the flight attendant and other passengers, then hit the flight attendant under her left eye. The FAA did not identify the offending passenger or say whether they were a man or a woman. Use the form below to sign up for the ClickOrlando.com Strange Florida newsletter, sent every Friday.
Airlines push White House to reject COVID-19 testing for US flights
U.S. airlines are pressing their case against requiring coronavirus testing of passengers on domestic flights. They say it would further undermine air travel, which is still running at less than half its pre-pandemic level. White House press secretary Jen Psaki downplayed speculation that the Biden administration could soon impose a requirement that passengers on domestic flights first pass a COVID-19 test. Airlines reacted with alarm, however, when CDC officials raised the possibility of testing the much larger number of passengers on domestic flights. Airline unions have joined the push against testing domestic passengers.
Delta Air Lines to leave middle seats empty through April
People wait in line at a Delta Air Lines gate at San Francisco International Airport during the coronavirus pandemic in San Francisco, Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2020. Delta Air Lines said Monday, Feb. 8, 2021 it will continue to block some seats on all flights through spring break and Easter to provide a bit more space between passengers. Delta said it will block middle seats in most cabins although groups of three or more passengers can choose to sit together. Delta said it will block middle seats in most cabins although groups of three or more passengers can choose to sit together. During the early days of the pandemic, several U.S. airlines blocked middle seats, although United Airlines never did.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian discusses testing, summer 'surge'
FILE - In this Oct. 29, 2019 file photo, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian talks at the new $3.9 billion Terminal C at LaGuardia Airport in New York. Bastian says travel demand will be weak for the next couple months, but he's holding onto hope for a summer surge " in 2021. Q: How much international travel do you expect this summer? Q: How important is testing passengers for COVID-19 to allow more international travel? Weโre seeing some revenue improvement ... and I donโt think thatโs a big step to go from $12 million a day to break-even.
United Airlines shares lose altitude after weak 1Q forecast
FILE - In this Oct. 15, 2020, file photo, a United Airlines airplane takes off over another United plane on the runway at San Francisco International Airport in San Francisco. United also gave a slightly more pessimistic first-quarter outlook than rival Delta Air Lines did just last week. The January-through-March period is a slow time for air travel even in normal years, but United said first-quarter revenue will be down 65% to 70% from a year ago. That prediction was five points worse than Delta forecast and implied no real improvement over Unitedโs fourth quarter. Except for around Thanksgiving and Christmas, U.S. air travel has stubbornly remained down more than 60% from a year earlier.
Delta Air Lines posts $12 billion loss in 2020
FILE - In this May 14, 2020 file photo, several dozen mothballed Delta Air Lines jets are parked on a closed runway at Kansas City International Airport in Kansas City, Mo. Delta Air Lines is reporting a $755 million loss for the fourth quarter, which brings its loss for all of 2020 to more than $12 billion. Delta on Thursday reported a quarterly loss of $755 and $12.4 billion in losses for all of 2020. So far in January, air travel in the U.S. is down nearly 60% from a year ago. Helped by two rounds of government aid, plus billions more from issuing new debt, Delta ended 2020 with $16.7 billion in liquidity.
Asian shares mixed following Biden speech, Wall St retreat
Asian shares were mixed on Friday after a late slide in several Big Tech stocks left major indexes lower on Wall Street. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)Asian shares were mixed on Friday after a late slide in several Big Tech stocks left major indexes lower on Wall Street. U.S. futures were trading slightly lower after President-elect Joe Biden announced his plans to propose a $1.9 billion package to help along a recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. Biden's coronavirus plan would include $1,400 checks for individuals, on top of $600 provided in the last COVID-19 bill. The plan would also extend a temporary boost in unemployment benefits and a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures through September.
Arbitrator rules that FAA chief aided retaliation case
The FAA declined to comment on the ruling, instead pointing to Dicksonโs past comments on the case, including that he wasnโt deeply involved in it. The pilot, Karlene Petitt sued Atlanta-based Delta in a Labor Department administrative proceeding in 2016. The judge said Delta failed to produce evidence of any shortcomings in Petittโs performance as a pilot. Dickson, a former pilot, was Deltaโs senior vice president of flight operations when Petitt raised her concerns. Dickson said in his deposition that Petitt โraised some important issues,โ but he disputed her claim that Delta pressured pilots to fly when tired.
US tightens definition of service animals allowed on planes
The Transportation Department issued a final rule Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020, covering service animals. It decided that only dogs can fly as service animals, and companions that passengers use for emotional support don't count. The number of animals on planes took off several years ago, and a cottage industry grew around providing papers, doctor's notes and even dog vests for support animals. Delta Air Lines says it carried about 250,000 animals including service dogs in 2017 and about 600,000 last year. The Transportation Department stood by an earlier decision to prohibit airlines from banning entire dog breeds as service animals.
United loses $1.8 billion, aims to shift focus to recovery
United Airlines, which furloughed 13,000 employees this month, is expected to report a large third-quarter loss as the coronavirus pandemic continues to batter air travel. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)United Airlines financial hole grew deeper over the summer as a modest recovery in air travel slowed down, pushing the carrier to a loss of $1.84 billion in the typically strong third quarter. The results from United, and those issued a day earlier by Delta Air Lines, reinforced the damage that the pandemic is doing to a major industry. Seven months into the worst of the coronavirus impact in the U.S., air travel remains down 65% from a year ago. United, Delta and American rely on business and international travelers for much of their revenue.
Delta posts $5.4 billion 3Q loss as pandemic hammers travel
Since then, Delta has concentrated on hoarding cash โ it raised $9 billion by mortgaging its frequent-flyer program โ and cutting costs. Executives said 40,000 took leave during the summer; 12,000 were on leave in September. โWe havenโt needed to furlough โ our employees took care of that themselves,โ Bastian said in an interview. They saved each otherโs jobs.โBack in April, airlines reached agreements with the Treasury Department for up to $25 billion in payroll relief, with Delta getting $5.4 billion. Delta employees say the company helped them apply for taxpayer-funded unemployment benefits if they took a voluntary leave of absence.
Inside look: Delta Air Lines show COVID-19 safety procedures
ORLANDO, Fla. โ Passengers can expect plexiglass, social distancing markers and hand sanitizer stations as soon as they walk to the Delta Airlines ticket counter at Orlando International Airport. Delta Air Lines General Manager Michael Kroll discussed the companyโs care standard procedure for travelers during the pandemic Tuesday, and it comes with some adjustments. โCovid-19 has certainly changed the way we look at things,โ Kroll said. Kroll said Delta expects more passengers to travel as the holidays approach. โPost COVID, we ended up between March and July around 5 to 8 flights a day and now as we are getting through this we have increased our flights to 23 flights a day,โ Kroll said.
White House is mulling options to prevent airline furloughs
The airlines and their unions are putting pressure on Congress and the White House to approve more taxpayer help for their industry. However, the fate of the proposal is uncertain because negotiations between the White House and congressional Democrats over a larger virus-relief package have stalled. Meadows said Trump has spoken with people at American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Sara Nelson, the president of the Association of Flight Attendants, said Meadows remarks indicate that the lobbying by airline unions is working. When Washington first approved airline aid, it was designed to help the carriers survive until air travel and ticket sales improved.
American Airlines plans 19,000 furloughs, layoffs in October
FILE - In this May 28, 2020 file photo, travelers check in at the American Airlines terminal at the Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles. American Airlines says it will furlough or lay off 19,000 employees in October as it struggles with a sharp downturn in travel because of the pandemic. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File )DALLAS American Airlines said Tuesday it will eliminate 19,000 jobs in October as it struggles with a sharp downturn in travel because of the pandemic. U.S. air travel plunged 95% by April, a few weeks after the first significant coronavirus outbreaks in the United States. In March, passenger airlines got $25 billion from the government to save jobs for six months, and American was the biggest beneficiary, receiving $5.8 billion.
Airline CEO: If you insist on not wearing a mask, weโll insist you not fly with us -- from here on out
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian has put out what some are calling an aggressive enforcement of mask-wearing on the companyโs flights. โIf you board the plane and you insist on not wearing your mask, we will insist that you donโt fly Delta into the future,โ Bastian told Today in an interview Wednesday. The CEO said the stance is one heโs taking in order to keep crew and passengers safe during the pandemic. As the coronavirus pandemic continues, Delta flights have been booked to 60% of their capacity, Today reported after speaking with Bastian. โWeโve had some customers indicate that they have (an) underlying condition that makes wearing a mask dangerous for them,โ Bastian said.
Slain teen honored with airport sendoff
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. โ Family, friends and co-workers of Jordan Davis met at Jacksonville International Airport on Thursday as the slain teen's body was put on a plane and flown to Atlanta ahead of his funeral Saturday. Ron Davis and other family members of the teen were aboard the plane and accompanied the 17-year-old's body to Atlanta, where he will be laid to rest. Jacksonville Sheriff's Office booking photo of Michael DunnOn Wednesday night, hundreds went to Jordan Davis' wake. Right now his focus is on his family and trying to move forward with a missing piece. Jordan Davis' family will receive family and friends on Friday night at the West Cobb Funeral Home in Marietta, Ga.