An EgyptAir mechanic whose cousin joined Islamic State in Syria is suspected of planting a bomb on a Russian passenger plane that was blown out of Egypt's skies in late October. So far Egypt has publicly said it has found no evidence that the MetroJet flight was brought down by terrorism. A senior security official at the airline denied that any of its employees had been arrested or were under suspicion, and an Interior Ministry official also said there had been no arrests. But people familiar with the matter said the mechanic had been detained, along with 2 airport policemen and a baggage handler suspected of helping him put the bomb on board. The EgyptAir senior security official said state security police had investigated all workers at Sharm el-Sheikh airport without finding any evidence implicating any of them. <br/>
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ANA has ordered 3 Airbus A380s worth a combined US$1.3b, reviving the aircraft builder's ambition to introduce its superjumbo into Japan. ANA said that it will take delivery of the first A380 in 2018. The planes will carry tourists between Tokyo and Hawaii and are part of a strategy to expand seat capacity on international routes by half over the next 5 years, the airline said. The order comes after ANA won approval from Airbus for a restructuring plan for failed budget carrier Skymark Airlines. Airbus is Skymark's second-biggest creditor. <br/>
ANA Holdings posted JPY73.3b (US$608.5m) in net profit for the 9-month period to Dec 31, 2015, up 40% year-over-year (YOY). In its earnings report, ANA Holdings tempered its results with an acknowledgement of “some concern about the future in regard to risk of downward pressure on the Japanese economy due to the recession in China and other emerging countries in Asia.” But ANA also noted the Japanese economy continued growing over the 9-month period and “overall consumer spending has been steady … the employment environment continues to improve and Japan is expected to be headed toward a moderate recovery.” ANA credited its growth during the period primarily to revenue from ANA which had 9-month operating revenue of JPY1,184.2b, up 5.3% YOY, and its trade and retail sector. <br/>
United Continental Holdings is adding special training for all 12,000 pilots to boost safety and improve communication as the industry braces for a generational turnover among cockpit-crew members. The day-long sessions follow a strong letter United sent to pilots a year ago, warning of “major safety events and near misses” that included the use of an aircraft’s ground proximity warning system and required the pilot to pull up quickly. United’s new program isn’t a direct response to those incidents, a spokesman said. United’s effort extends a transition under way since Oscar Munoz replaced Jeff Smisek as CE in September. Management and pilots have clashed before over safety, and in 2015 the airline admonished some crew members for lapses. <br/>
Once again United will use the world's most advanced airplanes on one of commercial aviation's most aspirational routes from what is now the most important developing US hub. Starting June 1, United will fly the Boeing 787-9, the upgraded Dreamliner model, from San Francisco International to Singapore. At 8,446 miles, the route will be the longest 787 route in the world as well as the longest scheduled flight by any US carrier. The flight will take 16 hours and 20 minutes westbound and 15 hours and 30 minutes eastbound. Aspirational network planners "dream about services like this and wish we had the airplanes to do it," said Brian Znotins, United VP of network. "So when we reach the confluence of an airplane with range capability and can fly the only non-stop from North America to Singapore, we will jump at that." <br/>
THAI will pursue a far-reaching cost-cutting program from Q1 2016 to realise up to THB1b (US$28m) in savings. THAI management said it would seek to defer deliveries of up to some 14 aircraft on order from Airbus and Boeing, including 4 purchased and 8 leased Airbus A350 XWBs, and the remainder of its 8-strong 787 order. The majority of the new aircraft deliveries are scheduled for mid-2016 onward, and Thai CE Charamporn Jotikasthira said the carrier would enter into negotiations with manufacturers to defer those handover dates. The move came following THAI's inclusion on a list of operations being audited by the Thai govt’s State Enterprises Policy Commission as part of a Thai govt push to improve the performance of a number of quasi-govt companies. <br/>
LOT's supervisory board has made management changes. The board has appointed Rafal Milczarski as chairman and Borys Buta as COO and board member. Milczarski co-founded the Baltic Rail, one of the first private cargo railway carriers in Poland. He also founded freight rail carrier Freightliner PL, and was founder and former CE of Freightliner DE, a German subsidiary of Freightliner PL. Buta is a lawyer and former CE of Air Transport Support. He has been a representative of the board of LOT Travel. Additionally, LOT said acting CE Marcin Celejewski has been recalled from the position of president of the management board and CCO; and Monika Kiełtyka-Michna has been recalled from a position of the member of the board, chief corporate officer. <br/>
SWISS has taken delivery of the first of 9 Boeing 777-300ERs in Zurich. By August, 6 777s should be in service, with 3 more expected by 2018. The aircraft will be used to replace some of the carrier’s 15 Airbus A340-300s. Outgoing SWISS CE Harry Hohmeister said, “During 2016, we will decide the future for the remaining A340-300s. [We will decide] if we will renovate some aircraft, because they are relatively young, or replace them. I personally hope that we will order more 777s.” The new 777s will create 360 new jobs this year, “plus 500 more new jobs next year,” Hohmeister said. “Directly in Switzerland, most of them will be cabin crews.” SWISS’s Boeing 777-300 is configured for 340 seats. It is biggest aircraft in its fleet, which operates 81 aircraft. <br/>