Category Archives for Airports.
President Trump wants to reduce the number of TSA screeners at airports. That should have every air traveler worried. There are changes at TSA that could reduce staffing levels, but just getting rid of screeners without changing anything else about airport security would mean long waits at airport.
American Airlines has filed suit against the City of Chicago over their plans to take gates away from the airline at O’Hare airport and give more gates to United. American’s position seems reasonably strong, but it’s hardly a slam dunk. American is on solid ground, but a court could buy an alternative start date for the ramp up. And winning the timeline is the linchpin for an injunction.
Another spring, another shutdown. The Bangor, Maine airport is going to close Monday mornings through Wednesday afternoons this spring, and customers that may have booked tickets are out of luck. So are any flights that need to divert – Bangor is a regular diversion point.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer – who has supported an unqualified nominee to run the FAA and blocked air traffic control staffing fixes – is taking on the Trump administration’s nominee to run the FAA. Bryan Bedford, the CEO of Republic Airways, has a long and distinguished career in aviation management – but he sought to have the FAA declared structured pilot training equivalent to mindless hours and this is anathema to the big pilot union.
A fight broke out in a Charlotte airport restroom. A passenger using a stall caught the altercation on film, showing just the feet of the two men engaged in a melee in the men’s room.
American Airlines passengers flying from Sydney to Los Angeles will no longer need to collect their checked bags in LA, walk them through customs, and drop them back off with the airline for their onward connection. That’s part of a new test that American says they expect to expand to other airports.
I was struck the first time I went through the airport in Manila that I had to pay a fee in cash before proceeding through security, I’d receive a paper receipt, and then hand that receipt a person in the booth immediately past the one where I’d paid it.
A moving walkway has been ripped out of American Airlines terminal 8 at New York JFK. That’s going to make the long walks to some of the C gates feel even longer. But it’s also going to make you spend more money at the shops along the way – and that’s why they’ve done it.
Private staffed security isn’t ‘returning to pre-9/11’ it’s how things work at some major U.S. airports in the U.S. already. TSA sets screening standards, and employees of private companies carry out the screenings following those procedures. It’s also how things work in much of the world that’s considered safe today.
A former TSA screener took to TikTok with some rich security screening fanfic. An Algerian, the ex-screener from Ohio shared some Intifadaporn where she says she told an Israeli passenger, “Safe travels to Palestine.”
He responded “It’s Israel,” and that’s when she says she called over a manager and claimed he was harassing her (which she admits wasn’t true).
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
