NEWSJan 25, 2024FAA Allows Airlines to Fly Boeing 737 MAX 9 After Temporary GroundingThe Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has provided a path forward for airlines to continue flying their 737 MAX 9 aircraft, laying out strict new rules and regulations for airlines to follow. This announcement comes after a grounding of 737 MAX 9 planes following a major Alaska Airlines incident earlier this month when a door plug was ejected from the 737 MAX 9 aircraft at cruising altitude.Read More →
NEWSJan 18, 2024Hawaiian-Alaska Merger Halted Amid Lawsuit by Company ShareholderIn December, Alaska Airlines announced plans to merge with Hawaiian Airlines. If this merger were approved, the airlines of the 49th and 50th U.S. states would join forces, albeit remaining separate entities. Despite this, a Hawaiian Airlines stakeholder filed a lawsuit against the merger to prevent it from proceeding.Read More →
NEWSJan 17, 2024Boeing's Problems Expand to Politicians After U.S. Government 737 Plane Breaks Down in SwitzerlandU.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due to return to Washington from Davos, Switzerland on January 17. However, he could not due to a critical malfunction with his Boeing aircraft. The aircraft in question was a modified Boeing C-40, a U.S. Air Force aircraft assigned to Joint Base Andrews. The incident is unrelated to previous Boeing troubles with the 737 MAX aircraft, although the C-40 is a modified 737 aircraft.Read More →
NEWSJan 16, 2024Federal Judge Blocks $3.8B Acquisition of Spirit Airlines, Stock Plummets 61% A Federal Judge blocked the acquisition of Spirit Airlines by JetBlue, a merger that would have produced the fifth-largest airline in the United States. The ruling by District Judge William Young from Boston cited antitrust laws, saying the merger "does violence to the core principle of antitrust law: to protect the United States' markets -- and its market participants -- from anticompetitive harm."Read More →
NEWSJan 11, 2024American Airlines Flight Diverts After Passenger Punches Flight Attendant, Assaults Police OfficersOn January 3, an unruly passenger forced an American Airlines flight from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) in Montana to divert to Amarillo, Texas. The flight crew declared a Level 2 threat after reports that a man physically attacked a flight attendant. This incident forced American Airlines flight 1497 (AA 1497), which operates daily using a Boeing 737-800 aircraft, to land at Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA) at 2:20 p.m. local time.
Read More →
NEWSDec 22, 2023Texas Governor Flies 120 Migrants to Chicago to Protest Federal Immigration PoliciesTexas Governor Greg Abbott has made a controversial move by flying migrants to Democratic-led "sanctuary cities" in protest of the Biden administration's handling of the border crisis. The first flight, carrying over 120 migrants, landed at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD) on December 19. This came just a week after the Chicago City Council passed new regulations for receiving buses transporting migrants, prompting accusations that the flights were a direct retaliation by Governor Abbott. Read More →
NEWSDec 18, 2023Southwest Airlines Fined Record $140 Million Over 2022 Holiday MeltdownSouthwest Airlines became the subject of much controversy during the 2022 holiday travel season, when an operational meltdown in December 2022 canceled thousands of flights and stranded more than two million passengers across Southwest's network. On December 18, the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) issued Southwest a $140 million fine in response to its cancellation of around 17,000 flights last year.Read More →
INFORMATIONALDec 06, 2023Can People Own Airports? A Comprehensive Guide to Airport OwnershipIt may come as a random thought or something you've actively thought about. Regarding airlines, you may be aware that specific governments or firms could own these. But what about airports? The "Who owns airports?" issue is not much different from airlines. Therefore, this article will analyze the various companies and government entities that own airports.
Read More →
NEWSDec 03, 2023Political Candidate George Santos Expelled After Allegedly Spending $40,000 of Campaign Funding on AirfareGeorge Santos has used significant campaign funds to fund his airfare. The spending spans different airlines over a long period of time, and is unlike any spending relative to his contemporaries. We will look deeper into how politicians misuse flights for their own gain through an example involving George Santos. Read More →
NEWSNov 29, 2023United and American Take Action Against Chicago O'Hare Airport ExpansionUnited and American Airlines are seeking Mayor Brandon Johnson's intervention to modify O'Hare Airport's expansion plans, which include a new "global terminal" for both domestic and international flights. The project, initially budgeted at $8.7 billion, is now $1.5 billion over budget, prompting the carriers to request a slowdown, scale-back, or potential grounding of the expansion.Read More →