Tag: Flight

Boom’s supersonic prototype prepares for 2018 test flight

Reuters — Colorado-based start-up Boom Supersonic is hoping to compete with the major airline companies by developing a new supersonic passenger jet. If successful, their supersonic airliner will fly 2.6 times faster than any other aircraft on the market today. Hitting speeds up to 1,451 miles per hour, the planes could reduce typical New York to London flight times of seven hours to little more than three hours. Boom is aiming to test their XB-1 […]

More Heathrow chaos as BA scrambles to recover from IT crash

by James Pheby Agence France Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Thousands of travelers faced further chaos on Sunday as British Airways cancelled more than a hundred flights from London’s Heathrow Airport following an IT system failure. Around a quarter of Sunday’s flights set to depart from London’s major hub before 10.00 pm (2100 GMT) were cancelled as the airline battled to contain the “knock-on disruption” to schedules, with aircraft and crews out of position […]

Man dragged off United flight plans to sue: lawyers

by Nova SAFO Agence France Presse CHICAGO, United States (AFP) — The man dragged off a United Airlines flight, sparking an international uproar, suffered a broken nose and concussion, his lawyer said Thursday, adding that he is planning to sue. David Dao was released from the hospital overnight and was at a “secure location,” attorney Thomas Demetrio said at a news conference during which a member of Dao’s family spoke out for the first time. […]

United Airlines CEO won’t resign

By John BIERS Agence France Presse NEW YORK, United States — United Continental chief executive officer Oscar Muñoz said Wednesday he will not resign and again apologized for the removal of a customer from an overbooked flight by force — an incident that drew global scorn. “I was hired to make United better and we’ve been doing that and that’s what I’ll continue to do,” Muñoz said, when asked about calls for his resignation as leader […]

United passenger dragged off overbooked flight

by Nova Safo Agence France Presse CHICAGO, United States (AFP) — United Airlines found itself in the middle of a social media storm on Monday, after the US carrier forcibly removed a passenger from a flight due to overbooking. The incident occurred Sunday on a United Express flight bound for Louisville, Kentucky, from Chicago. United Express flights are operated by one of eight regional airlines which partner with United. The airline said it had asked […]

US may widen ban of carry-on computers on planes

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States may soon expand its ban on air passengers carrying computers on board on US-bound flights, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said Wednesday. The threat of a terror group trying to blow up an aircraft mid-flight is constant, he told a Senate hearing on border security, suggesting that the current ban might not have gone far enough. “It’s real, I think it’s getting realer,” he said of the […]

UK laptop ban on flights to be implemented by Saturday

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Airlines impacted by Britain’s cabin ban on electronic devices on flights from some Middle East and North Africa countries have until Saturday to implement the measure, officials said Wednesday. But passengers “should go to the airport with the expectation that the measures are already in effect”, a transport ministry spokeswoman said. On Tuesday, Britain said it would tighten airline security on direct flights originating from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, […]

US to ban some airline passengers from carrying large electronic devices

LOS ANGELES, United States (Reuters) — Passengers traveling on certain United States-bound foreign airline flights will have to check in electronic devices larger than a cell phone once US authorities formalize a new ban in response to an unspecified terrorism threat, US officials told Reuters on Monday (March 20). The new rule is expected to be announced Tuesday by the Department of Homeland Security, the officials said, adding that it had been under consideration since the […]

Headphone batteries explode during flight to Australia

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — A woman suffered burns to her face and hands after her headphones caught fire during a flight to Australia, officials said Wednesday as they warned about the dangers of battery-operated devices on planes. The passenger was listening to music on her own battery-operated headphones as she dozed on the flight from Beijing to Melbourne on February 19 when there was a loud explosion. “As I went to turn around I felt […]

NASA mulls putting astronauts on deep space test flight

MIAMI, United States (AFP) — The US space agency said Friday it is considering putting astronauts on an upcoming test flight of the deep space capsule Orion as it aims to orbit the Moon. Orion is being built with an eye to one day ferrying astronauts to Earth’s neighboring planet, Mars, perhaps by the 2030s. Until now, the Orion test flight known as Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) was scheduled for 2018 and was expected to […]

Singapore eyes increased investments, more flights to Manila

MANILA, Jan. 6 – The government of Singapore has expressed interest in further increasing its investments in the Philippines, as well as adding more flights to Manila in anticipation of increased demand in air travel between the two countries. In a recent meeting with Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, Singaporean Ambassador to Manila Kok Li Peng said Singapore’s private sector would like to explore new growth opportunities in the Philippines, particularly in the retail, transportation, […]

US military resumes Osprey flights in Japan after crash

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — The US Marines on Monday resumed flights of their controversial Osprey aircraft in Japan, less than a week after a crash off the southern island of Okinawa sparked local protests. Last Tuesday an MV-22 Osprey made what Marines called a “controlled landing” just off the Okinawan coast during a night training flight that left the aircraft in pieces. No one was killed but the accident sparked anger on the island — […]