Ryanair has been conducting a tireless crackdown on passengers who try to take bags larger than the stated maximum dimensions on to its aircraft for free. According to CEO Michael O'Leary, the number of passengers with oversized bags has gone way down since the implementation of these strict measures.
Airlines in Europe are bracing for fuel supply shocks caused by the war in the Middle East. The severity of the impacts on passengers will be determined in the coming days and weeks depending on whether a recently announced ceasefire between the United States and Iran holds.
The new checks, part of the EU's new Entry/Exit System (EES), collect digital personal records of third country nationals travelling to the Schengen area and replace the manual stamping of passports.
In-flight Wi-Fi is roughly on par with hotel or airport Wi-Fi. It's not automatically unsafe, but it's not something you should blindly trust either. You're on a shared network with hundreds of other people, and you don't know how well it's segmented or monitored.
Heathrow's annual sustainability report summarizing the year 2025 describes climate change as "an existential threat to aviation, to the planet and to us all personally." The report touts a few areas of interest, including adding zero-emission buses to the airport's fleet and reducing overall waste at Heathrow by 3%. The report also points to Heathrow using more sustainable jet fuel, with 3.1% of the flights taking off from the airport making use of such materials.
Departures have been suspended at Berlin Brandenburg Airport on Thursday morning because freezing rain has made it impossible to de-ice aircraft, an airport spokeswoman has said. The disruption has affected air travel in the German capital as the national weather service warns of dangerous icy conditions, although landings initially appear unaffected. What Berlin airport advised passengers to do? Passengers were told to expect flight cancellations and significant delays.
According to CNT, Gatwick's main issue is essentially that it punches above its weight. Despite being the second busiest airport in the country, it only has one runway, which means that congestion and bottlenecks are not uncommon. There's pressure to have everything running smoothly, which is basically impossible because one small hiccough can 'ripple quickly across schedules' and cause widespread disruption.
As part of a bill to strengthen rights for passengers, MEPs have swung behind proposals to allow passengers to take one personal item, such as a handbag, backpack or laptop, as well as a piece of hand luggage weighing up to 7kg (15lbs) and with combined dimensions of 100cm (39in). The case alone would be bigger than the current maximum permitted free cabin item on Ryanair and others.
The western German state North Rhine-Westphalia is proposing a new package of measures and is calling on the federal government to strengthen safety on trains ahead of a Deutsche Bahn security summit in Berlin. The state, Germany's most populous, wants to expand the use of two-person teams among train conductors. It is also urging the national government to provide legal clarity for the wearing of body cameras on public transport, which is currently voluntary.
In response, the EC is unveiling its EU Action Plan aimed at countering the increasing threat to EU states from remotely operated aircraft. This is described as an ambitious blueprint for stronger EU cooperation and solidarity, aimed at boosting detection capability, coordinating responses, and strengthening the region's defense readiness. The EC's report notes that drones are evolving rapidly, with advances in speed, range, and payload, plus other aspects such as resistance to electronic countermeasures. Anti-drone systems must therefore keep pace with these developments.
Gate changes, especially those sprung on travellers at the last minute, are a real pain point in air travel. The primary drivers are usually a last-minute aircraft swap due to a mechanical issue or an unexpected delay on an inbound flight occupying the planned gate.
OAG's Megahubs 2025 ranking reveals how well an international airport has connected you to the rest of the globe last year, based on a simple but telling comparison: These unique rankings are generated by comparing the number of scheduled connections to and from international flights with the number of destinations served from the airport.
Thanks to new 'C3' technology, travellers passing through London Southend Airport can now leave liquids up to two litres in quantity, plus electrical items including laptops, iPads and tablets, in their cabin baggage. London Southend will also screen all passengers using security body scanners as part of the upgrades.
Passengers travelling between London and Paris are currently told to check in between 45 minutes and 75 minutes in advance of their departure times, and usually end up waiting in the crowded waiting areas at London St Pancras or Gare du Nord stations.
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