DOT STARTS 2025 LIKE IT ENDED 2024 – SIGNIFICANT ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS AND LAWSUITS
February 8, 2025
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On December 30, 2024, DOT ended the year by issuing consent orders against Lufthansa and Swiss for operating flights carrying United’s UA* designator code in airspace that U.S. operators and airmen were prohibited from operating. The Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) is authorized to issue flight prohibitions for U.S. civil aviation in airspace other countries manage due to safety risks and other hazards. In October 2020, the FAA amended and extended a flight prohibition relating to Baghdad. Following an investigation, DOT determined that both Lufthansa and Swiss violated conditions of their statements of authorization(s) by operating flights carrying the UA* designator code in prohibited Baghdad airspace. Lufthansa was fined $220,000 while Swiss was penalized $200,000.
To start the new year, DOT fined JetBlue $2,000,000 on January 3, 2025, for operating chronically delayed flights in 2022 and 2023. The penalty represents the first time that DOT has penalized an airline for chronic delays. DOT defines a “chronically delayed flight” as any domestic flight that is operated at least 10 times a month and arrives more than 30 minutes late (including cancelled flights) more than 50 percent of the time during that month. DOT’s investigation determined that JetBlue held out four chronically delayed flights from June 2022 through November 2023 at least 145 times and thus violated the above-mentioned Section 41712 for unfair and deceptive trade practices. Regulators contend that JetBlue scheduled flights it could not realistically operate and thus provided unreliable flight information to the flying public. In response, JetBlue argued that ongoing air-traffic control problems have contributed to delays beyond its control, but DOT dismissed JetBlue’s explanation declaring that flight schedules should reflect reality.
After JetBlue, DOT turned to Frontier and fined the ultra-low-cost carrier $650,000 for holding out three chronically delayed flights between August 2022 and April 2023. After alleging that Frontier held out the flights at least 63 times DOT reasoned that Frontier failed to provide reliable arrival time information and thus harmed passengers, including those who rely purported arrival times when making connecting flights. While the carrier explained that several of the flights at issue were delayed by uncontrollable events, DOT was once again unmoved and found that a violation occurred regardless of the cause.
If it was unclear that chronic delays are DOT’s new enforcement focus, the Department’s recently filed lawsuit against Southwest makes it crystal clear that this issue is a “hot topic” for regulators. On January 15, 2025, DOT sued Southwest, alleging the carrier operated chronically delayed flights in 2022 and provided unrealistic scheduling when marketing tickets to passengers. Citing regulations prohibiting flight schedules that do not reflect actual departure and arrival times, the lawsuit claims that Southwest engaged in unfair or deceptive practices and unfair methods of competition in air transportation. If successful, DOT intends to seek “maximum civil penalties” against Southwest to deter purported consumer protection violations. In any event, carriers are advised to take note and monitor flight scheduling to avoid chronically delayed flight claims which could be viewed by DOT as an unfair or deceptive practice.
This Aviation Blog is intended to keep readers current on developments in the law. It is not intended to be legal advice. If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr at 202.659.6622 or esahr@eckertseamans.com; Drew Derco at 202-659-6665 or dderco@eckertseamans.com; Jay Julien at 202.659.6648 or jjulien@eckertseamans.com, or Tyler Myers at 202.659.6642 or tmyers@eckertseamans.com, or any other attorney at Eckert Seamans with whom you have been working.
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