Prosecutors and a lawyer for a woman charged with sneaking aboard a New York-to-Paris flight said Wednesday they’ll try to work out a plea deal for her. In the meantime, Svetlana Dali pleaded not guilty to a stowaway charge and was ordered held without bail. After her arrest late last year, the 57-year-old was initially released with electronic monitoring. She was rearrested Dec. 16 after authorities said she cut off the monitoring device and tried to enter Canada. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke Theodora told a New York federal court that prosecutors hope to “engage seriously in plea negotiations” regarding Dali. Her attorney, Michael Schneider, said he’d participate in those discussions and “try to take care of this case prior to a trial.” He said he also aimed to get an evaluation of Dali’s mental health. Dali, an unemployed Russian citizen with U.S. residency, was found aboard a Nov. 26 Delta Air Lines flight as it headed from New York’s JFK International Airport to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. According to court documents, she managed to get through security and on the plane without a boarding pass. Dali was one of two stowaways who were arrested on different flights from U.S. destinations in November and December. And twice within the last month, people have been found dead in airplane wheel wells at U.S. airports. The discoveries have stirred concerns about aviation security gaps, which federal regulators, airlines and airports say they’re trying to plug.<br/>
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Delta Air Lines has appointed former Walmart International chief Judith McKenna as the newest member of its board of directors. The Atlanta-based carrier said on 15 January that McKenna’s appointment will be effective early next month. Delta does not specify whether a current member will leave the 13-member panel. “Judith’s deep leadership and global management experience, as well as her relentless passion for care for customers and employees throughout organisations, will contribute meaningfully to Delta’s board,” says non-executive board chair David Taylor. McKenna worked for Walmart for nearly 30 years, including time as COO, eventually rising to oversee the US retailer’s international business. Delta’s board includes CE Ed Bastian and a dozen directors with industry-spanning experience. The major US carrier said on 10 January that it expects its best-ever full-year financial performance in 2025, its 100th year of operations.<br/>
Dutch airline KLM announced that it will cancel 20 departures and 20 arrivals on Thursday as it anticipates the continuation of thick fog at Schiphol Airport. The limited visibility caused dozens of flight cancellations and hundreds of delays at the airport outside of Amsterdam, and more issues were building up at the Eindhoven Airport and Rotterdam The Hague Airport. KLM cancelled 96 flights by Wednesday afternoon because of the fog, accounting for the vast majority of scrapped flights at the airport. Airlines cancelled a total of 58 departing passenger flights, and 55 more which were due to arrive at Schiphol starting from the beginning of operations on Wednesday morning. Another 248 arrivals were delayed with the air traffic control continuing to regulate arriving flight volume due to limited visibility. By 1 p.m., airlines announced delays to 166 departing flights. An airport spokesperson could not say how fog might affect operations on Thursday, according to ANP. KLM said earlier in the day that they were “overwhelmed” by the fog. The situation was worse than the weather forecasts on Tuesday and during the overnight hours, a spokesperson told ANP. The weather institute KNMI issued a code yellow on Wednesday morning due to the mist, with visibility down to about 200 meters in some areas.<br/>