News from FlightGlobal – Page 494
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NewsEuropean Commission reviewing slot rules in response to coronavirus
The European Commission is examining whether to relax airport slot rules to enable airlines to suspend routes impacted by the coronavirus without losing their landing and take-off rights.
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NewsNorwegian authorities aim for electric aircraft debut by 2030
Norwegian authorities have drawn up a programme for introduction of electric aircraft, as part of a national transport plan to published in spring next year and put to the country’s parliament. Air navigation service Avinor and the Norwegian civil aviation administration have set out objectives including the initial operation of ...
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NewsCathay mulls cargo-only service on passenger jets to Japan
Following cuts made to its Japan passenger network, Cathay Pacific is considering operating cargo-only services on its passenger aircraft. In a notice sent out to its clients, Cathay’s cargo arm says it only expects passenger belly cargo operations to be impacted by recently-announced cuts. However, it is looking at ways ...
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NewsEASA puts forward measures to cut tyre-pressure accident risk
European safety authorities are proposing certification and operational measures to reduce risks linked to under-inflated tyres. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has published a proposal to require monitoring to ensure tyre pressure does not fall below the minimum serviceable inflation threshold during operations. EASA says this can be achieved ...
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NewsCriminal trial over MH17 shoot-down set to begin in Netherlands
Criminal proceedings are set to commence against four individuals accused of murder in connection with the destruction of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine six years ago. The four initial suspects are being prosecuted, in absentia, in a Dutch court in the The Hague over the 298 fatalities which ...
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NewsAir NZ withdraws earnings guidance on coronavirus uncertainty
Air New Zealand is withdrawing its full-year earnings guidance for 2020 “due to increased uncertainty surrounding the duration and scale of the Covid-19 outbreak.” The carrier disclosed on 24 February target earnings before other significant items and taxation of NZ$300-350 million ($189-220 million) for financial year 2020, with an estimated ...
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NewsGaruda working to mitigate coronavirus impact
Garuda Indonesia is seeking to deploy capacity on cargo routes and to renegotiate leases as it seeks to contain the hit of the coronavirus outbreak, The flag carrier intends to boost its cargo revenue and domestic capacity by redeploying aircraft previously used for Indonesia-China services that were suspended on 5 ...
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NewsAlitalia’s Milan operations crippled by Lombardy lockdown
Italian flag-carrier Alitalia is suspending all operations at Milan Malpensa, and limiting Milan Linate to domestic services, following the extraordinary government decree locking down the Lombardy region over the coronavirus outbreak. The airline says it will halt all services at Malpensa, its northern intercontinental base, from 9 March. ...
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NewsHawaiian suspends flights to Tokyo Haneda
After suspending its flights to South Korea in late February, Hawaiian Airlines now has halted flights from Hawaii to Tokyo’s Haneda International airport following declining demand for capacity to Asia amid the spiraling coronavirus scare.
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NewsIberia hands Spanish slots to Volotea to ease IAG-Air Europa approval
Spanish carrier Volotea is poised to ease Iberia parent IAG’s acquisition of Air Europa, by reinforcing competition on overlap routes that might otherwise attract European regulatory objections. Under a provisional agreement with IAG, Volotea would open at least two, and up to four, bases in Spain in order to pick ...
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NewsVirgin 787s suffered Hong Kong ILS deviations after Etihad incident
Investigators in Hong Kong have revealed two other serious localiser deviation incidents, both involving Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787-9s, which occurred within a few weeks of a similar occurrence to an Etihad Airways 787-9. One of Virgin’s services from London Heathrow had been conducting an ILS approach to runway 25R on ...
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NewsLufthansa considers suspending A380 fleet over outbreak
Lufthansa is evaluating a temporary grounding of its entire Airbus A380 fleet as part of capacity cuts in response to the coronavirus outbreak. The Star Alliance airline says it may reduce capacity by up to 50% over the coming weeks – more than previously planned – as a result of ...
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NewsTurkish Airlines still facing bottleneck for single-aisle deliveries
Turkish Airlines is expecting to have 26 Airbus A321neos in its fleet by the end of this year, rather than the 30 it had listed in its previous update. The company has outlined its fleet development schedule in a full-year results briefing. While 13 A321neos were supposed to be delivered ...
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NewsIATA sees ‘partial success’ in call for easing slot rules
IATA has reiterated its call to governments and slot co-ordinators – including those in the European Commission – to ease slot rules, in light of the escalating coronavirus outbreak globally. Speaking at a briefing held after a two-day industry workshop in Singapore, IATA chief economist Brian Pearce says “the evidence ...
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NewsAvation takes over Flybe’s sub-leased aircraft
Avation has exercised its right to step into the sub-lease to Loganair of two ATR 72-600s, originally leased to collapsed British carrier Flybe. The Singapore-based lessor said on 19 February it placed the turboprops with Loganair, which was set to start operating them “in the coming weeks”. The aircraft were ...
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NewsAirAsia India completes IATA safety audit
AirAsia India has completed the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), joining six other AirAsia group units to have achieved the safety certification. The low-cost carrier, a joint venture between Tata Sons and AirAsia Investment, says the successful completion affirms its “world-class safety standards”. A search on the IOSA registry website ...
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NewsIndigo Partners: Coronavirus may drive consolidation
Airlines with limited cash reserves face the greatest challenge in 2020 as businesses cancel travel plans and consumers reevaluate vacations due to the coronavirus, executives say 5 March during discussions at the US Chamber of Commerce aviation summit in Washington, DC. Air Canada chief executive Calin Rovinescu says that “cash ...
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NewsUK transport minister urges slot co-ordinator to ease rules amid coronarvirus
UK transport minister Grant Shapps has written to national slot co-ordinator Airport Co-ordination Limited (ACL) to “explicitly” take into account the impact on the environment of airlines flying empty aircraft in taking its decision on slot rules alleviation.
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NewsCommissioner invites interest in Alitalia businesses
Alitalia’s extraordinary commissioner has formally invited parties to express interest in all or parts of the airline, setting an 18 March deadline for submissions. Giuseppe Leogrande detailed the invitation in a document, dated 5 March, covering Alitalia and Alitalia Cityliner – both of which are in administration. Offers for various ...
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NewsNorwegian slashes transatlantic capacity as coronavirus hits demand
Norwegian is cutting 22 long-haul flights between Europe and the USA between 28 March and 5 May, as passenger numbers dive as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.