Helane Becker travel tips

Pity the poor airlines. It’s bad enough that they had to limp through COVID, beg $50 billion dollars from the Federal government, cancel or delay thousands of flights, and now, once again, deal with Boeing 737MAX issues.

Last month in Chicago, a United Airlines flight to London was ready to depart, but it was still waiting for 13 passengers connecting from Costa Rica. The airline projected they’d miss the flight by seven minutes. Under normal circumstances, they’d all be scrambling to rebook.

From Boeing delivery delays and increased Federal Aviation Administration oversight to escalations in the Middle East, it would seem like United Airlines might be in hot water. 

It's only February, but signs are already clear: It's going to be another summer of groundbreaking travel demand.

Spirit Airlines was once a golden child of the airline industry. But now that a judge has blocked its proposed merger with JetBlue, Spirit is on its own to deal with declining revenues and rising operating costs. 

In 2024, more of us, apparently, are resolving to take more trips by air. Or at least that was how it was looking before two back-to-back in-flight incidents kicked off the start of the year: the Japan Airlines airplane that burst into flames after a runway collision, and the Alaska Airlines plug door blowing out that led to the global grounding of Boeing 737-9 Max planes.

United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said on Thursday that he remains fully confident in his business plan for the airline despite some early concerns about the broader market.

Emma Giantisco and Dylan Marton were stranded in Munich for three days when technical issues with partner airlines deleted their flight reservations more than seven times. 

U.S. airlines have scheduled too many flights this fall for the number of travelers, Breeze Airways founder and CEO David Neeleman said. This is pushing down airfares just as fuel prices are rising and putting pressure on airline profits.

Although the U.S. airlines are continuing to make progress in their recovery from the pandemic, the industry is grappling with an ongoing pilot shortage. And it may only get worse in the next decade.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration upgraded the safety rating of Mexico’s aviation regulator to its highest rung, Category 1, on Thursday. That allows Mexican airlines to add new flights to the U.S. and resume their partnerships with U.S. carriers, including Aeromexico’s joint venture with Delta Air Lines.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, December 14, and we are live in Dubai for the next two days. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

In hindsight, we should have known the mess that was air travel in 2022 was coming. Airlines kicked off the year canceling tens of thousands of flights amid the surge in Omicron variant cases that kept crews at home, and travelers — unfortunately — on the ground.

U.S. airline profits are set to come under pressure in 2023 as they look to shell out more cash to retain pilots amid worries about the impact of a potential recession on travel demand.