Airlines Sound Alarm Over Tomorrow’s 5G Rollout
The CEOs of major U.S. airlines wrote a letter again asking for a delay on the launch of new C-Band 5G service which wireless companies were expected to make live tomorrow until they capitulated… again. This marks the third rollout delay as government agencies and businesses all run around like chickens with their heads cut off trying to figure out what to do.
In the letter, the CEOs said the implementation of the new technology runs the risk of grinding the nation’s commerce to a halt. “In addition to the chaos caused domestically,” the letter continues, the lack of certified planes “could potentially strand tens of thousands of Americans overseas.”
According to United, the new technology could negatively affect as many as 1.25 million of its passengers, 15,000 flights, and further slow down supply chain issues across the country. Not said out loud by the carrier but understood by most is the fact that further service disruptions run the risk of forcing passengers to be stranded in Newark – a fate no one deserves.
AT&T said on Tuesday it would delay its 5G rollout near some airports but is not happy about it. A call to Verizon about if it would also delay was placed on hold for over an hour and ended up with a customer retention representative who offered $15 in cashback for combining alarm coverage with an already overpriced wireless plan.
Frontier’s Newest Frontier Includes Midway and Hobby
Frontier Airlines announced two new (well, returning) airports and thirteen new routes today adding two of the busiest secondary airports in the country. The carrier will begin flying from Chicago/Midway on April 28, starting with 10 routes from the airport, while it adds Houston/Hobby on May 26, starting with three routes.
From Midway, Frontier will operate to:
- Atlanta (Daily)
- Dallas/Ft. Worth (Daily)
- Denver (Daily)
- Las Vegas (Daily)
- Ontario (Daily)
- Phoenix (Daily)
- Tampa (Daily)
- Trenton (4x-weekly)
- Fort Lauderdale (Daily)
- Orlando (Daily)
All destinations will begin April 28 except for Trenton (April 29) along with Fort Lauderdale and Orlando (both begin October 13). The first seven destinations are currently served by Frontier from Chicago/O’Hare and the carrier will move its service to Midway. Fort Lauderdale is a new city for F9 from Chicago, while Orlando will be served from both airports.
From Houston/Hobby, Frontier is adding:
- Cancun (3x-weekly)
- Las Vegas (4x-weekly)
- Orlando (4x-weekly)
Cancun begins May 26 with Vegas and Orlando starting the next day, May 27… unless Frontier shifts its schedule at the last minute just for fun, something it is wont to do.
DOT Allows Icelandair Into Cuba
The DOT granted Icelandair all of its requested slots to operate charters between the United States and Havana over the objection of several U.S. charter airlines.
Icelandair was granted 170 round trip flights to Havana between February 1 and May 31, with 136 operating from Miami, 17 from Orlando, and 17 from Houston/IAH. In a separate ruling, the DOT also granted Icelandair the right to operate four round trips from Orlando to Havana between now and January 31.
Charter operators iAero Airways, GlobalX, and World Atlantic Airlines led the charge against the application, and they were joined by the Air Lines Pilots Association (ALPA), but their collective objections were smacked down by the DOT. The government, in its ruling, rejected the U.S. carriers’ claim that there was lack of reciprocity, as there was no evidence that any U.S. carrier had ever requested to fly between seventh freedom routes from Iceland.
Lastly, the government told the U.S. airlines that despite a cap of 3,600 annual round trips between the U.S. and Havana annually, there are still unallocated frequencies even when including Icelandair’s 170. The three carriers are free to apply for whatever flights to Cuba might strike their fancy whenever it suits them.
- Avelo ended service to Tucson yesterday.
- Avianca is adding seven new routes.
- Blue Panorama is in talks with potential investors. According to Blue Panorama and NOT according to people with actual money.
- Delta is not interested in investing in ITA. Seriously. It promises.
- Emerald Airlines will open a base later this year at Belfast City.
- Emirates is suspending service to nine U.S. cities indefinitely due to the 5G rollout. The suspension does not affect Emirates’s operation to New York/JFK, Los Angeles, or Washington/Dulles.
- Fly Arna unveiled its new livery, and it slaps.
- FlyBosnia plans to restart ops later this summer.
- Hi Fly transferred its A330-200 aircraft to Hi Fly Malta. Nothing shady here.
- LATAM has reached a deal with many of its overseas creditors and shareholders but its Chilean creditors aren’t so thrilled.
- Maldivian ordered its first ATR aircraft — one ATR 42-600 and two ATR 72-600s.
- MYAirline, a Malaysian startup received a conditional Air Service License. YOURairline has not received a license yet.
- Qantas is restarting nonstop service between Perth and London/Heathrow on March 27. It’s also resuming service to Dallas/Fort Worth with 3x-weekly flights beginning February 16.
- SkyWest is canceling two EAS routes — Plattsburgh (PBG) and Ogdensburg (OGS). The cancellations will be effective by April 11.
- Vietnam Airlines is looking into converting two A321s into freighters.
- Virgin Atlantic will now send its cargo flights to Hong Kong via Delhi to change crew.
What’s an English teacher’s favorite cereal?
Synonym Toast Crunch