The Biden administration is asking Congress to pass legislation that would ban airlines from charging fees for families who are traveling with children under the age of 14 to sit together, its latest attempt to crack down on add-on charges for consumers, the Transportation Department said Monday. “Upon review of the airlines’ seating policies, DOT remains concerned that airlines’ policies do not guarantee adjacent seats for young children traveling with a family member and that airlines do not guarantee the adjacent seating at no additional cost,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wrote in a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. President Joe Biden has vowed to stamp out so-called junk fees across industries including hotels, airlines and banks. Earlier this month, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines and Frontier Airlines said they would include family seating guarantees in customer service plans, violations of which could result in DOT fines. United Airlines last month said it would give families traveling with children access to seats that normally cost extra at the time of booking. The Biden administration’s draft legislation calls for refunds to passengers who cannot get adjacent seats for children in their party.<br/>
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The Biden administration on Monday released details on a new proposal calling for more funding for more air traffic controllers and to speed modernization efforts after a computer outage led to the first nationwide flight grounding since 2001. The Transportation Department's $108.5b budget request seeks funding from Congress, including $117m to hire another 1,800 air traffic controllers in addition to another 1,500 being hired this year. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association said last year the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had 1,500 fewer controllers than in 2011. The FAA wants $115m to accelerate National Airspace System Modernization saying it will allow the agency "flexibility to adjust to current events in operations and increase capital investments where needed." A computer system outage disrupted 11,000 US flights in January after contract personnel "unintentionally deleted files." The Transportation Department wants $3.1b in annual funding for passenger railroad Amtrak on top of $4.4b in funding from the $1t 2021 infrastructure law. It also seeks $700 million for a key New York Hudson River tunnel project. In a letter released Friday, Airlines for America, the Air Line Pilots Association, Aerospace Industries Association and others wrote Congress raising "growing concerns about the urgent need for additional human and technological resources." They added "missed certification deadlines, controller staffing shortages, and slow modernization demonstrate that the FAA is not keeping up with the growing needs and complexity of our aviation system."<br/>
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said on Monday the state will scrap a planned light-rail train to connect the city's LaGuardia Airport after a study found the costs of the proposed train had jumped and instead proposed upgrading bus service. Hochul put the AirTrain project on hold in late 2021 that her predecessor Andrew Cuomo had backed and estimated would cost $2.1b but is now forecast to cost at least $2.4b. She said she was grateful an expert panel provided "a clear, cost-effective path forward with an emissions-free transit solution." The Port Authority plans to bring a planning authorization request to the board for approval in the next 60 to 90 days, to start the process to fund costs associated with improving bus service. LaGuardia, the smallest of the New York City's three major airports, is the 25th busiest US airport by passengers. The panel said in a 450-page report the Port Authority should instead improve existing municipal bus service and add new non-stop airport shuttle service and dedicated bus lanes connecting to the end of a subway line in Queens rather than pay for new train service.<br/>
Tourists around the world and especially in Europe are supportive of more eco-friendly trips but reluctant to carry the extra cost, according to studies and industry executives. In the European Union's economic powerhouse Germany, for example, 24% of travelers believe ecological sustainability is an important criterion when booking a holiday, according to a survey by motor vehicle association ADAC released this month.<br/>But only 5-10% would be willing to pay even a moderate sustainability surcharge, according to the poll of 5,000 people. "The rub is people don't want to necessarily pay more for sustainability," said Charuta Fadnis, head of research and product strategy at travel research company Phocuswright. That has left the industry questioning how to become greener as it faces thin margins and a post-pandemic recovery still hampered by global travel restrictions, like the slow rebound of visas available to Chinese tourists. Carbon offsets have been available on the market for years, with many airlines offering voluntary investment programmes. But the uptake has been limited and there are questions over how effective offsets actually are. Thomas Fowler, the director of sustainability for Irish budget airline Ryanair told Reuters earlier this year that few are willing to pay the few euros needed to take part in their carbon offset programme.<br/>
Berlin, Bremen and Hamburg airports said no commercial flights would take off on Monday due to a strike by trade union Verdi over pay. "Due to the warning strike by employees at the aviation security controls, no commercial departures will take place at BER today, March 13. Incoming flights may also be affected," Berlin airport said on its website. Hamburg airport also said that arrivals could be delayed or cancelled. Bremen said were there would be no flights from its airport. Verdi has called for security staff to strike at Berlin airport due to disputes over pay for working nights, weekends and bank holidays that had been going on for years. It is the latest in a series of strikes and protests that have hit major European economies, including France, Britain and Spain, as higher food and energy prices knock incomes and living standards after the COVID-19 pandemic and war in Ukraine.<br/>
France’s DGAC civil aviation authority warned on Monday of widespread disruption at the country’s airports on March 15 due to a planned nationwide strike to be held in protest against the government’s plans to raise the French retirement age. The DGAC added in a statement that it had asked airlines to cut back their programme of planned flights from Paris’ Orly airport on March 15 by 20%. <br/>
Passenger traffic at Aena’s Spanish airports in February surpassed pre-pandemic levels for a second consecutive month, the company said on Monday. At almost 17m, the number of passengers in February was 2.2% higher than in the same month of 2019. The busiest airport was Madrid’s Adolfo Suarez Barajas, with more than 4m passengers, 0.6% more than in February 2019. Aena expects to recover pre-pandemic levels in 2023. In comparison, London’s Heathrow expects to carry 58m-73m passengers in 2023, or around 90% of its pre-pandemic levels at the upper end of the range. <br/>
AerCap, the world's biggest aircraft lessor, said on Monday it was inconceivable that it would not recover some losses from insurers over jets stranded in Russia, as lessors took their battle for redress to London's High Court. More than 400 aircraft, worth almost $10bn, have been stuck in Russia after Western countries slapped sanctions on the country over the year-old war in Ukraine - and Russian aircraft lessees did not return the jets. Insurers are balking at payouts, alleging in part that there has not been a physical loss of the planes yet, that the jets and engines are no longer subject to a lease agreement and that Western sanctions prevent them from providing cover. Dublin-based AerCap said it was out of pocket to a "colossal" degree and, along with at least four peers, has lodged a lawsuit that hinges on whether the alleged loss of the aircraft has triggered war-risk insurance policies, which have payout limits, or uncapped all-risk policies. AerCap, the largest claimant, is suing insurers such as AIG and Lloyd's Insurance Company for $3.5b over the loss of 116 aircraft and 23 engines under its all-risks insurance policy. Alternatively, it is claiming $1.2b under its war-risks policy, court filings show. "... in the real world, it is inconceivable that we do not recover under one," Mark Howard, a lawyer for AerCap, told the first day of a preliminary High Court hearing.<br/>
China will resume issuing visas to tourists and other foreigners, a significant step in the country’s move to rejoin the world and leave its stringent Covid restrictions behind. The shift comes into force from Wednesday, China’s embassy in the US said in a statement. It will also see visa-free entry into Guangdong province resumed for foreigners in groups from Hong Kong and Macau, and for those on cruise ships stopping in Shanghai. Reopening to tourists is a highly symbolic sign China is leaving its absolutist Covid Zero regime behind. The strategy, which involved frequent lockdowns, mass testing and an effectively closed border weighed on economic growth, particularly last year. It was abruptly scrapped in early December, after protests across multiple Chinese cities and as the economic hit worsened. Business travelers have been able to apply for visas for China since Jan. 8, when the country took the first major step toward reopening its once-busy borders by scrapping mandatory quarantine upon arrival. Since then, foreign nationals have been able to apply for business visas to travel to China for commercial activities.<br/>
US-based firm Universal Hydrogen has partnered with Japanese companies to study and develop a green hydrogen supply and logistics solution for Japanese airlines. The alliance with Japan’s Sojitz, Mitsubishi HC Capital, and an undisclosed third Japanese partner is aimed at helping Japanese Airlines scale up their usage of hydrogen-powered aircraft in the near future. Universal Hydrogen co-founder and CEO Paul Eremenko said: “In order to meet aviation’s ambitious decarbonisation goals, we must collaborate in those markets with the strongest appetite for green aviation solutions; Japan is one of those markets. “With our Japanese partners—all of whom are global leaders in their industries—we have built a powerful alliance to build a hydrogen infrastructure solution for aviation. I’m honoured to have two of our investors and partners—Sojitz and Mitsubishi HC Capital—further their commitment to our mission through this collaborative effort.” Under the partnership, the companies will identify as well as evaluate local hydrogen suppliers. They will also focus on partners for hydrogen production, hydrogen module filling, module delivery operations.<br/>