Travelers faced a second day of aviation chaos on Friday, triggered by a historic North American power blackout that forced airlines to cancel hundreds of flights and could cost the industry tens of millions of dollars.
Airlines canceled at least 1,200 flights on Friday, many destined for stricken US and Canadian airports in New York, Detroit, Cleveland, Toronto and Ottawa. Air Canada temporarily suspended all flights worldwide because of a power failure at its main operations center near Toronto.
Service was limited at several major airports -- especially New York's John F. Kennedy (JFK) and LaGuardia, as well as Detroit -- despite a go-ahead from the US Federal Aviation Administration to resume operations. Full power was restored at Newark, New Jersey and Cleveland airports, but service was not at full strength.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Passengers crowded terminals at JFK and LaGuardia and roadways at LaGuardia neared gridlock, the New York/New Jersey Port Authority said, warning people to avoid both airports unless they had confirmed flights or were picking up travelers.
Thousands of frustrated passengers scrambled to make new travel arrangements, with some hiring limousines to drive home or to airports with better service. Others stood in long lines and lashed out with complaints to anyone who would listen.
"I'm aggravated, frustrated, tired. I need coffee, my feet hurt," said Carlos Marolo, who drove to Chicago's O'Hare International Airport from blacked-out Detroit to try to catch a flight to the East Coast but could not find an empty seat.
The power outages caused the biggest disruption in air service not related to weather since the Sept. 11 attacks. In the wake of the attacks, US air travel demand was cut in half and airlines saw nearlyUS$20 billion in combined losses.
On top of that event, the travel industry was hit by fears of the pneumonia-like SARS virus and the war in Iraq.
A few stranded passengers at Boston's Logan International Airport resorted to hiring limousines for the 320km trek to New York at the going rate of US$200 per passenger.
"It is a big inconvenience," said Bea Burke, of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, who was among those who decided to splurge.
Computer systems, bag conveyors and airport jetways operated at some airports, but not at others. Some passenger and bag screening -- automated since Sept. 11 -- had to be done manually. The blackout slowed deliveries of jet fuel to some airports, which in turn delayed flights.
Travelers seeking an alternative to flight found rail service also disrupted due to the outage. Amtrak reported limited service between Washington and New York and suspended trains on the Northeast Corridor servicing Boston.
To placate travelers, several airlines waived fees for changing plans, but rearranging itineraries was made more difficult because most large air carriers have slashed their schedules in recent months.
"You are probably looking at tens of millions of dollars of losses for the airline industry by the time this settles," said Michael Boyd, an airline industry consultant.
"You are talking about taking the most populous single area of the country and shutting down all the airports," Boyd said.
US power grid operators called this the biggest blackout in North American history.
Flight cancelations were rife, with Air Canada canceling a vast majority of more than 700 flights. American Airlines canceled 259 and its regional carrier American Eagle 93.
United Airlines cut 40 flights, US Airways halted 100, Delta Air Lines dropped 126 and Northwest Airlines canceled 174 flights.
JetBlue Airways expected to cancel 20 flights at JFK, Continental Airlines cut 11 flights and Southwest Airlines dropped 17.
It could take 36 hours for planes and crews to get back into position after the power disruptions, said Terry Trippler of Cheapseats.com.
Not knowing when or if he could fly was irritating to Jim Innes, a Canadian stranded at Chicago's O'Hare.
"This is very annoying. I'm going to miss my golf game if I don't get there on time today," Innes said.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last