European Parliament yesterday adopted a resolution calling on the European Commission to consider proposing new legislation guaranteeing passenger compensation and assistance in case of airline bankruptcy.
Air Slovakia will wet-lease five aircraft to Albanian Airlines for one year and will "assist [Albanian] to develop its operational capabilities in its efforts to operate scheduled services and become the leading airline of the region." Air Slovakia operates 737s and 757s while Albanian has BAe 146s and MD-82s, according to its website.
Engine Alliance named Mary Ellen Jones president succeeding Jim Moravecek, who will return to Pratt & Whitney. Jones led Pratt's Commercial Engines & Global Services Marketing division.
Novair A321 RNP demonstration flights into Stockholm Arlanda over the summer, part of the Atlantic Interoperability Initiative to Reduce Emissions, demonstrated "that there are capabilities in modern aircraft that can be used to reduce the environmental load in today's air traffic system," according to a statement issued yesterday by SESAR and Airbus. The EU ATC modernization program and the manufacturer teamed with charter carrier Novair, Swedish ATC provider LFV and ARN to operate the 10 flights and collect data. "The flights have demonstrated a lateral standard deviation of 0.01 nm.
Shunfeng Airlines, which will be China's first express delivery cargo airline, has been approved by CAAC. The carrier was established by delivery company Shunfeng Express and has registered capital of CNY100 million ($14.6 million), according to the regulator. Shenzhen Taihai Investment Co. will hold a 75% stake and Shunfeng Express the remainder. The new venture will be based in Shenzhen and is expected to operate two 757-200s initially.
Singapore Airlines flew 7.28 billion RPKs in October, down 6% from the year-ago month, against a 10.3% cut in capacity to 8.98 billion ASKs. Load factor rose 3.6 points to 81.1%. Swiss International Air Lines flew 2.5 billion RPKs in August, a 0.2% fall year-over-year. Capacity dropped 5.1% to 2.9 billion ASKs and load factor rose 4.2 points to 86.2%. Austrian Airlines flew 1.52 billion RPKs last month, an 8.5% reduction year-over-year, against an 11.8% decline in capacity to 1.94 billion ASKs. Load factor rose 2.8 points to 78.2%.
PACE signed an agreement with Airbus Operations Germany to develop a software solution for streamlining configuration of its passenger cabin maintenance manuals.
Delta Air Lines intends to raise $688.7 million through the sale of pass-through certificates in two classes with annual interest rates of 7.75% and 9.75% respectively. The notes are backed by 27 Boeing aircraft, with proceeds going toward refinancing 22 aircraft DL currently operates and payments on an additional five aircraft delivered this year, it said in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
Japan Airlines yesterday said it reached agreement with the Development Bank of Japan for an emergency bridge loan "necessary for continuance of our flight operations." The troubled airline said the Japanese government had approved the loan. JAL did not reveal the loan's amount but Japanese media pegged it at around ¥100 billion ($1.12 billion).
IATA said that 19 of 34 Eurocontrol states have proposed overflight charge increases in 2010 that will result in a 2.7% net lift in average unit rates equal to around $360 million. The Eurocontrol Enlarged Committee for Route Charges is scheduled to meet today. Armenia proposed the largest increase (32%), while Poland (18%), Romania (17%) and Austria (14%) are the largest when adjusted for the amount of traffic. Portugal, Greece, Croatia, Moldova, Malta, Bulgaria and Finland proposed reductions.
AeroMechanical Services and L-3 Communications reached an agreement under which L-3 will sell AMS's real-time data communications and Internet data delivery systems for aircraft. AMS will be the exclusive provider to L-3 of Iridium satellite-based real-time data communications and Internet data delivery technology under the brand name FLYHT.
Blue Wings 48% shareholder Alexander Lebedev is preparing to transfer his stake to Aeroflot, German daily Handelsblatt reported, adding that he hopes to generate €100million ($148.6 million) from the sale of his shares.
US FAA yesterday issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to require "scheduled airlines to either retrofit their existing fleet with ice-detection equipment or make sure the ice protection system activates at the proper time," the agency said in a statement. For aircraft with an ice-detection system, FAA is proposing to mandate that the system "alert the crew each time they should activate the ice protection system.
Air Berlin said it is seeking to recruit 700 flight attendants and 120 pilots. The new employees would be based in Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich, Munster/Osnabruck, Nuremberg, Paderborn-Lippstadt and Stuttgart in Germany as well as Basel/Muhlhausen and Zurich in Switzerland, AB said. It currently operates 129 aircraft. It has retired all of its 737 Classics and plans to ground two 757s and one 767-300ER by the end of January.
Oxford Aviation Academy signed a five-year agreement with Icelandair for provision of simulator training for 757s and 767s as well as Dash 8-100/-300 training for Air Iceland.
Honeywell said Air New Zealand extended by seven years two of its wheels and brakes service agreements for 737 Classics and 767-300s. Financial details were not disclosed.
Singapore Airlines CEO Chew Choon Seng called for airlines in the Asia/Pacific region to line up in support of the Assn. of Asia Pacific Airlines in order to counter the regulatory strength of the EU and US.
Ascent Aviation announced the launch of its commercial aircraft MRO operation at Tucson International. It will specialize in 737 Classics, 737NGs and MD-80s, performing heavy and line maintenance, modifications, transition services, storage, paint, disassembly and consignment parts sales. It recently purchased the assets of Hamilton Aerospace Technologies and World Jet Corp. and "has retained a substantial base of skills and experience from those two firms," it said.
Air Works, a third-party MRO company based in India, received EASA repair station certification for its maintenance facilities in Hosur, marking the first time EASA has awarded repair station approval to an airframe MRO company in India, it said. The approval will cover airframe and component maintenance on ATR 42/72-500s and 737 Classics.
China's cargo industry appears to be moving toward consolidation as airfreight players look to mitigate damage from continuing losses that have resulted from the global economic downturn.
ICAO conference in Rio de Janeiro last week adopted a "Global Framework on Aviation and Alternative Fuels" endorsing the use of sustainable alternative fuels for aviation, "particularly the use of drop-in fuels in the short to mid-term." The "dynamic Web-based document" will be located on the ICAO website and "will serve as a global platform for the sharing of information, best practices and future initiatives by ICAO member states and the air transport industry." It will be updated regularly, the organization said.
US Air Transport Assn. reported that US airlines' passenger revenue sank 15% year-over-year in October, marking the 12th consecutive month of falling passenger revenue. It said the drop was "fueled primarily by the 11th consecutive month of ticket price declines." US airlines' average domestic yield in October was down 12.9% to 13.68 cents, according to ATA. Yield fell 14.4% to 11.63 cents on transatlantic flights, dropped 17.3% on flights to/from Latin America to 12.8 cents and plunged 17.8% to 10.69 cents on transpacific flights.
IATA and Russia's Ministry of Transport signed an MOU Friday to form "a strategic partnership" focusing on safety, security, technology, airport infrastructure, air navigation, ground handling and training. DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani, in Moscow for the signing, also met with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. "IATA's global standards can contribute significantly to the development of safe, efficient and environmentally responsible aviation in Russia," Bisignani said.
