Category Archives: Air transport

Fears of UK and EU flight cancellations as airports warn of jet fuel shortages

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Summer holidays could be hit unless oil flows through strait of Hormuz recommence within three weeks

Airports have warned that jet fuel could run short within three weeks in Europe if oil supplies do not start to flow through the strait of Hormuz, raising concerns over flight cancellations in the UK and EU going into the summer holiday season.

Jet fuel shortages will become so acute without the resumption of supplies from the Middle East that cancellations across Europe will be inevitable, disrupting travel plans for potentially millions of passengers.

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Stork warning: woman gives birth midair on Jamaica-to-New York flight

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Baby was delivered during Caribbean Airlines flight from Kingston to the US; nationality of child to be determined

A routine passenger flight from Jamaica landed at New York’s John F Kennedy international airport with one more person than it took off with after a woman gave birth in midair, potentially setting up a tricky situation over the newborn’s citizenship.

The “medical event” occurred on a Caribbean Airlines flight from Kingston on Saturday, according to a news release from the carrier.

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ICE arrested more than 800 people after tips from TSA, investigation shows

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Reuters uncovers that the TSA shared more than 31,000 traveler records with ICE for immigration enforcement

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested more than 800 people following tips shared by federal airport security officials from the start of Donald Trump’s second presidency through February 2026, according to internal agency data reviewed by Reuters – a figure far above what was previously publicly known.

The leads came from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which supplied ICE with records on more than 31,000 travelers for possible immigration enforcement, the data showed.

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Air Canada CEO to resign after backlash to video tribute of pilots killed in crash

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Michael Rousseau faced mockery for speaking English and not French while addressing fatal LaGuardia airport crash

The head of Canada’s largest airline is stepping down after his video tribute to pilots killed in a fatal collision became a public relations nightmare for Air Canada, prompting a wave of mockery and indignation at him from both the public and politicians for not speaking French.

Air Canada’s CEO, Michael Rousseau, will retire by the end of the third quarter of 2026, the company said Monday. He will continue to lead the company and serve on the board of directors until that time, the carrier said.

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DHS funding freeze now longest partial government shutdown in US history

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If the now six-week partial shutdown continues after the weekend, it will become the longest of any shutdown

The shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the fourth-largest agency in the US government, became the longest partial shutdown in US history on Sunday.

If the now six-week partial shutdown continues after the weekend, it will also become the longest of any shutdown, surpassing the impasse late last year that dragged on for 43 days.

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US passengers enraged by hours-long lines and missed flights: ‘Absolutely insane’

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Some people are opting not to travel at all amid what they call ‘a manufactured crisis by the Trump administration’

Passengers across the US have had their travel plans upended by the latest Department of Homeland Security shutdown, which has triggered widespread staffing shortages at airports as security employees go weeks without pay.

“We are returning from St Thomas, US Virgin Islands to Boston today and it took fully three hours to get through US customs. Absolutely insane,” Boston-based passenger John Hildebrandt told the Guardian.

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LaGuardia pilots raised safety alarms months before deadly runway crash

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Nasa reports show repeated warnings of close calls before crash that killed two pilots and injured 41 others

Pilot safety concerns about New York’s LaGuardia airport were filed to aviation officials months before Sunday’s collision between an airplane and a firetruck left two pilots dead and 41 other people hospitalized.

According to the aviation safety reporting system administered by the US space agency Nasa, a pilot using the airport in the summer wrote, “Please do something,” after air traffic controllers failed to provide appropriate guidance about multiple nearby aircraft.

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TSA lines stretch for hours as Trump deploys ICE agents to US airports

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President claims immigration agents could help manage long lines as TSA agents go unpaid during partial shutdown

Security lines stretched for hours on Monday at US airports where unpaid Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) screening agents refused to report for duty and ICE agents deployed by Donald Trump were reportedly seen in a dozen cities.

The president claimed over the weekend that immigration agents could help manage long lines, but in Atlanta, little immediate impact of their presence could be observed. Meanwhile, airport staff were getting creative trying to herd thousands of discontented passengers.

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‘A miracle’: Canadian flight attendant ejected from plane survives New York crash

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Solange Tremblay was ejected over 100 metres from the plane after collision at LaGuardia airport, her daughter says

A flight attendant on the Air Canada Jazz flight that collided with a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia airport on Sunday survived in what her daughter called a “complete miracle”, when she was ejected more than 100 metres from the plane while still strapped to her seat.

The CRJ-900 jet, operated by Jazz Aviation, collided with a fire truck as it landed, killing both the pilot and co-pilot. Nine people were sent to the hospital with injuries, including Solange Tremblay, a flight attendant.

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Air Canada plane collides with ground vehicle at New York’s LaGuardia airport, halting all flights

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The regulator has issued a ground stop for all planes and New York’s emergency management authority warned people to expect cancellations and delays

New York’s LaGuardia airport was closed to flights early on Monday after an Air Canada flight and Port Authority vehicle collided.

The New York police department confirmed the collision but could not immediately offer further information. A spokesperson for the New York City Fire Department said firefighters responded to reports of a plane that crashed into a vehicle on the runway at 11:38pm.

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ICE agents will be deployed to US airports on Monday to ease long lines

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Trump and border czar Tom Homan confirm plan to assist TSA agents amid partial government shutdown standoff

Donald Trump and his border czar, Tom Homan, have confirmed that the president’s administration is sending Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to US airports beginning on Monday to assist with security amid extremely long lines – and to help airport security agents who have been working without pay since 14 February because of a partial government shutdown.

Homan will lead the effort, Trump said on Sunday.

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Security lines persist at US airports as Congress negotiates DHS funding

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Senate Democrats sent counteroffer on Monday aimed at resolving budget standoff

Negotiations for Congress to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) – which oversees airport security officers – remained ongoing as the airport in Atlanta, the world’s busiest, dealt with long security lines on Tuesday.

A White House official confirmed that Senate Democrats sent a counteroffer on Monday aimed at resolving a budget standoff that led to a DHS shutdown into its second month. A Trump administration official confirmed to the Guardian that the offer by Democrats was under review, though Republican lawmakers were quick to dismiss the proposal.

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BA owner’s profits rise by 20% despite drop in passenger numbers last year

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IAG reports record operating profits on margins of more than 15% at British Airways and sister airline Iberia

British Airways’ owner, International Airlines Group, has announced a sharp rise in annual profits to almost £4bn despite a slight fall in passenger numbers in 2025.

Pre-tax profits across IAG increased by 20% to €4.5bn (£3.9bn), with record operating profits on margins of more than 15% at BA and its sister airline Iberia.

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Winter storm brings foot of snow to midwest over busiest US travel weekend

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Plane skidded off runway and 45 cars were piled up as 53 million were under winter weather alerts over Thanksgiving

A Thanksgiving weekend storm system brought over a foot of snow and strong winds across the US midwest and thunderstorms across the south, as 53 million people from South Dakota to New York were under winter weather alerts.

Over the weekend, ahead of one of the busiest travel days of the year on Sunday, a 45-car pile-up occurred on interstate 78 in Indiana and a Delta Air Lines plane skidded off the runway in Des Moines, Iowa, during landing.

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Two dead after small plane on hurricane relief trip to Jamaica crashes in Florida

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Aircraft headed to island on Hurricane Melissa aid mission crashed into a pond in a neighborhood in Coral Springs

A small turboprop plane on a hurricane relief mission to Jamaica crashed into a pond in a gated residential neighborhood of the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Coral Springs, killing two people shortly after takeoff and narrowly missing homes, authorities and a local resident said.

The Coral Springs police department confirmed the deaths in a statement Monday afternoon. But police did not provide further details about the occupants of the plane and did not immediately return messages seeking more details.

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US flight cancellations rise as Sean Duffy warns travel could reduce to a ‘trickle’

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Over 2,500 flights cancelled as transportation secretary says flight reductions could reach 20% if shutdown persists

Flight cancellations and delays are set to grow as airline passengers across the United States spent the weekend grappling with those issues at major airports nationwide after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) mandated a 4% reduction in air traffic in response to the ongoing federal government shutdown.

If the shutdown continues, the FAA has instructed airlines to cut 6% of flights on Tuesday – and to do the same to 10% by 14 November. The transportation secretary, Sean Duffy, has warned that flight reductions could reach 20% if the shutdown persists, and on Sunday he predicted a “substantial” number of people in the US would be unable to celebrate the upcoming holidays with their families if the shutdown wasn’t resolved.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed reporting

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Nearly 1,500 flights canceled on second day of cuts tied to government shutdown

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Charlotte, North Carolina, has the most cancellations – at 120 – as industry experts say other sectors might also feel effects

US airlines canceled 1,460 flights on Saturday, the second day of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) order to reduce air traffic because of the government shutdown.

So far, the slowdown at many of the nation’s busiest airports hasn’t caused widespread disruptions. But it has deepened the impact felt by what is now the nation’s longest federal shutdown.

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New York, LA, Chicago and Washington DC airports among 40 facing air traffic reductions

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US government shutdown blamed for cuts from Friday, two weeks before busy Thanksgiving holiday travel period

New York, Los Angeles and Chicago airports are among 40 that will see reductions in flights from Friday as a result of the government shutdown, according to a list distributed to the airlines.

The Associated Press published the list after airline regulators identified “high-volume markets” where the Federal Administration Agency says air traffic must be reduced by 4% by 6am ET on Friday, a move that would force airlines to cancel thousands of flights and create a cascade of scheduling issues and delays at some of the nation’s largest airports.

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Air safety officials to investigate deadly UPS cargo plane crash near Kentucky airport

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Aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff at Louisville international airport, killing at least nine and injuring 11

Dozens of air safety investigators are set to arrive in Kentucky on Wednesday to piece together evidence on how a UPS cargo plane crashed and erupted into a huge fireball, killing at least nine people and injuring a further 11.

At least 28 National Transportation Safety Board agents will start searching for clues about the possible cause of the disaster, which saw the UPS plane crash shortly after takeoff at the Louisville Muhammad Ali international airport, leaving behind a fiery trail of destruction on the ground and a huge plume of black smoke.

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Flights delayed across US amid air traffic controller shortages as shutdown drags on

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Nearly 50% of 30 busiest airports facing absences as staff are forced to work without pay and shutdown hits 31st day

Nearly 50% of the 30 busiest US airports faced shortages of air traffic controllers, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Friday, leading to flight delays nationwide as a federal government shutdown hit its 31st day.

The absence of controllers on Friday is by far the most widespread since the shutdown began, with one of the worst-hit regions being New York, where 80% of air traffic controllers were out, the agency said.

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