Friday's Route Development Briefs
Vueling Boosts Offering From Madrid
Spanish carrier Vueling is to increase its offering from Madrid, despite shareholder Iberia revealing its plans to base its new low-cost division, Iberia Express, in the city. Vueling is already offering flights to Barcelona and Paris CDG from the Spanish capital as part of an agreement with Iberia that has seen it move more towards operating as a traditional airline. It has taken over these flights from Iberia and is operating them under the Vueling brand but providing interlining and through-ticketing to other destinations in the Iberia network. This winter it will provide a similar service on routes to Amsterdam (daily), Berlin Tegel (daily) and Copenhagen (three times weekly), which will be operated under a codeshare with Iberia. It is not clear what impact the formation of Iberia Express at Madrid will have on the existing operations of Vueling from the city. The start-up will launch flights in summer 2012 with four Airbus A320s, increasing to 13 by the end of the year. Iberia simply says it will “not modify” the existing relationships it has with Vueling and regional partner Air Nostrum.
Atlantic Returns to Coventry
Atlantic Group, Europe's largest regional specialist cargo airline, has re-introduced scheduled freight operations at Coventry Airport after a gap of nearly two years. For the immediate future West Atlantic will base two BAe ATP turboprops at the airport serving Dublin, Lille and Maastricht. Discussions are thought to be taking place regarding scheduled passenger services too, according to sources. West Atlantic was created in 2008 through the merger of two of Europe's most established independent cargo operators, Atlantic Airlines, and West Air Sweden, with Coventry Airport serving as the airline's operational headquarters and engineering base. The airline had previously operated from the Midlands’ facility but was forced to move in December 2009 when the airport ceased operations after a High Court hearing.
American Airlines to Cut 757 Fleet
American Airlines is to adjust its Northern Winter flight schedule after confirming it will retire eleven Boeing 757-200s from passenger service during 2012. The carrier says the changes to its late fall and winter schedule will result in a 3 per cent decline in fourth quarter mainline capacity on a year-on-year basis. "While our advance bookings are generally in line with last year, we are taking these additional steps in light of the uncertain economic environment, ongoing high fuel costs and to ensure we run a reliable schedule for our customers given additional pilot retirements we anticipate throughout the fourth quarter," said Virasb Vahidi, Chief Commercial Officer, American Airlines. The carrier says it has been hit by fuel price rises and the fact an anticipated improvement in the broader economy failed to materialise. Following the revisions, American expects mainline full-year capacity to increase about 0.4 per cent year-on-year and consolidated capacity to be up approximately 1.2 per cent. The retirement of the 757s are the first step in the airline’s fleet renewal and the anticipation of the first deliveries from Airbus and Boeing of new short-haul models from 2013.
Ethiopian Airlines Still Considering Toronto Launch
Ethiopian Airlines is still considering introducing flights to Toronto, a market it is has been studying for the past five years. The carrier has an agreement in principle with Canadian authorities to launch a three times weekly rotation from its Addis Ababa base, but its new aircraft have subsequently been allocated to other routes, raising uncertainty over the proposed flight. However, the airline’s latest in-flight magazine, Selamta, still lists Addis Ababa – Rome – Toronto in its network plans and a company official confirmed that it remains an option, alongside other points in the North American market. Ethiopian Airlines currently only serves a single US market with a six times weekly link to Washington, but is also considering resuming flights to New York, as well as adding the key oil markets of Atlanta and Houston.
Aeolian Airlines to Take Flight in Greece
A start-up carrier in Greece has taken delivery of its first aircraft. Aeolian Airlines received a single McDonnell Douglas MD-83 at the end of September and plans to initially offer charter and ACMI services from Athens International Airport. In the longer-term the carrier has suggested that it could enter the scheduled market, according to local sources, and provide links to destinations across Europe.
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