Airport tips

The TSA says it found a record number of guns in carry-on bags last week, August 12-18. The total number of confiscated firearms was 81. An alarming 70 of those guns were loaded, and 31 had a round chambered.

After months of speculation, the Department of Homeland Security plans to move forward with enhanced security measures that do not include an expanded ban on laptops for airports and airlines that follow the new guidelines.

Want to enroll in the TSA’s PreCheck trusted-traveler program? Got 9,000 points in Southwest’s Rapid Rewards program? Now you can redeem the latter for the former.

Google Flights, the airfare search tool from everyone’s favorite omniscient internet entity, has received two significant upgrades, both of which could prove popular with travelers and irk some airlines.

There was considerable hand-wringing in the run-up to the Thanksgiving holiday that travelers would be facing something just this side of hell on earth. Packed planes. Overflowing overhead bins. Overcrowded gate areas. Endless check-in lines. And even longer lines to clear security checkpoints.

Following in Delta’s footsteps, American announced a new baggage tracking service that lets travelers know when their baggage arrives (or fails to arrive) at the airport.

Soon, your face could become your boarding pass.

Getting banned for life from flying a commercial airline isn’t easy, or common. In fact, I can’t recall another instance of an airline’s taking such a harsh line on passenger misbehavior, ever.

It’s travel strike season in France once again. Travelers visiting or traveling through France over the next several weeks should prepare for the possibility of significant air and rail travel disruptions due to a series of planned travel strikes that have cut 30 percent of flights at major airports, and could cancel train departures for months.

First-class seats aren’t exactly meant for the average leisure traveler. Their expensive perks (unlimited drinks, hot towels, lie-flat seats) aren’t must-haves for most people. But what happens when a low-cost U.S. airline adopts their own first-class experience? I tried flying JetBlue Mint to find out.

La Compagnie, an all-business-class airline based in France, is selling round-trip flights from Newark to Paris for just $1,300. And because it’s called the Family Trip Offer, the airline has cut the fare for kids ages 2 to 11 to $1,000.

There’s no doubt that over the past decade, airports have done a lot to make sure there are plenty of electrical outlets available. From charging stations to USB ports built right into your seat, finding a place to plug in shouldn’t be difficult. But if you’ve been in an airport during a busy holiday season, you’ve seen how quickly those charging stations fill up.

It always seems like such a great idea at first: “I’ll save $100 by booking the 6 a.m. flight! I can save money and get a jump on the day.” Fast-forward to your departure, cursing yourself for having to get up early and spend money on a taxi (since it’s too early for public transit). Are you making travel miserable for yourself? Here’s how to stop.

Boston’s Logan Airport is considering something that, quite frankly, caught us all by surprise: Passthrough fees for bringing people to the airport.

Remember Donald Trump’s oft-repeated promise during the recent presidential race to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico, and force Mexico to pay for it?

If your airline loyalty has been on autopilot for the past few years, this would be a good time to reassess your choice of frequent flyer programs. A lot has changed, and not for the better.

Winter weather caused widespread delays across the western half of the country this past weekend, but Denver, it seems, got the worst of it (and not just from the Patriots).

Airlines are offering up in-flight Wi-Fi now more than ever before, making it tempting to check in on your social networks and stream your favorite movies and TV shows in the air. But there are a handful of little-known reasons to never give in to that temptation.

The new transatlantic low-fare line, Level, has started flying from its Barcelona base to Los Angeles and Oakland. This summer, it operates three times a week from Oakland and twice from Los Angeles. Schedules follow the usual pattern: overnight to Europe, daytime return.

Well, these are some expensive pretzels.

Delta and Virgin America are now posting their “stretched” economy service—a few extra inches of legroom but in regular narrow six-across seats—as “premium economy” on search engines that use ITA’s fare-search software, including Google Flights, along with Expedia and others.