Just as major airlines tend to match airfare increases initiated by another carrier, so goes the story for fees.

United Airlines on April 18 raised its change fee for most nonrefundable domestic airfares to $200 from $150. US Airways matched the increase last week, but American and Delta didn't commit, citing a "no comment" policy on competitors' price changes.

(Read More: Follow the Leader: US Airways Matches $50 Fee Hike by United)

But American and Delta joined in yesterday, matching the $50 fee increase.

New York's busiest travel hub just joined the ranks of other airports that provide swanky and expedited check-ins for elite travelers.

American Airlines' frequent fliers, VIPs and international first class passengers flying out of New York's JFK Airport will notice a new perk when they haul their bags to the airport. On Wednesday, American opened its Flagship Check-In at JFK, the third such private oasis at a U.S. airport for the airline's top customers.

Existing locations at both Los Angeles and Miami airports have been open for more than a year, and the airline also offers Flagship Check-In at London's Heathrow Airport.

(Read more: VIPs Only: Inside American's Flagship Check-In at LAX)

The JFK Flagship Check-In experience is located in Terminal 8 and is open daily between 3:30 a.m. and 11 p.m.

Travelers hitting the road with their mobile electronic devices have three questions about staying connected away from home: will there be Wi-Fi, how much will it cost and how well will it work?

Increasingly, it is that last question that matters most.

(Read more: Six Ways to Get Free Wi-Fi When You Travel)

Hotels, airports and airlines are struggling to keep up with customers streaming movies on their tablets and hosting online meetings on their laptops, with varying degrees of success. While hoteliers and airport authorities have been fighting the bandwidth battle for years, airlines are still installing Wi-Fi on many aircraft and are already confronting challenges.

Travelers who want Wi-Fi in the air cannot always tell if a plane will have Internet service when they book their tickets. Prices for service are still evolving, and the quality of the connection does not come close to matching what most people are used to on the ground.

When one airline raises a fee, other carriers tend to follow.

US Airways has matched United's change fee hike for non-refundable domestic tickets, increasing the cost of modifying your reservation to $200 — up $50 from $150, the company said Wednesday. While United also increased change fees for international flights to $300 from $250, US Airways at this point has only matched the domestic ticket hike.

(Read more: United Raises Most Change Fees by $50, Will Others Follow?)

Other airlines have yet to match the increase, but have hinted at the need to stay competitive.

The Obama administration on Wednesday backed a plan that would temporarily eliminate spending cuts disrupting U.S. air travel, while lawmakers in Washington scrambled to avoid blame as the impact of the reductions began being felt across the country.

Airlines pushed for the government to act as flight delays increased and planes stacked up at airports, with one chief executive saying, "We can't do this for long."

With Republicans and conservative commentators blaming President Barack Obama for using the across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration to score political points, the White House said it supported Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's proposal to replace the reductions by claiming savings from the drawdown of war spending.

"We support this effort to allow both sides to find a longer-term solution that replaces the sequester permanently in a balanced way so we can stop these harmful cuts that are hurting our economy and middle-class families across the country," White House spokesman Jay Carney told a briefing.

If you've ever wanted to flirt with passengers across the aisle and send them a cocktail — without corralling the help of a flight attendant — Virgin America has the answer.

The carrier on Monday introduced a cheeky new seat-to-seat ordering system. Without the assistance of an attendant, you can discreetly order a drink, snack or meal delivered to a fellow passenger onboard your flight.

(Read more: Road Warrior Tested: Virgin America First Class)

And to promote the new feature, airline founder Sir Richard Branson posted a video on Virgin America's Facebook page explaining how to "get lucky at 35,000 feet."

Changing your United Airlines flight just got a little more expensive for many fliers.

Last Thursday, United quietly increased the change fee on most non-refundable airfares by $50. For domestic itineraries, the fee jumped to $200 from $150. And for international flights, the fee is now $300, up from $250.

United's frequent fliers discovered the change last week. Members of the popular forum Flyertalk.com first posted their findings on Thursday. On Friday, United confirmed the increase. Tickets issued on or after April 18 carry the higher fee.

Less-restrictive coach fares with higher prices and refundable tickets typically don't carry a change fee, and remain unchanged.

It was a tough start to the week for many air travelers as federal budget cuts led to cascading delays along the East Coast Monday morning.

Some flights out of New York and Washington were delayed by more than two hours as the Federal Aviation Administration kept planes on the ground. The federal agency has said furloughs of air traffic controllers could lead to delays if there weren't enough people to monitor busy air corridors.

For instance, the 8 a.m. US Airways shuttle pushed back from the gate at Reagan National Airport six minutes early but didn't take off until 9:58 a.m. The plane landed at 10:48 a.m.—more than two and a half hours later than its scheduled time.

If travelers instead took Amtrak's 8 a.m. Acela Express train from Washington, they arrived in New York at 10:42 a.m.—4 minutes early.

Government budget cuts that kicked in last month are forcing the FAA and other agencies to cut their spending. FAA officials have said they have no choice but to furlough all 47,000 agency employees, including nearly 15,000 controllers. Each employee will lose one day of work every other week. The FAA has said that planes will have to take off and land less frequently, so as not to overload the remaining controllers on duty.

Transportation to and from the Boston area was nearly shut down Friday — with the exception of air travel — amid the marathon bombing manhunt.

Amtrak service, meanwhile, between New York and Boston was suspended indefinitely early Friday afternoon.

Flights were coming in and out of Logan International Airport. "Logan is open and operating under heightened security," Boston Airport tweeted early Friday.

Meanwhile, the FAA has closed low-level airspace over Northwest Boston to provide safety.

New York-Boston Amtrak Service Suspended

While Amtrak service between New York and Boston was suspended indefinitely, Amtrak service was operating normally between Washington, D.C. and both New York and Philadelphia.

Earlier, Amtrak Acela Express and Northeast Regional service was suspended indefinitely between Providence, R.I. and Boston, according to a company statement. Amtrak Downeaster was operating a modified schedule with no service to Boston.

The Springfield Shuttle between New Haven, Conn. and Springfield, Mass. was operating on a normal schedule.

A decision about restoring Boston area service will be made when local authorities inform Amtrak that operations can resume.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, which operates commuter trains into Boston as well as the city's subway — called the T — and the city's buses suspended all operations.