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By Lisa Baertlein and David Lawder (Reuters) -The United States Trade Representative's office said on Friday it would modify certain maritime-related fees for foreign-built vehicle carriers and liquefied natural gas vessels ahead of port fees on China-linked ships slated to go into effect next week. USTR said in a statement that fees on operators of foreign-built vehicle carriers would be $46 per net ton, effective on October 14. That is below a fee of $150 per net ton originally proposed in April, seen by the industry as prohibitive, but well above an adjusted fee of $14 per net ton proposed on June 12. USTR also is eliminating, retroactive to April 17, a provision permitting the suspension of liquefied natural gas (LNG) export licenses if certain restrictions on the use of foreign-built vessels were not met. And it added a carve-out from fees for certain ethane and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers under long-term charter arrangements. USTR in February proposed the actions to counter China's rising maritime dominance and to restore American shipbuilding. But its original proposals were largely watered down amid pressure from industry, which called them overly punitive and said they would have stifled a U.S. shipbuilding revival. The move came on the same day as Beijing retaliated against U.S. port fees taking effect on Wednesday for China-built, owned or operated vessels. China said it would impose levies on calls by ships built or flagged in the United States, or owned by companies with at least 25% of their shares or board seats held by U.S. investment funds. CRANE, CARGO EQUIPMENT TARIFFS USTR also said it would impose 100% tariffs on certain ship-to-shore cranes from China and some cargo-handling equipment, including intermodal chassis for trucks hauling containers. The agency reaffirmed it would not impose tariffs on ship-to-shore cranes ordered before April 17. USTR said it has decided not to impose duties on intermodal shipping containers due to the potential impact on domestic carriers. USTR also proposed further modifications to its action taken in April, imposing additional tariffs of up to 150% on certain cargo-handling equipment, including rubber-tire gantry cranes, and components of such equipment. (Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles and David Lawder in Washington; Editing by Tom Hogue)

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By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Federal Aviation Administration said on Friday that air traffic control staffing issues delayed travel for a fifth straight day as major U.S. airlines urged air travelers to be patient during an ongoing government shutdown. More than 6,400 flights were delayed on Friday – and 470 canceled – after 22,000 had been delayed since Monday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware. Air travel is expected to rise in the United States during the three-day Columbus Day holiday weekend. The FAA said late on Friday it was experiencing staffing issues in Chicago, New York, Newark, San Diego, Dallas, Washington and Phoenix, among other airports. A temporary evacuation of the Atlanta air traffic control tower Friday due to a fire alarm and reports of a strong natural gas odor also snarled flights. Airlines were urging passengers to be patient. "It is safe to fly, but ATC staffing shortages strain the system and cause flights to be spaced out, slowing down everything," said Airlines for America, the trade group representing American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines and other major carriers, warning of delays or cancellations. "The bottom line is that anyone heading to the airport right now is encouraged to pack their patience." Air traffic control has become a flashpoint in the debate over the shutdown with both parties blaming the other. The Trump administration on Thursday began airing videos at security checkpoints blaming Democrats. The head of the FAA said earlier the agency is facing continuing air traffic control staffing shortages as a U.S. government shutdown entered its 10th day but emphasized safety would not be compromised. "Staffing shortages have increased across the country," FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in an email to employees. "Safety will never be compromised. When staffing constraints occur, we will reduce the flow of air traffic into affected airports and centers to maintain safe operations." Some 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers must still turn up for work during the government shutdown, but they are not being paid. Controllers are set to receive a partial paycheck on October 14 for work performed before the shutdown. In 2019, during a 35-day shutdown, the number of absences by controllers and TSA officers rose as workers missed paychecks, extending checkpoint wait times at some airports. Authorities were forced to slow air traffic in New York, which put pressure on lawmakers to quickly end the standoff. The U.S. has faced an air traffic controller staffing shortage for more than a decade, and many had been working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown. The FAA is about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of targeted staffing levels. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned on Thursday that air traffic controllers who repeatedly fail to show up for work during the government shutdown could be fired. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Mark Porter, Diane Craft and Tom Hogue)

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By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The chair of the Federal Communications Commission said on Friday that major U.S. online retail websites have removed several million listings for prohibited Chinese electronics as part of a crackdown by the agency. FCC Chair Brendan Carr said in an interview that the items removed are either on a U.S. list of barred equipment or were not authorized by the agency, including items like home security cameras and smart watches from companies including Huawei, Hangzhou Hikvision, ZTE and Dahua Technology Company. Carr said companies are putting new processes in place to prevent future prohibited items as a result of FCC oversight. "We're going to keep our efforts up," Carr said. The FCC issued a new national security notice reminding companies of prohibited items including video surveillance equipment. Carr said the items could allow China to "surveil Americans, disrupt communications networks and otherwise threaten U.S. national security." U.S. agencies in recent years have taken a series of actions against Chinese tech companies, including telecom, semiconductors, vehicles and others raising national security concerns. This is the latest push to prevent unapproved Chinese electronics from getting to the U.S. market. Earlier this week, the FCC said it plans to vote this month to tighten restrictions on telecommunications equipment made by Chinese companies deemed national security risks, the latest in a series of U.S. actions targeting Beijing. The U.S. telecom regulator previously named companies including Huawei, ZTE, China Mobile and China Telecom to the so-called "Covered List," which bars the FCC from authorizing the import or sale of new equipment from those companies. The agency will vote on October 28 to prohibit authorization of devices containing component parts that are on the Covered List and authorize the agency to prohibit the sale of previously authorized Covered List equipment in specific cases. In March, the FCC said it was investigating nine Chinese companies on the Covered List including Huawei, ZTE as well as Hytera Communications, Dahua Technology Company, Pacifica Networks/ComNet and China Unicom (Americas). The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment. The FCC previously barred some Chinese companies from providing telecommunications services in the United States, citing national security concerns. Last month, the FCC began proceedings to withdraw recognition from seven test labs owned or controlled by the Chinese government, citing U.S. national security concerns. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Mark Porter and Diane Craft)

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By Rajesh Kumar Singh and Doyinsola Oladipo NEW YORK (Reuters) -In a fleet optimization move, Spirit Airlines will reject its commitment to buy 52 Airbus planes along with its options for 10 others. The aircraft orders will be taken over by aircraft lessor AerCap. This three-way agreement is part of a dispute settlement between Spirit and AerCap, which was approved on Friday by U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. The conflict with the world's largest aircraft leasing company was the trigger for pushing Spirit into its second bankruptcy. In late August, AerCap unexpectedly terminated the lease agreements for 36 new Airbus A320neo family jets that were scheduled for delivery to Spirit between 2027 and 2028. It also claimed default on the leases for 37 aircraft already in the carrier's operational fleet. Spirit disputed the validity of AerCap's claims. But with access to a large portion of its current and future fleet jeopardized, the company was forced to seek bankruptcy protection. As part of the settlement between the two companies, Spirit will reject 27 out of the 37 leases it holds. AerCap, meanwhile, was granted permission to keep and use $9.7 million in cash security deposits that Spirit provided for the canceled aircraft leases. The Irish leasing giant also has been granted permission to file a total unsecured claim of up to $572 million against Spirit. It is not clear yet how much it will be able to collect on that claim. Spirit will give up all its rights to the 36 undelivered jets. Additionally, it will sign new lease agreements with AerCap for 30 new Airbus A320 or A321 airplanes for deliveries spread equally across 2027, 2028 and 2029. As part of the deal, AerCap will make a cash injection of $150 million into the bankrupt airline. Separately, Spirit said the court has also approved a debtor-in-possession ("DIP") financing facility of up to $475 million from its existing bondholders. Of the total financing, $200 million is immediately available to the carrier. In a statement, Spirit said the agreement allows it to reduce operating costs by hundreds of millions of dollars. Spirit plans to shrink its operations to reduce its costs. It has decided to furlough approximately 1,800 flight attendants, about one-third of its cabin crew, effective December 1. The carrier, which currently operates 214 aircraft, also plans to shrink its fleet by nearly 100 aircraft, nearly half of its fleet. (Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York and Rajesh Kumar Singh in Chicago; Editing by Diane Craft)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Rajesh Kumar Singh and Doyinsola Oladipo NEW YORK (Reuters) -In a fleet optimization move, Spirit Airlines will reject its commitment to buy 52 Airbus planes along with its options for 10 others. The aircraft orders will be taken over by aircraft lessor AerCap. This three-way agreement is part of a dispute settlement between Spirit and AerCap, which was approved on Friday by U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. The conflict with the world's largest aircraft leasing company was the trigger for pushing Spirit into its second bankruptcy. In late August, AerCap unexpectedly terminated the lease agreements for 36 new Airbus A320neo family jets that were scheduled for delivery to Spirit between 2027 and 2028. It also claimed default on the leases for 37 aircraft already in the carrier's operational fleet. Spirit disputed the validity of AerCap's claims. But with access to a large portion of its current and future fleet jeopardized, the company was forced to seek bankruptcy protection. As part of the settlement between the two companies, Spirit will reject 27 out of the 37 leases it holds. AerCap, meanwhile, was granted permission to keep and use $9.7 million in cash security deposits that Spirit provided for the canceled aircraft leases. The Irish leasing giant also has been granted permission to file a total unsecured claim of up to $572 million against Spirit. It is not clear yet how much it will be able to collect on that claim. Spirit will give up all its rights to the 36 undelivered jets. Additionally, it will sign new lease agreements with AerCap for 30 new Airbus A320 or A321 airplanes for deliveries spread equally across 2027, 2028 and 2029. As part of the deal, AerCap will make a cash injection of $150 million into the bankrupt airline. Separately, Spirit said the court has also approved a debtor-in-possession ("DIP") financing facility of up to $475 million from its existing bondholders. Of the total financing, $200 million is immediately available to the carrier. In a statement, Spirit said the agreement allows it to reduce operating costs by hundreds of millions of dollars. Spirit plans to shrink its operations to reduce its costs. It has decided to furlough approximately 1,800 flight attendants, about one-third of its cabin crew, effective December 1. The carrier, which currently operates 214 aircraft, also plans to shrink its fleet by nearly 100 aircraft, nearly half of its fleet. (Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York and Rajesh Kumar Singh in Chicago; Editing by Diane Craft)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)