Beirut's Rafik Hariri International Airport is expected to receive 5 million passengers once MEA (Middle East Airlines) adds a new Airbus A320 to its fleet according to MEA director general Mohammed Al-Hout, reports Beirut Online.
The $39 million expansion of the departure terminal at Muscat's international airport has been completed and the final bidders for the new airport development have also been confirmed
Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism increased the number of landing slots at Tokyo Haneda as a temporary measure "to support Japan's airline industry during the current difficult economic environment," Japan Airlines said. JAL will use its allotment to operate an eighth daily flight to Hiroshima from May 8 to May 31 and a 20th daily flight to Fukuoka from June 1 to June 30. Additional flights in the July-October period have not been determined. JAL also said it will reduce its daily Tokyo Narita-Delhi service to four-times-weekly from June 1 to Oct. 24.
Southwest Airlines will launch its Boston service on Aug. 16 with five-times-daily flights to Chicago Midway and five-times-daily service to Baltimore. It will operate from two gates at BOS and have approximately 40 fulltime employees at the airport.
Alitalia launched daily flights from Milan Linate to Paris Orly, Bucharest and Warsaw and thrice-weekly Milan Malpensa-St. Petersburg service as it opened its summer schedule. AZ will serve 25 domestic and 49 international destinations with 2,549 weekly flights this summer. Iberia launched daily Madrid-Sofia service. Bulgaria Air is codesharing. Air Astana launched twice-weekly Almaty-Baku flights aboard an A320. LAN Peru will launch twice-weekly Lima-Cartagena service on April 29 aboard an A319.
Emirates will launch thrice-weekly Dubai-Luanda service aboard A330-200s on Aug. 2. The Angolan capital will be EK's 17th African destination. AirAsia launched service from Singapore to Jakarta (twice-daily), Bali, Bandung and Yogyakarta (each daily). AeroMexico launched twice-weekly Mexico City-Montreal service aboard a 737-700. LAN Peru will launch twice-weekly Lima-Cartagena service on April 29 aboard an A319.
Fraport Cargo Services yesterday resumed handling for Turkish Airlines at Frankfurt following a six-month gap. FCS MD Winfried Hartmann said the company was "able to restart negotiations under different conditions and could offer [THY] a new service package." The airline will operate passenger service between FRA and six Turkish cities during the summer schedule as well as a four-times-weekly A310 freighter service to Istanbul Ataturk.
Allegiant Air said it will end Wilmington, N.C.-Tampa service on May 17 and Bellingham-Reno service on May 29 "due to lack of market demand." It will launch twice-weekly Columbia-Fort Lauderdale flights on May 27. AirTran Airways will operate seasonal service from Atlanta to Portland, Maine, and Harrisburg June 11-Sept. 8 aboard 717-200s. Jet Airways will launch daily Chennai-Dubai service and a second daily Mumbai-Dubai flight on April 23 aboard 737-800s. Both Jet and JetLite have started operating daily New Delhi-Srinagar service.
Dubai International Airport achieved a Middle East first today when it announced that airlines can now operate in very low visibility conditions following the approval of its upgraded category of landing system - CATIIIB, by the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) and Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA).
OpenSkies completed its merger with L'Avion, the French all-business-class airline it acquired last summer ( ATWOnline, July 3, 2008). The merged carrier's operating certificate now will be located in France, resulting in a headquarters relocation to Paris Orly. EC's Dale Moss will remain MD and former L'Avion CEO Marc Rochet will be executive VP.
Al Ain International Airport has been awarded its Aerodrome certificate from the General Civil Aviation Authority following a successful aircraft crash simulation exercise and an airport safety oversight audit last month.
Safi Airways, the international airline of Afghanistan, has launched a series of new routes to the Gulf states with nonstop flights to Afghanistan from Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Kuwait.
Southwest Airlines will launch its New York LaGuardia service on June 28 with five daily flights to Chicago Midway and thrice-daily service to Baltimore, the LCC announced yesterday ( ATWOnline, Dec. 3, 2008).
Despite the global recession, flydubai CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith believes now is the perfect time to launch the airline: "There are 2 billion people within 4 hr. flying time out of Dubai who are still underserved. The market share of LCCs in our region is just about 2%," he told ATWOnline.
Major stakeholders of the world aviation community have signed a declaration calling for the rapid implementation of Performance-based Navigation (PBN), a new air navigation concept that will contribute to further improving the safety, efficiency and sustainability of the global air transport system.
