New rules for airlines announced

WASHINGTON -- In December, passengers on a flight from Bangkok found themselves stranded in a jet on the tarmac at Kennedy Airport for 12 hours -- a delay that would be banned under a new federal rule to be announced Wednesday.

The new rule, to be unveiled by the Department of Transportation, also requires airlines to reimburse bag fees for lost luggage, to pay more to involuntarily bumped passengers, and to disclose all hidden fees.

"It's just common sense that if an airline loses your bag or you get bumped from a flight because it was oversold, you should be reimbursed," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

Consumer and passenger-rights groups backed the rule, which takes effect in 120 days. But many foreign airlines resisted the hard and fast time limit on airplane tarmac delays, as they sought more flexibility.

Among them were Cathay Pacific and British Airways, which stranded hundreds on flights on the tarmac at Kennedy for more than seven hours in December.

The Transportation Department said a similar rule issued in December 2009 for domestic U.S. flights worked.

The number of domestic flights stuck on the tarmac for more than three hours dropped to 16 from 664 when the 10 months before and after the rule took effect are compared, the department said.

The rule provides for:

Lost bag fees. Airlines must refund fliers' fees for carrying a bag that is lost; fees must be the same for all parts of a trip.

Fee disclosure. Airlines must prominently disclose potential fees included in tickets on their websites, including fees for baggage, meals, canceling or changing reservations and seat upgrades.

Bumping compensation. The rule doubles compensation airlines must give passengers involuntarily bumped for oversold flights.

An airline must pay double the ticket price, up to $650, if it gets bumped fliers to a destination within two hours of their original arrival time on a domestic flight and four for an international flight.

And an airline must pay four times the ticket cost, up to $1,300, if it gets bumped fliers to a domestic destination more than two hours late and a foreign destination more than four hours late.