Over the last 15 years, online travel agencies and fare aggregators have become increasingly popular destinations for travellers by promising the ability to compare airlines' prices in pursuit of the best fare. But what many customers don't know is that depending on the site and the airline, they might not see the cheapest options. It's a state of affairs the online travel industry pins on airlines, which restrict where and how their schedule and fare information is displayed. The Travel Technology Association has gone so far as to call the practice "unfair and anticompetitive" in a consolidated airline industry where 4 carriers control over 80% of domestic traffic. Airlines see the issue differently and argue that they, like any other type of business, have the right to choose whom they partner with when selling their products.<br/>
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The head of IATA brought a message in favour of open borders to the Trump administration Thursday, as the industry awaits an updated order governing travel. President Trump's executive order Jan 27 to temporarily prohibit most arrivals in the US from 7 countries caused widespread confusion before courts blocked the order. Trump is expected to issue an updated order this week. "We are deeply concerned with recent developments that point to a future of restricted borders and protectionism," Alexandre de Juniac, CE of IATA, said. "This type of decision has to be prepared and implemented in an orderly manner to avoid confusion, disorder, disruption and what has happened when this decision has been taken," Juniac said. It has been the responsibility of the airlines to deal with the disruptions that were not coming from them."<br/>
FAA administrator Michael Huerta said it is now the "right time to be asking critical questions" about the structure of US ATC, citing a stable and safe existing ATC system and a strong US airline industry. Huerta has previously mostly stayed out of the debate over whether to separate ATC from FAA and create an independent entity to manage air traffic in the US. But March 2, Huerta said he is "eager to engage" in the discussion going forward. Huerta was speaking publicly about ATC for the first time since US president Donald Trump suggested that FAA's NextGen ATC modernisation program may be "way over budget [and] way beyond schedule" because Huerta is not a pilot. Trump has said NextGen "is a waste of tremendous amounts of money because the system is a bad system."<br/>
Travellers fare finding fewer choices as airlines pack more passengers onto fewer flights. The reason, airlines say: They don't have enough pilots to fly their planes. Researchers at the University of North Dakota estimate the nation will need about 250 more airline pilots this year, a shortage expected to balloon to nearly 15,000 in the next decade as the number of pilots in the pipeline dwindles amid an unprecedented wave of retirements. As a result, regional airlines — which serve about 65% of the nation's airports, are cutting service, according to the industry's trade group. The Regional Airline Association says hundreds of communities have lost some flights as a result of the pilot shortage, and a handful have lost service entirely. The RAA warns pilot shortages could result in 300 planes being parked by 2020.<br/>
The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) was Wednesday ordered to undertake a major revamp of the structure of the costs currently used in calculating air ticket prices, to better reflect airlines' actual costs. Transport minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said that the current structure has been in place since 2010, and so has the THB13 per kilometre air fare ceiling. CAAT director Chula Sukmanop said if the single THB13/km ceiling is replaced by more than one rate, such as one for flights without basic in-flight services and another for full-service flights, ticket prices for low-cost airlines could be brought even lower than THB13/km. However, the CAAT will still have to specify which services are categorised as standard in-flight ones and which are not, he said.<br/>
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries expects a prototype of the 70-seat version of Japan's first home-grown commercial jetliner to be completed as early as 2018, joining the 90-seat model that has already been built. Subcontractors have started work on the larger pieces of the 70-seat Mitsubishi Regional Jet. The parts will be delivered around the summer. Once the 70-seater is built, Mitsubishi Heavy will temporarily suspend airframe fabrication for that and the 90-seat jet pending redesigns that will reroute the wiring. No orders for the smaller version have come in yet, but the 300-plus MRJs ordered by US regional airlines have contractual provisions allowing clients to switch to the 70-seat version. Mitsubishi Heavy aims to deliver the first mass-produced 90-seat plane by the middle of 2020, and the 70-seater one year later.<br/>