AirlinesAeroflot Group passengers up 8.9% year-to-dateRussia's Aeroflot Group carried 28.7 million passengers in January-August 2016, up 8.9% year-over-year (YOY). Moscow Sheremetyevo-based Aeroflot Russian Airlines carried 19 million passengers, up 10.2% YOY. Aeroflot Group international passenger numbers grew 9% YOY to 11.9 million; domestic passengers increased 8.8% YOY to 16.8 million passengers.
LinkAmerican Airlines to integrate all flight operations Oct. 1American Airlines will on Oct. 1 merge legacy systems from the former US Airways and America West Airlines with its own.
LinkChinese carriers hint at consolidationChinese airlines have warned that some carriers may not be able to support their long-haul expansions, should the fuel price head north and as government subsidies for such routes subside. With Chinese carriers bullishly expanding their long-haul networks in recent years, the question of how sustainable this is was thrown up at during a debate at the Strategy Summit held during World Routes.
LinkEthiopian plans Chengdu routeEthiopian Airlines will begin flights between Addis Ababa and Chengdu next summer. Ethiopian chief executive Tewolde Gebremariam signed a comprehensive agreement confirming the route with Chengdu airport’s aviation department deputy director Tina Tang during World Routes today, which is being held in Chengdu.
LinkHawaiian Airlines considering adding Airbus A380 to fleetHawaiian Airlines is considering the addition of the Airbus A380 to its fleet, a move that would make it the first US airline to purchase the A380.
LinkEntire Lufthansa A320 fleet to get Ka-band satellite connectivityLufthansa Technik (LHT) has started installing the latest Ka-band satellite technology as standard equipment on Lufthansa Group's entire Airbus A320 aircraft family fleet– approximately 300 aircraft -- bringing broadband communication to the airline’s short- and medium-haul flights, the company said Sept. 26. The fleet will be fitted with the necessary antennae and routers in parallel in up to ten production lines by spring 2018 at various LHT locations.
LinkMalaysia Airlines paves road to recoveryMalaysia Airlines’ new chief executive Peter Bellew has his eye on getting the airline to breakeven by the fourth quarter of next year, and to be profitable for the full year in 2018. The “Olympic goal” is for the airline to relist on the Malaysia stock exchange by March 2019, he said at a keynote CEO interview at the Strategy Summit held during World Routes.
LinkMonarch ‘Operating Normally’ Despite SpeculationUK airline Monarch has denied speculation it is in trouble and said it was operating normally. Monarch said in a statement it was “trading well”, but it was a “difficult period for the holiday industry due to terrorist incidents, Brexit and the resulting devaluation of sterling”.
LinkOman Air Drops 'Persian Gulf' MapsNational carrier Oman Air has disabled a map display on some of its aircraft that referred to the Persian Gulf, calling them “inaccurate translations.” Social media posts were critical of the airline, saying the label should be changed. The airline responded by turning off the maps.
LinkQatar Airways to use space-based GlobalBeacon flight tracking solutionQatar Airways has become the first airline to sign on for the Aireon-FlightAware flight tracking solution GlobalBeacon. Using Aireon’s spaced-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) technology, Qatar Airways will be able to track its aircraft on a minute-by-minute basis starting in 2018. Aireon-generated data will be fed into FlightAware’s system, which includes information on a flight’s origin, destination, flight plan route, position and estimated time of arrival.
LinkSouthwest to add 10 737s to fleet in 2017Southwest is working with Boeing on a delivery schedule for the 737 Max 8 jetliner. The carrier anticipates delivery of 10 737s in the latter half of 2017. "It feels like it's the first day of a big part of our future," said Mike Van de Ven, chief operating officer for Southwest.
LinkTUIfly Denies Plans For easyJet Link UpGerman airline TUIfly has denied reports that it may link up with UK airline easyJet. Reports have suggested that easyJet may buy a stake in TUIfly to maintain an EU operating certificate allowing freedom to operate anywhere in the bloc, after the UK’s Brexit vote.
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