Thanks to BBC for having me on to discuss the FAA flight cutting as we head toward Thanksgiving. wetransfer.com/previews/7ee...

My latest for @frommers.com offers advice on what to do if you're flying in coming weeks. Especially if the government shutdown--now officially the longest in US history--continues into Thanksgiving. Can you say shitshow? (Webster's says two words but I prefer one.) www.frommers.com/tips/news/fa...

"McGee said flight operations need time to stabilize...because today flights tend to operate near capacity, leaving fewer available seats for those needing to rebook. 'That's why we have meltdowns that last, not a couple of hours, but sometimes a week.'" www.ipm.org/2025-11-06/h...

Thanks to NPR: "'Part of the issue is travel disruptions don't happen in a vacuum,' said McGee @econliberties.bsky.social. 'Instead, they often create a domino effect, impacting other flights and airports. Delays and cancellations beget delays and cancellations.'" www.ipm.org/2025-11-06/h...

This blog asks tough questions about DOT Secretary Duffy: "What Duffy calls a worst-case scenario may not be what it seems. It looks less like a warning & more like a managed crisis, one that shifts the pressure away from him & onto the workforce & the public." avbrief.com/guest-blog-d...

Tomorrow FAA reduces flights as airline capacity is cut 10% nationwide. CBS cites the cuts will come at the FAA's "Core 30" airports plus 10 more, including cargo hubs & a NJ civil aviation facility (20 are in states that voted blue in 2024, 20 voted red). www.cbsnews.com/news/list-40...

We're a few weeks away from Thanksgiving & traditionally the Sunday following the holiday is the busiest air travel day of the year in the US & the Wednesday before is the second busiest. This year is shaping up in an awful way. www.washingtonpost.com/transportati...

Update on the UPS crash in Louisville. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Another video from the ground for UPS plane crash

BREAKING Several sources confirm the plane involved in the crash is a 34-year-old UPS MD-11 (reg. N259UP) which took off from Louisville to Honolulu as flight 5X2976. Updates: https://airlive.net/accident/2025/11/04/breaking-a-plane-has-crashed-near-louisville-international-airport-in-kentucky/

Vance repeatedly contended pilots are among those whose paychecks stopped arriving Oct 1--although they work for private companies, not government. "If you have, let's say, a pilot who's now missed two paychecks...maybe that guy doesn't show up to work." www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

Thread. For those who followed me this week? 100% follow Bill too. He's an airlines expert, and is closely tracking what the administration is doing around flying + aviation safety right now. If I didn't have Bill, I'd feel way less safe flying - seriously.

1/3 The shutdown is now on Day 30, so I'm re-upping this column I wrote for @frommers.com almost four weeks ago. Now that airlines & Boeing have had an entire month on the honor system without FAA safety inspector oversight, we can officially start to worry. www.frommers.com/tips/miscell...

"Meanwhile, as Southwest becomes more like other airlines through its corporate overhaul, McGee said upstarts are taking that model into the next chapter of American aviation. 'Southwest itself doesn't have quite the same Southwest effect it once did.'" www.usatoday.com/story/travel...

While countless federal workers are facing unemployment, furloughs, and working without pay...DHS has somehow prioritized buying two private jets for Secretary Noem. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/u...

Spirit continues to downsize and cut routes. But the airline also continues to serve Cancun, as I saw myself yesterday.

Boeing's downward spiral will be felt in countless ways for years to come. www.seattletimes.com/business/boe...

This was just added to the "But There's No Way Airlines Could Possibly Come Up With Any More New Junk Fees For Products & Services That Once Were Free" file... www.nbcpalmsprings.com/therogginrep...

The government shutdown is leading to shortages of air traffic controllers. "You're either being furloughed or you being told to come to work and you're not getting paid. How are people supposed to pay their rent... their mortgage?" asks @wjm-air.bsky.social on @cnn.com.

"We have been understaffed, underfunded, and underequipped at the FAA, particularly in the air traffic control sector, for decades." @wjm-air.bsky.social joined @cnn.com last night to discuss the shutdown's impact on air travel — and the decades long issues plaguing the FAA.

I know I keep telling everyone to follow my friend/coworker, @wjm-air.bsky.social, and here's why: He knows what he's talking about when it comes to the airlines, especially during this shutdown. Here's his appearance on CNN last night. Watch it all the way through: youtu.be/UZ5uCD9Lab0?...

"DOT Secretary Sean Duffy said some controllers are calling in sick as the shutdown, now in its seventh day, adds stress on workers. He estimated staffing has at times dropped to 50% in some areas." Past shutdowns indicate there's more of this to come. www.bbc.com/news/article...

My new column for @Frommers details not just the obvious effects of the shutdown on travelers--unpaid air traffic controllers & TSA screeners--but the dangers of furloughing FAA safety inspectors. Who watches the airlines & Boeing if they self-police? www.frommers.com/tips/miscell...

Truer word never spoken: "Airline loyalty programs used to be built around making regular passengers feel special...Some perks remain, but many of the things that made people truly loyal have gone away because they're not profitable for the airline." www.thestreet.com/travel/ameri...

"We’re at an inflection point," @wjm-air.bsky.social tells Senators at a hearing on competition in aviation. "Congress needs to investigate the failures of deregulation – and, just as it did 50 years ago, hear from the public, not just airline executives and their lobbyists.

Don't miss @wjm-air.bsky.social and @ganeshsitaraman.bsky.social as they testify at a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on competition in the airline industry. Tune in at 2:30PM EST⬇️ www.judiciary.senate.gov/committee-ac...

Looking forward to testifying in the Senate tomorrow on the topic of U.S. airline competition. www.judiciary.senate.gov/committee-ac...

The "dek" in this story says it all: "'They are looking to rescind or weaken virtually all of the [consumer] protections that we have,' said Bill McGee, senior fellow for aviation and travel at the American Economic Liberties Project." www.law.com/nationallawj...

“The fact that it’s treated as such a pie in the sky idea … speaks to how dysfunctional we are in this country in how we view consumer protections." ICYMI: @wjm-air.bsky.social calls out the Trump admin tossing out consumer protection rules in favor of big airline lobbyists.

"McGee said he questions whether people voted for such decisions: 'Did anybody vote to say, "Well, when I'm shopping for an airfare, which is one of the most confusing products on the free market anyway, I don't need to know all prices ahead of time?"'" www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2025/...

All, this is worth reading (and it also includes @wjm-air.bsky.social):

Excited to be at the Brooklyn Book Fest tomorrow (Sun/21st, 10am-6pm). Hope to see some book lovers there! I'll be at Booth #134, so stop by and say hi. brooklynbookfestival.org/wp-content/u...

Meanwhile over Long Island...restricted airspace incident involving Air Force One & Spirit Airlines. "'I gotta talk to you twice every time,' the air traffic controller said. 'Pay attention. Get off the iPad.'" www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...

Looking forward to the "Fixing Air Travel" panel today at AELP's Anti-Monopoly Summit: • John Pepper, Allegiant Airlines • Jen Howard, Former DOT • William J. McGee, AELP • Moderator: Grace May, Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator antimonopolysummit.org

Talk about favorite co-workers! Who's better than @celestepewter.bsky.social? Really looking forward to our "Fixing Air Travel" panel discussion on Tuesday.

"'Since deregulation in 1978, consumers have fewer rights...State courts, legislatures, & attorneys general have no authority over airlines,' Mr. McGee added. 'DOT Secretary is the only sheriff in town & if they side with airlines, consumers are out in the cold.'" www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/t...

Some--especially my friend, the flight attendant @Heather_Poole--have been speaking about these bleed air issues for years. It even came up in a Congressional hearing I testified at in 2023. It's past time for FAA to act. www.wsj.com/business/air...

Just had a very rewarding experience at the PASG conference in Toronto, reading from my novel HALF THE CHILD and hearing stories from both parents and grown children about custodial issues. Now it's on to Washington and speaking at a very different conference--on a panel about the airline monopoly!

Both Sides Now: Dana Laquidara and I will co-present at the Parental Alienation Study Group conference here in Toronto. She'll read from her memoir YOU-KNOW-WHO & I'll read from my novel HALF THE CHILD. It was an excellent discussion at the PASG conference in Philadelphia in 2019.

The Trump DOT is making it easier for airline giants to rip you off — tossing out a Biden-era rule that required airlines compensate for severe delays and cancellations. "The DOT’s agenda reads like it was copy-pasted directly from Airlines for America," says @wjm-air.bsky.social

Non-Airlines Alert!... This week I'll read from my novel HALF THE CHILD @ the Parental Alienation Study Group conference in Toronto. I'm grateful to partner with my friend Dana Laquidara, author of the memoir YOU-KNOW-WHO. Hope to see both old & new friends there. www.pasg2025toronto.ca/schedule

Boosting this again - Bill is an expert and advocate in all things aviation, and tracking what's happening right now + other aviation-related developments closely. Follow him. (And yes, I work with Bill - and frankly, would be lost without him on these issues.)

Daily Beast: "'The DOT's agenda reads like it was copy-pasted directly from Airlines for America, the lobbying arm of the largest carriers,' said William McGee, a senior fellow for aviation at the American Economic Liberties Project." www.thedailybeast.com/buttigieg-bl...

"The DOT is taking marching orders from deep-pocked lobbyists and ushering in a new era of flying dystopia...the DOT is telling airlines they can deny refunds, hide fees, and strand passengers without consequence." www.economicliberties.us/press-releas...

I've been posting about these separately, but let's do it in one quick thread for tidiness: 1. Follow @wjm-air.bsky.social this morning (and always, tbh). The Trump administration is reversing Biden era-approaches towards consumer protections re: flying. Bill tracks all things aviation.

Good read from @thepointsguy. It references my column for @frommers.com (linked below) that shed light on the airline lobby filing a "wish list" with the DOT to eradicate most passenger protections. thepointsguy.com/news/airline...

AELP's biggest annual event is the Anti-Monopoly Summit, because monopolies hurt us in ways most never even consider. This year I'll be on a panel discussing how airline consolidation affects competition, fares, and even service. Please join us if you're in DC. antimonopolysummit.org?emci=7125059...