Wizz Air says its initial experience during a month-long trial to test a charge for carry-on baggage has been very promising. The airline is charging 10 euros ($12.39) for every piece of hand luggage that does not fit underneath the seat. According to the Hungarian low-fare airline, about 10% of passengers are paying the extra fee. The carrier says it has launched the test to speed up the boarding process, but the fee also is a source of ancillary revenues. No other European airline charges for hand luggage.
A BAE Systems-operated Jetstream 31 is conducting sense-and-avoid trials over the Irish Sea as a U.K.-funded program to develop technologies and procedures to enable civil unmanned aircraft to operate in unrestricted airspace enters its final stages. Begun in 2006, the ₤62 million ($97 million) Astraea program is scheduled to end in March 2013 with completion of the “virtual certification” of an unmanned aircraft to fly without restrictions in all classes of airspace.
United Airlines will terminate its joint venture with Irish carrier Aer Lingus to provide nonstop service from United’s Washington Dulles International Airport hub to Madrid at the end of October. “We informed Aer Lingus two weeks ago that we will be exercising our right to terminate our enhanced code-share for the Dulles-Madrid flight,” a United spokeswoman tells Aviation Week. Service between the two points will end on Oct. 28, the spokeswoman says.
Some aircraft leasing companies are seeing a business opportunity in changes to export credit agency (ECA) financing that could make it more difficult for airlines to use ECA support to acquire aircraft.
Click here to view the pdf Top Carriers: Rio De Janeiro Dumont - Sao Paulo - August 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Top Carriers: Rio De Janeiro Dumont - Sao Paulo - August 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats
Republican members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee, in a letter to the National Mediation Board (NMB), dispute the NMB’s recent notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on unionization votes in the event of an airline merger. At issue is the representation threshold required to authorize unionization. The NMB is inviting comments on whether amendments to the Railway Labor Act (RLA) apply to representation disputes in airlines mergers.
It could be as long as six weeks before an agreement in principle for a new joint collective bargaining agreement between United Continental Holdings and its pilots is put to paper and voted on by the leadership of union groups at United Airlines and Continental Airlines, a spokesman for the Continental pilots union says.
Months after losing its second-largest customer, Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) is working to improve efficiency by updating its fleet and reorganizing its business. The aircraft leasing and cargo transportation group, which includes ABX Air and Capitol Cargo International Airlines, will be transitioning from its fleet of DC-8 combis to Boeing 757 combis over the next year and will take delivery of three 767-300s over the coming months.
You can now register online for Aviation Week events. Go to www.aviationweek.com/conferences or contact: Lydia Janow, 212-904-3225 or 800-240-7645 ext. 5 (U.S. and Canada only) Sept. 20-21 —Aviation Week MRO IT Conference & Showcase, Hyatt Regency Miami, Miami, Fla. Oct. 9—Aviation Week Aircraft Composite Repair Management Forum, Amsterdam RAI, Amsterdam, The Netherlands Oct. 9—Aviation Week MRO IT Europe, Amsterdam RAI, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Click here to view the pdf Top Carriers: Osaka Itami - Tokyo Haneda - July 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Top Carriers: Osaka Itami - Tokyo Haneda - July 15-21, 2012, Ranked By Scheduled Seats Daily Each
Lease rates on aircraft are holding steady, but at low levels, and airlines are reluctant to make long-term lease commitments because of concerns about the economic recovery and business and consumer confidence, Aircastle CEO Ron Wainshal says.
The Dominican Republic and Spain have signed a bilateral air services agreement that, among other provisions, creates the legal space for a Dominican carrier to overfly Spain to some other destination. Neither country has said anything specific about such plans, and for the moment no Dominican operator flies to Spain. Iberia, Air Europa and scheduled charter operator FlyWhoosh operate 25 weekly flights between Spain and the Dominican Republic capital of Santo Domingo but also to Punta Cana and Puerto Plata, an analysis of the PlaneStats.com database shows.
To list an event, send information in calendar format to Ingrid Lee at [email protected] (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) Aug. 13-16—Airports Council International-North America, 2012 Public Safety & Security Fall Conference, Arlington, Va., www.aci-na.org/event/1753 Aug. 16—4th Annual BALA Summit, Business Aviation in Latin America, LABACE, Sao Paulo, Brazil, /www.aeropodium.com/cp/bala.html Aug. 18-22—54th NEC/AAAE Annual Conference, Providence, Rhode Island, www.necconference.org
Signature Technicair , Orlando, Fla., appointed Dan Henchal director of maintenance for its facilities at Charles B. Wheeler Airport, Kansas City, Mo., and New Century Air Center Airport, Olathe, Kan.
