TSA sets final deadline for Real ID mandate

In this week’s air travel news, Southwest Airlines announced plans for some big changes in its top management, but it looks like they might not be enough to satisfy the activist hedge fund that is buying up its stock and demanding major revisions in the carrier’s business model; a new consumer survey finds broad support among air travelers for the Transportation Security Administration’s ongoing deployment of facial recognition technology to verify passengers’ identities; TSA has set a final deadline of May 7 for enforcement of the federal government’s Real ID mandate but with some flexibility for noncompliant travelers; an industry group warns of a growing threat from the lithium-ion batteries carried onboard aircraft by most travelers; JetBlue’s new carry-on bag policy for purchasers of its basic economy fares takes effect; Cathay Pacific is set to increase service to the West Coast; international route news comes from Starlux, Delta/SAS and United; Avelo Airlines expands its “Wine Travels Free” program in the western U.S.; and United Airlines announced that it will overhaul its in-flight Wi-Fi service by switching to the Starlink satellite network.

Southwest Airlines Executive Chairman Gary Kelly walked into a meeting this week with representatives of Elliott Investment Management — the activist hedge fund that is demanding big changes at the airline — and he walked out without a job. The tense meeting was the latest chapter in an ongoing boardroom drama that remains largely unresolved, despite Southwest management’s efforts this week to satisfy more of Elliott’s concerns. Those efforts included not only Kelly’s agreement to retire from the airline next year but also the decision by six additional members of Southwest’s board to step down in November. The airline also said that its board will be reduced from the current 15 members to 13 in November and to 12 in 2025 and that it expects to name four new independent directors “in the near future.” 

Elliott has accumulated more than 10% of Southwest’s voting stock, which gives it the authority to call a special meeting of all shareholders where it can seek approval of the changes it wants to see at the airline to boost its profitability (and its share price). The hedge fund recently put out a list of 10 individuals it wants to join the Southwest board, which would give it a clear majority of votes. Southwest said as it seeks out those four new directors it mentioned, it will consider Elliott’s preferred candidates but will also use an executive search firm to recommend others. Elliott is getting its wish that Kelly be removed from Southwest’s top management, but it also wants another C-suite head to roll — that of CEO Bob Jordan. And that’s where the company drew the line this week: “Southwest Airlines’ board is confident that there is no better leader than Bob Jordan to successfully execute Southwest Airlines’ robust strategy to evolve the airline and enhance sustainable shareholder value,” the company said. 

Jordan and Southwest management had already announced some major changes coming to the airline’s business model in the months ahead, including the introduction of a premium seating category and assigned seating for all passengers. It did not mention another big change that Elliott has pushed for: the end of Southwest’s longstanding policy of allowing two free checked bags for everyone. The company’s management is expected to announce more details of its planned operational changes at an Investor Day scheduled for Sept. 26. 

But it looks like Elliott may not be satisfied with these latest concessions from Southwest’s management and board. Responding to the airline’s announcement, the hedge fund said it is “pleased that the Board is beginning to recognize the degree of change that will be required at Southwest.” But it stressed that “the need for thoughtful, deliberate change at Southwest remains urgent,” and it again called for its chosen candidates to join the board “and chart a new course for the airline.” Elliott said it intends to file a proxy statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission “to be used to solicit proxies with respect to the election of Elliott’s slate of highly qualified director candidates and other proposals that may come before the next shareholder meeting of Southwest Airlines Co.”

View from the Wing’s Gary Leff wrote this week that “rumors are swirling” in Dallas that Elliott won’t be satisfied until it sees an end to free checked bags and the creation of basic economy fares at Southwest. Leff said he has heard that a proposed basic economy product at the airline would mean no seat assignments until check-in, no free checked bags, last-priority boarding and no full-sized carry-on bags. 

As the Transportation Security Administration increasingly turns to biometrics to verify passengers’ identities at the nation’s airports, how does the traveling public feel about having their photo taken by the government? According to a new consumer survey commissioned by the U.S. Travel Association, air travelers support the use of facial recognition technology “by overwhelming margins.” The survey entailed 1,255 interviews in June and July and found that 79% of air travelers support the use of biometrics by TSA to confirm identities. Ninety-five percent of air travelers said identity verification by TSA is important to protect the flying public, but a significant motivation for their support is that it should mean getting through security checkpoints faster. “Nine in ten air travelers say they would be more likely or equally likely to support biometric use at TSA security checkpoints if it reduced the typical time it takes them to get through security by 5 to 15 minutes,” USTA noted. 

While 60% of respondents said they trust TSA with their biometric data, USTA argued, “TSA and the travel industry must communicate to travelers how and why biometrics are collected, used and deleted.” USTA, the travel industry’s largest trade association and lobbying group, apparently commissioned the survey to fight against a movement in Congress that seeks to limit or ban the use of facial recognition at U.S. airports, even though passengers always have the option of avoiding it and relying on traditional IDs to get through security. As USTA President Geoff Freeman said in releasing the survey results, “Travelers embrace next-generation technology at the same time a small cadre of members of Congress seek to take air travel back to the Dark Ages. Further efforts to harm the travel experience by forcing antiquated approaches upon travelers will have consequences among voters.” 

Does your driver’s license or other personal identification meet the federal government’s Real ID requirements, which will be needed for airport security checks in the future? (A compliant California driver’s license will have a star in the upper right-hand corner.) While the government has repeatedly extended the deadline in recent years for the mandatory use of identification compliant with Real ID, TSA said this week it expects to begin enforcing the requirement May 7 of next year — but with a little wiggle room. TSA has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking setting that deadline but giving federal agencies “necessary flexibility” to begin enforcement “in a manner that takes into account security, operational risk and public impact,” the agency said. It stressed that its new proposed rule “does not extend the Real ID deadline” but would allow TSA “to consider a phased enforcement approach” to implementation. What would that mean for airline passengers? “Travelers without a REAL ID compliant ID or another form of acceptable ID after the May 7, 2025 deadline could face delays at airport security checkpoints,” TSA said. The agency has an information page about Real ID.

Every once in a while, you might see a news story about a lithium-ion battery bursting into flame on a passenger flight, either in the cargo hold or in someone’s carry-on bag — an event the battery industry calls “thermal runaway.” According to a new report, those events are happening more often, and the group that tracks them is sounding the alarm. The report comes from UL Standards & Engagement, which compiles data from 35 passenger and cargo airlines in an effort called the Thermal Runaway Incident Program. The voluntary program asks airlines to report such incidents, and it said that from 2019 to 2023, their numbers increased 28%, with an average of two reports per week from airline members. “As technology evolves and more products rely on rechargeable power, lithium-ion batteries are getting more powerful and in some cases larger, further complicating the thermal runaway threat,” the report said. “Damaged, substandard, or counterfeit batteries run the greatest risk of going into thermal runaway, presenting serious consequences in flight.”

The group said the average airline passenger brings four rechargeable devices on board, including smartphones (82%), laptops (41%), wireless headphones (39%) and tablets (36%). But those devices aren’t the biggest problem: “E-cigarettes were responsible for the most incidents in 2023, with 35% of reported incidents attributed to vaping devices on passenger flights, followed by power banks, representing another 16% of incidents,” ULSE said. It added that thermal runaway incidents on passenger aircraft “occur in or around the passenger’s seat nearly 60% of the time.” Only 15% of the incidents resulted in a fire or explosion, while the rest “were addressed when batteries showed warning signs such as overheating and smoking prior to entering full thermal runaway.” The most serious incidents happen with devices stored in checked luggage, where they are unlikely to be detected quickly: 27% of travelers said they normally put portable chargers in checked bags, and another 27% said they did the same with e-cigarettes. ULSE said strategies to reduce such incidents include better passenger education, cabin crew training and improved standards for baggage handling. 

JetBlue’s big policy change for purchasers of its Blue Basic (i.e., basic economy) fares took effect Sept. 6. Blue Basic customers can now take one carry-on bag aboard the aircraft. Previously, that was not allowed under Blue Basic fare rules; anyone who wanted to take a carry-on had to purchase a higher fare category or buy an “Even More Space” (i.e., extra legroom) seat. In case the plane’s overhead bins fill up with carry-ons as passengers board, “customers may be required to check carry-on bags at the gate for no additional charge,” the airline said. “All bags remain subject to size and weight restrictions and other fees apply for oversized or overweight bags.” Details on carry-on size and weight limits can be found on JetBlue’s website.

In international route news, Cathay Pacific is planning to add more flights in several markets for the coming winter season, according to Aeroroutes, including a boost in San Francisco-Hong Kong frequencies from nine flights a week to 11 starting Oct. 27, then to 12 a week on Dec. 1, 14 a week beginning Jan. 7, and 16 a week as of March 1. Cathay will also build up its Los Angeles-Hong Kong schedule, increasing from 13 flights a week to 16 starting Oct. 27 and gradually rising to 20 flights a week in March 2025. Taiwan’s Starlux Airlines plans to expand its Los Angeles-Taipei schedule from the current daily service to 10 flights a week beginning Dec. 22. The Transportation Department has approved an expansion of code-sharing between Delta and Scandinavian Airlines, effective immediately, letting Delta put its code on SAS flights from the U.S. to Denmark, Sweden and points beyond, according to Simple Flying, and SAS can put its code on Delta flights to the United States. SAS recently left the Star Alliance and joined Delta’s SkyTeam. United has suspended service from the U.S. to Tel Aviv without setting a firm date for resumption of flights, and now it has stopped flying to Amman, Jordan, as well, Simple Flying reported, with no plans to resume the route before Oct. 28 at the earliest.

In the spring, low-cost Avelo Airlines introduced a “Wine Travels Free” program for passengers on flights departing from the Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport in Santa Rosa. Effective Sept. 16, the airline is expanding that promotion to apply to flights to and from all 14 cities it serves in the western U.S.: Santa Rosa, Eureka/Arcata, Burbank, Ontario, and Palm Springs, California; Bend/Redmond, Eugene, Medford and Salem, Oregon; Boise, Idaho; Kalispell, Montana; Las Vegas, Nevada; Pasco/Tri-Cities, Washington; and Salt Lake City, Utah. As part of their checked baggage allowance, passengers 21 or older can transport one case of wine per person (up to 12 bottles weighing 50 pounds or less) at no cost. The wine must be secured “in a protective case or cardboard box with suitable packing materials such as Styrofoam, bubble wrap, or cardboard liners,” Avelo said, noting that it does not provide packing supplies at the airport. The packed wine must be presented to an agent at the ticket counter.

Confirming recent industry rumors, United Airlines announced on Friday that it will overhaul its in-flight Wi-Fi service by switching to a new vendor: the Starlink satellite network operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX — and it will be free for all passengers. The carrier said Starlink technology will be installed “over the next several years” on its entire fleet — both regional and mainline planes — with testing beginning early in 2025 and the first availability on passenger flights coming sometime later next year. United would be the largest U.S. airline by far to offer Starlink service; it’s currently available only on Hawaiian Airlines and the public charter operator JSX.

Passengers will be able to access the new Wi-Fi service through their own devices or on United’s seatback screens. According to United CEO Scott Kirby, “Everything you can do on the ground, you’ll soon be able to do onboard a United plane at 35,000 feet, just about anywhere in the world.” The Starlink Wi-Fi will support personal streaming services and the streaming of live TV programs and movies “without buffering, lag, or the need to download content in advance,” United said. The service will allow business travelers to edit shared files in real time, gamers to play live games, and consumers to shop online, schedule deliveries and make restaurant and travel reservations. Starlink’s global network of more than 6,000 satellites will make reliable, high-speed in-flight Wi-Fi accessible “around the world, including over oceans, polar regions and other remote locations previously unreachable by traditional cell or Wi-Fi signals,” United said.