IT & Distribution-Feb. 11, 2015

In 2014, US airlines reported a total of 30 domestic flights with tarmac delays exceeding three hours and nine international flights with tarmac delays exceeding four hours at US airports—the lowest number on record, according to the US Department of Transportation’s (DOT) latest Air Travel Consumer Report and the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS).

Pilot union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) has called for a 48-hour pilot strike Thursday and Friday for Lufthansa’s low-cost subsidiary Germanwings, the latest in a series of ongoing protests over transition payments for early retirees.

Dubai based flight support company, UAS, now has the freedom of direct ramp access and can therefore provide more personalised and customised supervision for its clients.

Australian flag carrier Qantas has cleared another major hurdle in its efforts to impose a group-wide 18-month wage freeze, reaching a tentative contract deal with its Jetstar domestic pilots.

Gulf Air has resumed flights to Baghdad International Airport following a temporary suspension over safety concerns after a Flydubai aircraft on a commercial flight was hit with bullets on landing.

TransAsia Airways has canceled 90 scheduled flights and is sending all its active ATR pilots for retraining under the scrutiny of Taiwan’s Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), following the fatal crash of an ATR 72-600 last week.

German public services trade union Verdi has called for a one-day strike Monday of security personnel at Hanover, Hamburg and Stuttgart airports, causing canceled flights and delays for several thousand passengers.