This week’s featured link
Boeing 737 MAX re-certification is not expected before October – Airway
Delays, delays, delays. As the Wall Street Journal reported, the MAX return is likely pushed into next year. But does anyone really care at this point?
Two for the road
US customs will carry out checks at Brussels Airport – The Brussels Times
This is a welcome lifeline for Brussels in that it will allow connections further into the US with shorter minimum connecting times at the US hub. This could help prioritize connections via Brussels (along with Dublin and Shannon which already have pre-clearance). There isn’t much service from Brussels to the US, but this should help sustain that which does exist.
Jet aircraft exhaust linked to preterm births – UCLA
Well, here’s a depressing study for you.
10 comments on “3 Links I Love: MAX Delayed Yet Again, US Customs Grows In Europe, Jet Exhaust Bad News”
From the Brussels Times article.
“In the near future, 30 American customs agents will arrive in Brussels to carry out checks on passengers travelling to the US, to help lighten the load on customs services at the main US destinations – currently New York (Brussels Airlines) and Washington DC (United).”
Lighten the load? Is that really the goal here?
“Another advantage is that preclearance at Brussels would allow an airline to fly into La Guardia airport, where there are no customs facilities, instead of busier airports like JFK and Newark.”
I am surprised to learn that perimeter rules for LGA don’t apply to international flights from Europe…
LGA perimeter rules don’t apply on Saturday so it’s possible… Wishful thinking in Brussels perhaps?
More of my tax dollars being spent in Brussels when it doesn’t seem like it’s needed. Same for the other cities.
The USA and Canada should just be custom free zone/open border (or whatever it would be called) and people just go back and forth at will.
It used to be, at least when driving. Show your driver’s license/ID and across you go. I agree with the US/Canada open border idea as well.
Insanely ridiculous use of tax dollars to have US preclearance in Brussels (or anyplace else for that matter). But Brussels? For two flights? How does something this moronic even come to pass? Oh yeah, cause it’s 2020.
Of course I’ll take all of that back if somebody throws a spare 321 on a DCA-BRU route! C’mon AA, what (else) have you got to lose?!?!
Apparently the foreign airport is covering 85% of the costs of operating the preclearance facility.
Sources:
https://www.cbp.gov/frontline/frontline-preclearance
https://crankyflier.com/2014/01/30/what-is-preclearance-and-why-are-airlines-so-mad-about-abu-dhabi-having-it/
So it seems it actually is a good deal for us US taxpayers.
Still an expense but much more palatable if this is true.
DCA-BRU, make it happen!
An A321 on a DCA-BRU route would be quite intriguing. Actually I thought part of the reason BRU was selected was to further increase ties between two capitals. Pre-clearance is probably more symbolic in such a hypothetical, than anything else.
Probably a sweet deal for the folks moved to Brussels, especially higher level management.
Qantas. What a beautiful aircraft. So sad!