Airports in the UK returned to normal yesterday following Saturday's attack at Glasgow's Terminal 1, although London Stansted reportedly faced temporary closure last night while part of Heathrow was evacuated briefly Sunday owing to suspicious packages and the country's security alert level remained on "critical." BAA said earlier yesterday that its seven UK airports were operating as normal with a full schedule of flights, while Glasgow said it was "back in business and the majority of flights are now operating normally," adding that "some delays and cancellations may arise."
A war of words erupted between Air New Zealand and Auckland International Airport Ltd. over the airport's new pricing policy announced yesterday. AIAL said it will increase landing charges for airlines by 2.5% per year for the next five years from Sept. 1. At issue is the airport's decision to change the valuation methodology.
Air Deccan took delivery of its 20th new A320 last week, bringing its total fleet to 44 aircraft. The A320 will seat 180 in a single class and be the eighth based in Kolkata. Deccan will introduce a new flight to Vishakapatnam starting July 10.
Gulf Air, which is in the midst of an extensive restructuring ( ATWOnline, April 18), revealed a "new network" based on a "wave model" designed to schedule flights to maximize connection possibilities for Middle East business travelers. "Our restructuring plan seeks to put in place an efficient network that improves punctuality, reduces the transit time between connecting flights and provides a range of travel options," President and CEO Andre Dose said. The Bahrain-based carrier will operate 588 weekly flights.
Hawaiian Airlines promoted VP-E-commerce Rick Peterson to VP-marketing and sales. Rolls-Royce Canada named Michel Toutant president and COO, replacing retired Pierre Racine. Toutant has served as VP-strategic operations for R-R Energy Solutions since 2006 and previously held a number of positions with R-R Canada, including VP and GM-gas turbines.
CAAC officially approved the launch of the Tianjin-based joint venture cargo airline to be owned and operated by Chinese logistics firm Sinotrans and Korean Air. The new entity has a registered capital of $65 million, in which Sinotrans Air Transportation Development Co. holds a 51% stake with an investment of $33.15 million. KE invested $16.25 million for a 25% stake. Minority shareholders are Hana Capital Co. (13%) and Shinhan Capital (11%).
News from Travel Technology Update: The Star Alliance's Alternative Content Access Platform initiative, launched two years ago with the aims of harnessing modern technology and reducing distribution costs for alliance members, is dormant. The Star Alliance signed letters of intent with G2 Switchworks, ITA Software and Lufthansa Systems to develop the ACAP project. But the alliance said recent changes in the distribution landscape "have delayed the implementation process of alternative distribution solutions."
Air India last week launched its first freighter dedicated to European service. The converted A310 will be one of two operating four-times-weekly flights from Mumbai to Frankfurt and Paris Charles de Gaulle via Bangalore and Chennai. The A310s were converted by EADS at a cost of $7.95 million each, AI said. Chairman and MD V. Thulasidas said, "Post the merger, cargo is going to be one of the most important strategic business units for Air India.
GKN Aerospace completed acquisition of Teleflex Aerospace Manufacturing Group. According to GKN, the amalgamation creates a market-leading supplier to the aero-engine sector and takes aero-engine products to approximately 25% of GKN Aerospace total revenues.
Air Berlin is expecting 12% passenger growth to 6 million this year at its Spanish hub in Palma de Mallorca. "Fifty percent of our passengers in PMI are transferring between our flights and Austrian partner Niki," an AB spokesperson told ATWOnline in Mallorca. AB's market share at PMI currently is 27%, while it holds 7% of the entire Spanish market. It established its PMI hub during the 1997-98 winter schedule. "We are the biggest non-Spanish carrier [in Spain] and the fifth-biggest carrier in Spain in terms of passengers," the spokesperson added.
A little more than one week after doubling its firm 777 order to eight aircraft, TAM announced the signing of an MOU to acquire 22 A350-800/-900 XWBs plus 10 options for delivery in the 2013-18 timeframe. The Brazilian carrier also will exercise four A330 options for delivery in 2010 and 2011. Total catalog value of the 22 A350s and four A330s is approximately $5.4 billion.
The Indonesian airline industry was dealt a blow by the European Commission, which reportedly has banned all 51 registered Indonesian carriers from operating into the EU. While no Indonesian airlines currently fly to EU member states, an EU spokesperson warned that "European citizens should avoid flying with these carriers. They are really unsafe," in a statement cited by The Times of London.
Precision Conversions received a 757-200PCF order from DHL. The ex-VIM Airlines aircraft will be modified at Flightstar Aircraft Services in Jacksonville and will be redelivered in October. It is owned by DHL's European Air Transport but is expected to be operated by Blue Dart Aviation in Chennai.
Northwest Airlines is taking further steps to reduce its ongoing spate of cancellations, including dropping its second Detroit-Frankfurt 757 frequency to free up pilots, retraining furloughed pilots to return them to active duty and planning a 3% domestic mainline capacity reduction beginning next month.
United Airlines announced last week that it refinanced approximately $1 billion in existing leases and mortgages through the issuance of $694 million in Enhanced Equipment Trust Certificates and $270 million in Special Facility Revenue Refunding Bonds at Denver International Airport. It said the proceeds from the debt offerings will refinance existing aircraft lease and mortgage debt associated with 13 widebody aircraft and the existing SFRBs at DEN.
SunExpress signed a five-year contract to use the Lido RouteManual from Lufthansa Systems. It also has the option of migrating to the electronic version of the navigation charts, the Lido eRouteManual, during the term of the contract.
Airfoil Services, the Malaysia-based joint venture between MTU Aero Engines and Lufthansa Technik, moved to a new larger production facility at Kota Damansara near Kuala Lumpur. It said more than 250 jobs have been created so far through the expansion.
US Airways, having completed its deal for 92 new Airbus aircraft ( ATWOnline, June 19), now will turn its attention to replacing the fleet of wholly owned regional subsidiary Piedmont Airlines. "A year we ago we announced we were looking at replacement [for the Piedmont fleet] but we redirected our attention to a larger order for the mainline," a US Airways spokesperson told ATWOnline.
Sichuan Airlines recently took delivery of four A319s and expects to introduce an A320 on July 4. The carrier noted that it will add nine more Airbus aircraft to its fleet this year, including six A319s. Fleet expansion will allow it to launch flights from Chengdu to Shangri-La in Yunnan Province, followed by services to neighboring Asian countries in the next 2-3 years. It currently operates 36 aircraft and is planning to expand its fleet to 100 aircraft and reach CNY10 billion ($1.31 billion) in revenue within 3-5 years.
European Commission confirmed Friday that it did not renew the so-called "block exemption" for IATA passenger tariff conferences for routes between the EU and non-EU countries. The antitrust exemption expired on June 30 for routes between the EU and the US or Australia and will end on Oct. 31 for routes to other countries. It ended on Jan. 1 for intra-EU routes as stipulated in the revised Block Exemption for IATA passenger tariff conferences that the EC adopted in October. The new regulation, which also ended the block exemption for IATA slot and scheduling conferences from Dec.
Former Alaska Airlines Chairman and CEO Bruce Kennedy, 68, was killed last Thursday in the crash of a Cessna 182 he was piloting in central Washington State. His death was confirmed Friday by Quest Aircraft Co., where he served as chairman until the accident. He became a director at Alaska in 1972 and served as chairman, CEO and/or president from 1978 to 1991. He oversaw the acquisition of Horizon Air and Jet America and remained chairman emeritus. "Bruce's legacy extends far beyond his storied leadership of this airline," Alaska Air Group Chairman and CEO Bill Ayer said.
