Flight Delays

(Dive Travel Business News - April 21, 2010) -- The eruption of the volcano under the Eyjafjallajokull glacier, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) southeast of the capital Reykjavik, continues but the ash clouds have lessened, allowing more airports across Europe to reopen today. Almost 75% of the 28,000 flights scheduled in Europe are expected to take place.

Almost all of European airspace below 20,000 feet is open allowing some 21,000 flights to take off in European airspace. Airspace above 20,000 feet opened this morning at 0900 GMT.  Some restrictions still apply to Sweden and Helsinki in Finland. Industry pundits say it could take weeks to get the airlines back online and passengers to their destinations.

By the end of Wednesday it's expected that a total of more than 100,000 flights would have been cancelled since April 15 when the cloud of volcanic ash first spread across northern Europe. read more »

(Dive Travel Business New - April 17, 2010) -- AP - This is an extensive up-to-date report by AP regarding the flight situations around the world due to the explosion of the volcano in Iceland earlier this week. read more »

(April 17, 2008 - LA Times) -- Airlines were ordered Wednesday to pay passengers who are involuntarily bumped from flights as much as $800, the latest sign of a get-tough attitude toward the nation’s air carriers.

The new rule doubling the maximum compensation for bumped passengers, to take effect next month, is part of a package of measures announced by the Transportation Department to strengthen consumer protections and ease flight delays.

Ticket prices are expected to spike, again, as a result of another rule designed to ease congestion tied to the New York area’s clogged airports. Transportation officials also announced plans to add new routes out of the New York area.

The bumping rule, in the works for months, will take effect at a time when U.S. airlines are caught in a storm of bad news concerning aircraft safety, maintenance, flight cancellations and poor treatment of passengers. read more »