As part of the Trump administration's plan to loosen government regulations, the U.S. Department of Transportation is now recommending more freedom for the airline industry.
Paul Hudson at FlyersRights.org argues this why seats on airplanes continue to get smaller and passengers are still being left on the tarmac for hours.
“We have a lot of problems with seat shrinkage and because we're not getting anything but very weak enforcement, now we see those tarmac confinements creeping up,” he says.
The move to loosen regulations comes at a time when social media has finally given passengers a voice.
“Complaining to the airline, complaining to the DOT has been less than effectice,” says Hudson. “But social media, particularly YouTube and Twitter provides for instantaneous feedback.”
Hudson says now there's a growing trend of flight crews abusing the Patriot Act to dismiss complaints and remove passengers.
“If there's any disagreement whatsoever on the airplane, instead of the passenger being accommodated, frequently the passenger is threatened with a federal felony of interference with a flight crew,” he says.
FlyersRights issued its own wish-list of regulations which a judge upheld, but Hudson says the FAA continues to sit on it.