When Delta Air Lines opened its Sky Club at LaGuardia Airport a couple years ago, it was the largest in its network. Now, it’s even bigger.
27.04.2024 - 16:37 / nytimes.com / Delta
A Boeing 767 plane flown by Delta Air Lines lost an emergency slide on Friday, prompting it to return to New York not long after taking off, officials said.
The flight, Delta Air Lines 520, had left Kennedy International Airport in New York and was headed to Los Angeles when its crew discovered an issue related to the aircraft’s right wing emergency exit slide. Crew members also detected an unusual sound near the wing, Delta Air Lines said.
Pilots declared an emergency to air traffic controllers and the flight returned to Kennedy and landed safely, the airline said.
After the plane landed, it became apparent that the aircraft’s emergency slide had “separated” from the plane, Delta Air Lines said. The plane was removed from service and the airline said it would “thoroughly evaluate the aircraft.”
“Delta flight crews enacted their extensive training and followed procedures to return to J.F.K.,” the company said in a statement, adding that it would “fully cooperate” with retrieval efforts and investigations.
It was not clear on Saturday what caused the slide to detach or where it had fallen.
The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday that it would investigate what happened.
The flight, which had been scheduled to take off at 7:15 a.m., returned to the airport at 8:35 a.m. after its crew reported “a vibration,” the F.A.A. said in a statement. The 176 passengers disembarked and traveled to Los Angeles on a different plane.
Slides have previously fallen from planes while midair. In July, an emergency slide from a United Airlines-operated plane crashed into a home near O’Hare Airport in Chicago. In 2019, a slide from a Delta plane fell into a yard in Massachusetts.
A spokesman for Boeing referred inquiries about the plane that lost its slide on Friday to Delta Air Lines. That plane, a version of the Boeing 767, was manufactured in 1990.
With travel shut down in 2020, American Airlines announced at the time that it had moved forward with plans to retire its 767 fleet.
Boeing has also faced heightened scrutiny recently over the manufacturing of its Boeing 737 Max jets. Two crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed nearly 350 people raised safety concerns about the planes.
In January, a fuselage panel tore off an Alaskan Airlines flight, exposing passengers to a frightening ordeal as winds whipped through the cabin. Nobody was injured, but the pilots were forced to make an emergency landing, and the F.A.A. grounded some 170 Boeing 737 Max 9 planes as a precaution.
Since then, Boeing has said it would make changes to its quality control processes and regulators have pushed the manufacturer to make improvements to safety.
When Delta Air Lines opened its Sky Club at LaGuardia Airport a couple years ago, it was the largest in its network. Now, it’s even bigger.
A mother is suing American Airlines and calling for answers after her 14-year-old son died on board a flight.
Major US airlines sued the Department of Transportation on Friday over a rule that requires upfront fee disclosures for costs like baggage and itinerary changes.
A Delta Air Lines passenger is suing the carrier for $1 million, alleging that he broke a rib when an armrest collapsed.
Porter is a Canadian-owned budget airline based out of Billy Bishop Toronto Airport and Toronto Pearson International Airport. Launched in 2006, Porter operates flights connecting cities across Canada and the larger North American continent and select overseas and tropical destinations.
J.D. Power just released its 2024 North America Airline Satisfaction Study, and while some airlines shone, others are clearly not prioritizing customer service. As domestic air travel continues to rise (with passenger volume increasing by 9.4% compared to the previous year) airlines find it challenging to maintain customer satisfaction amid crowded gates, overflowing overhead bins and rising ticket prices. However, the J.D. Power 2024 North America Airline Satisfaction Study, released on May 8, shows that some airlines are responding to these challenges by focusing heavily on staff training and doing what they can to improve the overall flight experience through friendly and attentive service. These efforts are paying off, allowing some airlines to deliver exceptional customer experiences despite the growing number of travelers.
A new report is revealing that there actually is rhyme and reason for scoring a cheaper flight when booking on a certain day.
It’s that time of year again when both students and airlines get their report cards. J.D. Power just released its 2024 edition of the North America Airline Satisfaction Study.
Many airlines allow dogs onboard, with a lot of restrictions, while other airlines take large dogs as cargo.
It’s an unfortunate truth that air travel has become an overall frustrating experience. With shrinking seats, crowded flights, and rising fees for services like checking a bag, it’s enough to make even the most savvy of travelers exasperated. But a select number of airlines continue to stand out from the rest, with refreshingly smooth operations and passenger-friendly cabins.
It’s been yet another rocky year for the airlines amid a parade of troubling headlines ranging from problems with Boeing aircraft to concerns about cancellations and delays as we head into what could be a record-breaking summer for air travel. So, it may come as little surprise that fliers have mixed feelings about the airlines these days.
Air France has been working to get passengers back on track after their plane made an emergency landing in the deep north of Canada on Tuesday.