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Interjet starts new route from LAX to Guadalajara -- Mexican airline Interjet introduced service Thursday between Los Angeles International Airport and Guadalajara. Mayor Eric Garcetti joined Interjet executives and airport officials at LAX to mark the airline's first Guadalajara flight. He said the new route is the result of a trade mission he took to Mexico in 2014, when he "met with Mexican leaders to explore ways to create more opportunities for commercial and cultural exchange." City News Service
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American plans daytime flights to Tokyo's Haneda Airport under new U.S. - Japan aviation pact -- A week after launching an overnight flight from Los Angeles to Tokyo's Haneda Airport, American Airlines is planning to change the departure and arrival times for the route this fall to take advantage of new daytime slots being opened to U.S. carriers at the Japanese airport. The change comes as part of an agreement reached Thursday by U.S. and Japanese officials that will give U.S. airlines and their customers increased and more convenient access to the Haneda Airport. Conor Shine/Dallas Morning News
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Virgin America flight makes emergency landing at LAX -- A Virgin America flight had to make an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport on Thursday morning, an LAX spokesman said. Shortly after take off at around 8:45 a.m., the pilots on board Virgin America Flight 108 from LAX to Dulles International Airport in Washington D.C. reported problems with retracting the plane's landing gear, Virgin America spokesman Dave Arnold said. As per protocol, the flight was returned to LAX "out of an abundance of caution," he said. Alexander Nguyen/Marina Del Rey Patch
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Debate among Long Beach council candidates reveals differences on labor issues -- The three candidates hoping to represent Long Beach's 2nd City Council district had a chance to show the differences between their respective political styles during a Wednesday night debate. The three contenders generally agreed that allowing international flights at Long Beach Airport may benefit the city as long as planes don't exceed the noise limits set by city law. Andrew Edwards/Long Beach Press-Telegram
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Receiving International leaders at PSP, a smooth operation -- Apparently, the U.S. State Department didn't really think little Palm Springs International Airport was up to the task of juggling the logistics of receiving so many international dignitaries this week. "That's the wrong thing to say to us," recalled Tom Nolan, executive director of Palm Springs International. "Because we are going to do it," he added, retelling some of the conversations he had with State Department officials in the weeks leading up to the meeting of President Barack Obama and leaders from 10 Southeast Asian nations Monday and Tuesday. Skip Descant/The Desert Sun
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Atlanta airport GM to TSA: Get your act together or you're out -- The general manager of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is calling out the TSA over too few screeners and growing passenger wait times at the airport's checkpoints. Anyone who has flown out of Hartsfield-Jackson lately understands passengers' frustration. Channel 2 investigative reporter Aaron Diamant obtained a letter from a source, written by the airport's general manager, telling the TSA to get their act together or we're going to get rid of you. WSB-TV Atlanta
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Virgin America earnings: CEO surprised at length of Dallas fare war -- Cheaper jet fuel and a tax gain helped Virgin America overcome lower fares and boosted fourth-quarter profit. Virgin America's average fare fell 9% from a year earlier to $187, partly because of a fare war in Dallas with Southwest Airlines and American Airlines. CEO David Cush said in an interview Thursday that the average price passengers pay per mile could continue to fall through 2016 as airlines - including his own - keep adding to the supply of seats for sale. David Koenig/AP
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Norwegian Air challenges lucrative transatlantic business with new low-cost flights to Paris -- Norwegian Air Shuttle has announced that it will offer direct flights between Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and New York, Los Angeles, and Fort Lauderdale starting on July 29 of this year. Speaking with Skift, the airline's intrepid CEO Bj�rn Kjos said that the addition of this new service is only part of significant growth plans ahead both in the Transatlantic market and beyond. Marisa Garcia/Skift
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DOT: Airline complaints spike as service improves -- Airline traveler complaints spiked in 2015, increasing nearly 30% from the previous year, even as service improved for punctuality, disruptions and baggage handling, the Transportation Department reported Thursday. The 20,170 complaints last year compared to 15,539 in 2014, according to the department's Air Travel Consumer Report. "These complaints cover a range of aviation issues such as flight problems, baggage, reservation and ticketing, refunds, consumer service, disability and discrimination," the department said in a statement. Bart Jansen/USA Today
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These 3 airlines get the most hate on social media -- A new analysis finds customers complain the most about these airlines. Three U.S. airlines top a new list of the most hated airlines in the world, underscoring how far passengers believe America's airlines have slipped when it comes to customer service. The numbers come at a time when U.S.-based airlines are reaping record profits. The survey, conducted by Delray Beach, Fla.-based marketing agency Fractl on behalf of charter company Stratos Jets, analyzed 1.3 million tweets during the last holiday travel period for 70 world airlines. Christopher Elliott/Fortune
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Why airlines' frequent-flier programs are now rewarding big spenders -- Frequent-flier programs were once among the most egalitarian rewards plans for consumers: The more you flew, the more you'd be rewarded. Period. No longer. The programs have evolved into yet another system that coddles the wealthy while simultaneously reminding everyone else that it's good to be rich and you're not. David Lazarus/Los Angeles Times
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Have you had WiFi reliability problems on United? -- American Airlines, which sued Gogo last week, is not the only airline having trouble with its onboard Internet. United Airlines is also having some WiFi reliability issues, according to a recent internal note distributed to the carrier's pilots. United uses a mix of providers, depending on the aircraft, but it has finally installed Internet - most of it satellite-based - on nearly all of its aircraft. Still, as many of you probably have learned, it does not always work properly. BrianSumers.com
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Man who disrupted US Airways flight gets year in prison -- A man who interfered with a flight crew on a New York-bound US Airways jet that was forced to divert to Pittsburgh has been sentenced to prison. A federal judge sentenced 40-year-old Mapleton, Utah, resident Steven Pectol on Wednesday to a year and a day behind bars. Pectol pleaded guilty in November to disrupting a red-eye flight from Phoenix on Oct. 11. The plane made an emergency landing at Pittsburgh International Airport to remove him before resuming its trip to New York. AP
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Weak euro, oil price offset terror attacks: Air France-KLM CFO -- A weaker euro and lower fuel prices helped Air France-KLM return to profit in 2015, offsetting the drop in bookings due to the terrorist attacks in Paris, Group Chief Financial Officer Pierre Francois-Riolacci told CNBC on Thursday. "I think that people sometimes overestimate the fuel price and the effect in 2015, which was a bit more than 400 million euros, because there was hedging and also there was the euro-dollar rate that of course upset quite a lot of this price decrease. Jessica Hartogs/CNBC
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Five reasons why you should fly Air Koryo, the world's worst airline -- Change is in the air in North Korea. After years of being ranked by Skytrax as the world's worst airline, national carrier Air Koryo is undergoing a revolution, according to interviews with passengers and travel agents. New planes, new in-flight entertainment options, smart new uniforms for the cabin attendants, even business class. It's all part of supreme leader Kim Jong Un's effort to boost tourist numbers 20-fold to 2 million by 2020 and supplement the nation's meagre foreign exchange. Sydney Morning Herald
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'Serial Stowaway' held on $200K bond after another airport arrest -- Less than two weeks after Marilyn Hartman was granted freedom to transfer out of a high-security locked psychiatric facility, the so-called "serial stowaway" was ordered held on $200,000 bond following another airport arrest. Hartman was arrested on trespassing charges around 2:30 p.m. Wednesday when her electronic monitoring bracelet alerted authorities she had violated one of the restrictions placed on her new living guidelines. Courtney Copenhagen & Kye Martin/NBC Chicago
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Metro rolls out underground cell service -- Underground cell phone service in the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's rail system has at last arrived, at least for downtown commuters. The MTA aims to roll out free cell service between Union Station and the Seventh Street/Metro Center Station by late March, the Los Angeles Downtown News reported Thursday. The plan has been in the works for years, with delays coming primarily because of security concerns. Los Angeles Business Journal
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In a major shift, bullet train will start in Bay Area, not L.A., officials say -- Facing high construction costs and political opposition in Southern California, the state has decided to build the first 250-mile section of the California bullet train from San Jose to Bakersfield, rather than from Fresno to Burbank, according to officials who were briefed about the project's new business plan. The reversal by the California High Speed Rail Authority could result in serious financial, political and transportation consequences for Southern California, which was originally considered as the end point for the project's initial operating segment. Dan Weikel & Ralph Vartabedian/Los Angeles Times
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| Transportation Network Companies |
Uber and Lyft facing prospect of tighter regulation in California -- Ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft are facing the prospect of tighter regulation in California this year. At a hearing Wednesday, the companies got an earful from cab drivers and a state Senator. The rules governing ride-hailing services are new, and limited, compared to the many local regulations that govern taxi companies and which vary from city to city. Marco Soto of the Taxicab Paratransit Association of California said that's more than unfair. Ben Bradford/Capital Public Radio
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Mayor Eric Garcetti says he will back a ballot measure to reform the DWP -- Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Thursday he would support efforts to place a ballot measure before voters in November that would overhaul the city's perennially unpopular public utility, which in recent years has been subject to growing calls for reform. In an interview with The Times, Garcetti -- who placed promises to reform the Department of Water and Power at the center of his 2013 campaign -- asserted that his administration had made steady progress in improving department operations. Peter Jamison/Los Angeles Times
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