Airports & Networks

VOLARIS TO LAUNCH OAKLAND – MEXICO CITY SERVICE Mexican low-cost operator Volaris is to inaugurate its first international flight from Mexico City’s

TRANSAERO BOOSTS DOMESTIC RUSSIAN FREQUENCIES Independent Russian carrier Transaero Airlines is to increase capacity on four of its domestic routes

ETIHAD AIRWAYS SELECTS MANCHESTER AS HOME FOR EUROPEAN CONTACT CENTRE United Arab Emirates (UAE) operator Etihad Airways has announced that the UK

Airline Route Update is a comprehensive summary of route announcements, capacity increases and codeshare details from this past week. For further

US low-cost carrier Allegiant Air has suggested an imaginative way of dealing with the volatility of fuel costs, allowing passengers to take a gamble

Visiongain - an independent business information provider - has identified the Middle East as a key aviation security market in its new aviation report, 'The Aviation Security Market 2011-2021'.

Shanghai-based Spring Airlines will postpone the opening of Shanghai-Kagawa service scheduled for March 27, owing to the crisis in Japan. “We are not sure when to open the new route and I think it won’t be opened within 45 days,” Spring Chairman Wang Zhenghua said, noting the carrier also suspended operation of its Shanghai-Ibaraki route. Wang stressed the carrier is still optimistic about the Japan market and won’t change its capacity allocation plan in Japan.

Air France is to launch a three times weekly link between its Paris CDG hub and Cancun from October 21, adding to its existing flights to Mexico City

Australia’s Virgin Blue Group has received approval from the Canadian Transportation Agency for its long-haul brand V Australia to launch flights

Chinese carrier Xiamen Airlines is introducing seven new domestic routes during the Northern Summer schedules, mainly focusing on Xinjiang province

Swiss European Air Lines is to offer a seasonal link between EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg and Nice this summer. The carrier will offer four

LANEcuador is to launch flights to Buenos Aires from Quito with a three times weekly service from May 2. This will be increased to five flights per

Long-haul budget carrier AirAsia X is to make some schedule alterations to its Kuala Lumpur – Taipei Taoyuan service from August. With effect from

Chinese carrier Beijing Capital Airlines, part of the HNA Group, will next week add three new routes from Haikou, the capital city of the country’s

Ryanair has temporarily suspended operations at Trapani from March 21 “for an indefinite period and until at least March 28” as the airport is closed to all civilian air traffic owing to the ongoing military action in Libya. The LCC consequently switched its TPS operations to Palermo Airport, 35 mi. (56 km.) from Trapani. Ryanair operates to/from 42 domestic and European destinations from TPS. Etihad Airways will launch daily Airbus A320 Abu Dhabi-Male service Nov. 1.

The European Airport Coordinators Assn. on Tuesday said its member slot coordinators view the recent disruption to air services to Japan and the Middle East/North Africa region “sympathetically” and vowed to show “flexibility” in applying the “use it or lose it” rules in light of the flight disruptions to those parts of the world.

UK long-haul specialist Virgin Atlantic Airways and US low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways have announced a new interline partnership providing domestic

Canadian regional carrier Porter Airlines is to double capacity this summer between Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and Mont Tremblant International

Qatar Airways has announced that it will become the latest carrier to switch flights its services to Alexandria from El-Nozha International to Borg El

Gulf Air is to offer flights between Bahrain and Kabul this summer with the launch of a new four times weekly connection. The new link to Afghanistan

Airlines serving Japan are reporting declining load factors to ATW, suggesting that services are under constant review and may be reduced in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis.

Singapore Airlines is to cut capacity between Singapore and Tokyo with the cancellation of one of its two daily flights on the Singapore - Tokyo

Air India has resumed flights to Sri Lanka with the launch of a six times weekly Chennai – Colombo service. The flight will be operated every day

LOT Polish Airlines is to cut its three times weekly Warsaw – Hanoi link to just two flights per week during two set period this summer. The reduction

Japanese carrier StarFlyer is to launch a five times daily Tokyo Haneda – Fukuoka service from July 1; only its third route. The airline will compete