I’ve flown more miles on Amtrak than Joe Biden and I’m on a plane to and from my missions. Most of the time, the gate agents are helpful, the flight attendants are friendly, and the pilots are professional. The trips go smoothly. That’s why I’m happy to be on tour.
That’s not to say he has much sympathy for airlines. I don’t tolerate the negative and unnecessary attitudes of airline workers who have the ability to ruin your day just because they can. Airlines have killed dogs, damaged guitars, and, during the COVID-19 pandemic, engaged in some of the most grotesque, dehumanizing, humiliating, and unforgivable customs toward passengers. For example, on a cross-country flight, I saw two flight attendants continually threaten to kick a circle of family members off the flight. with a permanent long-term travel ban, because her one-year-old son didn’t wear a mask for hours. It was infuriating and disgusting.
But despite the horror stories, which are endless, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s new regulations on the industry are a very bad idea. They pose a safety risk and will make flying more expensive for everyone.
“With the first rule we are pronouncing today, the Biden-Harris Administration now requires that if an airline cancels or especially delays your flight, you will be required within seven days to provide you with an automatic refund on the credit card you used. “Book it, without having to call or wait on hold, sort through virtual documents or haggle with the airline,” Buttigieg announced this week. “It is vital to note that we are also converting the refund to explain that it will have to be earned in money by default, unless a passenger actively chooses another form of compensation other than the other way around. “They have a right to receive money. “
“We also impose another rule: to prevent airline passengers from being caught off guard by fares. Those fees can go up, for things like checked baggage, carry-on baggage, replacement fees, cancellation fees,” he continued. It is already widely published across airlines. “Airlines will now be required to show you those prices ahead of time so you have all the data you want about which travel option is most productive for you. We estimate this will save Americans more than a billion. “dollars every year. “
All of those things sound great, but they’re too smart to be true.
For the past six months, airlines and Boeing have faced a safety crisis. Whether it’s a lack of bolts detected among passengers, not by the maintenance crew, or a door that fell into the air on an Alaska Airlines flight. To say the least, the air has been questionable.
“The American Airlines pilots’ union says there has been a ‘significant increase’ in safety considerations at the airline, adding a reduction in regime aircraft inspections and shorter test flights on planes returning from the main job,” NBC News reports of the existing conditions. “The union also claims to have witnessed incidents where equipment was left in wheel arches and items in the sterile environment around aircraft parked at airport gates. “
To make matters worse, a Boeing worker was found dead after continually reporting basic safety issues at the airline.
In 2019, Barnett told the BBC that pressure personnel intentionally installed substandard parts on the planes on the production line. It also said it had discovered serious problems with oxygen systems, which could mean that one in four respirators do not work in an “emergency”, reports the BBC. “He said that shortly after starting work in South Carolina, he was concerned that the push to build new aircraft meant the meeting process was rushed and safety was compromised, which the company denied. “
Just two weeks ago, a whistleblower made similar allegations.
The Biden administration’s most recent regulations will only exacerbate those messes by encouraging speed rather than protection when it comes to maintenance. To avoid refund consequences after 3 hours of delay, crews will be driven into temporary disarray, a recipe for disaster.
Moreover, claiming that such regulations will save Americans money is a failure of basic economic principles. Airline tickets, which are already more expensive thanks to Biden’s inflation, will only go unnoticed. . . for everyone. The prices of the regulations will simply be passed on to customers. After all, nothing is free.