Spirit said the “domestic pricing environment softened further” in June, and it blamed “competitor pricing actions” for driving down yields during what should be a strong period for the ultra-LCC.
The elections could bring a new government to Spain. Relations between Gibraltar and its neighbor, Spain, haven’t always been easy, but tensions have flared under the current Spanish government led by Mariano Rajoy.
AirAsia X (AAX) is the long-haul affiliate of the AirAsia Group of LCC carriers. It has so far struggled to achieve profits with the long-haul low-cost model, and a reduction in international competition stemming from the MAS capacity cuts is seen as a major boost to its prospects.
The agreement is with biofuel-process developer LanzaTech and Primetals Technologies, which will be involved in the engineering and commissioning of the facility at ArcelorMittal’s steel plant in Ghent, Belgium.
The facility, China Aircraft Disassembly Centre (CADC), will be ramped up over the next 10 years, with an initial goal of dismantling 20 aircraft annually by 2018, and 50 within five years.
The carrier recently took delivery of an A330-300, leaving two more yet to arrive. The next is due around the end of July or early August, and the other in September, an airline spokesman said.
Aerobatic pilot Hugues Duval beat the aerospace giant by flying his electrically powered Cri-Cri aircraft from Dover to Calais in 17 min. on the evening of July 9, the Aero-Club of France announced, just hours before Airbus’s own 38-min. flight from Lydd to Calais-Dunkerque airfield took place on July 10.
Delta, which spent $100 million in 2011 to gain a stake in GOL and a seat on the carrier’s board of directors, has also agreed to guarantee a $300 million term loan GOL plans to enter into with third-party lenders, GOL said.
The Shanghai-based airline has also made a preliminary plan to double its service frequency to New York and to beef up its daily San Francisco service by substituting Boeing 777-300ERs for Airbus A330-200s.
Long-haul LCC Thai AirAsia X (TAAX) is looking to launch routes in markets such as Europe, Australia and China later this year, CEO Nadda Buranasiri said. The airline previously focused on growth in Japan, but Japanese aviation authorities have been restricting new service by Thai carriers due to ICAO safety concerns. TAAX can continue to operate its Tokyo and Osaka flights, but recently suspended Sapporo flights.
For the last four decades, the primary driver of commercial jet aircraft development has been the price of fuel. Ever more fuel-efficient and costly jet engines have been developed to power airframes, which have been primarily designed to accommodate these engines. The price of these technologically advanced aircraft has naturally risen and resulted in very large capital investment by the airlines or by leasing companies. The First Shoe
For a complete list of Aviation Week’s upcoming events, and to register, visit www.awin.aviationweek.com/events Oct. 13-15—MRO Europe, ExCel London Exhibition and Convention Center, London, U.K. Nov. 4-6—MRO Asia, SingEx Exhibition and Convention Center, Singapore. Feb. 3-4, 2016—MRO Middle East, Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, UAE.
International Airlines Group (IAG) has cleared one of the last major hurdles ahead of its planned takeover of Aer Lingus after Ryanair said it will accept the group’s offer to sell its stake in the fellow Irish airline.
The airline will start flying four daily Gatwick-Boston round-trips in May 2016. Norwegian started long-haul low-cost flights from Gatwick in 2014, with services to Los Angeles, New York and Fort Lauderdale.
It is the domestic market that apparently concerns American most, and the airline reported it will now increase U.S. capacity this year by only 1-2%, a percentage point lower than the previous range.
