A Qantas A380 en route from Singapore to Melbourne Tuesday was caught short on fuel, forcing it to divert to Adelaide. QF Flight 10 encountered stronger-than-forecast head winds associated with an unseasonably cold weather affecting the eastern states of Australia, which forced the crew to land at ADL. The QF flight, with 249 passengers, landed safely at 4:15 a.m. local time during the city’s curfew after an emergency was declared. A QF spokesman said the likely reason for the fuel issue was “as a result of changed flight conditions en route.”
Virgin Atlantic pilots, represented by the British Airline Pilots' Assn., will vote on possible strike action over pay, BALPA confirmed Tuesday. BALPA represents over 85% of Virgin Atlantic's 750 pilots.
Airbus confirmed Tuesday that based on the continuing investigation by the French Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses into the causes of the crash of Air France 447 it issued an Accident Information Telex to its customers that "does not include any safety recommendation at this stage of the investigation."
News from Travel Technology Update: The US Dept. of Transportation fined several online travel agencies for failure to comply with regulations that require disclosure of the operating carrier of a codeshare flight, but the agencies all blamed their GDS providers. At least two GDS companies were involved; TTU has learned that one of them was Amadeus.
Airbus confirmed Tuesday that based on the continuing investigation by the French Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses into the causes of the crash of Air France 447 it issued an Accident Information Telex to its customers that "does not include any safety recommendation at this stage of the investigation."
Oman Air Cargo has unveiled its Pan-GCC Custom Bonded Truck services connecting Muscat with Salalah and other GCC countries. Hailed as a milestone for Oman Air, this service will be effective from 1st June 2011.
EasyJet flights from/to its Berlin Schoenefeld base were disrupted Saturday morning, owing to a wildcat “warning” strike by flight crew—represented by the trade union ver.di—in a pay dispute. U2 employs around 110 pilots and 240 cabin crew at SXF.
French Air Accident Investigation Bureau on Monday said it succeeded in downloading all of the data from the flight data recorder of Air France Flight 447 as well as the complete recording from the CVR, covering the final two hours of the flight ( ATW Daily News, May 16). The A330-200 crashed in the Atlantic while en route between to Paris-Charles de Gaul from Rio de Janeiro on June 1, 2009, killing all 228 passengers and crew on board.
For the second time in two months, Qantas CEO Alan Joyce lashed out at “ridiculous” union demands and warned that the airline’s international operations are losing money.
Chinese carriers posted aggregate net income of CNY3.18 billion ($489 million) in April, up 57.9% from a net profit of CNY2.01 billion in the year-ago period, according to CAAC.
Chinese carriers posted aggregate net income of CNY3.18 billion ($489 million) in April, up 57.9% from a net profit of CNY2.01 billion in the year-ago period, according to CAAC.
Southwest Airlines announced Friday it reached a tentative agreement on a new six-year contract with the carrier’s approximately 260 appearance techs, represented by the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Assn. The contract becomes amendable February 2015. The current agreement became amendable in February 2009 ( ATW Daily News, Feb. 2, 2009).
Boeing VP-Air Traffic Management Neil Planzer said that China is well situated to lead a transformation in air traffic management, owing to its continued economic growth and young air fleet ( ATW Daily News, April 19).
ARC reported that ticket sales volume through participating travel agencies climbed just 1.7% in April compared to the same month in 2010 to $7.34 billion.
Airbus parent EADS incurred a €12 million ($17.1 million) first-quarter net loss, reversed from a €103 million net profit in the year-ago period, but pointed to gains in revenue and operating income as evidence of "positive momentum" warranting a potential A320 production increase.
French Air Accident Investigation Bureau (BEA) will know Monday if the digital flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder recovered from the Atlantic almost two years after the crash of Air France flight 447 contain usable data.
The US's eight largest airline companies (counting United Airlines and Continental Airlines as one and Southwest Airlines and AirTran Airways separately) incurred a collective 2011 first-quarter net loss of $1.01 billion, ATW calculated.
Airlines could save at least $65.6 million a year Boeing and South Carolina Electric & Gas have forged an energy partnership ICAO held the first of five regional workshops ASIG’s Denver International jet fuel facility operation is the recipient of
IATA DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani wrote to the South African Minister of Transport urging a rethink of the plan to bring airlines under a nationwide carbon tax as part of the 2012 budget, saying he was “deeply concerned that this tax will have major ramifications for the aviation sector, as well as for other sectors of the South African economy that rely heavily on air transport, including tourism and trade.”
Recent development of shale gas promises in the longer term to bring down the price of oil as ground transport and industry swap to the cleaner and cheaper source of energy, says a leading think tank. A new report for the Global Warming Policy Foundation by Matt Ridley, "The Shale Gas Shock," highlights that unconventional gas is not only abundant and relatively cheap but promises to cut into the market share of more costly nuclear and renewable energy and even coal.
FAA Assistant Administrator Policy, International Affairs and Environment Julie Oettinger, in what may be the agency's strongest statement on the subject, criticized the EU's decision to "move forward unilaterally" with its Emissions Trading Scheme for all airlines serving EU destinations. Speaking at ATW's Eco-Aviation Conference this month, she said, "CO2 emissions are a global concern that calls for a global solution … I fear that [airlines' inclusion in the EU ETS] will be counterproductive."
The China Air Transport Assn. has stepped up its campaign against next year's inclusion of non-EU airlines in the EU's controversial Emissions Trading Scheme ( ATW's Eco-Aviation Today, April 15).
Air Transport Action Group Executive Director Paul Steele said the airline industry’s failing to achieve its stated goal of a 1.5% improvement in fuel efficiency/carbon dioxide emissions annually through 2020 and CO2-neutral growth beyond 2020 would "destroy our credibility." But he cautioned that development of economically viable biofuel is essential for the industry to achieve its environmental goals.
