Spanish travel concern Grupo Marsans yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding for 61 Airbus aircraft and became the latest new customer for the Airbus A380 and A350XWB. According to the MOU, Marsans will buy four A380s, 10 A350-900s, five A330-200s, 12 A319s, 25 A320s and five A321s. The aircraft will be allocated to Grupo Marsans airlines, such as Aerolineas Argentinas und Air Comet.
ExpressJet's latest tranche of branded markets fit well into the carrier's profile of launching flights in thin markets, with at least one market having fewer than 20 daily passengers combined. After securing slots at Long Beach, Calif., earlier this year (DAILY, Aug. 9), ExpressJet this week said it would start flights from the airport to Reno-Tahoe, Fresno and Monterey on Nov. 11. Flights from Santa Barbara to Sacramento and San Diego also start at that time. New service from Reno includes flights to Long Beach, Los Angeles Ontario, Spokane and Tucson.
Washington Dulles Airport will be one of the first in the nation to unveil the Transportation Security Administration's security checkpoint of the future, according to CEO James Bennett. The airport's designers are working with TSA to ensure that passengers will be processed efficiently in the facility's new 121,700 square feet of screening space.
Aer Lingus decided to lodge a compliant with the European Union's Tribunal of First Instance in an attempt to force Ryanair to relinquish its 29.4% stake in the Irish flag carrier.
While the European Commission has moved ahead with regulations to cut back on the confiscation of duty-free liquids from passengers arriving from third countries and ICAO is still working to get standards accepted worldwide, the U.S. and Canada are still working on their policies. The regulation now allows travelers to bring in duty-free liquids and gels sealed in a tamper-proof plastic from countries outside the European Union, as long as equivalent standards are in place in the origin country.
Midwest Air Group saw September traffic rise by 20%, with capacity up 23.2%. Load factor dropped 1.8 points to 69.3%. Yield dropped 0.6% for the month, and unit revenue fell 3.1%. Fuel cost fell 5.4%. Year-to-date, traffic was up 17% on a capacity hike of 13.8%. Load factor rose 1.8 points to 78.8%, yield was down 2.8%, and unit revenue fell 0.3%. [email protected]
Venezuela's state-owned and -operated Conviasa on Monday inaugurated weekly service from Caracas to Teheran via Damascus in cooperation with Iran Air and Syrian Airlines. The carriers are using Airbus A330-200s. This is the first time the three cities are linked by scheduled air service, and Syrian Airlines President Nahat Numnar said, "This is a big step forward in establishing business, cultural and tourism ties between Venezuela and the Middle East." [email protected]
Qatar Airways upgraded from an Airbus A300 to an A330 on its Doha-Algiers service, which the carrier offers four times per week. With the use of the A330-200, Qatar is offering an additional 53 seats on the flights.
Aeroflot will add six more Airbus A320s to its fleet via the leasing route. The move is part of a much larger push by Aeroflot to replace its high-fuel-burn Russian-built aircraft with western models. The lease approach also avoids some of Russia's high import taxes on new aircraft. The aircraft will be used on domestic and European routes.
Mexicana's aggressive entry into the bidding contest for Aeromexico is alarming some members of Mexico's government, and concerns about competition are prompting them to press for more information on how the sale of the country's flag carrier will be handled.
Air Wisconsin reported its September traffic rose 5.3% versus flat capacity, resulting in load factor increase of 3.5 points to 69.6%. For the year through September, traffic was down 1.55, capacity was down 1.3%, and load factor dropped 0.2 points to 71.8%.
Middle Eastern LCC Air Arabia plans to launch flights from its Sharjah base to Bangalore on Oct. 15 with four weekly flights, transitioning to daily flights on Oct. 29. Bangalore is the carrier's ninth Indian destination. Earlier this month, Air Arabia started two weekly flights from Sharjah to Coimbatore, and it plans to boost that frequency to three flights per week next month. [email protected]
Airbus yesterday inked a 50-aircraft order for its A320, just one day after confirming a separate firm order for another 30 A320s. Eastern European low-cost Wizz Air was responsible for the 50-aircraft order, with the earlier order coming from Asia/Pacific carrier Tiger Airways. The healthy order numbers for October follow a strong September for the A320 program, with 110 orders.
The search for a new director general for Airports Council International (ACI) is under way, now that Robert Aaronson has announced his retirement, effective this spring. There is no simple answer to why now is a good time to retire, Aaronson told The DAILY. "It's now time for me to pursue other challenges. And it's good for the organization to get fresh thinking in." The process of interviewing candidates is getting started," he said. "By early next year, the board will have identified who it will be." [email protected]
Aviation's effect on climate change is already an emotional, political issue in Europe and could be the same in the U.S., unless the industry and government take strong measures to address the problem in a very public way, representatives from government, the airline industry and environmental groups say.
Aer Lingus threatened to suspend all of its pilots who don't explicitly commit to cooperating with the establishment of a new operational base in Belfast (DAILY, Aug. 15). The pilots can, for instance, be required to fly with the new recruits to train them, said the carrier. "If you fail to confirm your willingness to unreservedly engage in your full range of duties...you will be suspended from the payroll from 3 a.m. on Tuesday 16th October 2007," wrote Aer Lingus CEO Dermot Mannion in a letter to all pilots yesterday (Oct. 10).
Leaders of US Airways pilots union -- the Air Line Pilot Association -- met with management earlier this week regarding the closure of the Pittsburgh crew base.
The Transportation Security Administration continues its search for a more effective way to screen airline passengers today with the start of millimeter wave imaging technology testing at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. The TSA has bought eight millimeter wave screening portals for $1.7 million from L-3 Communications to study the technology, which can detect weapons, explosives and other potential threats concealed under layers of clothing better than conventional X-ray screeners -- but without the need for physical contact.
Pratt & Whitney struck a deal with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) to become the lone engine supplier for MHI's regional jet, and will debut its new geared turbofan powerplant on the aircraft. MHI plans to build a 70- to 90-seat jet, and testing of the geared turbofan starts next year.
