AirlinesAirAsia Zest A320 overshoots runway in KaliboAn AirAsia Zest Airbus A320-200 overshot a runway while landing at Kalibo International Airport on Sept. 18, coming to rest completely off the apron. No passengers or crew were injured in the incident, but emergency slides were deployed for the evacuation. The aircraft, RP-C8972, was carrying 159 passengers and crew on flight Z2-272 from Manila to Kalibo.
LinkAlitalia continues losses in 1HAlitalia recorded a 2015 first-half net loss of €130 million ($144 million). The airline’s board described the results as “in line with business plan forecasts” and a “slight improvement” on expectations. However, it cautioned that its turnaround strategy needed to be implemented promptly to improve the financial situation. The results follow Alitalia’s Sept. 18 announcement that CEO Silvano Cassano will step down, effective immediately. Chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo will fill the role until the board appoints a new CEO.
LinkAmerican donates MD-80 to Okla. universityAmerican Airlines is donating a MD-80 plane to the aviation program at Oklahoma State University. American Airlines is the largest employer in Tulsa, Okla.
LinkCathay Pacific reports 8.5% passenger growth in AugustHong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airlines Group saw 8.5% year-over-year passenger traffic growth in August. The group, which includes regional carrier Dragonair, broke the 3 million barrier for the first time with 3,091,478 passengers and saw its load factor grow 1.4% to 88.6%. This was despite and a commensurate capacity boost of 6.1% over the same time period.
LinkEthiopian pushes for progress on African open skiesEthiopian Airlines chief executive Tewolde GebreMariam is urging the African union to maintain its drive to liberalise the continent’s air transport system and adopt a Europe-style approach to bilateral negotiations. Speaking at the World Routes strategy summit in Durban, GebreMariam said that the continent's airline association AFRAA has been working with the African union on two major initiatives this year.
LinkHainan Airlines to start Beijing-Tel Aviv A330 flights in 2016Hainan Airlines plans to launch 3X-weekly flights between Beijing and Tel Aviv from April 28, 2016. Haikou-based Hainan will become the first airline in China to fly the Beijing-Tel Aviv route. El Al Israel Airlines currently operates the route 3X-weekly with Boeing 767-300s.
LinkHawaiian prepares for A321 deliveries in 2017Hawaiian Airlines plans to accept delivery of one Airbus A330 in 2016 before preparing for delivery of A321s the following year. "While we have this slight pause in our fleet growth, we are focused on maturing the new services that we started at the beginning of the decade and really building the foundation and getting our balance sheet ready for our next spur of growth," said Shannon Okinawa, executive vice president and CFO of Hawaiian.
LinkLufthansa to launch new Internet technology on European flightsLufthansa will offer high-speed Internet access on its short- and medium-haul European flights from early summer 2016. The new technology is in partnership with Inmarsat and Deutsche Telekom, which is providing a new, combined Long-Term Evolution (LTE)-based ground and satellite network. “Lufthansa has always been a pioneer of Internet services on board its aircraft,” Lufthansa chairman and CEO Carsten Spohr said in a statement. “Having equipped all (106) planes in the Lufthansa intercontinental fleet with our FlyNet system, we are now providing Internet on board our short- and medium-haul flights. We are therefore the first airline in Europe able to offer its guests an Internet surfing experience boasting the same quality and speed as they are used to at home.”
LinkProflight Zambia plots all-jet fleetProflight Zambia will eventually phase out its fleet of BAE Systems Jetstream 31s and 41s to become a “jet only” operator, commercial director Keira Irwin discloses. “We are reducing frequencies and increasing capacity on a lot of the routes by bringing in the [Bombardier] CRJ100 so our plan is by the end of next year we will have phased out the Jetstream 31s completely,” Irwin tells Flightglobal adding that “in a few years down the line the [Jetstream] 41s will eventually be phased out and [we will become] a jet-only operation”.
LinkSAS Scandinavian Airlines launches A330 Enhanced servicesSAS Scandinavian Airlines has become the first European carrier to deploy the 242-tonne maximum weight Airbus A330-300 Enhanced. Its initial flight is Sept. 21 from Copenhagen to Chicago. SAS will take delivery of four of the new variant over the next eight months, with the second aircraft being delivered later this month and the remaining two in February and May 2016. The next routes to be served by the new aircraft will be Stockholm-Chicago and Stockholm-Hong Kong.
LinkShandong Airlines to sell 20% stake in Qingdao AirlinesIn July, Shandong Airlines transferred its 20% stake to a subsidiary of Nanshan Group, but Shandong Airlines so far hasn’t identified which company would purchase the stake.
LinkSouthwest CFO outlines 2016 growth strategyTammy Romo, Southwest Airlines' chief financial officer, said growth will be slightly slower in 2016 for the carrier. "In 2016, we really want to take a step back to digest the growth we've seen in 2014 and 2015," she said at a Morgan Stanley conference. Romo added that the carrier's recent focus on growth at Dallas Love Field has been a "home run," and that she sees additional opportunities for growth, particularly internationally.
LinkWow Air To Add Trans-Atlantic RoutesIcelandic low-cost airline Wow Air is in talks to buy two Airbus A321s which will help it add more trans-Atlantic destinations and increase its foothold in the low-cost long-haul travel market. The two planes, which will bring Wow Air's fleet to seven, will fly new routes to North America from next spring, adding to the airline's existing Boston and Baltimore-Washington International destinations.
LinkAEA CEO: European consumer rules are uncleaEurope’s passenger-rights rules are desperately in need of clarification, due to the number of court cases being filed, according to Association of European Airlines (AEA) CEO Athar Husain Khan. Speaking on a panel at World Routes in Durban, Husain Khan noted that 72 clarifying cases have been brought in the Netherlands alone, and a further 20 are currently being heard by the Court of Justice of the European Union (EU)
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