One of the most jarring experiences of Nazia Ali’s life began at the end of a dream, 10-year anniversary trip with her husband, Faisal Ali. After almost a week soaking in the ambient romance of Paris in July 2016, the Alis boarded a return flight to their Cleveland home. The short walk to their second-row seats left time to store their bags, remove their shoes, and murmur a few words of prayer asking for safe travel. That prayer ended with “inshalla,” God willing in Arabic. But after 45 min., Ali noticed, the usual orders about electronic devices and tray tables hadn't come. A Delta staffer approached. “ ‘Mr. and Mrs. Ali, I need you to get off the plane with me,’ ” recalled Nazia Ali, a Pakistani-American who wears a hijab over her hair. “He said, ‘Please grab all of your things. You are no longer taking this flight.’ ” The passenger removal that captured national attention this week — one in which law enforcement officers peeled David Dao from his seat and dragged him, bleeding, up the aisle — united Americans in righteous indignation. But cases in which airlines force passengers to surrender their seats are regulated and in a long-term pattern of decline. What appears to be a growing phenomenon — but less closely monitored by regulators — is the kind of passenger removal the Alis say they encountered, one driven by racial, ethnic or religious profiling. While the DoT tracks removals due to full flights, the agency doesn’t log those tied to complaints of discrimination. But advocacy groups say that the number of civil rights complaints filed by people removed after flight crews or passengers raised security concerns related to innocuous conversations in a foreign language or other matters tied to skin color or religion spiked in 2016. That year, passengers filed 94 civil rights complaints against U.S. airlines and those flying into the country, according to federal data. That’s up almost 45 percent from 2015.<br/>
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Canada will introduce legislation to address the issue of travelers being bumped from flights, the country’s transportation minister said Thursday. Marc Garneau sent a letter to the heads of every airline flying in and out of Canada to warn them that an incident like the one that injured an American doctor earlier this week cannot happen in Canada. The letter comes five days after David Dao, 69, was dragged off a United flight in Chicago after refusing to leave his seat to accommodate airline crew members. He suffered a concussion, a broken nose and two missing teeth when security officers forced him off the plane against his will, banging his head on armrests in the process, according to his lawyer. He has hired lawyers who said Thursday they expect to file a lawsuit against the airline. Garneau’s warning comes ahead of legislation to introduce a passengers’ bill of rights in Canada. The legislation, expected this spring, is to outline what passengers can expect from airlines in situations such as bumping from overbooked planes or for lost or damaged luggage. “When passengers purchase an airline ticket, they expect and deserve that the airline will fulfill its part of the transaction,” Garneau wrote. “When that agreement is not fulfilled, passengers are entitled to clear, transparent and enforceable compensation.” He said the legislation will be introduced in the coming weeks and that co-operation from the airlines will be essential to further improve the traveler experience.<br/>
Wake turbulence that is suspected of causing the problem that injured 15 people on a Qantas 747, south of Hong Kong, on April 7 is a growing and serious problem that needs an urgent industry review. According to Aviation Herald reports, there have been 34 wake turbulence incidents in the past 10 years but 11 of those have been in the past two years. And with the doubling of air traffic every 15 years the problem is set to get worse. The most serious recent case was the encounter between an Emirates A380 and a corporate jet in January. The A380 flight EK412 from Dubai to Sydney was at 10,600m, about 1200km south-east of Muscat, when the business jet passed underneath in the opposite direction. After the A380 passed the corporate jet its crew lost control of the plane and were able to regain control of the plane only after losing about 3000m. A number of the passengers sustained injuries. Wake turbulence is a natural by-product of powered flight but was not generally regarded as a serious flight hazard until the late 1960s with the advent of the jumbo jet. It is a combination of the jet wash and the vortices off the wing tips, which are like mini tornadoes. A US led investigation into the phenomena resulted in separation guidelines for following planes but most serious incidents today relate to crossing traffic particularly at higher altitudes. While the Airbus A380 has been singled out for attention wake turbulence is an industry-wide problem involving all planes that is increasing mainly because of the growth of air traffic. And with that increase comes congestion and more stacking or holding of planes prior to landing. With more larger aircraft such as the A380, 747 and 777 and increasing traffic the time has come to revisit strategies to avoid wake turbulence.<br/>
The concept is familiar: Replace car journeys with high-speed, electric-powered travel for the masses. China does it with a famous (and famously expensive) high-speed train network. Last week, the Boeing and JetBlue invested in another idea: electric planes. If their bet pans out, travellers could start making their first trips in the Teslas of the air in a decade. That could transform the way great swathes of the world get from point A to point B – to everyone’s benefit. Electric planes aren’t a new idea, of course; evangelists have promised their imminent arrival for decades now. But recent advances, particularly in batteries and electric propulsion, make the possibility far more realistic. Boeing and JetBlue were confident enough in the technology to back Zunum Aero, a Washington-based startup that hopes to complete a battery-powered jet by 2020. Until quite recently, electric-powered flight seemed like a stunt more than a pathway to the transportation future. Solar-powered aircraft, for example, are great at raising awareness, but not at moving people around, much less in comfort. Yet advances in lightweight materials, electric motors and, most importantly, batteries have opened up new possibilities. In 2011, a battery-powered, two-seater aircraft built by the University of Stuttgart flew 62 miles on 25 Kwh of electricity that cost around US$3. Three years later, Airbus SE followed with the E-Fan, an all-electric, lithium-battery-powered two-seater. Like automakers, plane manufacturers are focusing now on hybrid technologies that could extend the range of electric planes and be implemented more quickly. Story has more details.<br/>
China’s Commercial Aircraft Corp. is expected to launch the inaugural flight of the much-delayed C919 narrowbody in May, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). CAAC said the flight will take place at the Shanghai Pudong Airport on the fourth runway, which is 3,800 metres long and 60 metres wide, and can accommodate various aircraft types, including the Airbus A380. The fifth runway, which is specifically designed for the C919 at 3,400 metres long and 45 metres wide, is still under construction and not expected to go into formal operations until the second half of this year. The 158-seat C919 was originally scheduled to operate its maiden flight in 2014 followed by first delivery to Chengdu Airlines. However, the aircraft was not rolled out until October 2015 following program delays. COMAC said at the time it had been aiming for first flight in 2016. The C919 started production in 2008 with a mixed cabin configuration of 158 seats and all-economy class of 168 seats. The C919 has secured 570 orders from 23 Chinese and foreign customers. China Eastern will be the launch customer.<br/>