Severe weather stretching across the Midwest and East Coast on Monday disrupted plans for millions of Americans trying to make it home after a busy weekend that was expected to break records for Memorial Day travel. The disruptions followed storms and tornadoes that killed at least 23 people in the South and left hundreds of thousands without power. Flights at airports from Atlanta to Boston experienced ground delays and stops as severe weather, including heavy rain and potentially damaging wind and hail, moved into much of the Eastern United States on Monday afternoon and evening. Parts of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania were under severe storm watches through late Monday, and a tornado watch was issued for an area from northern Maryland through eastern North Carolina, including Washington, D.C. Heat and more thunderstorms were forecast for Texas and the Southern Plains on Tuesday, including possible hail and strong winds. By midday on Monday, La Guardia Airport in New York City had reported average ground delays of 100 minutes. Flights were also delayed at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the busiest in the world. And ground stops and major delays were reported or expected at airports in Chicago, Virginia, Baltimore, Washington, Philadelphia and Cleveland because of the storms, according to the F.A.A.<br/>
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Market concentration, higher prices and a mounting tally of customer complaints are fuelling a Competition Bureau study into Canada's airline industry. In a release Monday, the regulator said two carriers continue to dominate the skies while new airlines seem to struggle to enter the market. Domestic fares also appear "relatively high" and more and more passengers are filing complaints, it said. The backlog of customer complaints about airlines has hit a record high topping 72,000, according to the Canadian Transportation Agency. The bureau's review, which will draw on feedback from the public and interested parties, looks to pave the way for recommendations to government that would "make it easier for new businesses to compete and easier for consumers to make informed choices." First announced on May 9, the market study is the bureau's first since it gained new powers in December that include the ability to compel information from companies. Matthew Boswell, the competition commissioner, stressed the importance of the airline industry to residents and the economy. "Since the Canadian population is spread out over vast distances, other modes of transportation may not be feasible replacements for air travel. More competition in the industry will mean lower prices, better services, and improved productivity," Boswell said in the release. Over the past 13 months, newer low-cost carriers Swoop and Lynx Air have disappeared from the skies and WestJet scooped up Sunwing Airlines. The latter two made up 72% of seat capacity from Western Canada last year, according to the bureau. Meanwhile, Air Canada and WestJet have strengthened their grip on the domestic market over the past year, even as rival Porter Airlines rapidly expands in a bid to become the country's third major airline. Canada's two largest carriers commanded 82% of domestic traffic among national carriers last month versus 74% in April 2023, statistics from aviation data firm Cirium show.<br/>
In a move designed to open up the domestic airline market, the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority has authorised private charter carriers to break into Ethiopia's scheduled domestic passenger and cargo market. In a statement released on social media, the authority revealed that it had already granted licences to Ethiopian air transport operators to provide regular passenger and cargo flights in addition to the charter services they currently provide. Ethiopian Airlines is currently the only scheduled carrier in the East African country, while there are eight active passenger charter operators, according to the ch-aviation PRO airlines module - Abyssinia Flight Services, Aquarius Aviation, East African Aviation, Midroc Aviation, National Airways (Ethiopia), Trans Nation Airways, Walya Airways, and Zemen Flying Service. The Ethiopian regulator underlined that it had been undergoing a transformation over the last two years and has been updating procedures and introducing new ones to encourage the participation of the private sector in operating domestic routes. The move is aimed at boosting the aviation sector's contribution to the economy, providing greater incentives and opportunities for investors to conduct safe services, connecting the country's regions, and providing access and increasing tourism.<br/>
A volcano on the remote Indonesian island of Halmahera erupted on Monday spewing a grey ash cloud six kms (four miles) into the sky, the country's volcanology agency said, adding it had issued a warning for aviation authorities managing local flights. This follows a series of eruptions this month after authorities noticed an uptick of volcanic activity since April, leading to evacuations of people from seven nearby villages. "The ash column is seen to be thick and grey and moving westward," the agency said, adding the eruption occurred at 3 a.m. local time (7 p.m. GMT) and recommending that a seven-km (4.35-mile) radius be cleared. Footage shared by the agency on Monday showed the volcano spewing ash that grew thicker and eventually obscured it. The agency also issued a "red" colour code warning to local aviation authorities on Monday, the highest of its kind due to ash exceeding six kms in height, its website stated. It previously raised the alert level of the volcano to the highest on its scale on May 16. Ibu's activities follow a series of eruptions of different volcanoes in Indonesia, which sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" and has 127 active volcanoes. Flash floods and cold lava flow from Mount Marapi, one of the most active in West Sumatra province, covered several nearby districts following torrential rain on May 11, killing at least 62 people with 10 people still missing.<br/>
Airports Council International Asia-Pacific & Middle East (ACI APAC & MID), an association of 624 airports, delivered two key papers at a Riyadh conference that highlighted the critical need for enhancing air connectivity, and seamlessly integrating Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) into the current air transportation framework. The papers presented at the ICAO Conference of Directors General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for the Middle East region in Riyadh, laid emphasis on the importance of restoring and developing air connectivity, urging countries to further liberalise market access policies in terms of traffic rights on a bilateral and multilateral basis. Additionally, ACI APAC & MID urged states to streamline and simplify the visa application process for inbound international travellers where applicable. With the commercialisation of AAM expected in the coming years, ACI APAC & MID stressed the need for harmonised standards, certifications, and policy frameworks to regulate this sector. Such measures are crucial to ensure the highest levels of safety and security, fair market access, and robust competition.<br/>
Bombardier said it plans to “vigorously defend itself” against a shareholder lawsuit after the Superior Court of Quebec authorized the class action case to proceed. The lawsuit brought by Denis Gauthier alleges that Bombardier and top executives including former CEO Alain Bellemare and former CFO John Di Bert “made false and misleading representations” in their 2018 financial outlook, according to a statement from the company. Bombardier shares lost about two-thirds of their value in the space of less than four months in the second half of 2018 as its cash flow failed to improve at the pace investors expected. At the time, the company was dealing with costly aircraft-development programs and laying off staff. Management was also under scrutiny from Quebec’s securities regulator for a controversial executive stock sales plan. The class action suit alleges that Bombardier failed to disclose material facts to investors in a timely matter. Gauthier is the plaintiff on behalf of everyone who acquired Bombardier securities from Aug. 2, 2018 to Nov. 8, 2018, and then held them until Nov. 8, 2018, according to the press release. Bombardier, Bellemare and Di Bert have denied any wrongdoing and the company said in its press release that it is considering its options including the potential to file an appeal.<br/>