Airlines & Lessors

Austrian Airlines Group will cut a further 50 jobs as part of its €260 million ($337.8 million) restructuring program to slash 150 administrative positions announced at the end of last year, Austrian CEO Jaan Albrecht told ATW.

Ryanair has opened bases at Eindhoven, Krakow and Zadar, bringing its total European network to 54 bases.

Turkish Airlines will add three additional full flight simulators at its Flight Training Center in Istanbul Ataturk, which “includes one Airbus A320, one Boeing 777-300ER and one 737NG simulator,” CEO Temel Kotil told ATW recently.

SAS Scandinavian Airlines has signed a letter of intent to wet lease four new ATR 72-600 aircraft for 36 months from Danish carrier Jet Time.

Emirates will become a direct competitor to US and European airlines in the transatlantic market by launching daily Milan Malpensa-New York JFK flights from Oct. 1.

Lufthansa head of product management and airport passenger services, Joachim Schneider, is urging cabin suppliers to work more closely to provide greater integration.

Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic Airways formally filed an antitrust immunity application with the US Dept. of Transportation (DOT) for their joint venture (JV).

United Parcel Service (UPS) has appealed the European Commission’s rejection of its €5.16 billion ($6.7 billion) bid to acquire TNT Express.

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has reported its strongest passenger and cargo results for a first quarter.

Just one month after taking ownership of Stansted Airport, Manchester Airports Group (MAG) has announced its first new airline customer.

Virgin Atlantic’s UK domestic operation, Little Red, has begun services between London Heathrow and Edinburgh.

Samoa Air, a scheduled and charter airline connecting the Islands of Samoa, has begun charging passengers fares based on their weight.

Indonesia’s Mandala Airlines is planning to buy 18 Airbus A320 aircraft, according to several Jakarta media reports quoting major shareholder PT Saratoga Investama Sedaya.

The Russian government will split 25.5% of shares in Sibir Airlines, which flies under the S7 Airlines brand.

Hainan Airlines plans to slow down its domestic acquisition pace to focus more on internal integration as global economic uncertainties increase and domestic economic growth slows.

Cyprus Airways must receive financial aid or it will be forced to shut down operations, several Cyprus based media have reported.

EasyJet expects to report a pretax loss for the six-month period ended March 31 of between £60 million ($91.8 million) and £65 million.

Oneworld member LAN Colombia is adding three new Boeing 767-300ERs on key international routes as part of a $360 million upgrade strategy.

Delta Air Lines has filed a lawsuit in US federal court against the US Export-Import Bank, alleging that loan guarantees to foreign airlines purchasing Boeing aircraft disadvantages US carriers that don’t have access to the loans.

Jeddah-based Saudi Airlines Cargo Co. (Saudia Cargo) has received its first Boeing 747-8F, which will begin commercial operations in May.

Fast-growing Turkish low-cost carrier Pegasus Airlines plans to launch its delayed initial public offering of around a third of the company in mid-April.

Boeing plans to operate a second 787 battery certification test flight Friday with a production aircraft designated for LOT Polish Airlines.

Russia’s Sberbank signaled its commitment to the commercial aircraft leasing business with an order for 12 Boeing 737-800s to be operated by Transaero.