CAAC announced it is continuing to suspend approval of new entrants owing to safety concerns in the aftermath of the crash of a Henan Airlines jet in August ( ATW Daily News, Sept. 8). In 2007, the regulator noted it would not approve any new start-ups until 2010 owing to there being too many privately-run domestic carriers, the result of a loosening of restrictions in 2004.
Defunct ATA Airlines won a $66 million US federal court judgment last week against FedEx, blamed by ATA in 2008 for pushing it out of business. The Indianapolis-based carrier ceased operations more than 2.5 years ago after a US military transport contract managed by FedEx was terminated ( ATW Daily News, April 4, 2008).
The Austrian government announced it will create a so-called "ecological air travel levy" similar to the tax introduced in Germany last month (ATW Daily News, Sept. 2).
Japan and the US officially signed an MOU on Monday setting the stage for implementation of the "open skies" accord to which the two nations agreed late last year.
Japan and the US officially signed an MOU on Monday, setting the stage for the implementation of the "open skies" accord the two nations agreed to late last year.
Copa Holdings, parent of Copa Airlines and Copa Airlines Colombia (formerly Aero Republica), flew 652.4 million consolidated RPMs in September, 8.6% growth over the year-ago month. Capacity increased 16.1% to 926.1 million ASMs while load factor fell 4.9 points to 70.5%. ExpressJet Airlines flew 737 million RPMs in September, up 20% year-over-year. Capacity climbed 16% to 939 million ASMs, lifting load factor 2.2 points to 78.5%.
Air transport industry stakeholders welcomed the signing of an MOU between US Dept. of Agriculture and FAA last week to develop aviation biofuels from forest and crop residues and other green feedstocks.
All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines have both secured regulatory approval from the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transportation and Tourism for their respective transpacific joint ventures with Continental Airlines and United Airlines, on one hand, and American Airlines on the other.
Messier Services signed an agreement with SriLankan Airlines covering landing gear MRO and exchange for all five A340-300s operated by the carrier. Work has already started at Messier Services Asia in Singapore and will be completed in 2010. SR Technics signed a three-year engine services contract with Biman Bangladesh Airlines under which it will provide engine maintenance, overhaul and repair services on six PW4000s powering Biman's A310s.
Over the last few months, the innovative provider of VIP Inflight Catering Technology has further extended its global network to include an additional sixty-five catering partners in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Africa and the United States ensuring its on-line ordering platform remains by far the most comprehensive in the market.
Cathay Pacific Airways and Dragonair flew a combined 7.92 billion RPKs in September, up 15.2% from the year-ago month. Capacity rose 12.9% to 9.69 billion ASKs and load factor improved by 1.6 points to 81.8%. EasyJet transported 4.77 million passengers in September, up 8% from the year-ago month. Load factor rose 1.2 points to 89.3%.
German aviation authority Luftfahrt Bundesamt revoked Hamburg International Airlines’ AOC effective Wednesday, a day after HHI suspended operations and filed for bankruptcy. HHI had applied for insolvency in Hamburg District Court. According German media reports, the independent carrier that was established in 1998 canceled flights from Nurnberg, Dresden, Bremen and Hamburg on Tuesday.
Boeing Company earned $837 million in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, reversing a loss of $1.56 billion in the year-ago period, on higher Commercial Aircraft sales and deliveries in the quarter and generally strong performance across the company's other business units.
Boeing Company earned $837 million in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, reversing a loss of $1.56 billion in year-ago period, on higher Commercial Aircraft sales and deliveries in the quarter and generally strong performance across the company's other business units.
Lufthansa Systems said Aer Lingus renewed a contract for its Lido/Flight planning solution through 2015. Toppan Forms Co. said it has developed a refrigerant named “MechaCool” for inflight beverage services and will introduce the product on select Japan Airlines flights.
Nav Canada's 700 technicians represented by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers voted to ratify a tentative collective bargaining agreement reached last month with the air navigation services provider. The new contract runs until Aug. 31, 2011, and provides for wage increases of 1% retroactive to Sept. 1, 2009, 1% retroactive to March 1 and 1% retroactive to Sept. 1. There will be an additional 1.5% increase on March 1, 2011.
Iran Air said it "may be necessary" to operate its London Heathrow–Tehran flights "with an unscheduled refueling stop at Hamburg or Vienna" owing to "ongoing fuel supply problems at London Heathrow." The statement comes as multiple media outlets report that a number of Western fuel providers are unwilling to conduct business with the carrier following sanctions imposed on the Iranian government earlier this year by the UN, US and EU.
NCR Corp. announced it acquired Edinburgh, Scotland-based Mobiqa, which provides mobile optimized content including ticketing and barcode boarding pass solutions for several airlines. Price and terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
As strike action continued across France, up to half of flights Tuesday at Paris Orly and 30% of flights at the nation's other airports were canceled, the French DGAC said (ATW Daily News, Oct. 19).
IATA said Tuesday that the prospect of only moderate economic growth next year led to it issuing a "more subdued $5.3 billion [aggregate global net profit] outlook for 2011" compared to its $8.9 billion industry profit forecast for full year 2010 (ATW Daily News, Sept. 22).
