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Virgin America beats estimates and looks to strong fourth quarter -- Virgin America reported third-quarter earnings that easily beat estimates and the carrier guided toward strong performance in the current quarter, when it will boost capacity by around 10%. Excluding items, the carrier reported third-quarter net income of $73 million, or $1.64 a share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had estimated $1.56. Revenue rose 1.3% to $411 million. Analysts had estimated $406 million. Operating margin was 18.2%. Ted Reed/The Street Also: Virgin America CEO: It's time for us to grow in San Francisco
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Airlines for America agrees to let Delta leave trade group immediately -- Delta Air Lines will be leaving the trade group Airlines for America sooner than expected. The group representing most of the large airlines agreed Thursday to waive the customary six-months' notice and allow Delta to leave the group immediately. A4A's move comes as it hopes to project a unified front in congressional debate on issues such as privatizing and modernizing air-traffic control. Bart Jansen/USA Today
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Delta dumps Dubai, blames 'subsidized capacity' from Gulf rivals -- The latest salvo in the battle between U.S. and Middle East airlines features Delta Air Lines abandoning its route from Atlanta to Dubai. Delta has led the charge with American and United airlines in accusing three rival airlines in the Persian Gulf of receiving $42 billion in unfair subsidies during the last decade from their government owners. But the Gulf carriers - Emirates, Etihad and Qatar - adamantly deny getting subsidies. Bart Jansen/USA Today Also: 'The real reason' Delta cut Dubai route
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LA to Philly flight diverted to Phoenix due to disruptive passenger -- An American Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Philadelphia had to be diverted to Phoenix because of an unruly passenger. Phoenix police say a man was escorted off the plane without incident Thursday morning and transported to an urgent psychological care center for evaluation. They say charges for interfering with the flight crew will be filed against the man, whose name, age and hometown weren't released. AP
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Passenger plane catches fire at Fort Lauderdale airport -- Panicked passengers shoved their way down the aisle and escaped on emergency chutes Thursday as flames engulfed one side of a jetliner before takeoff, sending black clouds of billowing smoke skyward. A taxiing engine had burst into flames on Dynamic International Airways' flight 405 at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. About 21 travelers suffered mostly minor injuries; none was burned. Linda Trischitta, Ken Kaye, Rebeca Piccardo & Wayne K. Roustan/Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel Zachary Fagenson/Reuters
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JetBlue drops cargo business to add more human cargo on each plane -- JetBlue officially got out of the cargo business about a week ago, and one of the factors leading to that business line's cessation was the airline's move to place - some would say cram - 15 additional seats into its fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft in the coach section starting in the second half of 2016. The multiyear project to increase the A320 seat numbers to 165, up from 150, means seat pitch will decline an inch to around 33 inches, although JetBlue states it will still offer the most legroom in coach among U.S. carriers. Dennis Schaal/Skift
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Airlines offering sales on fares as they compete for travelers' business -- If you've been paying close attention the last few weeks, you've had a good shot at a deal on a plane ticket - say, $38 from Los Angeles to Las Vegas or $49 from Washington to Indianapolis. At least three airlines have offered fire sales on fares recently, with one-way tickets on some routes dropping under $50. Southwest, JetBlue and Virgin have all promoted bargain-basement prices this month. Thad Moore/Los Angeles Times
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Airfares are a bargain on U.S. carriers, thanks to threat from Spirit and peers -- Travelers, rejoice. Bargain airfares on many routes have become the big story in the domestic airline industry, with the deals likely to continue well into 2016. It's all due to a glut of new flights from ultra low-cost carriers such as Spirit and Frontier, as well as new flying by the major airlines and a long-planned expansion in Dallas by Southwest. Amid this capacity growth was a decision by the world's largest airline, American, to defend market share by matching Spirit's fares on competitive nonstop routes. Justin Bachman/Bloomberg
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Oil prices to knock $2B off this airline's fuel bill -- The slump in oil prices will knock $2 billion of Air France-KLM's fuel bill this year, but the Franco-Dutch airline must continue with its contentious restructuring plans, the chief financial officer told CNBC. Air-France-KLM reported on Thursday third quarter revenues of 7.4 billion euros ($8.1 billion). This was down 2.4 percent like-for -like, but up 4.2 percent if the impact of high-profile and sometimes violent strikes were excluded. Katy Barnato/CNBC
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One expert weighs in on airlines with the top dining options -- Nikos Loukas approaches flights like a restaurant critic - or maybe a gastro-daredevil. Since 2012, the former Australian Airlines crew member has eaten about 250 airplane meals en route to more than 40 countries. In addition to consulting for airline catering companies in Europe, he covers high-altitude dining on his blog, Inflight Feed. We asked Nik for his top picks for airline meal service. Here are his mini-reviews. Andrea Sachs/Washington Post Related: Steaks on a plane: Following your United Airlines meal from the kitchen to the clouds
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Burbank officials delay talks on replacement terminal for Bob Hope Airport -- Officials from the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority, including Burbank's three commissioners, awaited a City Council discussion Tuesday about a proposed agreement between the city and the authority that would allow for plans for a 14-gate replacement terminal at Bob Hope Airport to move forward. However, because of the absence of Mayor Bob Frutos, who was ill, City Council members decided to delay the discussion until Nov. 16. Chad Garland/Los Angeles Times
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TSA agent opens up about deadly 2013 LAX shooting -- In 2013, a shooter entered Terminal 3 of the Los Angeles International Airport aiming for TSA agents. Tony Grigsby replays those events in his head now. He remembers the terminal was crowded, just like any other day, when suddenly gunfire erupted. It was on Nov. 1, 2013 that investigators said Paul Ciancia entered the terminal armed with a semi-automatic weapon and hundreds of rounds of ammunition looking for targets. Carlos Granda/ABC7
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Therapy dogs celebrate Halloween at LAX -- A California airport is doing all it can to get into the Halloween spirit...with help from some four-legged friends. About 40 registered therapy dogs were roaming the terminals of the Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday. The effort, organized by the LAX Pets Un-Stressing Passengers Program - also known as "PUP". The pets and their handlers dressed up in their Halloween best to help de-stress passengers. Jeffrey Thomas DeSocio/Fox11
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Work of Tustin aerospace engineer-turned-artist on display at John Wayne Airport -- There's a good reason to visit John Wayne Airport soon, even if you're not flying anywhere. Through Nov. 16, longtime North Tustin resident Carl Lind will have artwork highlighting Old Town Tustin on display in the departure and arrival terminals. The exhibit includes a selection of Lind's work developed between 2008 and 2012, with staged photography edited to create bright, humorous scenes. Brooke Edwards/Orange County Register
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Air cargo business booms at SBD -- Aircraft activity at San Bernardino International Airport hit a new record high so far this year through September, with three months left to go. Activity includes corporate aviation, general aviation, aircraft maintenance and repair, charters and air cargo. Mark Gibbs, director of aviation, informed the San Bernardino International Airport Authority Commission Wednesday that air cargo has logged in over a million pounds in the first three months of the new fiscal year. Highland Community News
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DFW Airport extends American Airlines lease for new headquarters to 99 years -- The Dallas/Fort Worth Airport board unanimously approved a lease extension for American Airlines so the Fort Worth-based carrier can build its new headquarters. The lease, which was first initiated in 1978 when American moved its headquarters to Fort Worth, was extended to 2114. The original lease was set to expire in 2043. With the extension, American's lease runs for another 99 years. Andrea Ahles/Fort Worth Star-Telegram Also: 7-Eleven opens its first post-security airport store in U.S.
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FAA announces drone registration task force members; Walmart, Best Buy and Amazon included -- The FAA Administrator, Michael Huerta, announced today who will sit on the task force to determine the parameters for all drone registrations. The FAA has set an ambitious agenda with recommendations due by November 20 and implementation by mid-December. The task force will be jointly chaired by the FAA's new Director of UAS Integration and David Vos of Google X. John Goglia/Forbes
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Editorial: t's time to ground America's air marshals -- After Al Qaeda terrorists brought down four U.S. passenger airplanes on Sept. 11, 2001, America's flying public was not so keen on flying anymore. Domestic air travel dipped dramatically - for example, by about 20% at LAX - the following year. Federal authorities rushed in with a number of measures to make flying safer and reassure a jittery public that planes were secure. In one of those measures, Congress transformed the modest Federal Air Marshal Service, which had 50 agents before Sept. 11 trying to deter hijackings on high-risk routes, into a massive effort with thousands of armed agents dispatched randomly on U.S. flights. Los Angeles Times Editorial Board
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TSA denies claim that 90-year-old woman had to remove blouse and bra during airport search -- The Transportation Security Administration is investigating an incident where a 90-year-old woman allegedly was asked to strip from the waist up after setting off airport body scanners. Harriette Charney was heading back to the East Coast after spending two weeks with her son when she went through the full body scanner at Portland International Airport, her son Alan told ABC Affiliate KATU-TV. Washington Times
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| Transportation Network Companies |
Report says Uber surge pricing has a twist: some drivers flee -- Uber hypes its algorithm-based surge pricing as a core strength of its ride service, one that balances supply and demand. Both drivers and Uber make more when surge pricing kicks in. Critics call it high-tech gouging. Now researchers who have studied the controversial practice in San Francisco and New York have delivered a sobering critique. Surge is only modestly effective at luring drivers, and actually impels many drivers to go to other areas, the researchers said - although Uber disputed that finding. Carolyn Said/San Francisco Chronicle
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Taxis get a tech update to compete with Uber and Lyft -- Taxis are about to get a technology makeover. Flywheel, the Redwood City, Calif., technology company that works with the taxi industry, announced Thursday it will begin piloting in San Francisco an all-in-one GPS-based smartphone taxi meter, which will replace existing technology in participating taxis. TaxiOS will work on Android phones and replace meters, payment systems, navigation and dispatch technologies with a single app. Tracey Lien/Los Angeles Times
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Seeking to bring 2024 Olympics to L.A., officials work the social angle -- With Los Angeles bidding to host the 2024 Summer Games, Mayor Eric Garcetti and LA24 Chairman Casey Wasserman spent the week at a downtown Washington hotel, working the fringes of an international sports conference. The Assn. of National Olympic Committees event attracted about 1,200 delegates from around the world, including dozens of the 100-plus International Olympic Committee members - such as Prince Tunku Imran - who will cast secret ballots to select the 2024 host in two years. David Wharton/Los Angeles Times
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