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The vast majority of the time, passengers don’t have any problems boarding their flights. But occasionally, airlines may “bump” passengers and have them give up their seats. Bumping, also known as “denied boarding,” happens when there are more passengers scheduled to fly on an airplane than available seats.
The business practice of bumping is not illegal. Airlines oversell their scheduled flights to a certain...
WASHINGTON – Airlines reported 15 tarmac delays of more than three hours on domestic flights and five tarmac delays of more than four hours on international flights in August, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Air Travel Consumer Report released today. All reported extended tarmac delays are being investigated by the Department. Previous investigations of tarmac delays have resulted in enforcement action by the Department.
The reporting carriers...
WASHINGTON – In April, the U.S. Department of Transportation received 1,122 complaints about airline service from consumers, down 20.9 percent from the total of 1,419 filed in April 2015 and down 21.5 percent from the 1,429 received in March 2016, according to the Air Travel Consumer Report released today.
The reporting carriers posted an on-time arrival rate of 84.5 percent in April 2016, up from both the 81.8 percent on-time rate in April 2015 and the 81.5 percent...
The Department of Transportation is issuing a final rule to extend the smoking ban in 14 CFR Part 252 to include all charter (i.e., nonscheduled) flights where a flight attendant is a required crewmember. The revised Part 252 would comport with 49 U.S.C. § 41706, which was revised in 2012, to ban smoking on charter flights where a flight attendant is a required crewmember. This final rule also explicitly bans the use of electronic cigarettes (“e-cigarettes”) on all flights where smoking is...
The Department of Transportation is issuing a final rule to extend the smoking ban in 14 CFR Part 252 to include all charter (i.e., nonscheduled) flights where a flight attendant is a required crewmember. The revised Part 252 would comport with 49 U.S.C. § 41706, which was revised in 2012, to ban smoking on charter flights where a flight attendant is a required crewmember. This final rule also explicitly bans the use of electronic cigarettes (“e-cigarettes”) on all flights where smoking is...
WASHINGTON – Airline consumer complaints filed with DOT’s Aviation Consumer Protection Division during 2015 were up 29.8 percent from 2014, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Air Travel Consumer Report released today.For all of last year, the Department received 20,170 complaints, up from the total of 15,539 received in 2014. In December 2015, the Department received 1,565 complaints about airline service from consumers, up 46.9 percent from the total of 1,065...
WASHINGTON – Airline consumer complaints filed with DOT’s Aviation Consumer Protection Division in March 2015 were up 55.1 percent from March 2014 and up 27.2 percent from February 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Air Travel Consumer Report released today.In March 2015, the Department received 1,733 complaints about airline service from consumers, up from the total of 1,117 filed in March 2014 and the 1,362 received in February 2015. For the first quarter of this...
Consumers Cautioned on Air Tours to College Bowl Games. The U.S. Department of Transportation today reminded air travelers going to this season’s college football bowl games that a company marketing an air tour package that includes game tickets must have the tickets in hand or have a written contract for the tickets before advertising the tour. If a travel agent or other tour representative states that a game ticket is included, the consumer should require at the time of...
DOT 112-12 Qantas Fined for Failing to Disclose Baggage FeesWASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today assessed a civil penalty of $100,000 against Qantas, an Australian air carrier, for violating the Department’s new rule requiring carriers and ticket agents to inform consumers that they may have to pay baggage fees, and directed Qantas to cease and desist from further violations.“Airline passengers deserve to have complete and accurate information about...
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today fined Xtra Airways $300,000 for violating rules protecting passengers when their public charter flights are suddenly canceled, and ordered the carrier to cease and desist from further violations.
This notice is intended to give guidance to air carriers and foreign air carriers on disclosure of carrier baggage policies and associated fees in connection with checked baggage. The general industry practice until recently has been to allow passengers two free checked bags, generally of up to 50 or 70 pounds each. Several air carriers have recently adopted policies of charging passengers an amount, in addition to the fare already paid, for any checked baggage or for more than one checked...
This notice is intended to give guidance to air carriers and foreign air carriers on disclosure of carrier baggage policies and associated fees in connection with checked baggage. The general industry practice until recently has been to allow passengers two free checked bags, generally of up to 50 or 70 pounds each. Several air carriers have recently adopted policies of charging passengers an amount, in addition to the fare already paid, for any checked baggage or for more than one checked...