This year was the worst on record for commercial airline delays throughout the country, prompting the FAA to institute flight caps at Kennedy International Airport in New York. JFK has been the root of many of those delays, with chronic over-scheduling and a lack of runway capacity backing up flights across the nation on some days. Incidents like the Feb. 14 ice storm that shut down JFK and left hundreds of passengers stranded in planes on the tarmac gave commercial aviation a bad name for many. There were some bright spots, though. Ultra low-cost carrier Skybus started up service from a hub in Columbus, Ohio, with flights to airports sometimes far away from the cities it claimed to serve. With the first ten seats on each flight priced at $10, the airline quickly gained a following. Virgin America finally started flying in 2007 out of its San Francisco hub after resolving the federal government’s concerns that too much of the airline was owned by a foreign company. The planes feature seatback entertainment options and colored mood lighting, among other perks. After a false start several years ago with Boeing’s Connexion program,
several airlines this year started testing in-flight wireless Internet access. The trend appears to be catching on, with JetBlue, Virgin America, Alaska Airlines and other domestic carriers launching, testing or expanding the service in 2008. Each airline is handling it differently, with some charging for the service and others providing some options, like instant messaging and e-mail access, for free.