Free Republic

Airlines have canceled more than 1,000 flights to comply with a shutdown-related FAA directive to reduce traffic at 40 airports, including Atlanta, Chicago and Dallas. Airlines canceled hundreds of flights Friday — the highest number since the government shutdown began — as they scrambled to comply with a Trump administration order to reduce air traffic amid growing concerns about potential staffing shortages. The administration announced Wednesday that it would direct U.S. carriers to trim their schedules by 10 percent at 40 U.S. airports — including major hubs in Atlanta, New York, Chicago and Dallas. “This isn’t about politics — it’s...

Aussies are one step closer to direct London and New York flights, with Qantas unveiling the first pictures of its new long-haul aircraft on Friday morning. Known as 'Project Sunrise', the service is named for the phenomenon where passengers on the London route see two sunrises during their flight. The first aircraft is now on the Airbus assembly line in France. Qantas will operate 12 specially configured aircraft, enabling the world's longest commercial flights and connecting Australia's east coast - both Melbourne and Sydney - non-stop to London and New York for the very first time.

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford told reporters that the reduction will begin on Friday and is intended to alleviate pressure on air traffic controllers. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Wednesday announced that it would reduce flight capacity at the United States' top 40 high-traffic markets by 10% later this week amid the record-long federal government shutdown.The move comes because of a staffing shortage at airports nationwide because of the government shutdown, which began on Oct. 1. The Transportation Department has seen a high number of air traffic controllers call in sick amid the shutdown because they are required to...

Travel chaos has hit across the US on Wednesday evening as staffing shortages from the ongoing government shutdown have triggered major flight delays. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said at least 17 airports, from San Francisco to Chicago and New York City, could experience delays of up to seven hours lasting into early Thursday. The average wait time is expected to be around 2 hours and 20 minutes.The affected include Newark (EWR), JFK, LaGuardia (LGA), Los Angeles (LAX), Atlanta (ATL), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Miami (MIA), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), Houston (IAH, HOU) and Washington DC area (DCA, IAD, BWI).San Francisco (SFO),...

Prince William's visit to Brazil for his Earthshot Prize climate change project drew criticism on social media over his carbon footprint. The Prince of Wales gives out £1 million [around $1.3 million] in funding to each of five innovative solutions to the climate crisis, holding each ceremony on a different continent. This year Earthshot has taken him to Rio de Janeiro, making the event a prelude to climate conference COP30, also in Brazil, but in Belém, from November 10 to 21. A post on X read: "Prince William jets 5,500 miles to Brazil for his £300k taxpayer-funded 'eco' trip preaching...

A Minnesota pilot found himself in a bizarre situation this month, as he was forced to make an emergency landing on a Native American reservation, only to learn that he was about to face an even more frustrating ordeal. The Daily Mail reported on the strange incident: Native American tribe snatches pilot's plane from him after he made emergency landing on their reservation https://t.co/FgD6LkQntk— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) October 31, 2025Darrin Smedsmo was flying over the Red Lake Indian Reservation when his single - engine Stinson airplane suddenly stopped working mid - air. With less than three minutes until disaster, the...

As the Schumer shutdown drags on, the dam is starting to break against Democrats. Airline CEOs lined up on Thursday to demand the passage of a clean CR, citing the possibility of future delays and cancellations. Air traffic controllers are currently working without pay, and if the system shuts down, it's game over for commercial air travel. Over the past few weeks, ALPA and SWAPA, which represent most major airline pilots in the United States, publicly called for the passage of a clean CR. But while you'd expect pilots, who still tend to lean right, to take that position, having...

More controllers are now calling in sick and some are working second jobs to make ends meet, according to union officials.As air traffic controllers miss their first full paycheck, more are calling in sick and some are working second jobs to make ends meet, according to union officials. (Scripps News) Air traffic controllers are missing their first full paycheck on Tuesday due to the government shutdown.The National Air Traffic Controllers Association, which represents those workers, is sharing the stories of those workers in an effort to push lawmakers to reopen the government.The president of the union says the added stress...

Several pilot unions and associations have issued statements calling for the passage of a clean continuing resolution (CR) in order to reopen the government and end the ongoing shutdown. Unions such as the Coalition of Airline Pilots Associations (CAPA), the NetJets Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots, the Allied Pilots Association (APA), and the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association (SWAPA), have issued statements calling upon lawmakers to support a clean CR, which Democrats have continued to oppose, according to USA Today. The statements from the unions come as roughly 13,000 air traffic controllers are currently working without being paid during the ongoing...

(The Epoch Times)—More than 5,600 flights across the United States were delayed on Oct. 27 primarily due to air traffic controller staffing shortages, as the federal government shutdown entered its fourth week. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said ground delay programs were put in place at major airports like Newark Airport in New Jersey, Austin Airport in Texas, and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. Flights in the southeast have also experienced delays due to significant staffing shortages at the Atlanta Terminal Radar Approach Control, which oversees much of the region’s air traffic, according to the FAA. The agency cited air traffic...

Americans are likely to face even more flight interruptions after Congress failed to provide last-minute relief for air-traffic controllers and other federal aviation workers whose paychecks will stall due to the government shutdown. While Donald Trump's administration moved funds to delay impact on some areas – such as pay for the troops – lawmakers warn that next week aviation workers will not receive their paychecks. Around 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 TSA officers are facing work without pay, leading to surging absences and sick says. Since the shutdown began on October 1, staff absences have contributed to 53 percent...

The male flight attendant had just arrived at Atlanta Airport and was in his uniform when he began accusing the female gate agent of displaying unprofessionalism and being 'ghetto.' As the pair walk through the terminal, he says: 'This is ridiculous. This is the worst airport, and y'all make Southwest look horrible. 'That customer service is ridiculous.' As the woman veers away from him and walks toward the gate, the Delta employee follows behind her, rolling his suitcase after her as he adds: 'It's ghetto. 'That's because it's Atlanta, y'all have no respect for customer service. Y'all need to clean...

Welcome, and congratulations. You’ve lived long enough to see the age of flying cars—privately owned, solo-piloted aircraft, free to operate in unrestricted airspace, much as automobiles can take to the open road. And they’re all electric. I knew you’d be thrilled.Here in the future, we call them ultralight eVTOLs (electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles). Of course, they don’t much resemble the levitating Studebakers and auto-gyrating Chevys foretold in pulp science fiction. The Pivotal BlackFly—the first series-produced ultralight eVTOL to reach the consumer market (2023)—doesn’t even have wheels. It takes off and lands on its curved keel. It’s also amphibious,...

An entitled passenger triggered a chaos on a plane when she blocked the isle and refused to move while others were trying to disembark. Footage of the ordeal shows a crowd of people waiting to leave the Frontier Airlines aircraft after landing in Baltimore, Maryland, only to be blocked by the stubborn woman. As she refused to budge, fuming passengers ganged up on her and demanded she get out of the way.

Nearly 11,000 air traffic controllers nationwide are working without pay amid a shutdown of the federal government, officials said. On Monday, Oct. 6, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy delivered remarks at a news conference at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey after speaking with air traffic controllers, who are required to keep working despite Congress grinding to a halt after failing to pass a spending bill to fund the government past Sept. 30. "What the consistent message was, from these controllers, was they're not just now thinking about the airspace and the jobs they have to do in these towers...

California Governor Gavin Newsom has slammed Donald Trump as travelers in Los Angeles brace for chaos and major delays to flights due to the government shutdown.The Federal Aviation Authority on Monday warned air traffic control towers at Hollywood Burbank Airport would be unmanned until at least 10pm local time.Newsom blamed the lack of staffing on the government shutdown and hammered Trump on X. 'Thanks, @realDonaldTrump! Burbank Airport has ZERO air traffic controllers from 4:15pm to 10pm today because of YOUR government shutdown,' the California governor wrote. The White House, when asked for comment by The Daily Mail, sent an automatic...

Researchers from Purdue University are set to travel to the South Pacific to determine if a "visual anomaly" on a remote island is the wreck of Amelia Earhart's lost plane, saying there is "very strong" evidence the object is the iconic aviator's aircraft. Earhart was attempting to become the first female pilot to circle the world when she and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared over the Pacific Ocean on July 2, 1937. Earhart, Noonan and their plane, an Electra 10E, were never found. Recently, President Trump ordered records related to Earhart be declassified. In 2020, researchers looking at satellite imagery identified...

A New Jersey-bound plane was forced to divert after an unruly passenger wearing over a dozen facemasks began ranting that gay people were giving him cancer. The Sun Country Airlines plane left Minneapolis for Newark Friday morning, but cut its trip short and landed in Chicago after the wacko’s ravings escalated into screams of “the plane is going down.” Fellow passenger Seth Evans was sitting across the aisle from the nut, and told the Minnesota Star Tribune that chaos started the moment the plane took off when he started raving about being “gang chased” by gay people. The man also...

SALT LAKE CITY — A woman was taken into custody and arrested after she allegedly sexually assaulted a Delta employee on a flight out of Salt Lake City International Airport. Cody Sierra Marie Bryne, 31, faces numerous charges, including Sexual Battery, Assault and Public Intoxication. Bryne was boarding a flight from Salt Lake City to Portland on Wednesday when she refused to move from the aisle of the airplane after being directed to do so multiple times. When Bryne did move, she allegedly pushed a Delta employee into a seat with her shoulder. Following the incident, the pilot of the...

Eurostar has revealed their brand new gender-neutral uniforms which includes skirts for men, a graffiti neckerchief and green Dr. Marten boots. The redesign is the first new uniform in over a decade and includes 54 individual items of clothing designed to 'fit all genders, body types and personalities' and aims to 'empower staff to express their individuality'.