UPBEAT WAS THE BEST WAY TO DESCRIBE EMIRATES Airline President Tim Clark, cabin crew and passengers alike onboard the carrier's inaugural A380 flight from Dubai to New York on Aug. 1. Clark was all smiles that the first A380 was a tonne lighter than expected, onboard staff were beaming with pride in their new product offering--much of which they had helped design or implement--and passengers were lyrical about the host of new features including showers in first class and a bar area for business and first class customers.
WITH AN ULTIMATE GOAL OF more than 12% saving in fuel and a corresponding reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, the imperative for air traffic control reform has taken on a new urgency. Yet significant gains remain elusive save for a few locations around the globe that share something in common: A new model of cooperation between air navigation service providers and the commercial user community.
Indira Gandhi International Airport, which was awarded to a private consortium two years ago amid much hope and fanfare, has been pilloried by airlines and passengers alike. After the consortium took over, it was widely expected that radical changes would be forthcoming to address the problems of congestion and poor terminal facilities that plague most of the country's state-administered airports. But progress has been slow in a market that has seen some of the fastest air traffic growth in the world during the period.
Liverpool John Lennon Airport is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year and enjoying an enviable reputation as one of the fastest-growing airports in Europe. Last year it handled more than 5.5 million passengers--an increase of 11% over 2006. And it passed another significant milestone in June when it handled its 50 millionth passenger since it was opened officially on July 1, 1933.
American Airlines asked the US Dept. of Transportation for permission to delay the start of its Chicago O'Hare-Beijing service from April 9, 2009, to April 4, 2010.
XL Airways will suspend flights from London Gatwick to the Caribbean (it serves Antigua, St. Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, Barbados and Grenada) on Nov. 3, citing fuel costs, the economic downturn and the routes' falling popularity as reasons for the decision. XL Leisure Group's UK scheduled and charter airline said it will focus instead on more profitable long-haul services to Florida and its short- and medium-haul network. XL currently uses 767-300s on its Caribbean routes, which were due to be replaced in autumn with two new A330s.
Ryanair will cease daily flights from Cork to Nottingham East Midlands and Glasgow Prestwick on Oct. 26 and Oct. 28 respectively, citing "the 20% increase in charges being imposed on these two routes by Cork Airport."
A US FAA computer system near Atlanta that processes flight plans failed yesterday, causing delays at major airports throughout the US, with the heaviest disruptions occurring in the eastern part of the country.
Airports of Thailand this week announced plans to invest THB77.9 billion ($2.27 billion) in upgrades and expansion at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, which opened two years ago. Plan still requires Transport Ministry and cabinet approval and is designed to increase passenger throughput by one-third to 60 million over the next six years with the addition of a third runway and midfield terminal, the Bangkok Post reported. Construction is scheduled to start by the end of next year and be completed in 2014.
Southwest Airlines said yesterday that it will cut 196 daily flights while adding just six when it launches its winter schedule on Jan. 11, a more than 5% reduction from its current schedule. The carrier cited traditionally lower demand and poor weather during winter months as well as a slow economy and high fuel costs. It said some flights potentially could be added back to the schedule in the spring.
Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson told employees Friday that while DL supports the proposed transatlantic joint venture among American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia "in principle," it will advocate that "AA and BA need to give up enough slots and gates so that everybody has unfettered access to Heathrow." The employee hotline message was cited by The Dallas Morning News. BA CEO Willie Walsh has gone on record saying that carrier will refuse to surrender slots at LHR.
Singapore Changi's 27-year old Terminal 1 is getting a S$500 million ($353.9 million) facelift to improve passenger flow and refurbish interior designs and finishes. The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore signed a contract yesterday with Takenaka Corp. for the improvements, with completion expected in the third quarter of 2011. The project includes a new departure curbside canopy spanning the length of the building and a 35-m. airside expansion.
Qatar Airways will begin daily Doha-New York JFK on Oct. 26 aboard a 777-300ER. Six-times-weekly Geneva-Newark will end. Doha-Geneva will operate four-times-weekly aboard an A330. Jet Airways will commence daily Bangalore-Brussels on Oct. 31 aboard an A330-200. This weekend it launched daily -200 flights to Dubai from Mumbai and Delhi. Finnair will launch thrice-weekly Helsinki-Yekaterinburg on Sept. 2 aboard an A319. Ural Airlines will codeshare.
Wizz Air announced it will open a base at Timisoara in March 2009, its 10th overall. The LCC will base three A320s and employ more than 100 people at the Romanian airport over the next three years, it said, representing an investment of more than €100 million ($147.9 million). Wizz also operates bases at Bucharest Baneasa and Cluj. It will launch thrice-weekly service from Timisoara to London Luton, Rome Fiumicino and Dortmund on Dec. 17. On March 11 it will begin thrice-weekly flights to Bergamo, Barcelona and Treviso and twice-weekly service to Paris Beauvais and Valencia.
Published charges among Europe's 50 busiest airports by passenger volume have increased an average of almost 4% since 2007, with the biggest growth occurring at London Heathrow and Gatwick, according to RDC Aviation's Airport Charges Monitor.
American Airlines will launch five-times-weekly Chicago O'Hare-Montego Bay on Jan. 31 aboard a 757. AirTran Airways will launch service to Columbus from Atlanta (twice-daily), Orlando International (daily) and Fort Myers (daily) on Nov. 6 and daily MCO-Harrisburg on Nov. 20.
BAA might have to sell three of its seven UK airports--two in London and either Edinburgh or Glasgow International--in order to address competition problems arising from their common ownership, the UK Competition Commission said yesterday in its provisional report into the market for the supply of airport services in the UK. The Commission also concluded that there are competition problems arising from the planning system, aspects of government policy and the system of regulation.
AirAsia X will launch four-times-weekly Kuala Lumpur-Melbourne on Nov. 12 aboard an A330, increasing to daily during the December-January peak season. MEL will be the long-haul LCC's fourth destination after Hangzhou, Perth and Gold Coast.
Lufthansa Consulting extended its contract with Kenya Airways and will help the airline establish a new Hub Control Concept at Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta to be integrated with LCG's already implemented Operations Control Center infrastructure.
US Airways yesterday announced plans to launch daily Philadelphia-Tel Aviv service in July 2009 contingent on approval from the US Dept. of Transportation and the Israeli government. It will use A330-200s scheduled to be delivered in the first half of next year. Tel Aviv would be US's only Middle East destination. Sama will launch twice-weekly Dammam-Beirut and thrice-weekly Riyadh-Asiut on Sept. 1.
EasyJet will close its second-largest German base, Dortmund, an airline spokesperson told the dpa news agency. More information on the fate of the 116 employees at DTM will be available next month, the spokesperson said. Berlin Schoenefeld is easyJet's largest German base.
