Airlines brace for record summer travel, new FAA rules

ORLANDO, Fla. — Whether by plane, train or automobile, travellers can expect big crowds this summer.

AAA projects 43.8 million people will drive at least 50 miles or more over the Memorial Day holiday, kicking off the summer travel season. 

Airlines for America estimates U.S. airlines will break records, carrying more than 270 million people around the world during the summer months of June, July, and August a 6.3% increase from last year. Those same airlines are expected to offer more than 26,000 daily flights each day during the Summer.

“The pandemic reminded us we like to travel,” said Danny Cox, Vice President of Guest Experience for Breeze Airways.

The Utah-based low-cost airline launched service three years ago, with Orlando International Airport (MCO) being among one of their first markets.

“We are seeing very high demand, it’s very good,” Cox said. “Orlando is one of those locations Breeze loves because it’s there for everything. In the wintertime, when it’s really cold up north, it’s warm for people to come down, and year round when school is out it’s that escape to these wonderful attractions and wonderful weather you have.”

As part of its effort to meet growing demand, Cox said Breeze is expanding their staffing at MCO.

As of April, Breeze established Orlando as a crew base for pilots and flight attendants. In May, Breeze hired on customer service agents to take over for a third-party service provider, and will soon hire aircraft mechanics to be based in Orlando.

It’s part of the growth MCO is seeing, standing now as one of the busiest airports in the nation. Dozens of airlines plan to offer service between MCO and 98 domestic destinations and 45 international destinations in June.

Most of these flights will be flown by the major airlines, including American, Delta, JetBlue, Spirit, United and Southwest, who faced an operational meltdown impacting millions in late 2022, costing Southwest millions of dollars in lost revenue and $140 million in fines from the FAA.

More flights can also potentially mean more cancellations or delays for passengers, which is why U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said his agency is watching airlines closely.

“We have opened some reviews of whether airlines are scheduling realistically, because if they are scheduling a flight that even they don’t think they’ll be able to serve, that violates some of our standards,” Buttigieg said.

A new FAA rule will go into effect in October, requiring airlines proactively refund passengers for flights that are significantly delayed or canceled.

“Airlines were already supposed to refund you if you had a flight canceled or major delay, but up until our rule, that wasn’t really the default,” Buttigieg said. “Sometimes you would have to ask for it, sometimes you would have to haggle for it, or even fight for it just to get your money back. Our rule changes that.”

According to the FAA, the new rules going into effect in October will ensure passengers are entitled to a refund if:

Canceled or significantly changed flights: Passengers will be entitled to a refund if their flight is canceled or significantly changed, and they do not accept alternative transportation or travel credits offered. For the first time, the rule defines “significant change.” Significant changes to a flight include departure or arrival times that are more than 3 hours domestically and 6 hours internationally; departures or arrivals from a different airport; increases in the number of connections; instances where passengers are downgraded to a lower class of service; or connections at different airports or flights on different planes that are less accessible or accommodating to a person with a disability.

Significantly delayed baggage return: Passengers who file a mishandled baggage report will be entitled to a refund of their checked bag fee if it is not delivered within 12 hours of their domestic flight arriving at the gate, or 15-30 hours of their international flight arriving at the gate, depending on the length of the flight.

Extra services not provided: Passengers will be entitled to a refund for the fee they paid for an extra service — such as Wi-Fi, seat selection, or inflight entertainment — if an airline fails to provide this service.

Airlines for America, a trade group representing some of the largest carriers in the airline industry, said airlines are confident they’ll be able to handle the record number of travelers. The group said airlines have made significant investments in technology to improve services and scheduling.

“Our carriers have adjusted their schedules to adapt to current realities of our National Airspace System (NAS), helping to alleviate some of those pressure points and making for a smooth summer travel season,” said Rebecca Spicer, A4A Senior Vice President of Communications.

Airlines argue the FAA shares some of the blame for flight impacts because of staffing shortages at Air Traffic Control towers.

Secretary Buttigieg said his agency hired 1,500 new air traffic controllers last year, and another 1,800 will be hired throughout this year. Congress approved a five-year FAA reauthorization bill that includes funding to hire 2,000 more air traffic controllers.

Wednesday on Your Evening News on Spectrum News 13, we’ll take you inside an Air Traffic Control Training Center at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach to see how local students are playing a role today to help get passengers