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Commercial

Cuba & US reach historic air agreement to restart scheduled flights
Cuba and the US have reached a bilateral arrangement to establish scheduled air services between the two countries, the US State Department said Thursday. American Airlines, United Airlines and JetBlue Airways were among the first US carriers to say they will seek approval to begin scheduled services as soon as possible. The agreement, reached late Dec. 16, means that charter operations can continue between the US and Cuba and scheduled services can begin, although no timeline was given. The opening up of scheduled services is expected to be phased in slowly to allow Cuba to build the infrastructure that will be needed to accommodate the extra flights and passengers and to ensure Cubana’s future in the new aviation environment.
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Airlines

Alitalia Appoints New Chief Executive
Alitalia has appointed aviation industry turnaround expert Cramer Ball as its new chief executive. Ball, who joins from India's Jet Airway, is expected to take up his new role in early March, succeeding Silvano Cassano who resigned in September after less than a year in the job.
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American to expand international service from Charlotte, N.C.
American Airlines is launching service on Saturday from Charlotte, N.C., to the Dominican Republic and Curacao. American also plans to add service from Charlotte to Madison, Wis., in April.
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China Southern, Xiamen To Buy 110 737s
China Southern Airlines and its affiliate Xiamen Airlines have signed deals worth about USD$10 billion to buy Boeing 737 aircraft. China Southern has agreed to purchase 50 737 MAX and 30 737NG planes from Boeing, while its Xiamen Airlines unit has agreed to buy 30 737 MAX planes.
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Delta to buy used Boeing 777 for $7.7 million
Delta Air Lines has signed a letter of intent (LOI) to buy a used Boeing 777 for $7.7 million, according to CEO Richard Anderson. Anderson raised some eyebrows in October when he said there was a “huge bubble” in used widebody aircraft, pricing a 10-year-old 777-200 at $10 million. The market would be “ripe” for Delta to buy used 777s, he said then. Boeing president and CEO Dennis Muilenburg was among those who pushed back against Anderson, saying the Delta CEO was valuing used 777’s much too low.
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Emirates unveils Prague, Birmingham and Taipei as A380 destinations
Dubai-based Emirates Airline has announced it will begin A380 service from Dubai to Birmingham starting March 27, and to Prague (Czech Republic) and Taipei from May 1, 2016. Emirates’ current daily Dubai-Barcelona Boeing 777-200LR service will become twice-daily A380 service from June 1.
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Etihad to deploy Boeing 787-9s on five routes in 2016
Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways will introduce five additional Boeing 787-9 routes to Düsseldorf, Perth, Shanghai Pudong, Istanbul Ataturk and Johannesburg from May 2016. The five new 299-seat 787s will be delivered over a seven-month period, beginning May 2016, and will be deployed as replacements for existing aircraft on daily scheduled services.
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Jet2 parent orders three more Boeing 737-800s
Dart Group, the parent of UK budget carrier Jet2, has placed a follow on order for three Boeing 737-800s, valued at $288 million at list prices. This boosts Dart Group’s recent orders to 30 aircraft, following on from it finalizing 27 Boeing 737-800s on Sept. 3, 2015.
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JetBlue Airways streamlines check-in at Fla. airport
JetBlue Airways revamped its check-in area at Florida's Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to improve the passenger experience. "We want customers to get through this experience in a short time in a way that's personal, helpful and simple, from check-in to the gate," said Jason Annunziata, director of airport operations for JetBlue.
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SAS posts full-year $112 million net profit in fiscal turnaround
SAS Scandinavian Airlines reported SEK956 million ($111.8 million) net profit in its fiscal 2014-2015 year, reversing its SEK719 million FY 2013-2014 net loss. For SAS’s financial year, which runs from November 2014 through October 2015, the airline reported full-year revenue of SEK39.65 billion, up 4.3% year-over-year (YOY). SAS’s full-year operating income was SEK2.23 billion, compared to SEK153 million in operating profits from FY 2013-2014.
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Southwest Airlines launches social media campaign
Southwest Airlines launched a social media campaign under the hashtag #FeesDontFly as part of its "transfarency" publicity campaign. "December is the season of traveling families and being with those you love," said Bob Jordan, chief commercial officer for Southwest. "We reminded the world that Southwest values connecting families to what's important in their lives."
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United Airlines expands comfort-dog program to 7 hubs
United Airlines plans to expand a program that offers comfort dogs during holiday travel to all seven of its hubs this year. Air travelers can interact with dogs to ease stress from Dec. 21 to Dec. 23. Last year, the "United Paws" program comforted travelers at two hubs.
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Airports

Seattle-Tacoma airport study to weigh viability of providing jet biofuel
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is looking at the possibility of including biofuels in its airline fuel mix in the future under a study launched in cooperation with Boeing and Alaska Airlines. The $250,000 study will assess whether airport fuel lines and tanks are up to the task, as well as look at other infrastructure costs to provide a blend of conventional jet fuel and biofuel.
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Military

Congress offers Christmas cheer to F-35 and F/A-18 programs
The Lockheed Martin F-35 and Boeing F/A-18 are major main winners in an omnibus spending bill announced by US lawmakers Wednesday, with funding granted for 11 more Lightning IIs than requested by President Obama in February. The $1.15 trillion spending package would fund the government in Fiscal 2016 if passed by both chambers of Congress. It includes $572.7 billion for defence, of which $111 billion procures new hardware and $69.8 funds research and development.
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KAI, Lockheed rollout T-X prototype
Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has revealed the prototype that will form the basis of Lockheed Martin’s bid for the US Air Force’s T-X next generation trainer competition. Based on the T-50 family of trainer/light fighter aircraft, the company’s “T-X demonstrator aircraft” will conduct ground and flight tests in 2016, says KAI in an email. In 2017, KAI plans flight tests in the USA.
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Aviation Quote

I've learned that it is what I do not know that I fear, and I strive, outwardly from pride, inwardly from the knowledge that the unknown is what will finally kill me, to know all there is to be known about my airplane. I will never die.

— Richard Bach, Stranger to the Ground, 1963.

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