Biden wants airlines to compensate passengers for flight cancellations and delays

I don’t love delays, but it does give me a reason to order another glass of wine at 9 am in the airport and not think twice about my decisions. It’s when that delay becomes a whole day event that I’m both hungover and livid. 

US President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently announced new measures to improve airline travel in the country. One of the significant changes is a rule that will require airlines to compensate passengers with cash, meals, hotels, ground transportation, travel vouchers, or miles for cancellations or significant flight delays caused by the airline. The rule will not cover weather-related delays, however. 

The second change is an expansion of the Airline Customer Service Dashboard to include the extra compensation offered by different airlines. Alaska Airlines and JetBlue currently offer credits and vouchers for cancellations that result in three or more hours of wait time. The new rule to compensate passengers will apply to all US airlines, and the details will be ironed out later this year.

More accountability for airlines

The new measures echo Biden’s push to strengthen airline regulations after the chaos that was summer travel in 2022. Biden’s administration and Buttigieg are aiming to hold airlines accountable for their mistakes and improve passenger experiences. Biden emphasized that airlines should provide the service passengers paid for, and compensating them appropriately would be a sign of good faith. 

The airlines’ response

Airlines for America, a trade group representing major US airlines, countered the announcement, saying airlines have no incentive to delay or cancel flights. The group also noted that over half of the cancellations in 2022 and 2023 were due to extreme weather conditions or air traffic control outages. The group’s statement also suggested that the administration’s new rules would create more government regulations, which may increase operational costs and delay airlines’ financial recovery.