Passengers may not be enjoying flying, but horses are.

It was a nightmare to fly last week, especially with Delta. Things seem to be back on track during this busy summer season, but passengers aren’t the only ones infuriated with airlines. This month, gate agents yelled at passengers to shut up and the video of their frustration made waves. In other news, Southwest has changed the seating policy that set it apart from its competitors—no more open seating now. 

NO.1

HORSES FLEW TO PARIS OLYMPICS IN STYLE

Humans may have had an excruciating time flying last week, but the horses heading to the Olympics had a smoother ride. The four-legged participants from the U.S. were driven from Pennsylvania to New York’s JFK, from where they took off for an eight-hour flight to Luxembourg after being lifted into a Boeing 747 by forklift.

Did you know that horses have passports, much like your pets? They prefer flying to being driven because it’s much more stable and they get jetlagged, too. They don’t need seatbelts and they stay upright during flights. The team of horses that flew last week were all seasoned travelers and they had a team to take care of them. They also had their in-flight meals of hay and were encouraged to stay hydrated (they drink 19 liters of water).

After clearing customs, they were driven to Vettel, four hours from Paris, where their pre-Olympic basecamp is located.

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Related: Yes, My Dog Has a Passport. Here’s How Yours Can Have One, Too

NO.2

SPIRIT AIRLINES GATE AGENTS FIRED FOR SCREAMING AT PASSENGERS

Unruly passengers, system meltdowns, grueling schedules—airport and airline staff members have faced difficult working conditions. But passengers have complained about bad behavior by staff multiple times, including when a former NFL star was wrongfully accused by crew and arrested. 

In another recent incident, a video went viral of gate agents expressing their frustration on passengers by telling them to “shut up.” A gate agent asked for everyone’s attention by demanding whether they wanted to get on the plane or not. “Alright, so everyone’s going to shut up. We’re only going to say it once. We’re not going to say it again because we’re frustrated as hell.”

@clubkev not only did they threaten me for recording them, but they INSISTED that i was a ‘flight risk’ for simply asking what flight they were delaying smh 🤦🏻‍♂️ #spiritairlines #customerservice #fyp ♬ original sound – kevin

There was some confusion about a delayed Spirit flight, and another gate agent was screaming and pleading with the passengers to give them a minute to figure out what was going on.

@clubkev Replying to @robotkyle i gotta say, these Spirit employees are top notch at customer service!!! #spiritairlines #wrongnumber #fyp ♬ original sound – kevin

The airline made a note of the two agents who were in these videos and fired them last week. A spokesperson said, “We apologize to our guests for this experience, which does not reflect Spirit’s high standards for guest service.”

NO.3

SOUTWEST AIRLINES CHAGES DECADES-OLD RULE 

For 50 years, Southwest had an open seating policy—queue up, board, and sit wherever you like. The policy that set it apart from other airlines is no longer a distinguishing factor—Southwest is dumping open seating.

The airline said that customers wanted this switch to assigned seating. In the statement, it explained that 80% existing customers and 86% potential customers prefer an assigned seat. “When a Customer elects to stop flying with Southwest and chooses a competitor, open seating is cited as the number one reason for the change. By moving to an assigned seating model, Southwest expects to broaden its appeal and attract more flying from its current and future Customers.”

The airline also offers free check-in luggage to passengers and CEO Bob Jordan reassured that there is no plan to charge passengers for this. 

The move to assigned seating might also give the airline the opportunity to charge passengers for extra legroom and specific seats, just like its competitors. But if you liked the idea of picking your seat, you’ll soon lose this thrill of the chase.

NO.4

CLIMATE ACTIVISTS BLOCK AIRPORTS

Environmental activists have been using different tactics to remind people of the looming crisis, including throwing paint at famous paintings. Now in a concerted effort to disrupt airport operations, seven people damaged a fence at Frankfurt Airport early morning on Thursday when they glued themselves to various parts of the tarmac and airport fence. All of the protesters were detained, but the incident caused 270 flights to be canceled. 

Just a day before this, five activists also glued themselves to a runway at Cologne-Bonn airport, which resulted in 31 flights getting canceled. In Helsinki, activists blocked security gates at the airport and demanded a stop of the use of oil, gas, and coal.

After these back-to-back incidents, Germany is seeking tougher punishments (up to 2 years in jail) for anyone who breaches airport security.

NO.5

U.S. UPDATES ADVISORY TO INDIA 

On July 23, the U.S. Department of State revised its travel advisory for India to reflect information about the northeastern states. The agency asked Americans to not travel to the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, portions of central and eastern India due to terrorism, the state of Manipur due to civil unrest, and within 10 kilometers of the India-Pakistan border. The country is on Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution warning altogether.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon also released a security alert, which highlighted the heightened tension in the region and changes in flight schedules. “The Embassy encourages U.S. citizens traveling to or from Lebanon to monitor their flight status closely, to be aware that itineraries could change with little or no warning, and to make alternate plans.” The country is on Level 3: Reconsider Travel advisory with some areas like the border region with Syria on Level 4: Do Not Travel status.

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