Out former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has criticized his successor, former MTV Real World contestant Sean Duffy, for reversing a Biden-era practice of compensating airline passengers for disruptions.The old practice required airlines to give customers between $200 and $775 in compensation, as well as lodging and meals, if a flight delay occurred due to a system outage or mechanical issue.Duffy announced on Thursday that his department plans to rescind the rule, saying it overstepped the Department of Transportations authority and unfairly burdened businesses, The Hill reported. Related Pete Buttigiegs replacement wants NASA to create nuclear power on the moon In a Thursday morning message on X criticizing the move, Buttigieg wrote, Our billionaire President put an airline lobbyist in charge of the Department of Transportation. So no, this is not a surprise.Before becoming Secretary of Transportation, Duffy was registered to lobby for thePartnership for Fair and Open Skies,a coalition of U.S. airline management and labor unions including American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines, along with various pilot and flight attendant associations which opposes policies which, they claim, make the U.S. airline industry less able to complete against other airlines, travel organizations, and airline reform proponents.Duffy is a former Fox News host and former contestant on MTVsReal Worldreality series and the spinoffReal World: Road Rules.Our billionaire President put an airline lobbyist in charge of the Department of Transportation. So no, this is not a surprise. https://t.co/6VIwwJO4v1 Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) September 5, 2025