Air Transport World

With a Dec. 7 deadline set by regulators looming, Hong Kong Airlines (HKA) said Dec. 4 it has drawn up a cash injection plan and received sufficient cash to pay its employees on Dec. 5.

China’s Hainan Airlines will sell a majority stake in low-cost subsidiary West Air to the Chongqing city government, following previous sales of shares in local carriers to municipalities.

Europe’s finance ministers agreed to revise current energy taxation laws at a Dec. 5 meeting of the economic and financial affairs council, in a move that could pave the way for an end to jet fuel’s exemption from tax.

Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) is considering a new aircraft order to fill the gap between 90-seat CRJs and 180-seat Airbus A320neos, but would need to maintain the benefits of its shift toward single-fleet operations.

JetBlue Airways is ready and willing to transfer one of its Mexico City slot pairs to United Airlines, as the New York-based carrier prepares to cease flying to the Mexican capital in January.

Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief engineer John Hamilton has announced his retirement, a year after being asked by the company to stay on to lead the 737 MAX recovery effort.

Garuda Indonesia’s top executive appears set to lose his job after allegations linking him to the smuggling of motorbike parts on an aircraft delivery flight.

South African Airways (SAA) will be put into business rescue, placing the company under administrator control, because of the airline's critical financial situation.

Disruption in flights originating and landing in France is expected as a three-day strike by air traffic controllers (ATCs) gets under way Dec. 5.

Hawaii’s four-member US congressional delegation has called on the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to grant antitrust immunity (ATI) to the proposed joint venture between Hawaiian Airlines and Japan Airlines (JAL).

Norwegian Air Shuttle has agreed to sell its domestic Argentinian subsidiary, Norwegian Air Argentina (NAA), to Chilean ultra-LCC JetSMART Airlines.

Irish LCC Ryanair is making cuts to its European network of bases as a result of the growing impact of the Boeing 737 MAX grounding.

Lufthansa subsidiaries Austrian Airlines and LCC Eurowings Europe are in talks to expand a wet-lease contract from Jan. 1, 2020.

Air France-KLM’s Dutch LCC Transavia will launch operations from Brussels, initially serving nine destinations.

Qatar Airways Cargo plans to launch a major expansion into South America, adding four new cities to the division’s network of freighter destinations.

Chile’s LATAM Airlines Group announced its three South American subsidiaries have entered into codeshare agreements with Delta Air Lines, representing the first step in implementing the two companies’ newly cemented partnership.

GE Aviation is recommending operators of GE90-115B engines install re-designed stator vane segments to prevent wear and potential cracking that investigators determined was behind a 2017 Japan Airlines (JAL) engine failure, a Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB) report on the incident revealed.

Airbus has decided not to pursue the integration of Safran’s electric taxiing system (eTaxi) for the A320 family, citing technical reasons and causing another setback for promoters of the fuel-saving technology.

Investigations have been opened into two separate landing incidents involving Singapore Airlines’ aircraft within a week.

Air France-KLM is continuing to prepare for the launch of its expanded transatlantic joint venture (JV) in the coming weeks, saying Virgin Atlantic chairman Richard Branson’s decision not to sell part of his stake to the Franco-Dutch airline group will not impact its position in the JV.

United Airlines has ordered 50 Airbus A321XLRs to replace Boeing 757s and possibly launch more long-range, thin intercontinental routes, the airline said late Dec. 3.

ICAO’s disruptive passenger rules to take effect Jan. 1

Virgin Atlantic chairman Richard Branson has scrapped plans to sell 31% of the airline to Air France-KLM as originally agreed as part of the transatlantic joint venture (JV) among the two companies and Delta Air Lines.

Air France, stepping up efforts to reduce its environmental impact, plans to offset the emissions from its domestic network from Jan. 1, 2020, the airline said at an environmental roundtable in Paris Dec. 3.

Phoenix-based Mesa Airlines is deepening its partnership with United Airlines at the same time the regional carrier is running up against problems in its relationship with American Airlines.