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United Airlines to reintroduce first-class cabin on transcon routes linking New York with San Francisco and Los Angeles -- United Airlines will return to operating an aircraft with a three-class cabin on its p.s. transcontinental routes, at least for the time being. Starting April 6, the Chicago-based carrier will offer one flight each day from Newark Liberty International Airport to San Francisco International and Los Angeles International airports on a Boeing 777-200ER. The aircraft is equipped with eight fully lie-flat seats in Global First, 40 fully lie-flat seats in BusinessFirst, 113 seats in Economy Plus, the airline's premium economy lite section, and 108 seats in coach. Paul Riegler/Frequent Business Traveler
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Cabin smoke forces flight back to Arizona; passengers unhurt -- A commercial flight headed to Los Angeles filled with smoke, turned around and made an emergency landing in Tucson, Arizona, where some passengers had to jump from the airplane to the runway. The United flight operated by SkyWest Airlines took off from the southern Arizona city Sunday morning. The cabin filled with smoke, and the plane headed back to the Tucson International Airport. It landed about a half-hour after taking off. AP. ABC7
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Struggling SeaPort Airlines files for bankruptcy -- Oregon-based SeaPort Airlines has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection but the company says daily operations will not be interrupted. The commuter airline said Friday it expects to continue to operate its current schedule of flights, pay its employees and honor existing tickets and reservations. The company also announced Rob Kinney has resigned as CEO and president. Timothy Sieber, who recently served as executive vice president, has been named president. AP
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Somalia plane bomber was meant to board Turkish flight: airline executive -- A suspected suicide bomber who blew a hole in the fuselage of a Daallo Airlines plane last week and forced it to make an emergency landing in Mogadishu was meant to be on a Turkish Airlines flight, Daallo's chief executive said on Monday. The bomber was sucked out of the plane through the 1-metre-wide (1-yard-wide) hole when the blast ripped open the pressurized cabin in flight, officials said. The pilot landed the plane in the Somali capital, from where it had taken off. Drazen Jorgic/Reuters
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JetBlue just built a 25-foot Rube Goldberg Machine in this NYC storefront -- It's been a good week for fun out-of-home brand activations in New York City. First, we had the Oreo Wonder Vault on 18th Street. Now, JetBlue is inviting pedestrians on the Lower East Side to check out a big Rube Goldberg machine it just built in a storefront on the corner of Bowery and Kenmare. The occasion is the introduction of JetBlue's new direct flights from JFK to Palm Springs. Tim Nudd/Adweek
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United Airlines Jan. traffic up 0.1% -- United Airlines reported that its January consolidated traffic increased 0.1 percent and capacity decreased 0.1 percent, from last year. January consolidated load factor increased 0.2 points compared to January 2015. United Airlines said it continues to expect first-quarter consolidated passenger unit revenue to decline 6 to 8 percent compared to the first quarter of 2015, with the decline driven largely by a strong U.S. dollar, lower surcharges, travel reductions from customers impacted by declining oil prices and softening domestic and international yields. RTT News
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Southwest sees record January load factor -- Southwest Airlines announced operational results for January 2016. The carrier's total system traffic was 8.942 billion RPMs, or revenue passenger miles, a year-over-year increase of 11.1% from 8.048 billion RPMs in January 2015. The airline had a total system capacity of 11.545 billion ASMs, or available seat miles, up 7.8% from 10.709 billion last January. Meanwhile, Southwest saw its highest ever January load factor, 77.5%, which was a 2.3 percentage points increase from 75.2% last January. Jesse Sokolow/Frequent Business Traveler
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U.N. Agency proposes limits on airlines' carbon emissions -- After more than six years of negotiations, the global aviation industry agreed on Monday to the first binding limits on carbon dioxide emissions, tackling the fastest-growing source of greenhouse gas pollution. The deal is the latest in a series of international efforts to address climate change. Until now, airplanes had not been included in any international climate change deals, like the recent Paris Agreement, or the Montreal Protocol, expected to be completed later this year. Jad Mouawad & Coral Davenport/New York Times
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COMMENTARY: US airline investors need to accept capacity growth -- Airline investors in the United States are leaving money on the table. We've now had more than a year of oil prices averaging $50-60 a barrel or lower, and the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude just dropped beneath $35 a barrel. So it's high time for airline investors to stop getting spooked at the mere whisper of capacity increases. For too long, airline investors have punished airlines through their stock price for any increase in capacity, perceived or real, that took an airline outside of certain bounds. Vinay Bhaskara/Airways News
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Shrinking airline seats are target of bill in Congress -- Shrinking legroom on flights and narrower airline seats have prompted complaints by squeezed travelers all over. But what can be done about it, besides paying for an upgrade? U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., has introduced a bill in Congress aimed at setting minimum seat sizes for airline passengers. "Shrinking seat sizes isn't just a matter of comfort but safety and healthy as well," Cohen said in a written statement. He pointed to issues such as emergency evacuations and deep vein thrombosis. Kelly Yamanouchi/Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Airline industry eyes Spirit, with new CEO expected to speak Tuesday -- The eyes of the airline industry will be on Spirit Airlines Tuesday. That's because Spirit will report fourth-quarter earnings and Bob Fornaro is expected to make his first public comments since taking over as CEO last month. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect the carrier to report earnings of 99 cents a share on revenue of $519 million. Hopes are high for Spirit, partially as a result of Fornaro's move from the board to the hot seat. In early morning trading Monday, shares were down 4.1% to $40.71. Ted Reed/The Street
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Interview with APEX's new CEO on airline passenger tech trends -- Last September, Joe Leader became chief executive of the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX). He has viewed the association, which works with executives at airlines worldwide and other key industry players to shine a spotlight on innovation in the flier's experience, as a quiet company. He wants to make it louder. One initiative whose components are planned for release this year is APEX FlightTrack, which is described as "the first standardized system of reporting of IFE flights, combining airline tail tracking with hardware data." tnooz
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Aviation groups accuse city of making it difficult to operate at Santa Monica Airport -- In the ongoing battle over the fate of Santa Monica Airport, a group of aviation organizations and businesses has accused the coastal city of imposing illegal landing fees, diverting airport funds to non-aviation uses and setting unfair leasing policies to force out aeronautical tenants. In a complaint filed late Friday with the FAA, the group alleges that the city has pursued plans for years to make it increasingly difficult for aviation businesses, pilots and aircraft owners to operate at the famous airport that was once home to Douglas Aircraft Co. Dan Weikel/Los Angeles Times
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Atlanta airport adds nursing stations after moms lobby -- For the first time, the world's busiest airport is giving nursing moms a quiet place to pump or breastfeed when they travel. "I can come here and put up my feet and feed her," said Tiffini Gatlin, a mother of four who just welcomed her youngest daughter to the world a few weeks ago. "It's relaxing, and definitely comfortable in here." It's a big improvement from the public restrooms, which used to be the only option for nursing moms at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Jennifer Leslie/WXIA
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Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport sets passenger record in 2015 -- A Super Bowl boost, blockbuster spring break and generally strong travel demand combined to send a record number of travelers through Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in 2015. Passenger counts at the nation's ninth busiest airport rose 4.5 percent, to slightly more than 44 million, according to statistics released Monday. The previous record, set in 2007 before the recession crushed travel and hit greater Phoenix especially hard, was 42.18 million. Dawn Gilbertson/Arizona Republic
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DIA hits traffic record in 2015 -- Denver International Airport boasted Monday that it set an all-time record for passenger traffic in 2015, when 54,014,502 people passed through the airport. That's up about 1 percent, or 541,988 people, compared to the 53,472,514 people who passed through DIA in 2014 - a year that also was a record for traffic. The airport saw a total of five record-setting months in 2015: April, September, October, November, and December. DIA said December 2015 was also the busiest December in the airport's history, with 4,581,239 passengers passing through. Cathy Proctor/Denver Business Journal
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FAA tracks four airspace violations during Super Bowl 50 -- There were four airspace violations by private planes during Sunday's Super Bowl at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, the Federal Aviation Administration said. FAA spokesman Ian Gregor told NBC Bay Area on Monday that the he knew of four "temporary flight restrictions" during the game, one more than was originally reported on Sunday. In general, FAA spokeswoman Laura Brown said, pilots could face sanctions ranging from warning letters to license suspensions or revocations. Lisa Fernandez & Tim Bollinger/NBC Bay Area
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FAA: Drone registration eclipses that of regular planes -- The number of drones potentially flying in U.S. skies has eclipsed the number of piloted aircraft - from Cessnas to Dreamliners, the Federal Aviation Administration said Monday. More than 325,000 people registered their drones as of Friday, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said. That surpasses the 320,000 piloted aircraft registered with the agency. And the numbers could actually be higher, Huerta said, because one registration covers all the drones a person owns. The average operator has 1.5 drones, he said. Bart Jansen/USA Today
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U.S. Air traffic control may change in a major way -- Air travel in the U.S., as we know it, may soon change in a major way: A controversial bill to turn air traffic control over to private hands has landed on Capitol Hill, and while this idea has been kicking around for decades, it's now being supported by a powerful coalition of key lawmakers, most major airlines, and the union that represents 11,000 controllers. Barbara Peterson/Conde Nast Traveler
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GOP pushes for ban on in-flight phone calls -- Cell phone calls during flights would be banned under an aviation funding bill that is scheduled to be considered by lawmakers in the House this week. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) caused a stir in 2013 when it considered lifting a current ban on in-flight cell phone calls after the Federal Aviation Administration moved to allow more electronic devices to be during flights. The FCC reasoned that it is now less of a concern that in-flight calls would interfere with airplane navigation equipment than it was when most of the electronic bans were put in place. Keith Laing/The Hill
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Monday: Snow cancels flights in NYC, New England -- Air travelers faced yet more wintry weather in the Northeast as the work week kicked off Monday, this time from two systems moving through the region. The storms were bringing a mix of snow, ice and rain from an area stretching from the Midwest into New York and New England. Heavy snow was possible at a number of airports along the region's busy I-95 corridor, with snow or ice possibly extending as far south as Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. Ben Mutzabaugh/USA Today
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Study points to a way to prevent jet lag while you sleep -- Exposure to brief flashes of light during the night before a trip could help people avoid jet lag, according to a new study by Stanford University researchers. The study, published online Monday in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, might have implications for more than just travelers. It also could point to help for people on sleep/wake schedules that don't align with their circadian rhythms and people who suffer from seasonal affective disorder, a type of depression. Sumathi Reddy/Wall Street Journal
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