After several meltdowns this spring, it will be the ‘cheapest' summer to fly United Airlines at Newark Airport, CEO says
After a series of air traffic control outages, short staffing, and runway construction caused repeated days of delays and cancelations at Newark Liberty International Airport it'll be the cheapest summer to fly there in United Airlines' history, according to the airline's CEO.
'Because we lost a lot of bookings, there's a lot more seats available,' Scott Kirby, United Airlines CEO said at the Wall Street Journal's Future of Everything event Thursday. 'It's going to be the cheapest it's probably ever going to be in history. I don't really like that, but you ought to book and it's going to be the least crowded.'
The slashed summer airfares come after a difficult month for the New Jersey airport that endured a slew of air traffic control issues caused by short staffing and major outages of the antiquated Federal Aviation Administration infrastructure, all while a runway is closed for construction.Despite the challenges, Kirby reiterated the airport is safe and encouraged travelers to book flights.
On Wednesday, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said a new fiberoptic cable laid between Philadelphia and New York will improve the reliability of the air traffic control facility handling flights in and out of Newark. The Department of Transportation hopes the cable will be operational by July.
Kirby was an advocate for slot controls at the airport, noting the airport was unable to accommodate the number of flights he and his competitors had scheduled. Last week, the FAA announced it was cutting 25% of flights each day to put a band aid on the situation while runway construction continues.
'This is short term, painful for us at Newark, but it's long term better, because the FAA is going to do what they do at JFK and LaGuardia, which is, manage the number of flights to be equal to the capacity of the airport,' Kirby said Thursday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
30 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Trump's new drone orders aim to counter threats while encouraging flying cars and supersonic flights
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump wants to counter the threats drones pose to national security under new rules released Friday, while also aiming to make it easier for Americans to fly faster than the speed of sound and expedite the development of the flying cars of the future. The three executive orders will encourage the Federal Aviation Administration to expedite rules to allow companies to use drones beyond their operators' line of sight, while also imposing restrictions meant to help protect against terrorism, espionage and public safety threats.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Boeing (BA) Eyes Production Boost Without Compromising Quality
Boeing (BA) is reestablishing its presence in the Chinese market—a move that brings both notable opportunities and meaningful risks. The aerospace giant is operating within a challenging regulatory landscape, intensified by the January 2024 Alaska Airlines door plug incident, which drew global attention and even warranted a dedicated entry on Wikipedia. Easily unpack a company's performance with TipRanks' new KPI Data for smart investment decisions Receive undervalued, market resilient stocks right to your inbox with TipRanks' Smart Value Newsletter Compounding the complexity are the lingering effects of President Trump's tariffs and trade tensions, which continue to affect Boeing's international operations. However, there has been a recent positive shift: China has lifted its temporary ban on Boeing aircraft, enabling the company to begin fulfilling its growing backlog of orders. As a result, Boeing's stock has regained much of the ground lost in the wake of the earlier safety incident. However, moving forward, Boeing must balance unpredictable geopolitical trade tensions and regulatory scrutiny that ushered in a 'new normal,' prioritizing safety over profits, making me cautiously neutral on its stock. Boeing is now operating under heightened regulatory oversight, with more inspectors present in its factories than in previous years—a direct consequence of several high-profile in-flight incidents involving its aircraft. Subsequent investigations uncovered deep-rooted quality control issues and broader cultural problems that contributed to these events. As part of this intensified scrutiny, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has imposed a strict production cap, limiting Boeing to 38 units per month of its 737 MAX jet—a model widely regarded as the 'workhorse' of the airline industry due to its dominance in short- and medium-haul routes. This cap is intended to slow production, allowing Boeing to prioritize safety and quality improvements. The FAA has made it clear that any increase in the production rate will be contingent on demonstrable improvements in manufacturing standards. However, this restriction poses a significant challenge for Boeing's business model. It not only curtails output during a period of strong demand and a large backlog of orders, but also delays revenue generation, since Boeing is typically paid upon aircraft delivery. Demand for Boeing remains strong, with a backlog exceeding 6,000 aircraft, equivalent to roughly 11 years of production at current rates. However, airline customers won't wait indefinitely. Boeing faces mounting pressure to deliver, especially as its main European rival, Airbus SE, is unlikely to cede any competitive ground. China represents a critical market for Boeing, accounting for nearly 10% of its total unfilled orders. As such, China's recent decision to resume accepting aircraft deliveries marks a significant positive development, likely helping Boeing reduce some of its existing inventory—aircraft that would otherwise remain idle. Complicating matters, planes built for Chinese airlines differ in configuration from those intended for U.S. carriers, making it costly and inefficient to reconfigure them for other markets. Looking ahead, Boeing has limited influence over the trajectory of U.S.-China trade relations. While a temporary truce provides some relief, long-term access to the Chinese market remains vulnerable to geopolitical uncertainty. All of this is unfolding against the backdrop of substantial cash outflows in recent quarters. In 2024, Boeing reported a net loss of nearly $12 billion, mirroring the amount of cash it consumed in operating activities. This financial strain was driven by a combination of safety incidents, ongoing quality control challenges, and a seven-week machinists' strike that disrupted production. While Boeing does hold almost $24 billion in cash and short-term investments as a financial cushion, the company remains heavily leveraged, adding further pressure to stabilize its operations and restore investor confidence. On Wall Street, Boeing's stock sports a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 16 Buy, three Hold, and one Sell ratings in the past three months. BA's average price target of $217.32 implies 2.77% upside potential over the next twelve months. Recently, Bank of America analyst Ronald Epstein upgraded Boeing from a Neutral rating to a Buy rating and set a price target of $260. The analyst is optimistic that production will stabilize and its cash burn will subside. He noted some uncertainties, such as the production cap and its ability to recapture public trust. Josh Sullivan of Benchmark Co. also has a Buy rating on Boeing. He noted that 'anticipated production increments, occurring no sooner than six months apart, suggest a structured and achievable growth path.' Boeing faces the difficult task of ramping up production while ensuring rigorous quality standards—a balance that's easier said than achieved. Each incremental increase in the production cap presents new challenges, requiring the company to meet strict performance benchmarks. Overcoming its deeply rooted legacy of quality issues will take time and sustained effort; it's not a transformation that can happen overnight. In the interim, Boeing must also navigate a complex mix of geopolitical tensions, supply chain constraints, and trade tariffs. The recent reopening of the Chinese market provides a much-needed tailwind, but it may prove to be temporary. Although Boeing's first-quarter earnings showed narrower losses and revenue growth, its return to consistent profitability will depend on a combination of internal execution and external stability, factors that remain highly uncertain. Still, the aerospace duopoly remains intact, and if Boeing can normalize production, its massive backlog positions it for significant upside. For risk-tolerant investors seeking to outperform the market, BA stock could present a compelling opportunity. Disclaimer & DisclosureReport an Issue Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Trump brings the BOOM! New order opens skies across US to supersonic flights
President Donald Trump has ordered the Federal Aviation Administration to scrap a longstanding ban on supersonic air travel across the U.S. and replace it with a to-be-determined set of regulations that will allow faster-than-sound travel so long as the sonic booms it creates do not breach certain noise limitations. In an executive order signed on Friday, Trump directed the FAA administrator to begin the process of repealing a section of the Code of Federal Regulations that prohibits anyone in the United States from flying a civilian aircraft 'at a true flight Mach number greater than 1.' That regulation was imposed in April 1973, at a time when the British and French governments were jointly developing Concorde, a supersonic airliner that had a cruising speed in excess of Mach 2, or twice the speed of sound. Because aircraft that break the sound barrier create shockwaves that produce loud sounds, known as sonic booms, the U.S. government banned supersonic flight over the U.S. out of concern over disruptive noise from supersonic jets criss-crossing the country. As a result, Concorde was limited to subsonic speeds when arriving or leaving American airports, only crossing the sound barrier during transit over the Atlantic Ocean on routes between New York's JFK airport and London. Michael Kratsios, the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, told reporters that Trump's order 'seeks to revolutionize supersonic aviation in the United States' by allowing for modern aircraft to fly faster than sound over the continental U.S. 'The US used to be the global leader in this technology, but stifling regulations have grounded progress for generations. The reality is that Americans should be able to fly from New York to LA in under four hours,' he said. Kratsios added that 'advances in aerospace engineering, material science and noise reduction' by new startups working on faster-than-sound passenger aircraft can make supersonic travel 'safe, sustainable and commercially viable' and noted that the longstanding American ban on such flights had ' grounded supersonic passenger flight and weakened our global competitiveness in aviation.' 'Today's order fixes that,' he said. Trump's order comes just weeks after a pair of Republicans in Congress, Rep. Troy Nehls of Texas and Senator Ted Budd of North Carolina, introduced legislation to direct the FAA to repeal and replace the current supersonic flight ban within a year. That legislation will no longer be necessary, as the Trump executive order directs the FAA to withdraw the ban within 180 days and launch a notice-and-comment period for replacement regulations that would be based on a noise standard rather than a strict speed limit. According to a senior administration official, the function of the new regulations would be 'to replace the effective speed standard with instead an interim noise standard, and then to have a longer term process to publish a Notice of Proposed Rule Making to result in a final rule.' That process would be 'coordinated through the White House [and] through the National Science and Technology Council' and would be based on research and development that has been going on at NASA, the Department of Defense, and 'elsewhere within the federal government,' the official said. Trump's effort to enable supersonic flight across the U.S. follows the success of the first flight of a civilian supersonic aircraft since Concorde 216 (registered as G-BOAF) made its' final flight to Bristol Filton Airport in 2003. In January, Boom Supersonic's XB-1 aircraft reached a speed of Mach 1.122 during a 34-minute flight over California's Mojave Desert. The test flight, just eight days into Trump's second term, produced no audible sonic boom — or at least not one that was heard from the ground during the flight. The company says its' proposed Overture passenger jet will cut a trip from Los Angeles to Washington to three hours and 15 minutes, more than an hour less than the current duration of such a flight, while producing no sonic booms that are audible from the ground. It attributes this to atmospheric effects that cause the sound to reflect off layers in the atmosphere and travel upward, rather than downward. It also claims to be able to cut flights over water by even more time by reaching even higher speeds.
