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Pylons at LAX lit up in solidarity with victims of Paris terror attacks --The 100-foot gateway pylons at Los Angeles International Airport were lit up on Saturday evening in solidarity with the victims of the Paris terror attacks. The pylons were light with the colors of the French flag - blue, white and red - according to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. "Los Angeles stands united with those around the world against these terrorist activities," Garcetti said in a statement. CBS LA |
Paris air travel proceeds, but some cancel future visits -- Even as airlines operated a normal schedule of flights into and out of Paris on Saturday, travelers with future plans to visit the French capital reconsidered their options after a series of terror attacks. Some quickly canceled their tickets, a worrisome sign for the travel and tourism industries. Travel agents said some clients called to cancel trips, and one advocacy group for business travelers predicted that corporations would let frightened employees do the same. David Koenig/AP
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U.S. cities step up security after Paris attacks -- Law-enforcement officials and transportation agencies in major U.S. cities stepped up security measures over the weekend in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks. In Los Angeles, Mayor Eric Garcetti said the LAPD was on alert, taking precautions to ensure safety, including a Counterterrorism and Special Operations Bureau, which was coordinating with state and federal authorities. At Los Angeles International Airport, security has been "enhanced," he said. Joseph De Avila/Wall Street Journal Related: LAPD monitoring 'critical sites' as precaution
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Airlines fall on concern Paris attacks to leave lasting mark -- Airline and transport stocks slumped across Europe amid concern that the Paris terror attacks will have a long-term impact on tourism and business travel, adding to the woes of an industry already under pressure after the downing of a passenger jet over Egypt. Accor SA, Europe's top hotel operator and based in the French capital, fell as much as 9.3 percent, Air France-KLM Group and Aeroports de Paris both lost 7.2 percent and Channel Tunnel operator Groupe Eurotunnel SE slipped 5.1 percent. Kari Lundgren & Ryan Chilcote/Bloomberg
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Ghostly Paris -- A terrible calm has descended on the city of Paris. A passenger arriving at Charles de Gaulle late Saturday morning, expecting to find some heightened version of the airport's usual chaos, was met, instead, with perfect order. No delays or loudspeaker announcements or squads of marching police; a passport was glanced at and shoved back through the immigration window unstamped, its owner welcomed with a quick wave into a country whose President, a few hours earlier, had declared a state of emergency and closed the borders to all travelling by land. Alexandra Schwartz/The New Yorker
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Delays and crowds predicted at LAX for Thanksgiving travelers --I f you are flying through Los Angeles International Airport for the Thanksgiving holiday, be prepared to slog through the busiest airport in the nation. If that's not bad enough, LAX travelers will probably face some of the country's worst delays. But travelers in the know may be able to make the best of delays at LAX. Airports nationwide will be busier than ever, with 61% of Americans saying they plan to travel for the Thanksgiving holiday, a 6% increase over 2014, according to a survey by the travel website Orbitz. Hugo Martin/Los Angeles Times
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4 ways to cope with the stress of LAX, expected to be nation's busiest this Thanksgiving -- Los Angeles International Airport will be the busiest in the nation during the Thanksgiving holiday, according to Orbitz. The online travel website put L.A. in the top spot for the third year in a row after analyzing the number of its flight bookings at 50 airports between Nov. 25 and 30. What should you do if you're flying from LAX? Relax and make plans. Here are four ways to make your travel time bearable. Mary Forgione/Los Angeles Times
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LAX-bound El Al 777 carrying nearly 300 passengers makes emergency landing in Billings -- A passenger airplane carrying nearly 300 people made an emergency landing in Billings Sunday morning after the crew reported an engine fire warning in one of the aircraft's two engines. Israeli airline El Al landed the Boeing 777 shortly before 6 a.m., because warning lights showed a fire in the right engine. A Billings airport fire official confirmed that there were 279 people plus crew members aboard. Jordon Neidermeier & Mike Ferguson/Billings Gazette
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Airline curfew violations at Lindbergh often go unpunished -- During the day, the sky above Nancy Palmtag's Loma Portal home is pierced every few minutes by the loud roar of airplanes taking off from San Diego International Airport. The sound of jet engines is supposed to fade away around bedtime. But as Palmtag and many of her neighbors know, airlines don't always abide by an airport curfew that restricts them from departing between the hours of 11:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. Chris Young/inewsource.org
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Flights Delayed at JFK, Newark Airports -- Some flights arriving at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and Newark International Airport in New Jersey experienced more than 2 1/2-hour delays. A spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration said Saturday evening's delays were caused by "an external communications problem" that is affecting air traffic control facilities. The agency said technicians were working to quickly resolve the issue. AP
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Marriott to buy Starwood to create world's biggest hotel chain -- Marriott International Inc will buy Sheraton owner Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc in a $12.2 billion deal to create the world's largest hotel chain. The combined company will own or franchise more than 5,500 hotels with 1.1 million rooms worldwide, giving Marriott greater presence in markets outside the United States. Starwood, which gets nearly two-thirds of its revenue from outside the United States, had essentially put itself up for sale in April, when it said it was considering strategic alternatives. Reuters
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United Airlines grows bolder as the Oscar era gathers steam -- United Airlines is showing its feisty side as the Oscar era starts to unfold at the Chicago-based airline. Newly-anointed United CEO Oscar Munoz may have recently been sidelined by a heart attack. But as Munoz (who introduces himself as Oscar) recuperates in advance of an expected return to the airline in the first quarter of 2016, United is busy thumbing its nose at rival Delta Air Lines right on Delta's home turf. United Airlines is owned and operated by Chicago-based United Continental Holdings. Lewis Lazare/Chicago Business Journal
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At American Airlines, some US Airways branding will stay until early 2018 -- US Airways is slowing disappearing - on the inside of planes, at least. American Airlines told employees last week that it has started changing interior branding on former US Airways planes to match American standards. For customers, US Airways does not exist any more, but there are still vestiges of it, including inside planes (even ones that have been painted in American's colors) and in cabins. BrianSumers.com
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American gives travelers more 'hold' options when booking a ticket on aa.com - for a fee -- For travelers who want to bet ticket prices will rise or fall if they wait to buy, American Airlines is offering some new options, but it will cost you. It's like one of those warm security blankets you used to get on airlines. The Fort Worth-based airline has long offered a free 24-hour hold period instead of immediately buying a ticket to aa.com customers. Sheryl Jean/Dallas Morning News
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American Airlines adding more flights from Phoenix -- American Airlines is adding non-stop service to three new cities from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in March. The airline, the busiest carrier at Sky Harbor with about 300 daily flights after its merger with US Airways, plans to add daily service to Roswell, N.M., and Lubbock and Midland/Odessa, Texas, on March 3. American will be the only carrier offering non-stop service on the route from Sky Harbor. Dawn Gilbertson/Arizona Republic
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Airplane Wi-Fi should soon be somewhat less awful -- For years, people have cursed lousy, expensive Wi-Fi on airplanes, with most of the ire directed at Gogo, the largest player in the field. Soon there may be fewer f-bombs dropped at 35,000 feet. Gogo is maturing into the world of broadband satellite coverage in a technology shift that will offer fliers greater bandwidth and vastly broader geographic coverage. Justin Bachman/Bloomberg Business The U.S. airlines with the best Wi-Fi
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Delta funding Georgia Tech research facility for airline projects -- Delta Air Lines said it is partnering with Georgia Tech on a research facility in Midtown Atlanta to fund projects to help improve its operations and the customer experience. Altanta-based Delta is funding the project with a $2 million grant. The airline already has a five-year lease on a 6,500-square-foot space in the Centergy building in Georgia Tech's Technology Square, to launch the new venture there in early 2016. Kelly Yamanouchi/Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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O'Leary admits he was last to get on board with charm offensive -- Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary admits he was last to get on board with the company's new policy of being nice to customers and had no idea "just how stressful" it was to fly with the airline. The carrier adopted a more customer-friendly approach in late 2013 amid a tsunami of complaints about its punitive charges and inflexible baggage policies. Mr O'Leary said the charm offensive had been driven by staff, not by management, who had become obsessed with driving down costs. Eoin Burke-Kennedy/Irish Times
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Air France to fire 4 from shirt-ripping protest that forced executives to flee -- Air France is firing four employees and suspending 11 more in the fallout from an October union protest that turned ugly, The Associated Press reports. In that Oct. 5 incident, two Air France executives had their shirts torn from them and had to flee over a fence to escape protesters angry about proposed job cuts. The firings and suspension are revealed in an internal Air France document obtained by AP. Ben Mutzabaugh/USA Today
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Japanese LCCs could tackle booming Chinese market as AirAsia Japan launches and Spring Japan expands -- There is no shortage of superlatives to describe the passenger traffic growth between China and Japan. Chinese visitors are quickly becoming Japan's single largest tourism source. China Southern's Japan passenger numbers in the first nine months of 2015 have exceeded its traffic for the full year 2014. 14 Chinese airlines intend to serve Japan at the end of 2015, including five carriers which have entered in 2014 or 2015. Centre for Aviation
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Surf Air co-founder takes investors to court for dilution -- Surf Air co-founder David Eyerly is taking his former company and investors to court for allegedly diluting his stock in the company. In a complaint filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Eyerly alleges he "was the victim of a complex and malicious scheme" to dilute his shares from 12.5 percent of the company to 0.75 percent. He is seeking in excess of $125 million as well as punitive damages. Garrett Reim/Los Angeles Business Journal
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United Airlines drops $50 fee for hardship refunds -- United Airlines seems to be making strides toward fulfilling a promise by its new CEO to be more customer-friendly by dropping one of its fees and upgrading its coffee. United on Nov. 2 dropped a $50 "processing fee" it charged customers who applied for a hardship refund on nonrefundable tickets due to passenger death, illness or jury duty, according to an employee newsletter on Friday. The change puts United in step with its large-airline competitors. Gregory Karp/Chicago Tribune
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Letters: Flying the fee-free skies with Southwest Airlines -- In response to Catharine Hamm's article "Refund? Not in This Life" [On the Spot, Nov. 8], my experience was quite different. I booked a flight on Southwest, and then learned that my great-niece would be skating a solo part in an ice show the day I was to fly. I was able to easily change my reservation to one day earlier, with no extra charge, and I received a Southwest credit for the difference because the earlier flight was cheaper. And it was all done quickly online. Joan Kraus/Letters/Los Angeles Times
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Airport and airline workers should be screened, ex-TSA executive says -- A top security expert said the only reasonable choice for U.S. airports, following the Oct. 31 crash of a Russian charter jet, is to put all airline and airport workers through security checkpoints. Checkpoint screening for airport and airline employees is the policy in most of the world's airports, but not in the U.S. where the focus is on vetting employees. Ted Reed/TheStreet
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This timesaver site predicts TSA waits -- WhatsBusy.com predicts same-day security line waiting times. Hate getting to the airport to find TSA security lines snaking out the door? Now, at least, you can find out how long the lines will be. Check out whatsbusy.com/airport for same-day predicted wait times at more than 100 airports in the U.S. The company says it uses data provided by the TSA and airlines plus weather and traffic patterns to forecast wait times. Karen Goodwin/Fortune
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Airbnb targets business travelers with hair dryers, ironing boards -- Business travelers in the U.S. last year spent $292 billion while on the road, a 6.7% increase over 2013, according to a study by the Global Business Travel Assn. That total is expected to jump an additional 6.2% to $310 billion this year, according to the trade group. So it's no surprise that home-sharing company Airbnb is trying to get a bigger chunk of that revenue by pushing business travelers to book a short-term home rental instead of checking into a hotel. Hugo Martin/Los Angeles Times
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Travelers might find a clever, easier way to plan itineraries at passported.com -- Crafting an itinerary can be burdensome, but here's a clean and clever shortcut worth using. Name: passported.com What it does: The website offers travel guides for 42 cities in the Caribbean, Europe, North America and South America. It also has planning tools so you can write and customize your itinerary. What's hot: The "Bests" and "Buts" in the City Guides are brilliant. Too often guidebooks and websites don't give you the lowdown on what to avoid. Jen Leo/Los Angeles Times
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| Transportation Appropriations |
Industry pushes to shape transportation law -- Congress is racing toward a Friday deadline to renew the law that pays for national transportation programs, and lobbyists trying to shape the legislation are in a frenzy. Airlines are trying to scuttle a plan that would use customs and security fees shouldered by passengers to pay for roads and other surface transportation projects. Airlines for America, an industry trade association, says it's wrong to ask travelers to pay for anything unrelated to air travel. Joan Lowy/AP
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L.A. council again set to take up homeless emergency declaration with potentially sweeping scope -- The Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday is slated to take up an emergency declaration to attack the city's homelessness crisis with initiatives that could include opening shelters on public and private land, authorizing parking lots where homeless people can sleep in cars and vans, and developing storage facilities for homeless people's belongings. Gale Holland/Los Angeles Times
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Pacific Southwest Airlines - 1971
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