This weekend I got a taste of the trouble the new three-hour limit on tarmac delays may cause when it goes into effect on April 29—and it was sour stuff. The bitter pill? If you get to the three-hour mark and your flight isn't canceled, it will at least be much more delayed.

I was on a flight trying to leave JFK Airport during heavy storms on the East Coast, so a delay came as no surprise. But when we reached the three-hour milestone on the tarmac—marked with loud complaints from folks around me as they realized they’d already missed connecting flights—the pilot explained we’d be returning to the gate in deference to the upcoming rule (and to refuel).

Dear Editors:

We recently booked airline reservations. We didn't realize that the names on our driver's licenses do not match the names exactly as they appear on the tickets (ie. Andy instead of Andrew, middle initials missing). Will this be a problem at airport check-in/boarding? If so, what do we need to do ahead of time?

--Sherri

This week's question comes from Sherri:

Good news for any woman who, like me, appreciates a good bathroom in the sky: Japan’s All Nippon Airways is rolling out ladies-only restrooms this month. Next time you have to powder your nose on ANA, ladies, the seat will be down and your spirits (the airline hopes) will be up.

Dear Editors,

Does Mexico charge a departure tax when returning to the U.S.?  If so, what is the tax and does it have to be paid in pesos?

B in Phoenix

Hello Phoenix Traveler,

This week's question comes from a traveler in Phoenix:

Kevin Smith's ejection from a Southwest Airlines flight earlier this month has led to some heavy public debate over "Customer of Size" policies. The film director, who was asked to leave the aircraft because of his weight, stirred up a PR nightmare when he railed against the airline on his Twitter page--rejecting multiple apologies and an offer of a $100 flight voucher. Southwest claims that their actions are consistent with a 29-year policy dealing with heavy passengers.

Dear Editors,

I need some information about taking my dog with me on a flight to PA. Can you give me a site I can look at what I need to take the dog with me?

Thank you,

Lucinda

Hi Lucinda,

This is one of those situations that is very common among traveling pet owners. As such, you'd likely think there was a simple-to-understand, uniform policy across airlines that dealt with pet travel. Unfortunately, this is not the case and so there isn't one perfect resource I can direct you to for information. However, I will try my best to help you navigate various airline policies. For general information about pet travel, I recommend PetTravel.com.

Update: This continues to be a very popular post so I thought I'd update the information since airline policies for bereavement fares tend to change. But first I'd like to thank all of the travelers who wrote about their experiences in the comments section of this post. I know that losing a loved one is hard and booking a compassion fare is very stressful. Your advice is wonderful and you're helping other people navigate this challenging period.

General Info: Bereavement or compassion fares aren't always the best option for those traveling at the last minute. Let's weigh the pros and cons.

It's the long-distance traveler's dream: you have a row of four seats to yourself and you can stretch out across them for the entire 14-hour journey. "Why do people bother paying the extra for business class?" you think. "This is wonderful!"

Ah, but not so fast: when was the last time you saw one empty seat on the plane, let alone a whole row? Recent capacity cuts have meant frequently crowded planes, and if you want to stretch out and lie flat in coach these days, you're pretty much out of luck.

Enter Air New Zealand, and its pioneering Skycouch. A row of three seats in economy that folds back into an almost-flat bed, it sounds almost too good to be true, right?