Word: tarmac
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Travelers Association. "JetBlue became a punch line and lost [millions] in revenue." After the incidents, both airlines sent the stranded passengers travel vouchers and letters of apology. JetBlue also enacted its own "Customer Bill of Rights," which says that passengers will not be stranded on the tarmac for more than five hours. It also entitles stranded passengers to travel vouchers if the cause of the delay was within JetBlue's control (weather problems, which account for about 42% of all the industry's delays, are considered uncontrollable...
...Still, some lawmakers want to regulate how long a plane can sit on the tarmac. In March, "The Airline Passenger's Bill of Rights" was introduced in both the House, by Rep. Mike Thompson, a California Democrat, and the Senate, by Barbara Boxer, a California Democrat, and Olympia Snowe, a Maine Republican. Under the bill, passengers reserve the right to deplane after four hours on the tarmac. Airlines would also be required to keep an adequate amount of food and water on hand, to maintain sanitary conditions and to keep passengers informed of the cause and timing of delays...
...aviation subcommittee, has a new clause that essentially acts as a loophole for the airlines. If the airlines file "contingency plans" to the DOT that explain how they will handle future delays, the airlines would not be required to deplane passengers after four hours on the tarmac (though they would still have to ensure sanitary conditions on the planes)."This new wording does seem to negate the original purpose of the Bill of Rights, [which was] to make sure passengers aren't stranded on tarmacs," says John Gentzel, press secretary for Senator Snowe...
...looks even bleaker in the House for Rep. Thompson. His version of the bill likely won't even make it into committee. Rep. James Oberstar, the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, would rather let the DOT regulate tarmac strandings than have Congress step in, says Jim Berard, the committee's spokesman...
...would cancel more flights. "Somebody who has a business meeting would much rather wait on the plane - provided they have humane circumstances - then go back to the gate and be further delayed," he says. Even flight attendants, who suffer the brunt of abuse when a plane sits on the tarmac, aren't on board with the Passenger's Bill of Rights. "We feel the Passenger's Bill of Rights would create this expectation by passengers that management and airlines couldn't possibly meet, and it would then be the flight attendants that have to bear the brunt of passenger...