The jihadist group Al-Shabaab claimed Saturday responsibility for a bomb blast on a Somali passenger plane this month -- an explosion that authorities say killed only the alleged bomber. The Daallo Airlines plane, which took off from Somalia's capital bound for Djibouti Feb 2, landed back in Mogadishu despite the blast, which Somali authorities say was caused by a laptop computer containing a bomb. The bomber -- identified by authorities as Abdullahi Abdisalam Borleh -- was sucked out of the airliner through a hole from the explosion. Al-Shabaab said the operation targeted "Western intelligence officials and Turkish NATO forces aboard the airplane bound for Djibouti." The group admitted that the bombing did not go as planned. Al-Shabaab vowed to continue targeting "Western intelligence teams" that operate in Somalia. <br/>
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Philippine Airlines is close to announcing a deal to secure about half a dozen wide-body Airbus jets to serve US and Europe long-haul flights, several people familiar with the matter said. The deal for Airbus A350-900 jets, likely to be announced at this week's Singapore Airshow, would be valued around US$1.8b at list prices based on an outright purchase, though other deal structures may be considered. One source said this could involve PAL leasing the planes. PAL's order comes at a time when rival Cebu Pacific is also expanding its local routes. PAL is taking in more aircraft as it grows its lucrative international network to cater to increased demand from millions of Filipinos working overseas. PAL's expected fleet acquisition underscores the buoyant outlook for Southeast Asia's fifth-largest economy as it bucks a global slowdown. <br/>
Europe’s airline sector is on course for further consolidation, while the region offers “massive opportunities” for growth, according to Carolyn McCall, CE of EasyJet. “I definitely think there will be consolidation in Europe,” McCall said. And she believes the company can build on its exceptionally strong growth during her almost 6 years in charge. “If you actually look at the whole of Europe, we still see massive opportunities for growth. That is competing with some low-cost carriers, but it is still mainly competing with the legacy carriers,” she said. McCall sees opportunity for further growth especially in France, where EasyJet has a 15% market share and is second only to dominant player Air France. But she doesn’t see her airline joining peer Norwegian Air Shuttle in becoming a long-haul operator. <br/>
As part of its new brand refresh and marketing campaign, Alaska Airlines has chosen a new advertising agency of record, its first agency change in 20 years. Alaska selected Mekanism, an agency based in New York and San Francisco, ending its relationship with Seattle-based WONGDOODY, a spokeswoman for the carrier said. Mekanism’s clients include Starbucks, Amazon and Nordstrom Rack. “Mekanism’s strategic approach to delivering breakthrough creative and mastery of digital advertising set them apart,” Alaska VP-marketing Sangita Woerner said. Alaska’s brand refresh includes a new livery, which will debut on new Boeing 737 aircraft in the next month. The carrier expects to repaint its entire fleet in the next 3-4 years. This is the carrier’s first brand refresh in 25 years. <br/>
Nok Air cancelled 8 local flights Sunday evening after pilots went on strike, leaving some 1,000 passengers stranded at Don Mueang airport. The airline initially gave no reason for the abrupt cancellation and only informed its passengers that scheduled flights were not ready to take off due to “technical problems”, and that it would offer full refunds to affected customers. Nok Air CE Patee Sarasin later said the airline was forced to cancel the flights because more than 10 pilots staged a strike after it increased audit standards for the flight operations department, bringing them into line with those of EASA. He said some pilots did not meet the new criteria and went on strike to express their discontent. Patee said the damage caused by the pilot protest was unacceptable and management would discuss what to do about it Monday <br/>
Emirates is adding a sixth daily flight to London Heathrow starting March 27 in “direct response to continued strong demand,” the airline said Sunday. But Emirates is not the only one in the Gulf adding flights to one of Europe’s busiest hubs. The Sunday Times reported Sunday that Oman Air has bought a pair of landing and take-off slots at London Heathrow for a record US$75m from Air France-KLM. Oman Air previously had a spat with Air France over landing rights at its hub Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport while also seeking closer ties with KLM. The Times reported that the airline beat the previous Heathrow slot purchase record of $60m. Meanwhile, the new Emirates flight to Heathrow will initially be operated by a Boeing 777-300 ER. The service will be upgraded to an Airbus A380 June 1. <br/>
Spirit Airlines' new CE is planning a midcourse correction at the carrier to address rising customer complaints about its punctuality and ward off new competitive threats. Bob Fornaro said he plans to slow the airline’s supercharged growth to make its operations more reliable—and in the process, he hopes, mend its customer relationships. Spirit, which offers extremely low base fares and piles on extra charges for everything from seat assignments to drinking water, has grown rapidly and helped reshape the US airline industry. But it also has received pointed criticism from customers about its fees and poor on-time record. “Maybe we created a persona that dismissed the customer,” he said. Fornaro is in many ways is a departure from his predecessor, Ben Baldanza, who was Spirit’s CE from 2006 until stepping down Jan 5. <br/>