The Boeing/Air India situation is on the front page of newspapers and the lead story on TV and radio again.
At the time of this writing, the seemingly nonstop coverage had slowed down, but even Americans who aren’t frequent flyers or generally tuned into airline news have likely seen numerous headlines about Boeing’s various incidents, including the latest one regarding Boeing/Air India..
Two years ago, the time was ripe for Boeing to begin rebuilding its reputation.
The idea of an in-flight mechanical problem is scary. And perhaps because, as a plane passenger, you have no control, for many people, air travel is and has always been anxiety-inducing.
On a practical matter, however, how much will the Boeing issue affect your summer? To be honest, I don’t have a crystal ball and any magic insider knowledge.
But based on experience and conversations with clients and friends, here are a few thoughts about the Boeing/Air India situation.
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PM visits the crash site of the AI-171 flight that met with an accident at Ahmedabad, in Gujarat on June 13, 2025.
Airlines always prioritize safety. And historically, most delays and canceled flights don’t make headlines. But they’ve happened for years. “RR” may mean railroad to most people but travel agents and airline employees know it means “returned to gate.” Which airlines and passengers both hate — you THINK you’re leaving, and then end up starting over, assuming the gate is still open, with a potentially indefinite delay. But increasingly, I’ve seen stories about these return to gate issues. Along, of course, with situations when a plane takes off and returns to the original airport, or needs an unscheduled stop.
- The media wants people to read or click on their stories. So if mechanical issues with Boeing have Americans nervous already, an article on any sort of intrigue or incident is likely to get eyeballed.
- This is conjecture, but I have to believe that with the media on high alert to report incidents, airlines at this point really want to avoid bad publicity. So, thinking that even if they believe something is minor and won’t really affect a flight, my sense is they’re more likely to make sure it’s fixed. Better a long delay at first than a potential “RR” or some incident that goes from social media to a headline.
- Whether it’s actual additional mechanical problems or additional caution, or both, it seems like there are likely to be more delays this summer. And planes already are looking full with what is still probably pent up demand from years when Americans didn’t feel safe to fly.
- Between delays and full flights, the advice to allow extra time before something really important is more important than ever. It’s one thing if you’re just thinking of missing a day of vacation or a random meeting. But if something matters — a wedding, a group tour, a cruise, anything where 24-hour delay could be a disaster — fly a day early if you can.
It’s a REALLY good time to consider booking air through a travel agent, either a brick and mortar agent or an online agency with a good customer service phone number. No endorsement of any particular agency meant here and many of us in the industry are overloaded. Even before you fly, if you’re concerned about a particular plane, agents can easily decipher jargon to tell you exactly what model is scheduled for a route. And I’d also put a good human over any airline app to fix problems. (For example, after much discussion, I talked a Delta sales agent into putting a client on a missed connection to London into an American flight last weekend. No way any app does that.) And yes, airlines have SOME humans left at airports, but on a recent trip through Denver I noticed the United Customer Service line was at least 100 people long.- Bring entertainment with you, a book, a computer (with a charger), whatever you need to be productive or have fun if things do go wrong. And pack a sense of humor.
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Janice Hough is a California-based travel agent a travel blogger and a part-time comedy writer. A frequent flier herself, she’s been doing battle with airlines, hotels, and other travel companies for over three decades. Besides writing for Travelers United, Janice has a humor blog at Leftcoastsportsbabe.com (Warning, the political and sports humor therein does not represent the views of anyone but herself.)
