CALLS INCREASE FOR OPEN ARAB SKIES
Arab carriers are urging their governments to optimise air routes in order to make more efficient use of airspace and reduce fuel consumption. Arab Air Carriers Organisation secretary general Abdul Wahab Teffaha argues that the persisting secrecy is an "outdated and futile" reason for failing to free the airspace above Arab countries. Each minute of avoidable flight time costs 60 litres of fuel, he says. IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani calls the restructuring of the region's airspace "the next challenge".
BANKS SHY AWAY FROM AVIATION
Finding debt to finance aircraft acquisitions in the current economic environment is proving to be a major problem that will only get worse in the next 12 months, according to bankers active in the aviation sector. One financier attending last month's European ISTAT conference in Prague said: "There is a lot of money going out of the market and not a lot coming in. Out of 25-30 aviation banks, maybe five are active."
CONTINENTAL SETS STAR DATE
Continental Airlines is expected to formally move from SkyTeam to the Star Alliance in the fourth quarter of 2009 but, says chief executive Larry Kellner, "clearly moving from one big alliance to another presents a lot of challenges". Founding Star members United Airlines, Lufthansa and Air Canada want to add Continental to their existing transatlantic antitrust immunity, but Kellner says: "I want to stay away from speculating."
Source: Airline Business
