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US claims more than 450 TSA agents have resigned since funding standoff
Since the beginning of the partial government shutdown on February 14, more than 450 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers have resigned, causing massive delays at?U.S. airports. The Department of Homeland Security announced on Tuesday that massive delays have occurred at airports across the United States. Around 50,000 TSA agents are not being paid and will miss their second full pay on Friday. On Monday, hundreds of U.S. Immigration agents and Homeland Security Investigations officers deployed to 14 U.S. Airports in order to assist with?security screening. This includes airports that have seen wait times exceeding three or four hours. DHS reported on Monday that nearly 11% or 3,200 TSA officers nationwide did not show up to work. ICE and DHS law enforcement personnel are paid during the shutdown. DHS reported that on Monday, over 30% of TSA employees were absent from New York JFK Airport, Baltimore, Houston Hobby airport, Atlanta, and New Orleans. On Monday, ICE agents were seen walking through the New York LaGuardia terminal and not doing any of the duties that TSA officers would normally perform. In other airports, social media posts showed ICE agents standing next to TSA officers checking ID. DHS rushed to dispatch?ICE agents following a weekend statement by?President Donald Trump that they would be stationed at airports if Democratic legislators?didn't reach a funding agreement. Democrats are 'holding up funding for DHS, while demanding changes to the rules that govern its immigration operations, following the shooting of U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis, sparking outrage from the public. Republicans rejected Democratic proposals for funding TSA as they negotiate ICE reforms. (Reporting and editing by David Shepardson, Rod Nickel; Chizu Nomiyama)
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Delta suspends special treatment to Congressmen as airport chaos increases due to shutdown
Delta Air Lines announced on Tuesday that it would suspend special services to members of Congress due to the partial government shutdown, which has impacted U.S. air travel. Delta suspends special services for members of Congress who fly Delta temporarily due to the impact on resources caused by the government shutdown. Delta's priority is safety. Delta's no. 1 priority is to take care of its people and customers. This has become increasingly difficult in today's environment. Delta, along with other U.S. Airlines, offers special services to lawmakers who travel frequently between Washington and the state and are responsible for overseeing the air travel system of America. The airline has said that members of Congress will not receive airport escorts, VIP treatment, or other'services such as seat upgrades, rebookings, etc.'. However, lawmakers can still make reservations by calling a special number. In recent days, travelers have faced long waits for security screenings due to a rise in resignations and absence rates among Transportation Security Administration workers. These employees have been working without pay since Congress let funding for Department of Homeland Security expire mid-February because of a disagreement over immigration enforcement. Over the objections from TSA workers who claim they are not properly qualified for the job, President Donald Trump 'deployed' immigration agents to more than 12 airports in order to assist with crowd control. Delta CEO Ed Bastian said to CNBC last week it was time "to pay TSA employees". Bastian said, "It is inexcusable," noting that TSA agents were also?forced last fall to miss their paychecks. It's absurd to see them used as political chits. We're outraged."
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New York's LaGuardia Airport faces a second day of delays and cancellations following a collision
New York's LaGuardia Airport is experiencing significant delays and cancellations for the second day in a row following the fatal collision between an Air Canada Express plane and a firetruck on the runway Sunday night. Federal Aviation Administration has said that it doesn't expect to see one of two runways in New York reopen before Friday. FlightAware, an online flight tracker, reported that 221 flights (20%) had been cancelled and 214 were delayed as of 9:45 am EDT. The FAA warned that major delays would continue throughout the day. Jennifer Homendy, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), said that she will hold a news conference on the investigation later today and reveal'some findings' from the cockpit data recorders and flight data records recovered from CRJ900 jet operated by regional partner Jazz Aviation. The NTSB will interview a controller of air traffic who was dealing with another emergency just before the crash. Air traffic control staffing is a concern at U.S. major airports, following the accident that killed two pilots while seriously injuring nine others. Homendy stated that the collision occurred shortly before midnight Sunday during a controller's overnight shift. U.S. experts in air safety said that communications between the plane landing, the controllers and the trucks will be key areas of the investigation. Multiple factors can cause air crashes. According to separate audio uploaded by liveatc.net an unidentified controller, who appears to have been?the one responsible for the crash?, told another pilot that he was dealing with an earlier emergency. He said, "I'm sorry," in a trembling voice. Four commercial pilots said that air traffic controllers at LaGuardia, as well as other major airports, routinely handled multiple flights. (Reporting and editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Franklin Paul, and David Shepardson)
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Kenya Airways will make a $138 million loss before tax in 2025
Kenya Airways reported a loss before tax of 17.93 billions shillings (138.30 millions) for 2025 due to falling revenues. In 2024, one of Africa's largest airlines suffered a major setback after it made its first profit before tax in more than a decade. The airline's total revenue dropped to 161.47 billion from 188.50 in 2024. Mary Mwenga, Chief Financial Officer of the company, said that the decline in performance was partially due to the temporary grounding of three wide-body Boeing Dreamliner 787-8 jets because of global supply chain constraints. The shilling currency gained more than 20% against the dollar in 2024, which helped the company's?profit.
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FedEx launches same day delivery service amid US Delivery Race
FedEx announced on Tuesday that it had launched a same-day delivery service in partnership with the last-mile software company OneRail. FedEx SameDay Local allows customers to choose from a variety of delivery options, such as two-hour and end-of-day windows. FedEx claims to link 'customers with a nationwide network of over?1,000 delivery providers via a system which matches orders and drivers. This?move is a result of?companies in the sector investing in faster fulfillment and a stronger last-mile network to meet increasing customer demand for quicker, more flexible deliveries. Amazon has expanded its fast delivery options earlier this month by launching one-hour and three-hour shipping across the u.s. FedEx says the new service will allow it to better support its customers, from local fulfillment to long-haul delivery. Reporting by Abhinav Paramar in Bengaluru, Editing by Tasim Zaid
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Reeves: UK will provide energy assistance to 'those in greatest need'
The British Finance Minister Rachel Reeves stated on Tuesday that the government's support to households in order to offset the increase in energy costs caused by the conflict in the Middle East will not compromise her plans to fix the public finances. Reeves said that we should learn from the past mistakes as we deal with this crisis. She said that the Conservative government 'pushed up borrowing rates, inflation and interest rates with its response to the rise in energy prices in 2022 after Russia's full scale invasion of Ukraine. Reeves said she was working to develop a more targeted strategy for households whose?energy costs are expected to rise from July. She said that "continuous planning" is being done for all eventualities to keep costs low for everyone, and to provide support for those in need while adhering strictly to our fiscal rules. Reeves stated that she would be meeting with representatives of supermarkets and banks this week to discuss ways they can help UK consumers. She also said that she asked officials to 'look at where they could cut certain agrifood tariffs in order to help 'keep a lid on the grocery inflation, keeping a mind to any implications for local producers. (Reporting and writing by Muvija, Sarah Young, and David Milliken; diting by Catarina demony).
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India fills up stranded ships with LPG amid gas crisis
An official of the federal shipping ministry revealed on Tuesday that India was loading liquefied petroleum gas onto its empty ships stranded in the Persian Gulf due to a 'gas shortage' caused by the conflict in the Middle East. The 24 Indian flagged vessels were stranded on the Persian Gulf after shipments from the Gulf were interrupted and the Strait o'Hormuz. Rajesh Kumar Sinha said that two ships, Shivalik and Nanda, have already arrived in India. Pine Gas?and Jag Vasant will arrive between March 26-27. Sinha stated that one vessel has?exited the dry dock and will be fully loaded with LPG within three to four days. He said that five tankers carrying 230 000 metric tons of LPG were in the Strait of Hormuz. He said that six LPG carriers will be available. He?clarified also that, under international law, narrow sea passages (straits) guarantee the right to freedom of navigation. This means that vessels do not need to pay tolls or obtain permission to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. He cautioned, however, that the current state of affairs warranted careful evaluation. India is experiencing its worst gas shortage in decades. The government has cut off supplies to industries so that households are not affected. India imported 60% of the cooking gas it consumed last year. Around 90% of these imports were from the Middle East.
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Data shows that crude exports from Saudi Arabia's Yanbu Port surged to nearly 4 mln Bpd last weekend.
Shipping data indicates that crude oil exports from Saudi Arabia's western Yanbu Port?rose sharply to a record 4 million barrels a day last week. This is a sharp increase from the?exports levels prior to the Iran War. Saudi Aramco is the world's largest oil exporter. To offset the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, they are sending crude oil along the East-West pipeline from Yanbu. The majority of the oil will be heading to Asia. Aramco announced on March 10 that it can deliver up to 7 millions bpd through its East-West pipeline to Yanbu, of which around 5 million bpd could be available for export, and the remainder could supply local refineries. Kpler reports that total Saudi crude oil exports in February exceeded 7 million barrels per day. Kpler data showed that crude exports via 'Yanbu' have averaged 2.9 million barrels a day in March. This is slightly higher than the figures reported by LSEG. This is a significant increase compared to the 770,000 barrels per day average in January and February. According to Kpler and LSEG, exports increased to nearly 4 million?bpd in the week beginning March 16. They are expected to continue to increase. Reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar and Jonathan Saul Editing by Bernadettebaum, Aiden Lewis
Energy Minister: Kazakhstan crude production restored after CPC interruption
Energy Minister Yerlan AKkenzhenov announced on Tuesday that Kazakhstan's crude oil production had been restored - following a disruption in loading at the CPC pipeline in _December and January.
Akkenzhenov, speaking on the sidelines of the Conference, said that the country was "very dependent" on the CPC Pipeline and it was important to keep it away from sanctions and attacks.
Tengiz, the oilfield that accounts for 40% of Kazakhstan's production, was unable to produce crude oil due to power outages and Ukrainian drone attacks.
The minister stated that Kazakhstan now produces 1.7 million barrels of crude oil per day, plus 400,000 barrels a day of natural gas liquids and condensate. He said that Kazakhstan stands to gain from the rising prices due to the conflict in Iran, as 52% its budget is derived from oil revenue. Companies operating there could also invest more money to increase production.
Akkenzhenov, a member of OPEC+, said that the country had started drilling deep wells. Four or five are currently underway.
Akkenzhenov replied that "we have not had any meetings with OPEC+" when asked if the 'producer group, and its 'allies, could release more barrels amidst the Iran War which has tightened the physical oil market. (Reporting and editing by Nathan Crooks, Ni Williams, and Georgina McCartney in Houston)
(source: Reuters)