Air Transport

By Kurt Hofmann
With vaccination programs underway and demand for summer travel slowly picking up, Belgium’s flag-carrier is preparing for a gradual increase in flight operations.
Airlines & Lessors

ALASKA AIRLINES plans June 1 to begin daily Burbank-Santa Rosa/Sonoma County (E175) to compete with AVELO.
Air Transport

Rohit Philip to Chief Financial Officer of Avianca Holdings, Colombia.
Air Transport

FREEBIRD AIRLINES plans in July to begin Antalya-Manchester/-London Gatwick (A320).
Air Transport

By Alan Dron
The government of Cabo Verde plans to fully privatize the country’s national carrier, selling off its 39% stake in Cabo Verde Airlines (CVA).
Airlines & Lessors

AIR FRANCE plans July 2 to begin three-times-weekly Paris CDG-Denver, CO (787-9).
Air Transport

TURKISH AIRLINES has cancelled 10 of its 63 remaining 737 MAXs on order and converted another 40 into options until December 21, 2021; the remaining
Air Transport

ALTA members flew 25.6b RPKs in February, down 66% vs Feb 2020; capacity fell 54% to 43.5b ASKs. Pax fell 55.7%.
Air Transport

By Kurt Hofmann
Start-up virtual carrier Green Airlines has signed a long-term wet-lease contract with German Airways to provide two Embraer E190-100LRs to support its network expansion.
Small Narrowbody Jets

By Kurt Hofmann
Spanish flag-carrier Iberia has announced an ambitious summer program, resuming scheduled flights to many past destinations and adding capacity on its busiest routes as more travel restrictions lift.
Airports & Networks

By Thierry Dubois
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has cleared the way for Inmarsat to continue operating its European Aviation Network (EAN) inflight connectivity system.
Interiors & Connectivity

By Graham Warwick
Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.
Aerospace

By Sean Broderick, Guy Norris
Repairs to in-service, stored aircraft likely.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

By Tony Osborne
Leonardo has shipped the fourth prototype AW609 commercial tiltrotor to Italy from the U.S. for final tests ahead of the aircraft’s civil certification.
Air Transport

By Sean Broderick, Guy Norris
One week into a de facto partial fleet grounding, Boeing continues to evaluate the scale and needed steps to correct 737 MAX electrical system problems—an issue that extends beyond the area originally flagged by the manufacturer.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

By Lori Ranson
Although corporate travel remains severely depressed, Delta Air Lines is seeing encouraging signs that some business demand could materialize later in 2021.
Airlines & Lessors

By Graham Warwick
SkyNRG is to develop sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production facilities in the U.S. and has signed an MOU with Alaska Airlines to increase investment in low-carbon fuels.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Ben Goldstein
A new study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that blocking middle seats in an aircraft cabin can reduce the risk of coronavirus exposure by more than half, undermining a year’s worth of airline claims about the safety of flying during the pandemic.
Airlines & Lessors

DELTA AIR LINES had $1.2b loss in 1Q21 (vs $74m loss in 1Q20) on 60% lower revenues; its average cash burn was $11m per day, which included a positive
Air Transport

Carter White was promoted to Chief Revenue Officer of Aviation Capital Group, CA (effective May 1).
Air Transport

SMARTAVIA, Russia leased ex-Interjet A320neo (7523) with LEAP-1As from AerCap.
Air Transport

VIRGIN AUSTRALIA agreed to re-lease 10 of its previously operated 737-800s from various lessors to facilitate network growth that includes planned
Air Transport

WIZZ AIR expects to post net loss of €570m-€590m for year ended March 31, ending year with €1.6b in total liquidity.
Air Transport

GEORGIAN AIRWAYS leased ex-Malaysia Airlines 737-800 (35105) from SMBC Aviation Capital.
Air Transport

BINDER CAPITAL GROUP purchased ex-CommutAir Dash 8-300 (554) in deal arranged by Airstream International Group.
Air Transport