High fuel prices and passenger delays caused by EU’s EES entry-exit system causing problems, says trade bodyBusiness live – latest updatesEurope’s smaller airports may not survive if jet fuel shortages triggered by the Middle East crisis lead to widespread route cancellations, the industry’s trade body has warned.Although airlines insist that there are currently no supply issues within the normal four- to six-week horizon, the US-Israel war on Iran and the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz have doubled the price of jet fuel, prompting some carriers to cancel flights. Continue reading...
Japan Airlines will introduce the robots for trial run at a Tokyo airport amid country’s surge in inbound tourism and worsening labour shortagesJapan’s famously conscientious but overburdened baggage handlers will soon be joined by extra staff at Tokyo’s Haneda airport – although their new colleagues will need to take regular recharging breaks.Japan Airlines will introduce humanoid robots on a trial basis from the beginning of May, with a view to deploying them permanently as a solution to the country’s chronic labour shortage. Continue reading...
FAA investigates event of one jet flying too close to another, though both crews responded to alerts and landed safelyThe US Federal Aviation Administration said on Tuesday it was investigating a close call at New York’s John F Kennedy international airport between two passenger jets.“The crew of Republic Airways Flight 4464 performed a go-around at John F. Kennedy International Airport after missing the intended approach path and flying too close to Jazz Aviation Flight 554, which was cleared to land on a parallel runway. Both flight crews responded to onboard alerts,” the FAA said in a statement about the Monday incident. Continue reading...
Airport body has asked for power to suspend EES checks requiring personal information and biometrics, say reportsBusiness live – latest updatesTravellers going through some European airports are reportedly waiting up to three hours at border checks due to the EU’s new entry-exit system (EES).Passengers in airports in countries such as France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Greece are waiting several hours at border checks, the Airports Council International (ACI) body has said. Continue reading...
Suspect in 40s arrested after man apparently climbed on to USAF C130 Hercules transport plane on remote taxiway in County ClareA man has been arrested after entering an unauthorised area of an airport in the Republic of Ireland and allegedly causing damage to a US military aircraft, police have said.The suspect, aged in his 40s, was arrested for alleged criminal damage and remains in custody over the incident on Saturday at Shannon airport in County Clare. Continue reading...
Summer flights and holidays may also be at risk, says the Airports Council International European airports have said jet fuel shortages could hit the summer holiday season, if oil supplies do not start to flow through the strait of Hormuz within the next three weeks.Airports Council International (ACI) Europe wrote to Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the EU transport commissioner, saying the bloc is three weeks away from shortages. Continue reading...
Tribunal dismisses claim that the Welsh government’s financial package breached competition rulesCardiff airport has won a legal challenge brought by its rival in Bristol over the fairness of a £205m Welsh government subsidy package.A judgment by the competition appeal tribunal on Tuesday unanimously dismissed Bristol airport’s case against the Welsh government, which the south-west England hub had argued distorted the market and breached the Subsidy Control Act. Continue reading...
• Trump's border chief issued threats Tuesday to close customs operations at top U.S. airports as pressure intensifies on immigration enforcement and border security policies.
• The threat represents an escalation in the administration's hardline stance on immigration and signals potential disruption to airport operations and international travel.
• The move would significantly impact commerce and travel if implemented, prompting expected pushback from airline and business groups.
Murder charge laid after missing woman’s body discovered in Victorian town of Little River, near Melbourne A man is set to face court following his arrest as he tried to board an overseas flight after allegedly murdering a woman.The 67-year-old man was arrested at Melbourne International Airport on Friday afternoon before he stepped onto an overseas-bound plane, Victoria police said. Continue reading...
Democrat Tammy Duckworth writes letter to TSA calling on agency to reinstate the shoes-off airport security policyNine months after US airports allowed passengers to pass through scanners without taking off their shoes, rescinding the stringent policy after almost two decades, a top senator claimed the “reckless” move could put passengers in danger.The policy amounts to a “potentially catastrophic security deficiency”, according to Tammy Duckworth, Democrat for Illinois, and ranking member of the Senate commerce, science and transportation (CST) aviation subcommittee. Continue reading...
Union boss says workers have received some, but not all, of their paySign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxHello and welcome to the US politics live blog.Security lines have eased at airports, clearing the worst of the bottlenecks as Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) officers began receiving backpay for working during the government shutdown.Allegations swirl that a broker for Pete Hegseth inquired into an investment in key defense companies before the Iran war began. The Morgan Stanley broker allegedly made an inquiry with BlackRock regarding an investment into a defense-focused equity fund. The Pentagon denied the allegations calling them “entirely false and fabricated”.Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill to rename the Palm Beach International Airport after Donald Trump. This would make the airport the latest in a long list of institutions, government programs, buildings and even money named after the president.The US government has directed all of its embassies and consulates to launch coordinated campaigns against foreign propaganda. Marco Rubio signed a cable on Monday directing the embassies to coordinate with the US military’s psychological operations unit to address disinformation. It suggested using Elon Musk’s social media platform X to carry out the campaign.José Guadalupe Ramos, a Mexican national, becomes the 14th known person to die in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody since the beginning of the year. He was found unconscious in his bunk last week at the Adelanto detention center in California and pronounced dead after being taken to a nearby medical center.The army is investigating a helicopter fly-by at Kid Rock’s hillside swimming pool in Tennessee on Saturday. Two army choppers on a training run visited and hovered by the rocker’s house as he saluted them. According to the army, there was no official request for the fly-by, which triggered the administrative review. Continue reading...
If approved, move is latest in series of buildings, warships, institutions, programs and currency named after presidentHe has buildings, institutions, government programs, warships, currency, and now Donald Trump is getting an airport that bears his name even as he looks forward to a towering Trump presidential library in Miami.Ron DeSantis, Florida’s governor, signed a bill on Monday saying the Palm Beach international airport was being renamed to the President Donald J Trump international airport. Continue reading...
Trump has ordered pay be restored to TSA employees but it is unclear where money will come from and whether he has such legal powersHello and welcome to the US politics live blog.Airports continue to warn passengers to arrive several hours early due to unpredictable Transportation Security Administration (TSA) wait times, as the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) became the longest shutdown in US history.A generational divide over the Iran war has emerged between older attendees and their political heirs at this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Texas, as the group’s leaders pleaded for unity ahead of a challenging midterm election year for Republicans. More here.Iran has warned the US that it is prepared to confront any ground assault, accusing Washington of secretly planning a land attack while publicly seeking talks, as the war that has killed thousands of people and caused the biggest ever disruption to global energy supplies entered its second month. More here.US lawmakers have responded to reports that the Pentagon is preparing for weeks of ground operations in Iran as thousands of US troops assemble in the Middle East and the conflict showed signs of entering a more dangerous phase. More here.The abortion rate is holding steady in the US despite total and partial bans in some states – largely because of travel across state lines and a significant increase in telehealth appointments, a new report says. More here.Pope Leo has said God ignores the prayers of leaders who wage war and have “hands full of blood”, in an apparent rebuke to the Trump administration. The pontiff made the comments on Sunday as thousands of US troops arrived in the Middle East.More than 8 million people protested against the Trump administration at more than 3,300 No Kings events across the US and in more than a dozen countries on Saturday, according to organizers. Continue reading...
Ex-first lady wasn’t near ‘negligent discharge’ and agent is now in hospital while Secret Service investigates incidentSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxA US Secret Service agent, working on security detail for the former first lady Jill Biden, shot themself in the leg at the Philadelphia international airport on Friday morning, an agency spokesperson said.The Secret Service special agent suffered a “non-life-threatening injury” after they discharged their weapon at around 8.30am. Biden was not near the agent at the time and no one else was injured. Continue reading...
Passengers report varying experiences at different times of day at security screening as ICE agents assist TSA staffUS politics – live updatesHartfield-Jackson Atlanta international airport turned the digital wait time sign off days ago. Predicting passenger behavior can be hard; predicting the behavior of unpaid TSA agents is also hard. Keeping an accurate clock has been impossible.Even though ICE agents have started filling in for TSA screeners at some airports, a morning flight might mean a three-hour slog with lines winding around baggage carousels, from the security checkpoint all the way outside to the curb. Continue reading...
Negotiations to end funding standoff sparked by Trump administration’s immigration crackdown fail to find a breakthroughSign up for the Breaking News US emailHello and welcome to the US politics live blog.There was no breakthrough in talk to reopen the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Wednesday as the shutdown extends to almost six weeks with no end in sight.The acting head of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said on Wednesday that airports across the country are experiencing the “highest wait times in TSA history”, as the partial shutdown of the DHS enters its sixth week. At a House homeland security committee hearing, Ha Nguyen McNeill said her agency has been shut down for 50% of the fiscal year so far – a stretch that includes last year’s record-breaking 43‑day lapse in federal funding. She told lawmakers that by Friday, TSA employees will have missed $1bn in paychecks as a result of the closures. More here.The US has launched another strike on a vessel in the Caribbean, killing four people, the US Southern Command said. The command, which oversees combatant operations in Latin America and the Caribbean, announced on X that it had conducted a “lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations”. More here.Progressive lawmakers have unveiled a new policy to place a moratorium on the construction of AI datacenters. The policy, announced by Bernie Sanders, an independent senator from Vermont, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democratic representative, aims to ensure the AI boom protects the environment and communities, and benefits workers instead of harming them. More here.The Trump administration’s federal housing director Bill Pulte is asking prosecutors to investigate New York attorney general Letitia James for insurance fraud, according to criminal referrals reported by MS Now and CBS News. The referrals to prosecutors in Florida and Illinois allege that James may have committed mortgage insurance fraud. The allegations center on applications made to Universal Property Insurance company, which is based in Florida, and Allstate in Illinois. More here. Continue reading...
Clear Secure has seen jump in new sign-ups amid the partial government shutdown as TSA workers go unpaidSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxAs travelers continue to face sprawling security lines across the US, one company is thriving amid the ongoing chaos.Clear Secure, a biometric firm that allows travelers to bypass Transportation Security Administration (TSA) lines at more than 60 airports in the US, has reportedly seen a jump in new sign-ups this month amid the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown. Continue reading...
Guatemalan nationals Angelina Lopez Jimenez and Wendy Godinez Lopez, nine, were apprehended en route to MiamiSign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxImmigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers targeted a mother and her child at San Francisco international airport for arrest after TSA agents tipped them off, according to a report from the New York Times.The report, which cites federal documents, adds a new dimension to the arrest by ICE officers that went viral this week, casting new scrutiny on the Trump administration’s information-sharing agreements that critics say are leading to more indiscriminate immigration arrests. Continue reading...
Nearly a thousand pounds of steak went into the meaty effort, and TSA agents, unpaid for weeks, ate the resultsPhiladelphia has set a world record for the “Longest Line of Cheesesteaks”, with 1,200ft of the city’s iconic sandwich stretching across the B/C connectors at the Philadelphia international airport (PHL).The airport achieved the record on Tuesday with help from more than 100 employees and volunteers, who assembled foot-long rolls using 990lbs of Philly’s Best Steak and 225lbs of cheese sauce. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the full line took about an hour to complete. Continue reading...
Former White House strategist says current situation at airports will help ‘really perfect ICE’s involvement in the 2026 midterm elections’Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.The former White House strategist and podcaster Steve Bannon has suggested the presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers at airports is a “test run” for using them at polling stations in the midterms later this year.We can use what’s happening with these ICE [officers] helping out at the airports, we can use this as a test run, as a test case to really perfect ICE’s involvement in the 2026 midterm elections, sir?Yeah, I think we should have ICE agents at the polling places, because if you’re an illegal alien you can’t vote, right? It’s against the law, it’s a federal crime for you to vote in federal elections.And so, if you’re an American citizen, you should be happy that ICE is there, because you’re not going to have illegal aliens canceling out your vote.The US Senate confirmed Markwayne Mullin to serve as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, elevating the Republican senator to a role where he will be among the public faces of Donald Trump’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants. The Republican controlled chamber confirmed Mullin largely along party lines, with a vote of 54-45. More here.Donald Trump has claimed there have been talks between the US and Iran over the past day in which the two sides had “major points of agreement”, appearing to avert a potentially severe escalation of the conflict. Tehran has denied the claim, in which Trump also speculated that a deal could soon be done to end the war. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said no talks had been held with the US since the bombing campaign began 24 days ago. More here.The US supreme court appeared poised to curtail how mail-in ballots can be counted if they arrive after election day, which would affect laws in more than a dozen states during a midterm election year. The justices are considering Watson v Republican National Committee, a challenge over a Mississippi state law that was brought in 2024 by the Republican party. More here.California attorney general Rob Bonta said he has sued the US energy department to stop it from using a cold-war era law to restart the long-disputed Sable Offshore pipeline system linking the Santa Ynez offshore platform to California refineries. US energy secretary Chris Wright earlier this month restarted the pipelines using powers granted to him by Donald Trump through an executive order that invoked the Defense Production Act to supersede state laws. More here.Prediction markets are facing fresh bipartisan scrutiny in the US Senate as companies such as Kalshi and Polymarket continue to battle state-led efforts to regulate online betting. A bill was introduced in the US Senate on Monday that would ban federally regulated platforms from allowing wagers on sporting events, what would be a huge blow to marketplaces where billions of dollars have been traded on major events like the Super Bowl and the NCAA’s March Madness. More here. Continue reading...
President claims immigration agents could help manage long lines as TSA agents go unpaid during partial shutdown Pilot and co-pilot killed after jet collision at LaGuardiaUS politics live – latest updatesSecurity lines stretched for hours on Monday at US airports where unpaid Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) screening agents refused to report for duty and ICE agents deployed by Donald Trump were reportedly seen in a dozen cities.The president claimed over the weekend that immigration agents could help manage long lines, but in Atlanta, little immediate impact of their presence could be observed. Meanwhile, airport staff were getting creative trying to herd thousands of discontent passengers. Continue reading...
About 40 people taken to hospital after Air Canada Express crash, some with serious injuries Pilot and co-pilot killed after Air Canada jet collision at LaGuardia New YorkSign up for the Breaking News US email On Monday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop for arrivals and departures at Newark international airport after reports of a burning smell promoted a tower evacuation.The incident happened around 7.30am ET and the burning smell came from an elevator, the FAA said. The ground stop is in effect until about 8.30am, causing delays to flights at another major New York area airport. Continue reading...
The regulator has issued a ground stop for all planes and New York’s emergency management authority warned people to expect cancellations and delaysNew York’s LaGuardia airport was closed to flights early on Monday after an Air Canada flight and Port Authority vehicle collided.The New York police department confirmed the collision but could not immediately offer further information. The update came after flight tracking website FlightRadar24 said in post on X late on Monday that an Air Canada Express plane had collided with a ground vehicle at the airport. Continue reading...
• President Trump ordered federal immigration agents to assist TSA at U.S. airports by guarding exit lanes and checking IDs amid a partial DHS shutdown causing hourslong traveler waits and unpaid screeners.
• Democrats express concerns that adding ICE presence could escalate tensions, demanding changes to immigration operations following deaths of two U.S. citizens by agents in Minneapolis.
• Senate advanced Sen. Markwayne Mullin's nomination as DHS secretary by 54-37 vote, potentially confirming him Monday after Kristi Noem's tenure; border czar Tom Homan leads the airport effort.
• President Trump directed federal immigration agents to assist TSA at US airports during a partial shutdown over Department of Homeland Security funding, with agents guarding exit lanes and checking passenger IDs unless Democrats agree to fund the agency.
• White House border czar Tom Homan is leading the airport security effort and has been meeting with bipartisan senators, though negotiations have not yet reached total agreement on resolving the shutdown.
• Democrats are demanding major changes to federal immigration operations and have stated willingness to fund TSA and most DHS components, citing concerns about escalated tensions among frustrated travelers and unpaid screeners.
• A late-night cloture vote on March 20, 2026, failed to advance the FY-2026 appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security, leaving TSA underfunded amid high travel volumes.
• Daily TSA passenger throughput exceeds 2.4 million due to spring-break and March Madness demand, with missed connections at 8% versus a normal 1.6%, prompting three-hour early arrivals for domestic flights.
• Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer plans a Saturday vote on a TSA-only continuing resolution, but GOP leaders signal they will block it, risking Easter travel chaos.
Trump and border czar Tom Homan confirm plan to assist TSA agents amid partial government shutdown standoffDonald Trump and his border czar, Tom Homan, have confirmed that the president’s administration is sending Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to US airports beginning Monday to assist with security amid extremely long lines – and to help airport security agents who have been working without pay since 14 February because of a partial government shutdown.Homan will lead the effort, Trump said on Sunday. Continue reading...
President attacks ‘Radical Left Democrats’ after homeland security funding bill again sinks in SenateDonald Trump threatened on Saturday to deploy federal immigration agents to US airports if Democrats do not agree to measures aimed at strengthening security and immigration enforcement.“If the Radical Left Democrats don’t immediately sign an agreement to let our Country, in particular, our Airports, be FREE and SAFE again, I will move our brilliant and patriotic ICE Agents to the Airports,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. Continue reading...
Proposal fails to advance in Senate amid growing concerns about long lines to get through screening at some airportsA bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security failed to advance on Friday in the Senate amid growing concerns about long lines to get through screening at some of the country’s biggest airports.Democrats declined to provide the support needed to move the funding measure toward final passage. Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, said he would offer an alternative measure on Saturday to fund just the Transportation Security Administration, which screens passengers and luggage for hazardous items. That too is likely to fail as lawmakers hold a rare weekend session. Continue reading...
NTSB to investigate incident where commercial airliner and cargo plane tried to land on crossing runways in New JerseyA close call between a commercial airliner and a cargo plane attempting to land on crossing runways at New Jersey’s Newark Liberty international airport is being investigated by federal aviation officials.The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on Thursday said it was investigating an incident two days earlier during which an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 overflew a FedEx Boeing 777 at the busy New York City area airport. Continue reading...