US flight cancellations fell to the lowest rate in at least a decade in 2023, the US Transportation Department said Wednesday, after a string of bumpy years for air travel. There were 16.3m US flights in 2023 and a cancellation rate of below 1.2%, the lowest since at least 2013, USDOT said, adding that it was even better over the holidays. The cancellation rate for the period from Dec. 17, 2023 through Jan. 1, 2024 was 0.8%, despite a record number of passengers, the department said. That was far below last holiday season's 8.2% cancellation rate, which included the Southwest Airlines (LUV.N) meltdown that disrupted 2m passengers and led to a record-setting $140m civil penalty last month. "We've been pushing the airlines hard," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Wednesday. "We've pressed them on realistic scheduling." Buttigieg said last month he wanted to see additional declines in flight delay rates as well. The Biden administration plans to propose rules to mandate compensation for lengthy delays or cancellations that are the fault of carriers. Airlines for America, representing American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Southwest and others said US airlines had a December on-time arrival rate of 83.7% and 99.6% completion factor. "This is a direct result of the focused, dedicated work our carriers have been doing for well over a year -- including hiring aggressively, adjusting schedules and investing in new technologies," the industry group said Wednesday.<br/>
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Airport workers at most major Italian airports are planning to strike on 8 January (Monday) with demands for better pay and working conditions. The nationwide strike, if it takes place, will open the 2024 calendar of labour walkouts in the Italian transport sector, which could see as many disruptions as last year if disputes continue being unresolved. The impact of the strike will directly influence the operation of baggage handling at the following airports: Milan’s Malpensa and Linate, Rome Fiumicino, Florence, Treviso and Venice. The strike has been scheduled to take place over 24 hours and thus it is very likely that flights will be affected and delayed due to the disrupted ground staff services at the airports. Nevertheless, flights departing between 07:00-10:00 and 18:00-21:00 are guaranteed by law. The industrial action will likely impact services in subsequent hours as authorities address the backlog. Groups of striking workers could gather near airports throughout the day.<br/>
Extremely heavy fog in several Chinese provinces on Thursday led to dangerously low visibility, closing highways, delaying flights out of Shanghai and prompting weather forecasters to release a string of warnings and advisories. Dense fog affected Shandong, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi and Fujian provinces with visibility below 200 m while some parts of southern Jiangsu and southern Anhui had visibility below 50 m, China's National Meteorological Centre said. The Central Meteorological Observatory issued yellow and orange warnings for heavy fog up to 7:45 a.m. (2345 GMT). Haze is expected in many areas going into Friday, Chinese weather forecasters predicted. Some areas of Anhui issued red warnings for heavy fog - the most serious advisory - and many highways were temporarily closed, according to state media broadcaster CCTV news. In Nanjing, capital of China's eastern Jiangsu province, several areas were hit by extreme fog causing snarls in public transportation to varying degrees, CCTV reported. China has a three-tier colour-coded warning system for thick fog, with red being the most serious, followed by orange and yellow. The fog also caused dozens of scheduled flights out of Shanghai Pudong International Airport to be delayed or diverted over the last three hours, according to FlightView.com's flight tracking app.<br/>
Airline companies in the Philippines are expected to sustain their gains this year as airport investments including the rehabilitation of the country’s major gateway drive investor sentiment, analysts said. “It is a positive sign that major airlines are investing in fleet and network buildup,” Juan Paolo E. Colet, managing director at China Bank Capital Corp., said in a Viber message on Wednesday. “In addition, airport investments and efficiencies, such as through the privatization and rehabilitation of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), will help create more favorable conditions for the airline industry.” The Department of Transportation has set the signing of the concession agreement for the rehabilitation, operation and maintenance of NAIA by March after attracting four bidders for the upgrade project. Easing inflation and growing travel demand are also expected to drive the profitability of local airlines this year, Colet said. The Philippines recorded 5.45m international visitors in 2023, surpassing its 4.8m target, the Tourism department said. This year, the agency is targeting 7.7m visitors. “Airlines saw a recovery last year given normalizing travel conditions and revenge travel,” Rastine Mackie D. Mercado, research director at China Bank Securities, said in an e-mail. “We expect continued improvements this year, with the IATA expecting Asia-Pacific international passenger volumes to surpass 2019 levels.”<br/>