Pilots tips

Pilots from Southwest and American Airlines are rallied at the White House today in the hopes of blocking Norwegian Air’s planned expansion in the U.S., reports the Dallas Business Journal.

It wasn’t that long ago that Southwest’s self-proclaimed identity as the Love Airline was a credible bit of branding, reflecting a virtuous circle of contentment among the airline’s customers, employees, and shareholders. For now, however, the love fest appears to be over.

If you feel like flights are running behind more often than before, you’re not wrong. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics—an agency that keeps detailed records of all U.S. domestic flights—reports that 21.6 percent of flights in 2023 (through April) were delayed. That’s the highest level since 2014. The criterion for a “delay,” if you were wondering, is if a flight arrives or departs 15 minutes or more after the scheduled time.