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Finnair has nominated former bmi CEO Nigel Turner to its board in a move which is slated for formal approval on March 27. Turner was appointed as CEO of bmi in October 2004 and ran the airline until late 2009, when he ceded the role to Wolfgang Prock-Schauer. Turner is now deputy chairman of lessor Jetscape, a member of the board for ATM-provider NATS and deputy chairman of NATS owner The Airline Group.
The Airbus A350-900 makes its first full international air show debut here at Singapore as questions continue to grow over the future of its planned smaller sibling, the A350-800.
Bangkok Airways has ordered six ATR 72-600s plus two options, worth almost $200 million, and ATR has struck a deal with L-3 Link Simulation & Training to open a simulator center in Bangkok. The new aircraft will be used for Bangkok Airways’ fleet renewal, replacing some of its eight existing ATR 72-500s. Bangkok Airways has been an ATR operator since its launch in 1994.
Guernsey-based regional airline Aurigny has sought permission to operate to London City Airport in the heart of the UK capital’s financial district. “We’ve applied for a license from Guernsey. We’ll see how that application process goes then firm up our plans,” Aurigny CEO Mark Darby told Aviation Week affiliate Air Transport World. Darby declined to comment on the likely timelines, aircraft type and network for Aurigny at London City.
Airbus A380 launch operator Singapore Airlines (SIA) is pushing hard for improvements to its biggest long-haul aircraft. While the aircraft “is performing according to what it was supposed to do on the main hub missions, the world has changed since it was launched,” Singapore Airlines Executive Vice President Commercial Mak Swee Wah tells Aviation Week.
SkyWest Inc. (SI) has embarked on an aggressive turnaround plan for its money-hemorrhaging ExpressJet unit that management says will succeed even if it requires shrinking the carrier to shed unprofitable flying. SI, the holding company for regional carriers ExpressJet and SkyWest, doesn’t break out earnings by unit, but CFO Mike Kraupp says ExpressJet lost “in the neighborhood of” $50 million in 2013, dragging down an overall operation that earned $59 million.
The structure of the first Mitsubishi Regional Jet is complete and nearing the stage of final assembly, while program managers consider how fast they can build the type to make up for development delays. Mitsubishi Aircraft and its airframe builder and major shareholder, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, appear to be inclined towards the high end of a range of contemplated production rates, though they are wary of the ability of their supply chain to keep up.
AirAsia is making progress with its plans to start another low-cost carrier in Japan, with group CEO Tony Fernandes traveling there to advance the project.
Airbus and Boeing are faced with satisfying a complex set of new requirements when it comes to winning orders from state-owned South African Airways (SAA), complying with offset conditions that are more typical for the defense industry than for commercial aviation. Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba has told SAA management to abandon its current plans to renew the airline’s long-haul fleet and to issue a new request for proposals (RFP) that includes assurances made by industry to place work in South Africa.
Norwegian Air Shuttle has received all necessary operating licenses from the Irish authorities for its Dublin-based subsidiary Norwegian Air International (NAI), accomplishing another step in establishing Europe’s first low-cost long-haul business model.
Air Canada’s expansion plans for Rouge, its low-cost leisure subsidiary and key element of its cost-reduction plan, remain on track for 2014, with up to 33 Boeing 767s and A319s destined to be reconfigured and shifted from the mainline operation to the new service by yearend, the carrier’s executives say.
Anticipating passenger growth in the coming years of 3-5% per annum, Singapore's government hopes to increase passenger capacity by 15 million per year with a new Terminal 4 (T4) due to open in 2017, and to build a “mega-terminal” T5 to boost capacity by another 50 million by the mid-2020s. Those moves together would bring capacity to 132 million passengers annually.
Indian regional start-up Air Costa has firmed up ambitious growth plans by signing an order for up to 100 Embraer E2 jets at the Singapore Air Show. The deal is made up of 25 firm orders each for the E190-E2 and the E195-E2. It includes the same number of options.
Emirates and Jetstar Airways will start codeshare flights on April 6, and their frequent-flyer programs will be linked starting March 1, under a new but long-expected codeshare deal which will extend Emirates' reach beyond its existing partnership with Jetstar parent Qantas. The Jetstar agreement will expand the number of destinations Emirates can offer, since Jetstar flies to several international points that Qantas does not. Jetstar is also due to grow far more quickly than the Qantas mainline operation.
Click here to view the pdf Fuel Watch: Global Jet Fuel Prices (midpoint) As of February 12, 2014, compared with previous week and previous year cts/gal prev. week prev.
Senior Australian politicians appear increasingly sympathetic to Qantas’ appeals for government help, but it remains unclear what sort of relief will be politically feasible.
Airbus revised its Asia-Pacific demand outlook upwards by almost 1,000 units over 20 years, reflecting the strong growth the manufacturer expects in the region. The company believes around 10,000 additional aircraft will be needed in Asia to cope with an annual increase in demand of close to 6%. “This is where the action will be in the coming years,” Airbus CEO Fabrice Bregier said on the opening day of the Singapore airshow.
Thailand’s air traffic management agency Aerothai has selected Thales to provide a new ATM system to be installed at all of its major facilities, which will enable controllers to use advanced satellite-based surveillance technologies.
