Good morning from Skift. It’s Monday, November 14. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
25.08.2023 - 13:04 / skift.com / Delta Air Lines / United Airlines / Airlines
Major U.S. airlines on Monday asked the Federal Aviation Administration to extend cuts to minimum flight requirements at congested New York City-area airports and a Washington airport, citing a lack of adequate air traffic control staffing.
The FAA in March agreed to the request of Delta Air Lines and United Airlines to temporarily return up to 10% of slots and flights at New York-area airports and Washington National Airport through September 15.
Airlines for America, a trade group representing major carriers, in a letter seen by Reuters, asked that the cuts be extended through October 28, saying air traffic staffing levels in a key northeastern sector have not “meaningfully improved.”
The FAA said Monday it was “is in the final stages of review and will decide soon.”
Airlines can lose their slots at congested airports if they do not use them at least 80% of the time. In the Airlines for America letter, the group said air traffic control staffing and extreme weather “are unique circumstances beyond our control.” The group added: “Granting relief for the rest of the summer season is in the best interest of the flying public because it will minimize disruptions and provide greater predictability for airlines and consumers.”
Last month, Chicago-based United said it would drop to about 395 daily flights from 410 at Newark Liberty International Airport after planning 438 on peak days before the FAA waiver.
In June, a government audit said the FAA faces critical air traffic staffing shortages and “lacks a plan to address them.”
The audit said New York Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) staffing was at 54% compared with optimal levels; it had eight supervisors but was authorized for 30.
Last summer there were 41,498 flights from New York airports where air traffic control staffing was a contributing factor in delays.
In March, it said that later this year it planned to reassign approximately 100 square miles of Newark airspace from the area known as N90 to the Philadelphia Terminal Radar Approach Control to address staffing issues.
“Since the issuance of the March waiver, the Newark airspace has not been transferred, nor have the staffing levels at N90 meaningfully improved,” Airlines for America said in Monday’s letter.
Good morning from Skift. It’s Monday, November 14. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
United Airlines is taking a subtle dig at rival Southwest Airlines’ massive number of holiday season cancellations in an ad it’s airing during the Super Bowl on Sunday.
It’s not often that travelers have something to look forward to at Newark Liberty International Airport. The new $2.7 billion Terminal A will open in December, the latest in a series of major airport projects opening around the U.S. this year.
Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian made a call to action for more funding and investment in the U.S. air traffic control system after an outage Wednesday disrupted more than 11,000 flights across the country.
JetBlue Airways has finally made long overdue improvements to its loyalty program True Blue. The New York-based carrier announced on December 7 it’s expanding its elite Mosaic programs and creating a level of mileage accumulation named tiles that enables customers to obtain perks before reaching mosaic levels of flying.
United Airlines launched a new era in branding for the company this year when it unveiled its Good Leads the Way marketing campaign, its largest advertising effort in a decade.
U.S. and European airlines will benefit from pent-up demand for travel to China after its recent border reopening, but route approvals, fresh Covid-19 testing rules and not enough large aircraft remain barriers to rising sales, analysts and industry officials say.
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby came out swinging with a stinging critique of the U.S. aviation system on Wednesday. Despite what he views as profound structural changes during the past four years, other players are in “denial” and failing to accept these changes — to the detriment of travelers and the entire industry.
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United Airlines launched on Tuesday a more than $100 million investment fund to support start-ups focused on the research and production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
United Airlines Holdings Inc on Monday forecast an unexpected loss in the current quarter, citing lower demand as well as higher costs from a potential contract deal with pilots.
Reducing visa delays has been a priority for the U.S. consulates in India as wait times for visitor visas has gone down from more than 600 days to 247 days in New Delhi, 332 days in Mumbai, 357 days in Kolkata, while in Chennai the wait is still around 680 days. Skift had earlier reported about how the U.S. Consulate in India had been taking an all-hands-on-deck approach to reduce visa wait times. India ranks sixth among the top source markets for the U.S, said Jackie Ennis, vice president, global markets for Brand USA. A total of 1.25 million arrivals were registered from India in 2022. The latest figures in February revealed that 203,540 Indians travelled to the U.S. so far between January and February. In 2019, Indian travelers spent $16.5 billion in the U.S. The destination marketeer for the U.S. — Brand USA conducted its 2023 India Sales Mission in Mumbai and Delhi last week. Speaking at the event Ennis spoke about how the air connectivity between the two countries has been strengthened with Air India launching two direct flights to San Francisco from Bengaluru and Mumbai in December last year and from Mumbai to New York (JFK) in February. With this, Air India now has 46 weekly non-stop flights between the two countries, in addition to seven weekly direct flights operated from Newark to Delhi by United Airlines and seven weekly direct flights from New York (JFK) to Delhi by American Airlines. Calling India a fast-growing market with tremendous potential for growth in tourism, Ennis added, “We are thrilled to see a heightened interest in exploring beyond the gateways to lesser-known destinations.”