Oneworld has tapped former SpiceJet and Sama Airlines Chief Executive Bruce Ashby to lead the alliance, which will relocate its headquarters from Vancouver to New York City.
Lufthansa ordered eight more Embraer E-195s, in a deal valued at $338 million, based on list prices and January 2010 economic conditions, according to the Brazilian manufacturer.
Bombardier announced Thursday that SpiceJet has placed a firm order for 15 Q400 NextGen turboprop airliners and has taken options on an additional 15 airliners.
Travelport and Brussels Airlines announced a global, full content agreement for Galileo and Worldspan-connected users, effective immediately. CTC Aviation Group reached a three-year contract with flydubai to assist with pilot recruitment. The carrier said it is required to add 140 pilots annually over the next three years.
Cathay Pacific Airways unveiled its new cabin design that includes new business class seating on its long-haul aircraft from March 2011 to be better positioned with the rising demand spurred by the rapid economic growth in Asia. The Hong Kong-based carrier said it plans to spend more than HK$1 billion ($12.8 million) on the upgrades. The major change in the lie-flat seat/bed is the rearrangement of the alignment to face the windows on the sides and to face inwards in the center of the aircraft. This reverses the current herringbone layout.
Delta Air Lines announced Tuesday it received notification from the National Mediation Board that 70% of employees voting in the passenger service election rejected representation by the International Assn. of Machinists. This is the final major workgroup to reject unionization as a result of the Northwest merger in October 2008 ( ATW Daily News, Nov. 23).
Flybe, which is preparing for an initial public offering on Dec. 14, is facing a possible strike action by its 700 pilots over a “number of issues outstanding” including pay, pensions and work patterns.
Southwest Airlines Senior VP-Finance and CFO Laura Wright told investors and media at the 2010 Hudson Securities Airline Conference Wednesday morning in New York that SWA’s proposed acquisition of AirTran Airways is on track to “close in the first half of 2011.”
The relationship between Qantas and Rolls-Royce hit more turbulence after the engine maker’s lawyers failed to show up at an Australian Federal Court hearing on Wednesday to discuss a compensation claim for the grounding of the airline’s Airbus A380 fleet for 23 days following last month’s uncontained engine failure incident.
The relationship between Qantas and Rolls-Royce hit more turbulence after the engine maker’s lawyers failed to show up at an Australian Federal Court hearing to discuss a compensation claim for the grounding of the airline’s Airbus A380 fleet for 23 days following last month’s uncontained engine failure incident.
Travel Ad Network acquires TravelMuse Amadeus begins rollout of EMD to European agencies American Express offers online/offline service platform British Airways adds surcharge to U.K. agents’ credit card bookings Groupize launches online marketplace for motorcoach travel Kony Solutions develops 'write once, use everywhere' platform for mobile apps World news briefing
Orbitz for Business said it will provide an offline method of booking American Airlines flights if the carrier makes good on its threat to inhibit Orbitz Worldwide websites from issuing its tickets. Orbitz told its corporate customers that it will provide a dedicated 800 number for a call center staffed with customer service personnel trained to handle reservations and questions about American and to accommodate their corporate policies.
Avianova named Dmitri Mirgorodsky chief operations officer. The main tasks in his new position will be to ensure “operational excellence” and “drive the operational growth of the airline” as it continues its “aggressive expansion plan," the carrier said. Dallas Airmotive named Michael Frazier regional engine manager, selling engine services for Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A, JT15D, PW500 and PW306C engines in the Northeastern US from Pennsylvania through Maine.
Continental Airlines announced it hopes to begin codesharing with Mexico's Aeromar early next year following the restoration of Mexico’s return to FAA Category 1 safety rating ( ATW Daily News, Dec.3). Turkish Airlines will launch four-times-weekly Istanbul Ataturk-Karachi-Dacca service Dec. 26 and four-times-weekly IST-BKK-Ho Chi Minh City Dec. 29.
Continental Airlines told ATW that “given the uncertainty surrounding the Boeing 787 delivery date,” it will delay the launch of its Houston-Auckland service by a year to November 2012. A CO spokesperson said the carrier remains committed to the route and is “excited about the long-term opportunities in the region,” as well as for the aircraft type, as the 787 “is the ideal aircraft for this route’s success because it is the right-size aircraft to meet demand in the market.”
US Dept. of Transportation said there were no tarmac delays longer than 3 hr. in October, down from 11 flights in the year-ago month, according to a report released Tuesday. The report noted that this is the first month there were no tarmac delays of more than 3 hr. since October 2008. The 3 hr. tarmac delay rule went into effect in April ( ATW Daily News, Nov. 12).
New York-based Bernstein Research believes Airbus made the “wrong decision” on the A320neo and that “a lower risk evolution of the A320 would have been preferable” ( ATW Daily News, Dec. 2).
Dublin Airports Authority announced a "Grow Incentive Scheme" for 2011 at Dublin, Cork and Shannon airports under which the authority will waive "all airport charges for passenger traffic" once a threshold of 23.5 million passengers is reached at the three airports it manages.
US Dept. of Transportation announced Monday that the US and Brazil have agreed to enter into a phased-in open skies aviation agreement, which will “significantly liberalize” US-Brazil air services for airlines of both countries over a transition period. The agreement will take full effect in October 2015.
Airbus announced Tuesday it has started making the first carbon fiber barrel for the A350 XWB fuselage at the company’s production plant in Illescas, Spain.
