Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and and may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened. This relationship may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links. The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired.
Here are this week’s travel news headlines from around the web and interweb I found the most interesting. Take a look:
A Delta Air Lines ground crew member died Thursday evening, May 7, at Orlando International Airport after an aircraft tug crashed into a jet bridge where Delta Flight 2593 was parked. The flight, an Airbus A321 headed to Minneapolis, had already boarded passengers when the incident occurred around 10:55 p.m. Passengers deplaned through the rear door using airstairs. There is speculation the tug driver may have suffered a medical episode before the collision, but the cause remains under investigation. Delta paused all ground operations at its Orlando station while investigators worked the scene, and one flight was cancelled. Orlando police said preliminary information suggests the incident was accidental in nature. Our thoughts go out to the worker’s family.
Norovirus is making the rounds again. The CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program confirmed that 102 guests and 13 crew members aboard Caribbean Princess came down with gastrointestinal symptoms during the ship’s 13-night Southern Caribbean sailing that embarked in Fort Lauderdale on April 28. That’s 115 people total, or 3.3% of the passenger population, which is the threshold that triggers a mandatory CDC report. The ship will be deep cleaned before the next sailing departs Port Canaveral on May 11. This is actually Princess Cruises’ second norovirus outbreak of 2026, following a similar situation on Star Princess back in March. Worth keeping in mind if you’re heading out soon.
Most modern cruise ships run between four and eight massive diesel engines, and they don’t actually drive the ship directly. Instead they power electric generators, which then drive the ship’s propellers. Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, for example, runs six engines producing over 90,000 combined horsepower. Some ships are also capable of running on liquified natural gas as a cleaner-burning alternative. It’s a cool deep dive if you’re a cruise nerd like many of our readers.
Gas prices are up roughly 44% compared to a year ago, and DoorDash is feeling it. The company expects to spend $100 million in the first half of 2026 alone on gas relief for its drivers, including 10% cash back on fuel purchases for drivers using its Crimson debit card and weekly payments of up to $15 for those driving 125 or more miles while dashing. The weekly payments ended in April but the cashback benefit was extended through June 30. It’s a notable reminder of just how much the war with Iran has rippled into everyday costs for gig workers.
On May 4, a Delta regional jet on approach to JFK came within 500 feet of a small Cirrus SR22 propeller plane. Air traffic control was not in contact with the smaller aircraft at the time of the near-miss. This is at least the second close call at JFK in recent weeks, following a separate incident just two weeks earlier where two passenger planes came within 400 feet of each other on approach. Add the Louisville runway incident from April, and it’s been a rough stretch for U.S. aviation safety headlines. Buckle up for this one.
A New York City passenger named Svetlana Sky is suing Delta, claiming the airline uses “dark patterns” on its cancellation page to push customers toward expiring e-credits instead of the actual cash refund they’re entitled to when they cancel a fully refundable ticket. The accusation is that Delta pre-selects the e-credit option at the top of the screen and buries the “refund to original form of payment” option further down, where most people never look. The lawsuit argues Delta pockets the cash when those e-credits expire after a year. Delta hasn’t responded in court yet, but this is one of those cases where the alleged behavior is so specific and documented that it’s going to be hard to brush off.
If you were booked on Norwegian Joy’s 5-night Caribbean sailing departing Miami on April 12, 2027, you’re going to need a new plan. NCL cancelled the entire voyage because a private group bought out all 3,776 guest spots for a full-ship charter. NCL is offering three comparable replacement sailings and a 10% Future Cruise Credit as goodwill compensation, regardless of whether you rebook or just take the refund. If you don’t do anything, you’ll automatically get your money back in 7 to 10 business days. Not ideal, but at least they’re handling it reasonably.
Starting May 19, Delta is eliminating all complimentary food and beverage service on flights under 350 miles, affecting around 450 daily routes. No water, no pretzels, no ginger ale on your Tuesday morning hop to Atlanta. Delta First class passengers are exempt, naturally. This is happening while Delta just posted a $1.3 billion profit-sharing payout to employees and CEO Ed Bastian took home $27.1 million in total compensation for 2024. One post on Threads calling it out got over 26,000 likes. Meanwhile, Delta also canceled hundreds of flights over the first weekend of May, blaming “crew restrictions.” It’s been a rough week of headlines for them.
With near-miss after near-miss dominating the news lately, it can feel like flying is getting more dangerous. But the data tells a more complicated story. Commercial aviation accident rates globally have been trending down for decades, and U.S. carriers in particular have made significant improvements in safety protocols, staffing, and reporting systems. The alarming headlines are partly a function of better transparency and reporting, not necessarily more incidents. Worth a read if the recent news has you nervous about flying.
Were there any crazy or interesting travel news stories you found interesting that I missed? If so please drop a comment below and include a link to the story! – René
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and and may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened. This relationship may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
