Aviation

A man who aimed a green laser pointer at a Delta Air Lines flight on approach to Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF) has been sentenced to 18 months in prison. During the March 2024 incident, Joseph L. Crapsi, 31, of Cheektowaga, repeatedly aimed the laser at the aircraft during the critical phase of flight.

According to one of the pilots, the attack lasted between 60 and 90 seconds, adding that he felt "something horrible would happen." Laser attacks are a serious threat that can temporarily blind pilots and, in severe cases, cause permanent damage, as well as endanger the safety of an aircraft and its occupants.

Context is important here — San Diego has a single runway, and also has rather limited space for planes to taxi, so when the airport gets busy, getting all planes to and from the runways is a bit of a jigsaw puzzle for air traffic controllers. That’s especially tricky when planes land before their gate is ready, and they need somewhere to wait.

So this was one of those situations where the ground controller obviously had a lot of planes that wanted to move, but limited ability to actually move them. Airline pilots are also always looking to move as soon as possible, and sometimes they want to remind air traffic controllers of their desire to move, follow up on progress, etc.

Delta Air Lines is rolling out what feels like ‘enshitification’ of international Business Class with a new basic fare option that strips away premium check-in and lounge access, slashes the luggage allowance, reduces the amount of miles you’ll earn, and prevents you from selecting a seat until check-in.

The term “enshitification” has become a popular way of describing products or services that gradually lose value as companies introduce extra fees, restrictions, or lower-tier options while encouraging customers to pay more for the experience they previously received.

Water-dropping choppers were brought in to help keep the fire from spreading. The Los Angeles Police Department said a drone smacked into one of its helicopters, which was dispatched to the scene of the fire. Police said the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing.

A locking pin that was meant to secure the main nose gear of a Lufthansa Boeing 787 Dreamliner that collapsed at Frankfurt Airport as engineers carried out maintenance on the brand new aircraft was not inserted into the correct hole. Instead, the locking pin found was found in a storage box in the avionics bay below the plane’s cockpit, aircraft accident investigators have revealed.

Oslo-based Norwegian Air has replaced its own logo on its official Instagram page with that of British Airways after losing a bet with the rival carrier over who would prevail in the hotly contested quarterfinal match between England and Norway in the FIFA World Cup on Saturday.

Today, the airline adds nonstop daily service from Fort Lauderdale to Baltimore, Charlotte, Cleveland, Nashville, Detroit, Houston, Chicago and Ponce, Puerto Rico. New service to Indianapolis, San Diego, Columbus, Ohio, Cali, Colombia, Barranquilla, Colombia and Caracas, Venezuela are set to begin in the coming months.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/67385842

Eight people were removed from the Kodiak 100 seaplane by fire department units and two had minor injures.

Stopover programs enable connecting flyers to take a break in their flight itinerary for days or sometimes weeks. They are especially popular with airlines that serve a high proportion of one-stop international flyers. 

Airlines often team up with local hotels, tour operators and attractions on cross-promotions related to their stopover programs, which they market as an opportunity to visit two distant destinations on one fare.

The actual product being sold is privacy. Traditional premium travel generally improves comfort while keeping passengers inside the same airport system as everyone else. Travelers may move through priority lanes, receive better service, or gain access to exclusive spaces, but they still operate within the same infrastructure. PS changes that dynamic by reducing interaction with the system itself. Privacy, predictability, and control are increasingly becoming the primary value proposition rather than visible luxury features.

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company will once again bring its iconic Goodyear Blimp to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, with Wingfoot One scheduled to arrive on Thursday, July 23, during the world’s largest fly-in convention. EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2026 takes place July 20–26 at Wittman Regional Airport. The appearance continues a decades-long tradition of Goodyear blimps flying over Oshkosh. This year’s visit also marks 55 years since the Goodyear Blimp America made its first appearance at the EAA fly-in in 1971. Most recently, Goodyear celebrated the 100th anniversary of its first branded blimp, Pilgrim, by bringing two blimps to AirVenture in 2025. Throughout the week, Wingfoot One is expected to make several flights over the grounds, becoming one of the event’s most recognizable attractions both in the air and while parked near Pioneer Airport.

A Delta Air Lines jet was struck by a firework while landing at Chicago's Midway International Airport (MDW) on July 4. The incident occurred at around 8:40 PM as the Airbus A319 was at roughly 200 feet, with pilots telling air traffic control (ATC) they "felt a big bang."

Fortunately, the aircraft — operating Flight DL1076 from Delta's Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) megahub — landed safely at Chicago Midway just moments later without declaring an emergency, with no reported injuries among the passengers or crew.

It's really happening: the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is getting a third commercial airport. And from the start, it will be anchored by one of America's newest budget airlines.

Avelo Airlines on Tuesday announced it will be the first carrier to serve McKinney National Airport (DTX), which is expected to debut its new terminal and commercial flights later this year.

The five-year-old budget airline revealed its first five nonstop destinations, too, with service to four Florida cities — along with Las Vegas – set to launch in November.

As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, several US airlines have added special liveries to aircraft in their fleets, turning some of their aircraft into flying tributes to the semiquincentennial. America250, established by Congress in 2016, is the national organization coordinating the commemoration of the anniversary on 4 July 2026.

Some aircraft feature a complete special livery, while others have added a decal or partial livery.

cross-posted from: https://sopuli.xyz/post/48197477

As JetZero’s blended wing body (BWB) demonstrator takes shape, the airframer is touting a new milestone for future certification, as it targets a commercial entry into service in the early 2030s.

As of this spring, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has moved JetZero into its Integrated Certificate Management Office (AIR-500), and out of the division designated for emerging technologies. The development advances JetZero’s Z4 commercial variant toward Part 25 certification.

Airlines may soon be given far more freedom in how they advertise airfares after the Department of Transportation (DOT) proposed fully repealing an Obama-era rule that forces airlines to include a tax-inclusive airfare in advertisements and commercials.

The so-called ‘Full Fare Rule’ was introduced in 2011, and it was designed to prevent airlines from misleading consumers about the true cost of airfare by advertising cheaper flights that required multiple connections but which would then cost more than a non-stop flight when you added taxes and fees.

Airlines were also required to make the total price (including taxes) more prominent than any other components of the airfare, so that consumers weren’t confused about the price they may end up paying for a flight.

FRANKFURT—SAS Scandinavian Airlines has placed an order for 18 Airbus A330neos in a bid to expand its long-haul network and build a third hub in the future Air France-KLM Group.

“Combining outstanding economics with improved environmental performance, the aircraft will play a key role in our long-term fleet strategy,” SAS CEO Anko van der Werff said June 30. "This is the largest investment in our company’s history and a clear signal of our confidence in the future.”

Europe's airports and airlines have issued an urgent appeal to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, warning that the rollout of the Schengen Entry/Exit System (EES) has reached a "critical point" and is causing severe disruption for millions of travellers during the peak summer season.

Air New Zealand has 10 787s on order and it ​is looking to trim spending at a time when elevated fuel costs due to the Middle East conflict have piled onto existing pressures, leading the company to forecast its largest pre-tax annual loss in four years in May, and impose two rounds of fare increases.

The company on Tuesday noted significant ​operational and financial pressures in the past few years, including aircraft and engine availability constraints, rising aviation system costs and ​a weak New Zealand economy.

The Super Guppy first appeared at Oshkosh in 2000 and most recently attended AirVenture in 2023. Developed during the 1960s by Aero Spacelines Industries (ASI) and derived from the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter, the Super Guppy remains one of the most unusual aircraft flying today. Designed specifically to transport oversized cargo, the aircraft features an enormous fuselage measuring 111 feet, 6 inches in length, with a maximum internal height of 25 feet, 6 inches, and a diameter of 25 feet. Powered by four Allison T56 turboprop engines, the Super Guppy has a maximum takeoff weight of 170,000 pounds and can carry payloads of up to 48,000 pounds. The aircraft cruises at approximately 290 mph at an altitude of 25,000 feet. One of the Super Guppy’s most distinctive features is its hinged nose section, which swings open 110 degrees—much like a giant refrigerator door—to allow front-loading of cargo. Freight is carried on pallets and moved within the cargo compartment using an integrated rail system.

American Airlines faces a mammoth $2.64 million annual fee to allow its workforce of more than 47,500 pilots and flight attendants to skip past regular TSA airport security screening, as the Department of Homeland Security introduces a new fee as part of the introduction of its ‘Crewmember Access Point’ program.

United Airlines faces a similar annual bill of $2.17 million, and Delta Air Lines will be charged around $1.95 million per year for its aircrew to access the program. Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines will end up paying appoximately $1.38 million per year and JetBlue around $456,000.

Since 2011, pilots and flight attendants have been allowed to skip the regular passenger screening lane via a program called ‘Known Crewmember,’ which was set up as a joint initiative between the Air Line Pilots Association and industry trade group Airlines For America (A4A).