AirlinesAirberlin A330 XL economy seats popular with long-haul passengersAirberlin, which fitted more XL economy seats on its A330-200 long-haul fleet in September 2015, are proving to be very popular with passengers with an 80% occupancy rate. he airline, which added five economy class rows of XL seats on each of its 14 A330s, said these 48 XL seats give passengers 20% more legroom for improved comfort and faster boarding or disembarking.
LinkAir Canada to launch direct flight from Montreal to Ont. cityAir Canada plans to launch nonstop service from Montreal to Hamilton, Ontario, on May 24. "Hamilton is a convenient departure and arrival point for the business community as well as tourists, visiting friends and relatives," said Benjamin Smith, president of passenger airlines at Air Canada.
LinkAir Leisure signs MOU for four SSJ100sEgypt’s Air Leisure Airline has signed memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Russia’s Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Co. (SCAC) for four Sukhoi Superjet 100s (SSJ100), with six options. Deliveries are preliminarily scheduled through 2016; the final date will be specified in the firm order.
LinkBritish Airways threatens to cut London City servicesBritish Airways (BA) has said it will move flights from London City Airport if new owners attempt to increase landing charges. The airport’s US owners, Global Investment Partners (GIP), put it on the market last year for a reported £2 billion ($2.9 billion). The airport handled a record 4.3 million passengers last year, up 18% on 2014.
LinkDelta, United Offer To Re-Assign Crew From Zika RoutesUS carriers United and Delta have offered to re-assign flight crew concerned about contracting the Zika virus from routes to Latin America and the Caribbean. The move shows how the mosquito-borne virus, linked to birth defects in Brazil, looms as an issue not just for passengers but for flight crews as well.
LinkKuwait Airways Retires 1,350 StaffKuwait Airways retired 1,350 Kuwaiti nationals during the last two years, part of a plan to cut costs and return to profit by 2019. The airline has struggled to recover from Iraq's 1990-91 invasion of Kuwait. Complex bureaucratic procedures have further sidelined it from the boom in Gulf aviation over the last two decades.
LinkNorwegian US routes issue to top US-EU meeting in AprilNorwegian Air International’s (NAI) pending application for permission to serve the US will be on the agenda at the next US-European Union aviation meeting, in April in Washington DC. The topic, along with Norwegian UK’s (NUK) recent application to serve the US, will be discussed when the Joint Committee overseeing the US-EU Open Skies agreement meets. Both Norwegian subsidiaries seek to fly to the US. NAI has an Irish air operator’s certificate (AOC), while NUK has a UK AOC. NAI’s application for a foreign air carrier permit has been pending for two years, while NUK applied late last year.
LinkQatar Airways, Meridiana sign partnership agreementQatar Airways and the parent of Italian airline Meridiana have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on “a potential partnership project,” Meridiana said Feb. 4. Few details were given by Sardinia-based Meridiana in a brief statement, which was issued following several recent inaccurate stories in the Italian media about a link between the two carriers, according to spokeswoman Loredana De Filippo.
LinkSingapore Airlines 3Q net profit up 35% Singapore Airlines (SIA) group reported a net profit rise 35% to S$275 million ($196 million) for the three months through Dec. 31, 2015, compared to a net profit of S$202.6 million in the year-ago quarter. SIA cited lower fuel costs and a significant performance improvement from some of its subsidiary carriers for the profit increase. The higher profit was achieved despite revenue dropping by 3.9% due to weaker yields in the period, which is SIA’s fiscal third quarter. Passenger yields fell 4.6% and cargo yield declined by 13.5%.
Link 
