Deadly Flash Floods Impact Travel at Grand Canyon Natl. Park

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By Eric Hanson

Foreign Bureau

At least one person has died and more than a dozen people are missing after flash flooding at Arizona's Grand Canyon National Park over the weekend.

Dramatic video posted to social media showed hikers and campers fleeing powerful flood waters that damaged paths and bridges along trails and also prompted harrowing rescue efforts Saturday afternoon.

The body of a 46-year-old man was recovered from the Colorado River on Sunday.

"The National Park Service is asking the public to provide information for approximately 15 individuals who may be missing or unaccounted for following a significant flash-flood event in Bright Angel Canyon and the Phantom Ranch area on August 29," NPS said in a news release over the weekend.

"Grand Canyon National Park staff, in coordination with the Arizona Department of Public Safety, are continuing evacuation and response efforts and working to account for individuals who may have been in the affected area."

According to the park's official website, "the entirety of the North Kaibab Trail, Phantom Ranch, and Silver and Black Bridges are closed until further notice."

"The NPS is conducting an air evacuation of approximately 50 individuals from the Phantom Ranch area. Xanterra will inform guests with future Phantom Ranch reservations about the status of their reservations. Please do not attempt to access the closed areas," authorities said.

Meanwhile, overnight lodging and Stage 4 water restrictions take effect on Monday.

"Grand Canyon National Park will implement Stage 4 water restrictions on the South Rim beginning August 31 at noon due to extensive flash flood damage to the Transcanyon Waterline," the park website states. "Overnight accommodations will close, and only dry camping will be permitted."

"The park will remain open for day use, with food and beverage services, the Grand Canyon Clinic, and Post Office remaining open. Visitors and residents are asked to conserve water."

 By Suzanne Edgewater

West Coast Bureau

Partner airlines Delta and Aeromexico must dissolve their joint venture agreement, the Department of Transportation said Tuesday.

The two carriers formed the agreement in 2016, and it allows them to list flights together and share revenue. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said the partnership must end because Mexico is not being fair to United States airlines.

At the center of the issue is a disagreement about Mexico City’s two airports. 

Duffy says that the Mexican government rescinded slots for U.S. airlines and all-cargo carriers at the capital’s Benito Juarez International Airport (MEX) in 2022 and 2023 under the guise of upcoming construction projects.

However, that construction was never started, the DOT states. The U.S. cargo airlines were forced to move to the newer but less appealing Felipe Angeles International Airport (NLU) 30 miles from the center of the city.

“By restricting slots and mandating that all-cargo operations move out of MEX, Mexico has broken its promise, disrupted the market, and left American businesses holding the bag for millions in increased costs,” the DOT says.

The change provides an unfair advantage in the market to Delta and Aeromexico, according to Duffy. As a result, he terminated the airlines’ agreement and withdrew its antitrust immunity. The two carriers must wind down the joint venture by January 1, 2026. 

The two carriers will need to end common pricing, capacity management, and revenue sharing, but the DOT says they will still be able to continue “arms-length activities,” like codesharing, marketing, and coordinating their frequent flier programs.

“Empty promises mean nothing,” Duffy said. “After years of taking advantage of the U.S. and our carriers, we need to see definitive action by Mexico that levels the playing field and restores fairness. Under President Trump’s leadership, we will continue to put America First and hold any country who thinks they can distort the rules accountable.”

The termination of the partnership follows a warning from Duffy in July that he would end the agreement if Mexico didn’t take any action to restore the U.S. airlines’ slots. 

“We are disappointed that the Department of Transportation has chosen to terminate its approval of the strategic and pro-competitive partnership between Delta and Aeromexico, a decision that will cause significant harm to U.S. jobs, communities and consumers traveling between the U.S. and Mexico,” Delta said. “We are reviewing the Department’s order and considering next steps.”

The airline says that all of its flights will continue to operate as normal, unless passengers are contacted by Delta.

By John Stutz

East Coast Bureau

Big travel plans are taking off at Alaska Airlines. 

The Seattle-based carrier is undertaking an aggressive expansion plan to add even more international flights, increase its fleet by dozens of planes, and grow its network of premium lounges over the next few years.

The airline, which combined operations with Hawaiian Airlines starting in 2024, is on a mission to be among the largest carriers in the United States.

“We are in an incredible time,” the airline’s COO Jason Berry said in an interview with Seattle news station KOMO. “Alaska Airlines is growing and growing rapidly with the merger with Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska. We’re now a global airline and ready to compete to be the fourth largest U.S. international airline.”

Alaska Airlines’ international route expansion is already well underway. Over the last year, the carrier has been busy adding nonstop service from Seattle to Rome, Seoul, London, Reykjavik, and Tokyo.

The route to Tokyo’s Narita Airport (NRT) launched in spring 2025 with daily flights and has been a strong performer for the airline, with a 90% load factor. 

“That route is already profitable in less than a year,” Berry said. “International flights take a long time to build up, and we’re just encouraged by the demand.”

The carrier is planning to announce even more international routes this fall. 

To serve its growing international network, Alaska is using Boeing 787 Dreamliners outfitted with a completely new business class suites concept. 

The airline currently operates five Dreamliner planes, with another one expected for delivery in the fall and a seventh of the widebody aircraft planned to launch in early 2027. Four more 787s are slated to join the fleet in 2028, according to Berry.

Alaska also placed an order for 105 Boeing 737 Max 10 planes, which along with the upcoming Dreamliners, makes up the carrier’s largest-ever aircraft order.

“You don’t do that lightly,” Berry said of the fleet expansion. “We have about 400 jets today at Alaska and Hawaiian combined, and by 2035 we’ll have 550 airplanes, and a lot of that will be made up of Boeing aircraft.”

In addition to more international routes and a bigger fleet, Berry said that passengers can also expect additional lounges and more premium options, too. 

In terms of the carrier’s global expansion, it seems no destination around the world is off limits. 

“I hope we’ll be on five or six continents by the time we’re done,” Berry said.

By Eric Hanson

Foreign Bureau

Heading into the busy summer travel months, airline demand around the world took a notable dip in May 2026, according to new data from IATA. 

Over the course of the month, total global demand fell 2.2% compared to May 2025, IATA’s report says.

International air travel demand dipped by 1.6%, while domestic demand shrank by 3.1% year over year.

But on the whole, the lower demand was due to the impact of the war with Iran, according to IATA’s Director General Willie Wash. “The decline was centered on carriers in the Middle East with a 28.4% year-on-year fall,” Walsh said. 

Operations and demand continue to improve throughout the Middle East as negotiations to formally end the conflict with Iran continue. May’s data is “a significant improvement on the 46.6% decline recorded for April, a sign of the region’s resilience,” Walsh said. 

But it wasn’t just the Middle East. Other regions also saw air travel demand shrink amid the global headwinds. “Notably, we also saw year-on-year contractions in demand in both North America and Asia, largely related to domestic market conditions in the US and China,” Walsh said. 

Overall demand in North America was 0.8% lower year over year in May 2026, while the Asia-Pacific region’s demand fell by 1.4%.

The good news is that despite the slightly lower air travel numbers in May, overall airline demand remained relatively resilient amid the higher costs of jet fuel and airfares, according to Walsh.

But even though oil prices are becoming cheaper, the headwinds will take time to sort out. Passengers should brace themselves to see elevated airfares continue into the near future. 

“While the recent sharp drop in oil prices is an encouraging development, the challenges created by the war will likely persist for some time,” Walsh said. “Oil supply through the Strait of Hormuz remains uncertain and it is likely to take time before the benefit of lower oil prices is reflected in ‘normalized’ jet fuel pricing.”

In the meantime, airlines will continue to make airfares more expensive as they attempt to cover the ongoing elevated costs of jet fuel.

By Carla Martilotti

Foreign Bureau

In 2016, American Airlines introduced new gray uniforms, moving away from the old blue outfits. Twin Hill, a subsidiary of Tailored Brands, was contracted by AA to supply new uniforms to their 70,000 employees. But numerous employees reported issues with the new clothing, saying it led to conditions such as skin, respiratory, eye, neurologic, gastrointestinal, and reproductive issues.

According to the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents the airline’s cabin crew, there were a total of 3,758 complaints from roughly 18,000 flight attendants. Further, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health noted that 796 of the reports involved medical care. An additional 47 employees said they experienced symptoms simply from being in proximity to the uniforms, without wearing them.

But now several outlets have reported that the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment for American and uniform manufacturer Twin Hill on Tuesday, tossing out the case, which was originally brought by 70 American Airline employees.

After the complaints started, American hired the testing firm Intertek to examine 123 of the new garments, as well as previous uniforms and regular retail clothing. Intertek found some potential sensitizers in the Twin Hill items but concluded it was unlikely those chemicals were uniquely responsible for the reported reactions, as they were within normal ranges.

While American chose not to recall the uniforms, the airline did offer alternatives. Employees were allowed to wear their older uniforms or purchase retail substitutes. Eventually, in June 2017, American announced that the Twin Hill uniforms would be replaced by 2020. And in 2020, the company switched to Lands’ End as its official supplier for staff uniforms.

By Robert Jeffers

East Coast Bureau

Travelers on international flights no longer need to miss the big game, thanks to Delta Air Lines’ newest partnership. 

The Atlanta-based carrier has teamed up with Sport 24 to bring 24/7 live sports coverage through its Delta Sync Wi-Fi aboard its international routes, starting this fall.

Sport 24 is a dedicated live sports channel available on airlines and cruise ships, owned by global sports marketing agency IMG.

With the new collaboration, Delta SkyMiles members will have access to live events from the NFL, NBA, Premier League, UEFA competitions, Formula 1, and Grand Slam tennis on their personal devices. 

The sports events available to stream will be “prioritized based on the most relevant event available at the time,” according to the airline.

To access the live sports programming, passengers can use their personal device to log into Delta Sync Wi-Fi with their SkyMiles credentials. From there, they can connect to a web player with Sport 24 and Sport 24 Extra channels.

“As Delta continues to build for a more global, connected future, we’re focused on making the onboard experience more relevant to where our customers are going and what they care about,” said Ranjan Goswami, Delta’s chief marketing and product officer.

“Live sports bring people together across borders and time zones, and through our partnership with Sport 24, customers on international flights can stay connected to the moments that matter most while they travel.”