He started his journalism career in 1992 as a freelance writer for Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Germany’s largest daily national newspaper and soon specialised in air transport. Jens joined Aviation Week and Aviation Daily in 2000 as one of the European correspondents. Later his role was expanded to cover international air transport. In 2013 he was named Managing Editor Commercial.
Jens frequently appears on radio and TV to comment on industry matters. In 2003, he received the Hugo Junkers Award of the German aviation press for his coverage of Fairchild Dornier’s bankruptcy. He was named the country’s top travel and air transport writer by the Travel Industry Club three times. Jens graduated from the Munich School of Journalism.
Germania Express will join Germany's growing low-fare, no-frills air market June 1, when it plans to launch operations using five Fokker F100s previously operated by US Airways.
German pilot union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) expects Lufthansa to outsource large parts of its European operations to regional carriers and low-fare airline Germanwings. VC executive board member Michael Tarp told journalists Germanwings could grow to operating 40 to 70 aircraft within two to three years, according to internal Lufthansa scenarios. Germanwings declined to comment, and Lufthansa said this was pure speculation.
Xabier de Irala will leave his post as chairman of Spanish airline Iberia after the June 12 annual meeting. Fernando Conte, 53, currently a member of the company's board and CEO of ABB's Spanish subsidiary, will replace de Irala. "I came to handle the privatization of Iberia and stayed longer than planned," de Irala said. "I think that the entire team has performed brilliantly and that Iberia is in the best possible position to face the future."
