United saw a very modest overall increase in passenger traffic in October, according to an operational performance report the Chicago-based carrier released Wednesday. But the really big news was the continued decline in United's trans-Atlantic traffic, typically a high-margin part of any global carrier's revenue stream. The October numbers showed United's consolidated traffic for October rose only 0.6% year over year. Domestic traffic grew 2.3% year over year, but across the Atlantic, traffic dropped a very significant 4.9% year over year. Undoubtedly, currency exchange rates have made it more expensive for Europeans to visit the US in recent months. And Americans may be more wary of traveling to Europe because of lingering concerns about terrorism. United's overall capacity in October grew 1.8% year over year, but was up 3.9 domestically, and 1.9% internationally. On the capacity front, United also looks to be shrinking its regional flight operations, with capacity in that segment of the carrier's operations dropping 6.9 percent year over year. Mainline capacity grew 2.9% year over year. Regional operations have been a sticking point for United as it tries to improve its on-time arrival performance. In the October on-time arrival competition, United fell to fourth behind the three other major domestic carriers, Delta, Southwest and American. United's mainline on-time performance saw significant improvement in October, with 69.5% of flights arriving on time, up from 65.5% a year ago.<br/>
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Federal rules force airlines to generously compensate passengers they bump from flights, yet gate agents don’t always follow the requirements. In August, the DoT fined Alaska, American, Southwest and United airlines for misleading travellers after bumping them. Travellers are fighting back, too. One stubborn passenger decided to take United to court in Memphis, Tenn. And he got a lot of help online from other road warriors. The result: An initial offer of $373 in compensation turned into a trial in small claims court, a judgment against United for more than $1,300 and a settlement around $2,000 after a year of effort. The unusual battle demonstrates how some airlines resist compensating customers for service failures, from denying seats to losing bags to changing schedules. Even getting a refund from an airline can be so tough that Congress passed a law earlier this year forcing airlines to reimburse baggage fees when they lose luggage. But sometimes carriers dig in. United says it evaluates legal issues on a case-by-case basis. Increased penalties for bumping passengers have reduced involuntary denied boarding. The rate of bumped passengers declined in 2015, and it’s run lower so far this year. Still, almost 47,000 passengers were involuntarily denied boarding flight in 2015. Online communities like FlyerTalk and InsideFlyer can offer consumers important information about arcane airline rules. Story looks at the Memphis case in detail.<br/>
Singapore Airlines said Wednesday it has delayed plans to launch a new route linking Singapore, Jakarta and Sydney, after Indonesia withdrew its approval due to runway maintenance work. The airline had earlier announced that it planned to launch the thrice-weekly Singapore-Jakarta-Sydney route on Nov 23. SIA said Indonesia’s civil aviation authorities had issued written approval, and the airline had secured the necessary airport slots. However, Indonesian authorities have informed the airline that they are now unable to approve the flights due to runway maintenance work at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, SIA said. The runway work also affects other airlines, it added. In response to media queries, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) said it was aware of the delay in the launch of the new route. “SIA’s new service will enhance air connectivity between Singapore, Jakarta and Sydney, which will facilitate people and trade flows between these cities,” CAAS said. “We hope the Indonesian civil aviation authorities can give approval for this new service as soon as possible so that it can be launched.” SIA said it will contact customers with bookings on the route and transfer them to other flights. “The airline apologises for the inconvenience caused to our customers."<br/>