Airlines & Lessors

By Victoria Moores
African Star Alliance member Ethiopian Airlines and its regional airline equity partner, Togo-based ASKY Airlines, have formed a strategic partnership with the Guinean government to establish startup carrier Guinea Airlines by June.
Airlines & Lessors

By Polina Montag-Girmes
Russia’s federal air transport agency Rosaviatsia has placed a limit on leisure carrier Azur Air’s air operator’s certificate (AOC) through March 20, according to a Feb. 2 statement by the agency.
Airlines & Lessors

By Alan Dron
Irish LCC Ryanair anticipates that its decision to recognize trade unions may result in some “localized disruption,” but said it is prepared to face any such problems.
Airlines & Lessors

By Helen Massy-Beresford
Air Austral and Air Madagascar are aligning their fleets, jointly developing their Saint Denis de la Reunion and Antananarivo hubs, and boosting their long-haul and domestic networks as part of a major plan to be the leading player in the Indian Ocean.
Airlines & Lessors

By Jens Flottau
[UPDATED STORY] Lufthansa Group replaced top management at Brussels Airlines Feb. 5, as the group revamps the airline after taking it over in late 2016.
Airlines & Lessors

United Parcel Service (UPS) anticipates continued growth in the global express cargo market in 2018 and believes investment in its air services will pay off handsomely.
Airlines & Lessors

By Mark Nensel
Utah-based SkyWest Inc., parent of regional carriers SkyWest Airlines and ExpressJet Airlines, turned around its profitability picture in 2017, posting a $428.9 million net profit, reversed from a $161.6 million net loss in 2016.
Airlines & Lessors

Air Astana posted a net profit of $39.1 million in 2017, returning to profit after its first-ever loss in 2016.
Airlines & Lessors

By Alan Dron
Ireland-based ASL Aviation Holdings has reorganized its Swiss operating unit ASL Airlines Switzerland and handed back the latter’s air operator’s certificate (AOC) to Swiss regulatory authorities.
Airlines & Lessors

By Mark Nensel
Worldwide passenger traffic grew 7.6% in 2017, outpacing the 10-year average annual growth rate of 5.5%, as passengers responded to an overall improvement in the global economy and lower airfares, according to IATA’s Air Passenger Market Analysis for December 2017.
Airlines & Lessors

Startup Air Belgium has selected Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL) as its home base for flights to China and other Asian destinations.
Airlines & Lessors

By Mark Nensel
Las Vegas-based Allegiant Travel Co., parent of LCC Allegiant Air, reported $194.9 million net income for 2017, an 11.2% drop from its $219.6 million net profit in 2016.
Airlines & Lessors

Central and Eastern European LCC Wizz Air reported a third-quarter net profit of €14 million ($16.8 million), down 57% on the year-ago period, despite strong ticket and ancillary revenues as well as passenger growth.
Airlines & Lessors

By Mark Nensel
Strong demand for manufacturing exports stoked the air freight sector to its best performance in seven years, as global cargo traffic grew 9% year-over-year (YOY) in 2017, according to IATA’s December Air Freight Market Analysis, released Jan. 31.
Airlines & Lessors

By Jens Flottau
Japan’s ANA Holdings—the parent company of All Nippon Airways, Peach Aviation and Vanilla Air—expects profits at its two low-cost affiliates to grow fastest until 2022 as the carriers continue to expand.
Airlines & Lessors

2017 financial results for airlines worldwide, highlighting operating revenues, operating expenses, operating profits/losses and net income/losses for each airline's 2017 fiscal year fourth quarter or equivalent, generally covering October-December 2017.
Airlines & Lessors

By Alan Dron
Spanish LCC Volotea recorded a 42% jump in passenger numbers in 2017, reaching 4.8 million, up from 3.4 million in 2016, beating the Barcelona-based airline’s predictions.
Airlines & Lessors

By Alan Dron
UK-based regional airline Flybe is feeling the benefits of a renewed focus on operating costs and fleet trimming.
Airlines & Lessors

By Helen Massy-Beresford
French low-cost, long-haul carrier French Blue is changing its name to French Bee to avoid legal problems after objections about its name from US LCC JetBlue Airways.
Airlines & Lessors

TUI Group plans to take delivery of four more Boeing 737 MAX 8s this year as it begins a major fleet renewal initiative.
Airlines & Lessors

By Sean Broderick
United Airlines, broadening its used-aircraft acquisition strategy to widebodies, will add three Boeing 767-300ERs to its fleet in 2018, continuing a trend that has seen it tap the second-hand market to boost its fleet significantly in the past two years.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Jens Flottau
UK LCC easyJet is boosting capacity to European leisure destinations from its new Berlin-Tegel base, but the airline is taking a cautious approach towards expanding German domestic flying.

By Alan Dron
Virgin Atlantic plans to supplement its fleet with four leased-in Airbus A330-200s to cope with unanticipated downtime for its Boeing 787-9 fleet.
Airlines & Lessors

By Helen Massy-Beresford
Air France-KLM is examining low-cost long-haul among other business models as it responds to a fast-changing air transport environment, playing down reports that it was presenting more concrete plans for a low-cost long-haul carrier.
Airlines & Lessors

The US and Qatar have reached “understandings … on civil aviation” aimed at addressing the concerns of US major airlines about alleged subsidies to Gulf carriers.