The 2024 travel year started with a literal bang, when the door of a Boeing 737 Max blew off in mid-flight. Things got arguably worse from then on, with two Canadian airlines going under, a surprise WestJet mechanics strike, massive computer glitches that grounded aircraft, and, now, talk of a potential Air Canada pilots strike. Here’s a brief look at the year of travelling dangerously. JANUARY: On Jan. 5, on a flight from Portland, Oregon to Ontario, California, an unused exit door on A Boeing 737 Max 9 jet unexpectedly blew off at about 16,000 feet. The jet was forced Read more
Boeing
The latest high-profile problem for Boeing probably won’t hurt the company too badly, an aviation expert says. An external panel flew off on a 25-year-old Boeing 737-800 aircraft travelling from California to Oregon last Friday. No one was injured, but the incident garnered headlines around the world as the latest in a series of Boeing mishaps. The biggest blow to Boeing lately came when a large “door plug” fell off an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 plane over Oregon in January, subjecting passengers to fierce winds inside the cabin. “I don’t think this panel issue will harm Boeing’s reputation Read more
You can set your watch by it. Every time an Olympic Games year rolls around, out come the stories about over-priced tickets and soaring hotel prices. I was the main Olympics reporter for the Toronto Star for 15 years or so, and I’ve seen it happen time and time again, from Vancouver to Athens and Sydney to Salt Lake City. Now it’s Paris’s turn to take the brunt of the criticism. The New York Times reports that tickets for the Opening Ceremonies, which will feature a flotilla of barges carrying athletes down the River Seine to the foot of the Read more
U.S. authorities are demanding the inspection of 171 Boeing 737 MAX 9 jets following an Alaska Airlines incident on Friday that saw a gaping hole blow in the fuselage of a MAX 9 plane at 16,000 feet. The Federal Aviation Administration in Washington D.C. said the move requires airlines to inspect aircraft before further flights take place. Required inspections will take around four to eight hours per aircraft. Both Alaska Airlines and United Airlines earlier said they were both grounding their 737 MAX 9 jets for safety checks. Alaska has 65 MAX 9 jets, while United has 79. Reuters reports Read more
Canadian airlines are making major plans for the future. WestJet today announced the purchase of up to 64 Boeing MAX aircraft, while Sunwing unveiled its winter flight schedule and Flair Airlines Following the positive news that the Canadian government will lift all border and travel measures effective October 1, 2022, and amid a strong surge in customer demand for winter travel, Sunwing is has announced its initial winter flight schedules for four large airports from coast to coast. The tour operator’s winter schedule announcement for Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver airports comes on the heels of customer capacity returning to Read more
