China Southern announced in August that it would commence a three times weekly link between Guangzhou and Christchurch from December 15, 2015 operated using a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. This was originally displaying just for the winter schedule, but last month reservations were opened for the route to continue through the summer 2016 schedule.
Optimised for non-stop flights to the US, the aircraft, designated A350-900ULR (Ultra-Long Range), will include a modified fuel system to increase the fuel carrying capacity, an increase in Maximum Take-Off Weight, plus aerodynamic improvements, enabling service to the US West Coast, as well as to New York.
The new Adelaide route will be flown using Qatar Airways’ new Airbus A350-900 and will boost its Australian capacity to 28 flights a week. The airline’s Gulf rival, Emirates Airline already serves Adelaide from Dubai International Airport with flights since November 2012; now operating daily using a Boeing 777-300ER.
The new air link will be introduced from December 18, 2015 and will be operated on a twice weekly basis using a mix of Boeing 737 and Embraer 190 equipment. The flights will operate from Kharkiv on Tuesdays and Fridays and from Kutaisi on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
One of the biggest airport operators in Indonesia, Angkasa Pura II (AP II), has committed to invest IDR2 trillion ($150 million) for the construction of a new third runway at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
The Gulf carrier received its first aircraft from the US manufacturer on October 7, 2015 and the aircraft entered service in the early hours of October 11, 2015 on the WY901 rotation between Muscat and Salalah. It operated three return flights on the route that day and is scheduled to repeat that schedule today (October 12, 2015) and through to the end of the month.
Numerous new flights from Vienna have already been published for the summer 2016 schedule including expanded offerings from based carrier, Austrian Airlines, as well as NIKI, SunExpress, Transavia and Vueling. The airport has also attracted the return of two seasonal operators in the form of Aegean Airlines and Europe Airpost, the latter soon to be rebranded as ASL Airlines.
Qatar Airways is increasing its capacity to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Dammam with extra wide-body A330s, B787s and B777s commencing services to Abu Dhabi as of November 1 and Dubai and Dammam from December 1.
Emirates has announced its plans for a second gateway in Istanbul with the launch of a daily service to Sabiha Gokcen Airport, beginning December 15, 2015.
The latest airport passenger traffic and aircraft movements for 239 airports worldwide - current through August 2015 - presented in monthly and year-to-date figures.
WATCH exclusive content from this year's World Routes Strategy Summit. Here we highlight how new aircraft technology is allowing airlines to differentiate their offerings and enhance their competitive edge from the 'Airline Challenges & Growth Concerns' panel session.
Airways New Zealand has signed a contract with FerroNATS to offer air navigation students in Puerto Rico the chance to work with the Spain-based company.
Russia’s Ministry of Justice has amended Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) allowing airlines to launch international flights without waiting two years after operating domestic services.
The low-fare airline will introduce new year-round scheduled holiday flights from Norwich to Alicante and Malaga from March 2016, with the addition of Geneva expected later in 2016. The partnership will see one of Flybe’s stored Embraer E195 jets return to the skies, and planning is already underway to maximise its use by the airport.
Guiyang-based regional China Express Airlines has applied to the Civil Aviation Administration of China to launch international service despite operating difficulties facing Chinese regional carriers.
