Things To Do In SW Florida

Billionaire Jared Isaacman suited up again to try and make his second trip to space courtesy of SpaceX with an early Tuesday launch opportunity from Kennedy Space Center on the Polaris Dawn mission.

Watch live as Falcon 9 launches the @PolarisProgram’s Polaris Dawn crew on a multi-day mission orbiting Earth https://t.co/u1KqQx5AFr

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 10, 2024

A Falcon 9 topped with the Crew Dragon Resilience is targeting a 3:38 a.m. liftoff from KSC’s Launch Pad 39-A with backup options at 5:23 a.m. and 7:09 a.m. The same three launch times are available early Wednesday and Thursday as well.

SpaceX tried to launch the mission two weeks ago, but faced a scrub because of a helium leak on the launch pad followed by delays because of poor weather forecast for the planned recovery landing area off the coast of Florida at the end what is supposed to be a five-day mission.

Falcon 9 and Dragon are ready for flight. Weather is 40% favorable for liftoff and the webcast goes live ~3.5 hours ahead of launch → https://t.co/WpSw0gyH3s pic.twitter.com/Ay5o4EBdSJ read more

DEAR TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER: I recently had a scooter accident. I had a flight scheduled on British Airways that I had booked through Expedia. I asked Expedia to reschedule my flight, and it sent me an email saying they had canceled the trip and that I had a ticket credit of $1,987 on British Airways, which would need to be used within a year of my original booking.

I called Expedia last month to use the credit, and they said I had none with them and that I should call the airline. British Airways said I was a no-show for the first flight, so they ended up canceling the entire trip.

I went back to Expedia, and they said that I needed to ask British Airways about the refund. But British Airways won’t give me my money back. Can you help me get Expedia to honor its ticket credit?

— Jim Hutslar, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

ANSWER: I am sorry about your scooter accident and hope you’re on the road to recovery. Expedia should have honored your ticket credit request, whether British Airways considered you a no-show or not. read more

The Internal Revenue Service is now targeting high earners who have failed to file a tax return for several years.

Early in 2024, the IRS started sending notices to taxpayers who earned more than a million dollars and haven’t filed for several years. In those notices, the IRS is asking taxpayers to either file a return or explain why they have not done so. The IRS is warning those taxpayers to respond quickly or face even larger penalties or more significant enforcement policies.

Some nonfilers are receiving notices if their earnings exceeded $400,000, but the emphasis is on taxpayers who had previously reported incomes exceeding $1 million.

According to representatives of Kostelanetz LLP, a Washington law firm with expertise in this area, if taxpayers do not respond to the initial notice, the next steps the IRS takes may be more severe. The IRS apparently has based its initial notices on information they have received, such as W2s or 1099s, or other information they have that suggests that these taxpayers should have been filing returns. read more

By DAVID KOENIG

DALLAS (AP) — Boeing and its largest union are entering the last week of contract negotiations before a threatened strike by more than 30,000 workers who build the planes that carry millions of airline passengers every year.

A walkout would add to the headwinds facing Boeing, which is hurtling toward a sixth straight money-losing year and just hired a new CEO to turn things around.

The regional branch of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers says the two sides are far apart on wages, health care and job security. The union of started out seeking pay raises of more than 40% over three years, although “that’s probably not where we’re going to end up,” IAM District 751 President Jon Holden said last week.

The union has scheduled a two-part election for Thursday, with voting at more than a half-dozen locations in Washington state and one in Southern California. Workers will vote on Boeing’s last contract offer and whether to authorize a strike if the offer is rejected. A walkout could begin by Friday morning. read more