Por Chris Isidore, CNN

El vertiginoso costo del combustible para aviones debido a la guerra en Irán provocará tarifas aéreas significativamente más altas. Pero no espere que los precios de los boletos bajen una vez que el precio del combustible empiece a disminuir.

Las tarifas más altas están siendo impulsadas tanto por la fuerte demanda de viajes como por el costo del combustible. A pesar de los precios más elevados, los viajeros están reservando boletos en cifras récord en muchas aerolíneas. Así que, mientras los pasajeros sigan volando, es probable que las tarifas altas se mantengan, sin importar el costo del combustible.

“Cuanto más tiempo los consumidores paguen estos precios y las aerolíneas se acostumbren a este flujo de ingresos, más probable es que (se mantenga)”, dijo el CEO de United, Scott Kirby, durante la llamada de resultados del miércoles. Los pasajeros de la aerolínea ahora pagan, en promedio, un 20 % más por cada milla que vuelan en comparación con el año pasado.

Cuando se le preguntó sobre mantener tarifas más altas cuando los precios del combustible se normalicen, el CEO de American Airlines, Robert Isom, dijo que los clientes ya han estado dispuestos a pagar más por cosas como más espacio para las piernas o asientos más cerca de la parte delantera.

“Soy optimista sobre lo que eso significa para nuestro negocio”, dijo Isom a los analistas el jueves.

Dijo que las reservas de verano se han mantenido fuertes incluso cuando la aerolínea subió las tarifas.

“Creo que lo que estás viendo es el reconocimiento de que viajar sigue siendo una buena oferta”, dijo Isom.

El precio del combustible para aviones, que aproximadamente se ha duplicado desde el inicio del año, es un factor importante detrás de los aumentos generalizados de tarifas.

El combustible es el segundo mayor costo operativo para las aerolíneas, solo detrás de la mano de obra.

Las cuatro aerolíneas más grandes del país —United, American, Delta y Southwest— gastaron el año pasado, en promedio, un total combinado de US$ 100 millones al día en combustible. Y eso fue durante un período de costos relativamente bajos del petróleo y del combustible.

Hoy están pagando miles de millones más. Delta dijo que enfrentó US$ 2.000 millones en costos adicionales de combustible solo en el trimestre actual.

Las aerolíneas están trasladando parte del costo a los consumidores. Resultados recientes muestran que ya están cobrando a los pasajeros un 20 % más por cada milla que vuelan en comparación con hace un año, y se prevé que las tarifas suban aún más.

El director de operaciones de Southwest Airlines, Andrew Watterson, dijo a los inversionistas el jueves que ya ha habido cinco aumentos de tarifas en toda la industria en lo que va del año, y que vienen más. Y todas las aerolíneas dicen que solo han recuperado una parte de sus costos incrementados.

Pero las tarifas no se basan en el costo de operar un vuelo, dijo Zach Griff, autor del boletín sobre aerolíneas “From the Tray Table”.

En cambio, el precio se determina principalmente por la demanda: de una ruta en particular, la hora del día o de la semana y el nivel de competencia.

Por ejemplo, los vuelos de mitad de semana o los vuelos nocturnos tipo redeye suelen ser más baratos que los horarios de mayor demanda en la misma ruta, como un viernes por la tarde. Y los pasajeros a menudo pagan mucho menos por cada milla recorrida en vuelos largos y populares entre grandes ciudades, como Nueva York y Los Ángeles, que en rutas más cortas con menor demanda.

Las aerolíneas están recortando algunos de estos vuelos menos rentables, que se han convertido en pérdidas con el aumento de los precios del combustible. United, por ejemplo, ha reducido su programación previamente prevista en alrededor de un 5 % hasta septiembre

By Leigh Waldman, CNN

(CNN) — A decision whether to mandate air conditioning inside Texas prisons is in the hands of a federal judge, as advocacy organizations try to force the state to address what they allege are dangerous, deadly temperatures inmates endure.

For years leading up to the two-week trial in Austin, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice says it has made efforts to mitigate heat inside its prisons during the summer months. However, inmates’ advocates and lawyers say those efforts haven’t gone far enough: Temperatures can reach 149 degrees, they say, and the conditions amount to cruel and unusual punishment – violating inmates’ Eighth Amendment rights.

“There is a dangerous condition that everybody in the leadership knows about: It’s extreme heat inside the prison system,” Jeff Edwards, one of the lawyers for the plaintiffs, told CNN. “What they’re doing is not solving it, it’s not mitigating it. It’s killing people.”

The plaintiffs – a group of advocacy organizations that represent inmates – are requesting air-conditioning be installed in every inmate housing area in every state-run prison. They claim more than 270 people died in Texas prisons between 2001 and 2019 due to heat exposure, citing a 2022 study by researchers at Brown and Harvard University, among other institutions, which found these deaths were “likely attributable to extreme heat.”

The state denied this allegation in pretrial court filings – though it has acknowledged heat-related deaths, albeit much fewer: A TDCJ spokesperson told CNN that between 1998 and 2012 there were 23 heat-related deaths.

“There’s people that have families in here that they’re trying to get back home to,” an inmate inside one partially air-conditioned prison told CNN. “They made simple mistakes; they don’t deserve this.”

TDCJ – which says it has made strides in addressing the problem in recent years – declined to comment on pending litigation. On its website the agency said, “Core to the mission of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice is protecting the public, our employees, and the inmates in our custody.”

Amite Dominick, president of the Texas Prison Community Advocates, has been fighting for the better part of a decade to change what she describes as unsafe conditions inside prisons. She coauthored the 2022 study and another report by Texas A&M University’s Hazard Reduction & Recovery Center that highlighted the issue and concluded the TDCJ’s heat mitigation policies were insufficient.

“I didn’t think I’d be doing this job for 10 years,” said Dominick, who testified for the plaintiffs. “I really thought that by now we would have seen the humanity of it all, and the legislators would have already have funded the money for this.”

“It’s unfortunate that it has to come to a lawsuit where we’re, you know, spending millions of dollars once again, and we could have taken those same monies and just put air conditioning in those units,” she told CNN.

The Texas attorney general’s office, which represents TDCJ in the case, did not respond to multiple requests for comment or questions about the plaintiffs’ allegations.

In a preliminary injunction, Judge Robert Pitman stopped short of ordering a temporary air conditioning remedy. But he did warn TDCJ he “foresees Plaintiffs being entitled to permanent relief in the form of expeditious installation of permanent air conditioning in all TDCJ facilities.”

Pitman is expected to make his final ruling in the coming weeks.

A ‘five-alarm fire’

During the trial, medical experts testified about the impacts of extreme heat on the body. Dea

By Ray Sanchez, Isabel Rosales, Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN

(CNN) — Zamil Limon was last seen on the morning of April 16 at his home about three blocks from the University of South Florida campus in Tampa.

Nahida Bristy was last seen later that same morning at the Natural and Environmental Sciences building on campus.

They were both 27 and promising Bangladeshi doctoral students who started out as friends and over time developed feelings for each other — to the point they had thought about marriage, according to Limon’s brother, Zubaer Ahmed.

Limon and Bristy were reported missing by a family friend on April 17, and as days went by, their friends in Florida and relatives abroad became increasingly desperate for answers.

On Friday, Limon was found dead on the Howard Frankland Bridge in Tampa in what Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister called “a deeply disturbing case that has shaken our community.”

His roommate has been charged with killing Limon and Bristy, whose body has not been found, the sheriff’s office said.

Their loss is being felt far from the Tampa Bay area. Both students had planned to travel to Bangladesh over their summer break.

Investigators called Bristy’s family in Bangladesh to say they believed she may be dead, based on the amount of blood found in Limon and the suspect’s shared apartment, Bristy’s brother told CNN affiliate WTSP. CNN has reached out to her brother and the sheriff’s office for details.

Limon’s family told CNN they were anxiously waiting to learn what happened to the joyful, young researcher.

“It’s devastating for us,” Ahmed told CNN before his brother’s body was found Friday. “We are in deep pain.”

Limon and Bristy were among the more than 17,000 Bangladeshi students — an all-time high — enrolled in US institutions, according to the US Embassy in Bangladesh, citing the 2024 Open Doors Report on International Education Exchange.

“Please keep my beloved brother in your prayers,” Ahmed told CNN Saturday via text message.

Limon was dedicated to his environmental studies

Limon had been working on his thesis for the past two years, studying the uses of generative AI to monitor shrinking wetlands in South Florida, his brother said.

“My brother is very decent and a very simple person,” Ahmed said from Bangladesh. “He always put a smile on his face.”

He had been pursuing a degree in geography, environmental science and policy since the fall of 2024.

After completing his PhD, Limon hoped to return to Bangladesh and get a job as a university professor, Ahmed said.

“I study how natural features evolve across landscapes, with a focus on wetlands, water resources, and vegetation in both agricultural and urban environments,” Limon wrote in his student profile. His goal was “to create practical tools that enhance environmental planning, support sustainable land use, and improve long-term ecosystem management.”

His LinkedIn page said he worked as a graduate student assistant since August 2024, and his experience included stints with the Center for Natural Resource Studies, the Center for Environment and Geographic Information Services and as a junior urban planner in Dhaka. He also studied urban and rural planning at Khulna University, a public research institution in Bangladesh.

Omer Hossain, Limon’s friend and fellow student at USF, remembers him as a “chill guy”

Por Jeremy Herb y Kevin Liptak, CNN

El presidente Donald Trump y la primera dama Melania Trump estaban sentados en el escenario del enorme salón de baile del Washington Hilton poco después de las 8:30 p.m. (hora de Miami) del sábado por la noche, interactuando de manera juguetona con el artista de la velada, el mentalista Oz Pearlman.

Justo afuera, un hombre corrió a través de un punto de control de seguridad con una escopeta en la mano, intercambiando disparos con agentes del Servicio Secreto que lo perseguían, según imágenes de seguridad del incidente que fueron difundidas.

En cuestión de segundos, el hombre armado fue reducido por el Servicio Secreto, antes de que pudiera llegar al salón de baile donde el presidente, funcionarios de la administración Trump, miembros del Congreso y algunos de los reporteros y editores más destacados del país asistían a la Cena anual de la Asociación de Corresponsales de la Casa Blanca.

Dentro del abarrotado salón de baile, los invitados ya estaban sentados y picoteaban ensaladas de burrata y pepino cuando quedó claro que la noche había dado un giro aterrador. Sonidos secos, uno tras otro, provenientes del exterior de las puertas del salón hicieron que el fuerte murmullo de conversación se apagara rápidamente.

Para quienes estaban dentro de la sala —ubicada un nivel por debajo de donde ocurrió el incidente— no era evidente qué eran esos sonidos. Incluso el propio presidente no estuvo seguro de inmediato de lo que había pasado. El primer pensamiento de Trump fue que se trataba de una bandeja llena de platos de la cena que se había estrellado contra el suelo: “He escuchado eso muchas veces”, diría más tarde desde la Casa Blanca, aún con el esmoquin del evento.

Pero cuando agentes de las fuerzas del orden, muchos armados, se desplegaron por la sala desde todas las entradas, quedó claro que había ocurrido un incidente grave. Gritos de “al suelo” se extendieron por el salón mientras los invitados y el personal del hotel se lanzaban debajo de sillas y mesas para cubrirse.

La mesa principal se despejó casi de inmediato. El vicepresidente J. D. Vance fue apartado de la mesa y llevado hacia la izquierda del escenario. Mientras agentes con rifles corrían hacia el frente del escenario, el equipo del Servicio Secreto del presidente lo rodeó, según un video grabado desde un costado del escenario. Mientras era evacuado, el presidente pareció caer brevemente al suelo antes de que él y la primera dama fueran llevados rápidamente a una sala segura del hotel. Quienes estaban sentados a su lado fueron trasladados a una sala distinta al final del pasillo.

Los asistentes a la cena que eligieron ese momento para salir del salón de baile antes de que se sirviera el plato principal, incluido Wolf Blitzer de CNN, lamentablemente se pusieron en peligro. Blitzer acababa de salir de un baño fuera del salón cuando vio al hombre armado a solo unos pocos pies de distancia.

“Empecé a escuchar disparos en el pasillo, justo cerca de mí, y lo siguiente que supe fue que un agente de policía me tiró al suelo y se puso encima de mí”, dijo Blitzer. “Los disparos fueron tan fuertes, tan aterradores, que nos asustó a todos. No teníamos idea de qué estaba pasando”.

El presentador de CNN fue llevado de vuelta al baño de hombres, donde él y más de una decena de personas se refugiaron en el lugar, dijo.

Perdió un zapato en medio del alboroto.

Cuando el hombre armado arremetió contra el punto de control, llevaba una escopeta, una pistola y varios cuchillos, según funcionarios de las fuerzas del orden. Un agente del Servicio Secreto recibió un disparo en el pecho durante el intercambio de disparos y estaba bien después de ser trasladado a un hospital gracia

By Chris Isidore, CNN

(CNN) — The soaring cost of jet fuel due to the war in Iran will lead to significantly higher airfares. But don’t expect ticket prices to drop once fuel prices start to decline.

Higher fares are being driven by strong demand for travel as much as the cost of fuel. Despite higher ticket prices, travelers are booking tickets in record numbers at many airlines. So, as long as passengers keep flying, higher fares are likely to stay in place, no matter the cost of fuel.

“The longer consumers pay these prices and airlines get used to this revenue stream, the more likely it is (to hold),” United CEO Scott Kirby said during its earnings call Wednesday. The airline’s passengers are now paying on average 20% more for every mile they fly compared to last year.

When asked about keeping higher fares when fuel prices normalize, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said customers have already been willing to pay more for things like extra legroom or seats closer to the front.

“I’m bullish on what that means for our business,” Isom told analysts Thursday.

He said that summer bookings have stayed strong even as the airline raised fares.

“I think that what you’re seeing is recognition that travel is still a good deal,” Isom said.

The price of jet fuel, which has roughly doubled since the start of the year, is a major factor behind the widespread fare increases. Fuel is the second largest operating cost for airlines behind only labor.

The nation’s four largest carriers — United, American, Delta and Southwest — spent on average a combined $100 million a day on fuel last year. And that was during a time of relatively cheap oil and fuel costs.

Today, they’re paying billions more. Delta said it faced $2 billion in increased fuel costs in the current quarter alone.

Airlines are passing some of the cost to consumers. Recent results show they’re already charging passengers 20% more for every mile they fly compared to a year ago, and fares are projected to go higher still.

Southwest Airlines Chief Operating Officer Andrew Watterson told investors Thursday there have already been five industrywide fare hikes so far this year, with more on the way. And all the airlines say they’ve only recovered a portion of their increased costs.

Fares about far more than costs

But fares are not based on the cost of operating a flight, said Zach Griff, author of an airline newsletter, From the Tray Table.

Instead, price is primarily determined by demand — for a certain route, time of day or week and the amount of competition.

For example, midweek or overnight redeye flights are typically cheaper than prime travel times on the same route, such as on Friday afternoon. And passengers often pay far less for every mile traveled on popular long-haul flights between major cities, such as New York and Los Angeles, than on shorter routes with less demand.

Airlines are cutting some of these less profitable flights, which have become money losers amid higher fuel prices. United, for example, has cut its previously planned schedule by about 5% through September. Removing these bargain fares is also lifting the average ticket price.

But with travelers still booking tickets, airlines know they can make higher fares stick on their remaining flights.

“The fare environment will ultimately play out based on market conditions,” Southwest’s Watterson said.

There is also the possibility that Spirit Airlines, a trendsetter in ultra-low fares, could fold under the weight of higher fuel costs.

The budget carrier, which has filed for bankruptcy twice in the last two years, warned in March it could go out of business. The Trump administration has said it’s looking at possibly bailing it out or even buyi