Huckleberries Online

Airlines To Be Fined For Tarmac Waits

Posted by DFO

Dec. 21, 2009 9:37 a.m. • 5 comments

Item: U.S. to fine airlines for tarmac delays, impose 3 hour wait limit/Wall Street Journal

More Info: The Obama administration said Monday it would begin routinely penalizing U.S. air carriers for lengthy tarmac delays, the latest step to address airline consumers’ complaints after a series of high-profile incidents. The new rules released by the Transportation Department would prohibit airlines from leaving passengers stuck on a runway for more than three hours, and would require that passengers be provided snacks and water during such delays. Airlines would be fined $27,500 per passenger for violations. Currently the Transportation Department issues fines for tarmac delays on case-by-case basis.

Question: Have you ever been stuck in an airline on the tarmac for any length of time? If not, how long has your longest wait been for a scheduled flight?

Five comments on this post so far. Add yours!

JamesBond on December 21 at 9:43 a.m.
Water? What about booze? If I can drink and use the bathroom, I don’t mind sitting around. Hehehehe.
Me on December 21 at 10:29 a.m.
Are they going to fine themselves? It is my understanding that many times the delays are caused by ATC and not the Airlines….
florined on December 21 at 12:22 p.m.
9 hours in a blizzard at Heathrow. They closed the airport, but since we were already boarded, we became the airline’s responsibility. The wait was because they were searching for a hotel for us and then there was a crash in the tunnel and the busses they were sending for us couldn’t get through. We played bridge. The more I imbibed, the better I got.
ejs on December 21 at 1:29 p.m.
I travel every week, I’ve seen the good bad and the ugly. I would much rather the passengers be paid whatever the fine is, say devide the fine between how many passangers are on the flight.
The biggest problem from my eyes is, as passangers we really don’t know what causes a delay. Often neither do the flight attendants. Sometimes it equipment, weather, a delayed flight inbound but one cannot feel that as passangers we aren’t told truthfully what the problem is. Instead they stall, 15 min delay, then after 15 min another 20 min, and so on.
One can’t help but feel as if we’re being buffalo’ed
spokelooneh on December 22 at 1:16 p.m.
My mother once spend 8 hours on the tarmac. I’d of never made it that long. I’d have had to pop open an emergency exit and take my chances with the gendarmes. A holding cell would be preferable to sitting on the plane that long. Willing to the do the time for my crime.

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D.F. Oliveria is a columnist and blogger for The Spokesman-Review. Huckleberries Online was judged the best 2008 Idaho newspaper blog by the Idaho Press Club. And the best 2007 news blog in the Pacific Northwest by the Society for Professional Journalist. Print Huckleberries is a past winner of the Herb Caen Memorial Column contest by the National Association of Newspaper Columnists. The Readership Institute of Northwestern University cited this blog as a good example of online community journalism.