Airport terminals are often a maze of lines that choke check-in counters and kiosks, baggage drop-off areas, gates and security checkpoints. Finding solutions to line fatigue has become a priority for the TSA — and a business opportunity for others. A company called Clear is using fingerprints and iris scans to spare some passengers the first phase of the TSA’s security airport screening process — the document-verification checkpoint and its line. Clear says it can speed fliers through checkpoints while maintaining tight security. But the rollout process has been slow — Clear is available only in some terminals at 24 domestic airports — an earlier iteration of the company had a data security issue. <br/>
general
The world's largest plane makers are testing a seemingly simple formula to smooth production, cut costs and fatten profits: Make more of the parts that go into their jets themselves. In the wake of United Technologies Corp.'s proposed US$23b deal to buy Rockwell Collins, that push is taking on more urgency. The deal is the latest in a round of consolidation among the world's biggest suppliers of aviation parts -- something Boeing and Airbus have eyed warily. Earlier this week, Boeing said it might cancel some of its parts contracts if the deal undermines competition further in the aerospace supply chain. Airbus had previously expressed its scepticism over it. Worried about getting squeezed by the consolidation, Boeing and Airbus have moved to protect themselves by building more of their parts in-house. <br/>
Hurricane Irma is grounding travellers as far away as London and Doha. Airlines on 4 continents have cancelled around 12,600 flights through Tuesday because of the storm. That number is set to rise as a weakened yet still powerful Irma heads north near Atlanta — a Delta Air Lines hub and the world's busiest airport . The National Hurricane Centre has downgraded Irma to a Category 2 hurricane , but the storm is still barrelling up Florida's west coast, bashing the state with heavy rains and fierce winds. In Florida alone, airlines have called off nearly 9,000 flights to and from the state. American Airlines, which operates a hub out of Miami International, had suspended flights to the city and other Florida airports it serves in Irma's path, and competitors Delta, United, JetBlue and Spirit have followed suit. <br/>
Airlines capped prices on tickets departing from much of Florida and the Caribbean, after customers complained that seats on the few flights that remained this week ahead of Hurricane Irma were far more expensive than usual. Senator Richard Blumenthal and Senator Edward Markey asked Transportation secretary Elaine Chao to monitor airlines after the storm passes to make sure they don’t try “to make a dime off disaster.” “Price-gouging practices can take root during emergencies,” they wrote to Chao. Airline computer systems automatically extract a premium from last-minute bookers,. Such algorithms can open the airlines to accusations of opportunism in a crisis. Earlier last week, some flights out of Florida, were priced at nearly US$1,000 one way. First-class prices were nearly double that. <br/>
For travellers, it’s been an airfare party this summer with many domestic flights cheaper than a nice bottle of wine. Chicago to Los Angeles can be had for US$49, Dallas to San Francisco is just $40, and Denver to Dallas goes for only $25—barely enough for a quality pinot. Airlines and their investors despise these fares, the result of a fierce pricing skirmish that has bickering carriers behaving like quarrelsome 3-year-olds. The fare fight reprises a similar battle that erupted 2 years ago, one that dented industry revenues for more than 18 months. Only this past spring did carriers begin to feel confident that their pricing power was gradually returning. Now there’s a new war, and no clear end—or winner—in sight. <br/>
The EU is preparing to make its emissions-trading system, the world’s largest, immune to a potential supply turmoil in the case the UK pulls out from the region’s carbon market as part of Brexit. The European Parliament will vote Wednesday on a proposal that would prevent companies and airlines in the EU Emissions Trading System using carbon allowances issued by the UK from 2018 should the country decide to leave the cap-and-trade program. The provision, to be sponsored by 4 political groups, will be submitted as part of a revision of a law on aviation in the ETS. The revision of the aviation law needs to be approved by the European Parliament and member states to enter into force. <br/>
Regulators in India are stepping up scrutiny of Pratt & Whitney’s new jet engines as the manufacturer tries to overcome glitches that have grounded some Airbus planes. The geared turbofan engines are now being inspected after as few as 350 hours of operation, down from initial plans for every 1,000 hours, Civil Aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said. Power plants that don’t meet all requirements will be pulled from service, and the govt denied Pratt’s request to allow some failed engines to continue to be used for short intervals, he said. Pratt is rushing to address the flaws after spending US$10b developing the geared turbofan for narrow-body planes such as Airbus’ A320neo. The engine has had a rocky introduction amid delivery delays and technical issues. <br/>