NEW YORK – Sen. Charles Schumer wants to put the heat on airlines to be upfront with passengers about plan-disrupting flight delays.
Schumer unveiled a bill Sunday that would require airlines to tell ticket-holders of delays immediately – so that passengers can decide to cancel or change flights before they board a plane and sit for hours on the ramp.
“Nothing is more frustrating than when an airline knows that a flight is delayed but doesn’t tell passengers until they are sitting on a plane and stuck with their ticket,” said the New York Democrat.
“Airlines need to be honest with the public,” he said. “Passengers deserve to know that their flight is delayed, and should have the option of rebooking.”
Schumer quoted numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics that ranked John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark airports among the worst in on-time performance among the nation’s 33 busiest airports.
The average arrival delay at JFK was 45 minutes, and for Newark and LaGuardia the average was nearly an hour. Departure delays were about the same.
A record 207 million people are expected to fly this summer – 2 million more than last year – at a time when airlines are cutting staff, experts are predicting increased storms, and air traffic controllers are expected to retire in record numbers.Services.
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