In the latest air travel news, the Federal Trade Commission warns about online scammers using fake social media accounts to gather passengers’ personal information; membership numbers for TSA PreCheck are soaring; Southwest Airlines makes its fares available for Kayak flight searches; Frontier Airlines adds five more Bay Area routes next week; two Mexican carriers schedule new Oakland routes; Canada’s Porter Airlines plans to expand California service; Taiwanese airline Starlux Airlines begins Seattle flights next week; U.S. carriers suspend Israel schedules; United Airlines eases check-in restrictions for Basic Economy customers; an electric air taxi company outlines plans for a Los Angeles-area network; United axes its in-flight magazine; Sacramento Airport kicks off a big construction project; and Portland International is due to soon cut the ribbon on an overhaul of its main terminal.
As summer storms and software glitches continue to wreak havoc on airline operations, the Federal Trade Commission has issued a warning to travelers who are scrambling to get themselves rebooked during a schedule disruption. Passengers who turn to social media for assistance from their airline are being targeted by “opportunistic scammers,” the FTC said, and those scammers are “lurking behind fake accounts trying to steal travelers’ information.” The agency said the scammers prowl through online postings looking for travelers trying to sort out airline problems and will use fake social media accounts pretending to be airline customer service representatives.
“The scammers ask passengers for a slew of information, like their booking confirmation number, phone number, or bank account,” the agency said. “Or they send passengers to a spoofed site that harvests their personal information and use it to steal the passenger’s identity or rack up charges on their accounts.” The FTC urges travelers who need airline assistance to contact customer service only through an airline’s official app, website, chat or phone number, or to talk to a customer service rep in person at the airport. “If you reach out through social media, find the airline’s official social media page on their website. Look for a verification symbol or badge. And never give out personal information on social media,” the agency warned.
Travelers pass through the TSA PreCheck line at Miami International Airport on June 2, 2016.
Travelers pass through the TSA PreCheck line at Miami International Airport on June 2, 2016.
If you’re a member of the Transportation Security Administration’s PreCheck trusted traveler program, is that line at the security checkpoint looking longer than it used to? It should, because membership in PreCheck is surging — far outpacing the growth in overall passenger numbers. According to a TSA announcement this week, the number of travelers enrolled in PreCheck has passed 20 million. The agency announced in March 2023 that application numbers had reached 15 million. That means the number of people heading for the PreCheck expedited security lanes at the airport has jumped by about 33% in that time. The popular program allows members to go through security without removing shoes or jackets, and without taking laptops and liquids out of their carry-ons. The agency has been adding more sign-up options for PreCheck, including a recent agreement with Clear to let individuals enroll through that private-sector operation’s airport locations.
Southwest Airlines has always been very protective of its seat inventory, generally requiring customers to come to its website to see and book specific fares rather than selling them through third-party sites or online travel agencies. That started to change in May when the airline began showing fares on Google Flights, and now the airline is opening that door a bit more by extending fare information to the giant booking site Kayak.com. “Starting today, KAYAK users will see Southwest fares integrated within our normal flight results,” Kayak announced this week. “They can easily compare fare attributes like ticket refunds, travel credit transferability, same-day changes, checked bags, flexible seating and more. Ready to book? KAYAK will transfer users directly to Southwest’s own website or mobile experience to complete a transaction.”
Frontier Airlines’ Bay Area expansion continues next week with the addition of more routes from San Jose and Sacramento. Last month, Frontier returned to San Jose Mineta when it introduced daily service to Denver and San Diego, and on Aug. 13 it plans to begin once-a-day flights from SJC to Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix. On the same date, Frontier is scheduled to launch daily service from Sacramento International to Los Angeles and San Diego. United Airlines this winter plans to deploy wide-body, 318-seat 787-10s on two key transcontinental routes, using the big planes for one of its multiple daily San Francisco-Newark flights starting Feb. 13 and for one daily Los Angeles-Newark round trip beginning Oct. 27 and increasing to two a day Jan. 7 through Feb. 12. On Aug. 14, Spirit Airlines plans to launch new service from Reno-Tahoe to LAX with one daily round trip.
On the international side, San Francisco Bay Oakland International is getting more service to Mexico. On Dec. 2, the Mexican low-cost carrier Viva Aerobus is due to launch new daily service from Oakland to Guadalajara (along with four flights a week to Guadalajara from Las Vegas and San Antonio, and from Dallas/Fort Worth starting Dec. 3), and low-cost airline Volaris is scheduled to begin flying from OAK to Monterrey on Nov. 5 with three flights a week. The fast-growing Canadian carrier Porter Airlines plans to extend its reach in California in December, introducing three weekly Palm Springs-Toronto flights on Dec. 12 and four flights a week from San Diego to Toronto beginning Dec. 9. At Seattle, Alaska Airlines’ Taiwan-based partner Starlux Airlines is slated to start operating three flights a week to Taipei on Aug. 16. Starlux already flies to Taipei from San Francisco and Los Angeles.
Due to increasing tensions and threats of military action in the Middle East, airline service to Israel is being suspended by U.S. carriers. Delta said this week that its flights into Tel Aviv have been “paused” at least through Aug. 31. “Customers impacted by the schedule change will receive notifications via the Fly Delta app and contact information listed in their reservation,” Delta said. Meanwhile, United told the Washington Post that it has suspended service to Tel Aviv “indefinitely,” with no word on when flights might resume. American Airlines’ Israel service has not been operating for months and is tentatively slated to resume in late October. Some foreign carriers have also cut service to Tel Aviv and to Beirut, so travelers planning to fly there should contact their airline.
United Airlines this week changed its flight check-in policy for customers traveling on Basic Economy fares, ending the restriction that they could only check in at the airport by seeing a United agent. According to the Points Guy, the new policy allows Basic Economy flyers to check in online or via United’s mobile app in advance, or to use a check-in kiosk at the airport. “The one catch is that during the check-in process, basic economy flyers must put a credit card on file and agree to a $65 charge if they bring a full-size carry-on to the gate,” the Points Guy noted. The previous rule required contact with a United agent to make sure that Basic Economy customers didn’t try to sneak a bag on board without paying for it. Unlike Delta’s and American’s Basic Economy fares, United’s do not allow purchasers to stow a carry-on bag in the overhead bin unless they are premier-level customers or hold a qualifying United credit card.
Archer Aviation, the Santa Clara-based manufacturer of electric-powered aircraft, has unveiled another expansion in its planned air taxi service operations, this time focusing on the greater Los Angeles area. The company said in a press release it expects to offer flights on its four-passenger Midnight electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, allowing travelers to “replace one-to-two-hour drives with 10-20 minute electric flights.” Archer’s planned southern California network would link vertiports (facilities that allow vertical takeoffs and landings) serving Los Angeles International Airport, Orange County, Santa Monica, Hollywood Burbank, Long Beach and Van Nuys. Discussions are also underway to provide air taxi flights serving the Los Angeles Rams’ SoFi Stadium and the University of Southern California. The company said it hopes to begin the service in 2026.
United flyers who have developed a fondness for Hemispheres, the airline’s 32-year-old in-flight magazine, should be prepared to say good-bye — or at least to transition to an online version rather than a paper publication in their seat-back pocket. ModernRetail reported this week that according to “sources familiar with the matter,” United has decided to pull the plug on the magazine — something American and Delta did with their corresponding publications a few years ago during the early pandemic. ModernRetail said it was told by a United official that the airline will soon announce a “digital experience” for Hemispheres readers that would mean “we can reach a wider audience, offer more personalized content and tell richer stories.” The source said United has hired extra staff to create the new digital product, with details to be announced “soon.”
In airport news, travelers at Sacramento International should be seeing some new construction following the airport’s groundbreaking this week on its latest enhancement: a $140 million pedestrian walkway to link Terminal B to Concourse B by way of a “skybridge with moving sidewalks, escalators, and elevators.” Once it is finished, which is expected to be sometime in 2025, travelers will have the option of using the new skybridge or the existing automated people mover train to get to Concourse B. Balfour Beatty, the contractor for the job, said the project will create “an approximately quarter-mile walkway featuring 1,800 tons of steel, four moving walkways, four escalators and three elevators along a panoramic corridor.”
Aug. 14 is the scheduled opening date for the first phase of the rebuilt main terminal building at Portland International Airport. One of the most striking features of the new terminal is its roof — made out of wood, not steel, and featuring plenty of skylights. The building is also to feature new airline check-in areas, a public space with stadium seating and a mezzanine restaurant, a dozen new retail outlets and restaurants, streamlined security processing, and access to all four of the airport’s concourses after passing through security. “On the same day the new terminal opens, the old security stations, post-security lobbies, and exit doors will go away and a temporary exit will open through the concourse connector,” the airport said in February. “The safety detour walkways will need to remain in place until December 2025. Now, however, instead of taking them to get to gates in Concourses C and D, you’ll take them to get to gates in B and E.” Phase 2 of the project, due to be completed late next year, is slated to extend the terminal to the north and south, opening up space for 11 more restaurants and stores, new exit lanes for arriving passengers, and more restrooms.