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Why LAX expects record passengers - but not long TSA lines - this Memorial Day weekend -- Los Angeles International Airport is expected to be the busiest airport in the country this holiday weekend, but officials doubt passengers will experience the same nightmare TSA lines that are causing frustration and missed flights across the country. Though LAX has yet to release its Memorial Day weekend passenger forecast, spokeswoman Nancy Castles said the airport is bracing itself for a swell of travelers. Megan Barnes/Los Angeles Daily News
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Intruders breach U.S. airport fences about every 10 days; LAX fourth highest -- Under pressure to prevent people from sneaking onto runways and planes at major U.S. airports, authorities are cracking down - not on the intruders who slip through perimeter gates or jump over fences, but on the release of information about the breaches. A year after an Associated Press investigation first revealed persistent problems with airports' outer defenses, breaches remain as frequent as ever - about once every 10 days - despite some investments to fortify the nation's airfields. Justin Pritchard & Martha Mendoza/AP/Los Angeles Daily News
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Memorial Day weekend travel: ONT to see normal traffic, LAX predicted to be busiest in nation -- While LAX is expected to be the busiest airport in the country this holiday weekend, Ontario International Airport officials predict smooth sail-, er flying. Officials at both airports doubt passengers will experience the same nightmare TSA lines that are causing frustration and missed flights across the country. As Memorial Day weekend nears, officials at Ontario Airport are not anticipating air traffic to be any heavier than usual. Megan Barnes/Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
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Long Beach Airport gears up for increased summer travel, extra flights -- Long Beach Airport, unaffected so far by long wait times seen across the country, is preparing for more passengers expected over the summer travel season and the addition of new flights. Airport, and TSA officials urge travelers to take precautions and arrive early to avoid missing flights or other problems. Over the last few weeks, Long Beach has seen a maximum wait times of between three and four minutes, but those numbers could increase over the summer, said Nico Melendez, a TSA spokesman. Greg Yee/Long Beach Press-Telegram
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Burbank airport has another new name that people won't call it by: Editorial -- Question: What do you call the second major commercial airport in Los Angeles County, the one that is relatively hassle-free and a pleasure to fly in and out of, that isn't the nightmare called LAX? Answer: You call it Burbank. You certainly don't call it by its official name, Bob Hope Airport, though it was a nice touch after his death, aged 100, to honor the memory of Toluca Lake's most famous entertainer. While John Wayne seems to have caught on in Orange County, the new moniker just didn't work out here. The Editorial Board/Los Angeles Daily News
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Memorial Day last-minute deal: Hop a private jet from Burbank to Las Vegas for $129 -- If you're considering a last-minute trip to Las Vegas this Memorial Day weekend, a small, luxury jet may get you there for less money and less hassle. Irvine-based JetSuiteX is launching service between Burbank Bob Hope Airport and McCarran International Airport. It's part of a larger charter service called JetSuite. The difference is that JetSuiteX allows you to book one seat rather than the entire plane. The inaugural flight departs Burbank at 8:50 a.m. Thursday morning. Jay Jones/Los Angeles Times
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Airports, airlines spend millions in bid to cut lines in record summer -- U.S. airlines and airports are spending millions on added workers to avoid a repeat of long security lines, as the coming Memorial Day weekend kicks off what's expected to be a record year for summer travel. "We are concerned for this weekend, where we'll see higher than normal flight loads," said Ross Feinstein, a spokesman for American Airlines Group Inc. "That will just continue into June and pretty much all the way to September." Mary Schlangenstein/Bloomberg
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Airport security delays won't end soon, TSA chief says -- The head of the Transportation Security Administration, facing fierce criticism over long lines at airport security checkpoints, said Wednesday that passengers would most likely continue to experience longer than normal wait times because of an expected increase in summer travel. In an effort to ameliorate delays, Peter V. Neffenger, the TSA administrator, told members of the House Homeland Security Committee that the agency was promoting screeners from part-time to full-time, reassigning hundreds of behavioral detection officers to help on security lines and shifting bomb-detection dog teams to larger airports. Ron Nixon/New York Times
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Senators to House: FAA reauthorization would enhance airport security -- The top senators on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee are calling on their House counterparts to take up a Senate-passed reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration amid growing concerns over airport security. The Senate easily approved legislation last month that extends legal authority for FAA programs through fiscal 2017. The measure also ramps up airport security and helps expedite the screening process. Melanie Zanona/The Hill
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What to know about long lines at airport security -- Fliers should brace for long waits at airport security over the holiday weekend. In recent weeks, some major airports saw wait times exceeding 90 minutes at peak hours, and passengers missed flights waiting to get through security. There have been encouraging developments in the last few days. After Chicago officials threatened to privatize security at the city's two big airports, the Transportation Security Administration moved dozens of part-time screeners to full-time and brought in more canine units to sniff passengers for explosives. Scott Mayerowitz & David Koenig/AP
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Ohio Airport to be named in honor of astronaut John Glenn -- Astronaut John Glenn is getting an airport named in his honor in his home state of Ohio. In a gesture of bipartisan cooperation, the Republican-dominated Ohio House voted Wednesday to support a bill adding the 94-year-old Democrat's name to Port Columbus International Airport. The facility's new name will be John Glenn Columbus International Airport. Senate support was also expected Wednesday. Julie Carr Smyth/AP
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Food and retail workers join campaign for better wages and benefits at Washington area airports -- Food and retail workers at Reagan National Airport are joining campaign for higher wages and benefits that is set to bring rallies and protests to the Washington region's airports during the busy summer travel season. The workers are pressuring the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority to adopt policies that would force airport contractors to raise wages and improve conditions for the thousands of workers that serve the traveling public. Luz Lazo/Washington Post
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AAAE elects leaders for 2016-17 at 88th Annual Conference and Exposition -- Carl Newman, A.A.E., CEO of the Jackson Municipal Airport Authority, recently took office as Chair of the American Association of Airport Executives for 2016-2017. Founded in 1928, AAAE is the world's largest professional organization representing the men and women who work at public-use commercial and general aviation airports. Other key appointments to the Association's Executive Committee, Board of Directors, and Policy Review Committee were also finalized during the 88th Annual AAAE Conference and Exposition in Houston. Members of the Policy Review Committee include Deborah Flint, CEO at Los Angeles World Airports and Richard Smith, C.M., Aviation Division Chief, Los Angeles County Aviation. AAAE Press Release
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The airline fee to sit with your family -- Parents are having an increasingly difficult time guaranteeing free seats next to their children. Airlines have expanded extra-legroom seating on planes and labeled more plain coach seats as preferred, leaving fewer seats to reserve in advance without fees. Extra-legroom seats on Delta are up to 16% of the coach cabin from 12% because of strong passenger demand, and another 16% of seats on average are preferred. With United, extra-legroom seats are now more than 25% of the coach cabin. Scott McCartney/Wall Street Journal
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Cathay Pacific chairman says global airlines facing consolidation pressure -- Economic headwinds are about to usher in a wave of airline industry consolidation globally, said John Slosar, chairman of Cathay Pacific Airways. Speaking at an industry gathering on Wednesday, Slosar said industry consolidation, the emergence of Chinese airlines as international brands, and investment into data analytics are among the ongoing trends in the industry. Sijia Jiang/South China Morning Post
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American Airlines waives man's $200 change fee after witty letter -- The next time an airline hits you with a fee, you can either go on an epic rant about "Big" Business and their "evil" ways. Or you can do what Alex Hamberger did. He took the honey over the vinegar approach and look where it got him. Back in March, a sudden illness forced Hamberger of Buffalo, New York, to cancel a flight to see his 9-month-old niece in Kansas City. He had to rebook, and we all know what that means: a $200 change fee. Ouch. So Hamberger reached out to American Airlines' customer service department to request the airline drop the change fee. Doug Criss/CNN
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Survey: Security lines discourage 22% of airline travelers -- About one in five travelers planning to travel between Memorial Day and Labor Day will avoid airlines or cancel the trip entirely because of lengthy airport security checkpoint lines, according to a U.S. Travel Association survey. But some say that appraisal could be too pessimistic and fails to consider that airlines may lower fares to sell tickets. About 22% of respondents in the survey said recent media coverage of travelers waiting for hours at checkpoints discourages them from flying. Bart Jansen/USA Today
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TSA gridlock will cost $4.3 billion -- Air travel is shaping up to look like a nightmare this summer, especially at many big airports and hub cities. And as a result, some travelers are rethinking their plans. Many Americans now say they'll avoid planes and airports altogether. The reduced spending will mean a loss of $4.3 billion for the June-August peak summer season, according to the U.S. Travel Association. Martha C. White/Money
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Boeing and Airbus are facing the end of their duopoly, analyst says -- Delta's decision to order 75 Bombardier CS100 jets may be the harbinger of dramatic change in an aircraft manufacturing industry that has long been the purview of two companies, Boeing and Airbus, according to a new report by a Moody's aerospace analyst. "The beginning of the end of the long-running Boeing/Airbus duopoly is upon us," wrote Moody's analyst Russell Solomon in a report issued Tuesday and titled "The Gloves Come Off as Boeing and Airbus Fight More Than Just Each Other for Share." Ted Reed/The Street
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| Transportation Network Companies |
Uber and Lyft threaten to abandon Chicago to avoid licensing -- Two-thirds of Chicago's 50 aldermen want to license ride-hailing drivers to improve public safety and level the playing field with a taxicab industry fighting for survival against Uber and Lyft. That didn't change Wednesday even after a day-long hearing that saw both companies play the race card and threaten to abandon the Chicago market if that's what it takes to avoid licensing. "If this ordinance were to pass, ride-sharing as we know it would no longer exist in Chicago," said Uber's Chicago general manager Marco McCottry. Fran Spielman/Chicago Sun-Times
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