Boeing strike fears, Delta drama, and American Airlines raises: Airline news roundup
Delta Air Lines has a surprising update to its CrowdStrike saga. America Airlines flight attendants are about to get a big raise. Boeing’s production woes aren’t letting up anytime soon. Plus, a ranking of the most on-time airlines in America — airports, too.
Take a moment to catch up on what’s been happening in the world of airlines.
The 10 most on-time airlines in America
One of the ironies of the Delta Air Lines-CrowdStrike fiasco and its days-long delays is that it marred Delta’s reputation for being a fairly on-time carrier. The Federal Aviation Administration tracks when airlines land their planes, and every year the agency puts together a list of which ones get where they’re supposed to go — on time. Though Delta made the top 10 after leading 2022's ranking, a new name claimed the mantle in 2023. — Melvin Backman
Southwest Airlines’ fight with activist investor Elliott just reached a new level
The hedge fund trying to shake things up at Southwest Airlines is a step closer to a showdown with the company’s management team. Reuters reports that Elliott Investment Management now has a true 10% stake in the company, enough to trigger a special shareholder meeting. — Melvin Backman
There are 1.5 billion reasons why Boeing might have a strike on its hands
Even though its plate is otherwise very full, Boeing (BA) will also have to contend with another big item thrown onto it. As a contract with the union representing its machinists comes up for renewal, the company might soon have a strike on its hands. — Melvin Backman
Southwest Airlines is offering buy-one-get-one-free flights
Southwest Airlines (LUV) is bringing back a promotion that lets customers bring a buddy for free. The company’s Companion Pass will allow members of its rewards program to access the feature. — Melvin Backman
The 10 most on-time airports in America
One of the ironies of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport cyberattack and its days-long delays is that it marred SeaTac’s reputation for being a fairly on-time airport. The Federal Aviation Administration tracks when airlines take off from which airports and how closely that aligns to posted flight schedules. Every year, the agency puts together a list of which ones get flights going when they’re supposed to go. Though Seattle made the top 10 in 2023, a different airport claimed the No. 1 spot. — Melvin Backman
JetBlue says it actually got a boost from the CrowdStrike meltdown
A nice fiscal tailwind is helping out JetBlue Airways (JBLU), the company told investors last Thursday. It said in a securities filing that it expects its third-quarter 2024 revenue to be higher than last year instead of lower — thanks in part to a boost from its competitors’ huge setback this summer. — Melvin Backman
A Hong Kong engine fire is causing headaches for Airbus
Europe fears that Airbus’s (AIR) problems with its double-aisle jetliner might be more widespread than a single worrying incident in Hong Kong. The South China Morning Post reports that the European Union Aviation Safety Agency will be grounding many of the planes to figure out if more of them might run into problems. — Melvin Backman
America’s frequent flyer programs are drawing new government scrutiny
The Department of Transportation is looking into whether America’s largest airlines are treating their most loyal customers fairly. The investigation revolves around frequent flyer rewards programs, with an emphasis on the credit cards associated with them. — Melvin Backman
Air Canada is offering its pilots a huge raise to avoid a strike
Air Canada (ACDVF) is working hard to make its pilots happy, as labor negotiations with the union are coming down to the wire. Bloomberg reports that the airline is offering the workers a 30% pay raise to avoid a looming strike. — Melvin Backman
Boeing steps up 777 ‘traveled work’ despite its link to the 737 Max blowout
A new report suggests Boeing (BA) is back to leaning on business practices that helped cause the 737 Max door plug blowout which threw its year into disarray. The Seattle Times reports that the planemaker is ramping up so-called out-of-order “traveled work” manufacturing on its 777 jets in order to stockpile planes ahead of a possible machinist strike. — Melvin Backman
Boeing says it will listen to machinists more on safety with new union contract
Besides a 25% pay bump, machinists at Boeing scored another big win in their new union contract. The tentative agreement released by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers shows that the planemaker has promised its workers a seat at the table regarding safety practices. — Melvin Backman
A GameStop stock winner might get a JetBlue board seat
One of the lucky winners of the GameStop meme stock craze is eyeing a board seat at one of America’s largest airlines. Bloomberg reports that Vladimir Galkin had talks with the carrier about potentially joining its directors, though it downplayed the conversations. — Melvin Backman
Boeing is having trouble digging itself out of its 737 Max production hole
Boeing (BA) continues to have trouble digging itself out of the hole left by its January door plug blowout scandal. Reuters reports that the company is telling suppliers that it will take longer than expected for its moneymaker 737 Max planes to ramp back up in production after a slowdown earlier this year. — Melvin Backman
The Airbus engine headache is getting bigger and bigger
Airbus has been trying to take advantage of Boeing’s struggles, but instead it keeps running into problems of its own. — Melvin Backman
Airbus wants to do to SpaceX what it did to Boeing
Airbus (AIR) really wants to achieve dominance in the space industry the way that it has in the commercial airline industry. Bloomberg reports that CEO Guillaume Faury said that its European Union competitors should consider merging to take on SpaceX the way it took on Boeing (BA). — Melvin Backman
Boeing’s CEO is begging his machinists not to strike
Boeing (BA) has offered its machinists a 25% raise in a new union contract, and they’re poised to reject the deal. CNN reports that newly installed CEO Kelly Ortberg is imploring them to accept the offer and avoid a strike that would come at a difficult time for the company. — Melvin Backman
Delta says the CrowdStrike outage won’t dent its annual profit projections
Although a technology outage led to extensive delays and disruptions in July, Delta Air Lines (DAL) says that its profits will be arriving right on time. The company told investors in a securities filing Thursday that it is affirming its earnings expectations for the year despite its CrowdStrike (CRWD) havoc this summer. — Melvin Backman
American Airlines flight attendants are about to get a big raise
Flight attendants at American Airlines (AAL) just ratified the union contract they won in July. Their pay will be going up by more than a fifth thanks to the agreement, which was approved by 87% of ballots and negotiated by the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents them. — Melvin Backman