nbc's tom costello with us from the national airport in d.c. with what is behind this inconvenience. tom, good evening. >> reporter: hi, brian, some travel experts are warning passengers to avoid the hub cities, maybe even board on alternative airlines as the delays mount. last september, 82% of american's flights were on time. so far, only 61% were on time. on sunday, 48%, monday, 39%, tuesday, 45%. today, more delays. what is the problem? well, american has imposed new cost-cutting conditions on its 7500 pilots as it re-organizes under bankruptcy protection. and now, the number of mechanical write-ups by pilots have jumped, some of them nit-picking about seats that don't recline. and each write-up can delay a flight. sick calls are up, as well. the union insists there is absolutely no organized effort here. but whatever the reason, passengers are feeling it. >> tom costello on the trouble on american tonight, thanks. >>> as we mentioned at the top of the broadcast the health alert is out tonight about rice and rice products, everything from ce

nbc's tom costello explains why. >> reporter: the last great escape of summer 2012. if your mode of transportation involves tires, it turns out a labor day getaway has never been more expensive. gas prices have jumped ten cents in a week, 30 cents in a month. hurricane isaac gets much of the blame as it took aim at louisiana, oil rigs, refineries, even a critical pipeline all shut down. while they escaped unharmed, the downtime pushed prices higher. add in a ruptured pipeline in wisconsin, refinery problems in the midwest, a fire at a california refinery last month and an expensive summer blend, it all spells higher prices. >> americans are faced with the highest prices we've ever seen for labor day weekend across much of the united states. >> reporter: look at los angeles. the average is now $4.16 a gallon. >> of course the motor home is going to be sitting home this weekend because it's going to be way too much money to fill it up. >> reporter: gasbuddy.com's heat map shows the least to most expensive states from green to red, 3.78 in massachusetts, $3.97 in new yo

our report from nbc's tom costello. >> reporter: an unexpected sight at the columbus airport, two tsa officers holding a test strip over passenger's drinks to check for explosive vapors, after the passengers had already cleared security and bought the beverage in the concourse. dan holland was there with his wife and son. >> having someone come up to me and demand that i submit to another search without really any probable cause seems a bit much. >> reporter: the tsa says the drink screening has been going on for years as it employs multiple layers of security throughout the airport. it limited passenger's carry on liquids and gels in 2006. after terrorists plotted to blow up u.s. bound passenger planes with u.s. explosives over the atlantic. screening drinks bought in the gate area is meant to guard against potential threats from inside the concourse, perhaps an employee who could smuggle in an explosive and hand it off to a passenger. but while airline passengers face the prospects of additional screening every day, neither the trusted vendors nor the airport employees are screened

nbc's tom costello reports. >> reporter: early morning at beth israel deaconess medical center in bostoncan you hold your knee up straight like that? >> reporter: and 46-year-old jennifer is headed for the o.r. her second operation in two days. >> is there pain all right? >> reporter: yesterday surgeons made an incision in her abdomen to operate on her spine. today they're finishing the job going in through her back. >> just hoping it fixes everything and i can move on with my life. >> reporter: jennifer is among the many americans that undergo surgery every year. the population ages and new surgical techniques speed up recovery time. amazingly 80% to 90% of americans experience debilitating back pain at some point in their lives. jennifer works as a school bus driver and a housekeeper, but she is suffering from severe nerve pain down her leg keeping her from working and sleeping. >> i'm nervous, and i'm anxious, but i'm also glad that it will be over with, and that i'll be able to sleep slew the night again hopefully. >> reporter: her surgeon is dr. kevin mcguire. >> in her her l-4 vert

nbc's tom costello reports. >> reporter: early morning at beth israel deaconess medical center in bostoncan you hold your knee up straight like that? >> reporter: and 46-year-old jennifer is headed for the o.r. her second operation in two days. >> is there pain all right? >> reporter: yesterday surgeons made an incision in her abdomen to operate on her spine. today they're finishing the job going in through her back. >> just hoping it fixes everything and i can move on with my life. >> reporter: jennifer is among the many americans that undergo surgery every year. the population ages and new surgical techniques speed up recovery time. amazingly 80% to 90% of americans experience debilitating back pain at some point in their lives. jennifer works as a school bus driver and a housekeeper, but she is suffering from severe nerve pain down her leg keeping her from working and sleeping. >> i'm nervous, and i'm anxious, but i'm also glad that it will be over with, and that i'll be able to sleep slew the night again hopefully. >> reporter: her surgeon is dr. kevin mcguire. >> in her her l-4 vert

tom costello, nbc news washington. >>> here's something else new coming to about 40 airports around the country, bin tiding. zappos is among the first. it's plays ads in the bins that passengers put their shoes in. >>> washington will gets a chance to honor the first man to walk on the moon form the national cathedral will hold a memorial in the national cathedral. it holds a moon rock delivered by the "apollo 11" crew. armstrong died last month at the age of 82. he was buried near his home in tsunami after a private funeral service. >>> a warning on thousands of boxes of tampons contaminated with anything from bacteria to metal shavings. thieves stole 16,000 cases that were supposed to have been destroyed. the maker kimberly-clark says cotex natural balance security tam ponce were stolen. the exude says yours should stop using them and check the boxes for the affected lot codes. we have a list of those codes on nbcwashington.com. >>> police were trying to fick a naked. without a warning a stranger punched daniel gonzalez and knocked his 16-year-old sister down to the ground. the sister

tom costello, nbc news, washington. >>> now, at 6:00 tonight, back to work on capitol hill. >>> right now at 6:00, a chance of rg-iii still ringing in the ears of fans with the redskins off to a fantastic start. with a new star quarterback leading the charge. >>> on the eve of the september 11th attacks anniversary, there's a tighter security at some metro stops. but riders may not even notice it. >>> the manhunt is on for a man who assaulted a man at a rite-aid store. >>> we begin with a lot of tough decisions to make. in the middle of a busy political season. congress is back after a month-long break. but not for long. there are some huge unresolved issues and time is running out in this session.

and as nbc's tom costello reports, it has people talking about whether the agency is going too far. >> an unexpected sight at the columbus airport. two tsa officers holding a test strip over passengers' drinks to check for explosive vapors after the passengers had already cleared security and bought the beverage on the concourse. dan holland was there with his wife and son. >> having someone come up to me and demand that i submit to another search, without really any probable cause, seems a bit -- a bit much. >> reporter: the tsa says the drink screening has been going on for years as it employs multiple layers of security throughout the airport. it limited passengers' carry-on liquids and gels in 2006, after terrorists plotted to blow up u.s.-pound passenger planes with liquid explosive over the atlantic. screening drinks in front of the gate area is meant to guard from potential threats inside the concourse. perhaps an employee who could smuggle in an explosive and hand it off to a passenger. but while airline passengers face the prospects of additional screening every day, neither

gas prices have gone up throughout the current but as nbc's tom can costello explains, there could be relief in sight. >> reporter: if your mode of transportation involves tires, it turns out a labor day get away has never been more expensive. gas prices have jumped ten cents in a week, 30 cents in a month. hurricane isaac gets much of the blame as it took aim at louisiana. oil rigs, refineries, even a critical pipeline all shut down. while they escaped unharmed, the down time pushed prices higher. add in a ruptured pipeline in wisconsin, refinery problems in the midwest, a fire at a california refinery last month, and an expensive summer blend, it all spells higher prices. >> americans faced with the highest prices we've seen for labor day weekend across much of the united states. >> reporter: just look at los angeles. the average is now $4.16 a gallon. >> of course. the motor home's going to be sitting home this weekend just because, you know, it's way too much money to fill it up. >> reporter: gadbuddy.com shows the heat map shows the least expensive states at the pump. $3.51 in co

nbc's tom costello is at reagan national airport in washington for us. good morning. >> reporter: hi, willie, good morning to you. you know, american airlines is in bankruptcy proceedings. it has imposed tough benefit cuts on its employees. pilots, flight attendants, mechanics, and now the airline says pilots' sick leave is up over 20 years ago and it says it appears the pilots are imposing really strict standards and running by the books, running up a minor technical issues like a broken coffee light and enforcing mechanical delays. >> reporter: the pilots who fly american say there's any organized effort to slow down the airlines but delays skyrocketed in the past weeks creating headaches for passengers. >> like i said, i'm getting married and they are not making it pleasant for me. >> i'm more concerned about my trip saturday to rome. that's got me a little freaked out. >> reporter: the numbers are telling. last september, 82% of american flights were on time. this september, only 61% are on time, and even worse on-time numbers this week. from 45% on

nbc's tom costello is at reagan national airport in washington for us. good morning. >> reporter: hi, willie, good morning to you. you know, american airlines is in bankruptcy proceedings. it has imposed tough benefit cuts on its employees. pilots, flight attendants, mechanics, and now the airline says pilots' sick leave is up over 20 years ago and it says it appears the pilots are imposing really strict standards and running by the books, running up a minor technical issues like a broken coffee light and enforcing mechanical delays. >> reporter: the pilots who fly american say there's any organized effort to slow down the airlines but delays skyrocketed in the past weeks creating headaches for passengers. >> like i said, i'm getting married and they are not making it pleasant for me. >> i'm more concerned about my trip saturday to rome. that's got me a little freaked out. >> reporter: the numbers are telling. last september, 82% of american flights were on time. this september, only 61% are on time, and even worse on-time numbers this week. from 45% on

nbc's tom costello reports a union at odds with the carrier says don't blame them. >> reporter: the pilots who fly for american deny there is any organized effort to slow down the airline, but delays have skyrocketed in the past week, creating headaches for travelers. >> very frustrating. i'm getting married. and they're not making it pleasant for me. >> i'm more concerned about my trip saturday to rome. that's got me a little freaked out. >> reporter: the numbers are telling. last september 82% of americans flights were on time. this september, only 61% are on time. and even worse on-time numbers this week, from 45% on time sunday to 37% monday, 45 pds tuesday, 54 pds wednesday, and more delays yesterday. american has already canceled 300 flights and plans to cut more through october. going online to apologize to its customers. >> we understand how irritating and unfortunate this is in interrupting or delaying your travel plans. we appreciate their patience. and hope for their understanding. >> reporter: but scott mccartney who writes the "wall street journal's" middle seat column is sugg

it happened to nbc's tom costello who was out several weeks earlier this week while undergoing spinest amazing how many people have had serious back pain and i've learned the hard way that not all back pain is the same an pinpointing the exact cause isn't easy. for most americans the pain will go away with rest and conservative treatments. others have a lifetime of managing chronic pain, and for some of us surgery is the only option. early morning at beth israel deaconess medical center in boston. >> can you hold your knee up straight like that. straighten your knee out, nice and straight. >> reporter: and 46-year-old jennifer ingah is headed to the o.r., her second operation in two days. >> is your pain all right in. >> my pain is okay. >> reporter: yesterday surgeons made an incision in her abdomen to operate on her spine. today, they are finishing the job going in through her back. >> just hoping it fixes everything, and i can move on with my life. >> reporter: jennifer is one of more than 600,000 americans who undergo spine surgery every year, and that number is growing as the po

pete williams, tom costello will have the latest on this quickly. our package coming up. we will be right back. it's a big night, big panel, we'll be right back. stay with us. welcome aboard! [ chuckles ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ male announcer ] now you'll know when to stop. [ honk! ] the all-new nissan altima with easy fill tire alert. [ honk! ] it's our most innovative altima ever. nissan. innovation that excites. ♪ oh, hey alex. just picking up some, brochures, posters copies of my acceptance speech. great! it's always good to have a backup plan, in case i get hit by a meteor. wow, your hair looks great. didn't realize they did photoshop here. hey, good call on those mugs. can't let 'em see what you're drinking. you know, i'm glad we're both running a nice, clean race. no need to get nasty. here's your "honk if you had an affair with taylor" yard sign. looks good. [ male announcer ] fedex office. now save 50% on banners. [ male announcer ] fedex office. what do we do when something really wants to be painted? we break out new behr ultra with stain-block

. >> tom costello, thank you very much. >>> home sales are higher than they've been in two years.ave been lost in so many other stories we discussed. the latest jump surprised even some on wall street who thought the housing recovery might be faltering for much longer. what it means next, but first, there's a lot going on today. here's symptom things we thought you should know. maxine waters has been cleared of ethics allegations. it follows a three-year investigation of her waters actions. former presidential candidate herman cain says if he were the republican nominee, he would have, quote, a substantial lead over president obama. cain also says that he won't seek a cabinet position if romney wins, he won't. he just won't do it. don't twist his arm. while millions tuned in to watch the republican and democratic national conventions, it is most watched speaker was -- you can hear the applause. joe biden. roughly 43.6 million people tuned in to see the vice president's speech. president obama came in second followed by mitt romney, bill clinton and marco rubio. the first episode o

nbc's tom costello is at reagan national airport.morning. >> reporter: hi, willie, good morning to you. they have bankruptcy proceedings and imposed tough cuts on employees, pilots, mechanics. now they say pilot sick leave up 20% since a year ago and said the airlines, appears the pilots are imposing strict standards in flying by the books, running up minor technical issues like broken coffee pot and forcing mechanical delays. the pilots who fly for american deny there's any organized effort to slow down the airline, but delays have skyrocketed the past week, creating headaches for travelers. >> like i said, i am getting married, they are not making it easy for me. >> i am more concerned about my trip saturday to rome. has me a little freaked out. >> reporter: numbers are telling. last september, 82% of americans' flights were on time. this september, only 61% on time. even worse on time numbers this week, from 45% on time sunday to 37% monday, 45% tuesday, 54% wednesday, and more delays yesterday. american has already cancelled 300

tom costello, nbc news, washington. >> all right.g today, a quick round of what has you talking online. wild scenes from the campaign trail are winning support online. as we showed you earlier president obama was swept off his feet by a florida pizza shop owner. the 6'3", 260-pound pizza man cleared the bear hug apparently with the secret service ahead of time. and vice president joe biden met up with a group of motorcycle riders at a diner in ohio. >>> a weekend marriage to former sexiest man alive ryan reynolds. "people" magazine says that they tied the knot near charleston, south carolina. reynolds was previously married to scarlett johansson. and what does a new jersey comedian do when his mom walks, dances, and talks in her sleep? well, he puts it on youtube, of course, and attracts more than a million views in just a few days. >> the tomato cage? >> yeah. it was special with the tomato cage wouldn't open. >> and where is this tomato cage? >> some place. >> even more viral is this video of nick posting showing his mother watchin

tom costello covers aviation for us. good morning. >> this happened on united flight 473 from chicago to orange county, california, last night. about an hour into the four-hour flight, a passenger began harassing other passengers and had to be held down by passengers. >> please help me! they're hurting me! i can't breathe. >> this is cell phone video shot onboard a united airlines flight from chicago to orange county, california. tuesday night, the 26-year-old was tackled by his fellow passengers who used their own belts to hold him down. nona was seated in the aisle behind him and said the model and actor started bothering her right away. >> and he turns around a little bit, starts a conversation, immediately starts being a little obnoxious. >> reporter: she says he was drunk and got physical. >> and he grabbed my hair and goes no, no, no -- >> i was holding them exactly like this. >> reporter: as the situation escalated, david trong was one of several people who intervened and held durani down for three hours. >> looke

nbc's tom costello has more. >> reporter: even folks who live near an airport don't expect to make thisppened right in front of john hanson's house. >> came back to turn in my driveway, and there was a -- part of an airplane sitting here. >> reporter: no doubt about it. it's a landing gear door. the i.d. tag even says boeing 767. the big question is which boeing 767, which landing gear door and where was the plane headed. >> reporter: boeing field is nearby, and witnesses in this kent, washington neighborhood say the plane appeared to be flying low, maybe taking off or preparing to land. >> it was a big flap of metal. >> reporter: exactly how it came off is what the faa will investigate. was it corrosion or loose bolts? nbc aviation analyst john cox. >> they are going to look closely at the maintenance of it, and then also whether the airport, whether the gear was extended at the proper speeds. >> reporter: given the thousands of flights every day, it's rare for a plane to drop parts, but it does happen occasionally. last may in toronto, an air canada -- >> all right. now for a look at

tom costello covers aviation for us. good morning. >> this happened on united flight 473 from chicago to orange county, california, last night. about an hour into the four-hour flight, a passenger began harassing other passengers and had to be held down by passengers. >> please help me! they're hurting me! i can't breathe. >> this is cell phone video shot onboard a united airlines flight from chicago to orange county, california. tuesday night, the 26-year-old was tackled by his fellow passengers who used their own belts to hold him down. nona was seated in the aisle behind him and said the model and actor started bothering her right away. >> and he turns around a little bit, starts a conversation, immediately starts being a little obnoxious. >> reporter: she says he was drunk and got physical. >> and he grabbed my hair and goes no, no, no -- >> i was holding them exactly like this. >> reporter: as the situation escalated, david trong was one of several people who intervened and held durani down for three hours. >> looke

them, except, of course, for elvis costello, johnny depp, robert downey jr., of course even snooki. come on, i'm the only one on cnn who robs these glasses. maybe tomtter. tom foreman is the johnny depp of cnn. we're not the only one who noticed wolf's new look. if you googled wolf's glasses before today. this is about all you would come up with. this is all you cop up with. wine glasses with wolves on them. if you google wolf glasses now. it's blitzer's new look all over the place. on the blog, news sites, twitter, facebook. it's everywhere. there's probably a tumbler thing about it. i'm sure there is one about it too. i like the new glasses. one thing they really complement wolf's skinny jeans. and i hope he gets the warm generous reaction i received when i got my glasses a couple years ago. >> here's what i love. i love that you clearly got the nerdiest glasses you could. that you think you're so gorgeous and hot you had to take it down a notch for america. >> these aren't nerdy glasses? >> yeah. >> they are shame glasses, they're shame-filled. they're for private time. what you call your indoor glasses. let me tell you

costello, johnny depp, robert downey jr., of course even snooki. come on, i'm the only one on cnn who rocks these glasses. okay, maybe tom foreman has them too.her of us. he's the trend setter. tom foreman is the johnny depp of cnn. we're not the only one who noticed wolf's new look. if you googled wolf's glasses before today. this is about all you would come up with. wine glasses with wolves on them. if you google wolf glasses now. it's blitzer's new look all over the place. on the blogs, the news sites, twitter, facebook. it's everywhere. there's probably a tumblr thing about it. i'm not sure what tumblr is, but i'm sure there's one about it. i like the new glasses. one thing they really complement wolf's skinny jeans. and i hope he gets the warm generous reaction i received when i got my glasses a couple years ago. >> here's what i love. i love that you clearly got the nerdiest glasses you could.