Ryanair has risked raising the ire of passengers after deciding to force any passenger travelling with children under 12 to pay for an allocated seat. The airline’s policy had been to allow ticket-holders to either take a randomly allocated seat or pay an additional charge to select one. However, from Sept 1 adults travelling with children under 12 will have to pay to reserve a seat at a cost of GBP8. Any child under 12 will be allocated a reserved seat at no cost. The airline said the move was intended to avoid “boarding issues” as cabin crew try to reseat adults and children who have been separated. Ryanair’s business model depends on a very rapid turnaround once a flight lands. Any delays to an aircraft being able to start its next journey mean it could miss a departure slot, creating knock-on delays. <br/>
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JetBlue Airways said Thursday it would launch scheduled commercial flights from the US to Cuba Aug 31, ahead of competitors that have also announced departure dates. The former Cold War foes agreed last year to restore regular airline services after more than 5 decades as part of a broader detente in which they also resumed diplomatic ties. From Aug 31, JetBlue will launch thrice-weekly flights between the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International and Santa Clara airport, with fares starting at US$99 one-way. The airline will upgrade this service to daily flights from Oct 1, also offering daily flights from Fort Lauderdale to Camaguey from Nov 3 and to Holguin from Nov 10. Silver Airways is set to be the second US airline to operate flights from the US to Cuba, launching service from Fort Lauderdale to Santa Clara Sept 1. <br/>
Alaska Airlines will retrofit all 34 of its Boeing Sky Interior 737s with Space Bins, the larger overhead bins created by Boeing. The carrier will modify the 737s, mostly -900ERs, with the Space Bins, which increase the space for overhead carry-on baggage by up to 50%. Alaska was the launch customer for the product. Alaska Airlines’ treasurer and VP finance Mark Eliasen said the Space Bins would make it possible for virtually all passengers to bring on-board a wheeled bag. Each Space Bin stows 6 bags, 2 more than the current pivot bins installed on Next-Generation 737s with the Boeing Sky Interior. When opened, the bottom edge of a Space Bin hangs about 2 inches lower. They are available for retrofit on in-service Next-Generation 737s, and as an optional feature on in-production Next-Generation 737s and 737 MAXs. <br/>
Allegiant Air pilots, represented by International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), have ratified the airline’s first union contract. Allegiant and IBT have been negotiating in mediated sessions with the National Mediation Board since Feb 2014. More than 85% of voting Allegiant pilots voted to ratify the contract. IBT said Allegiant Air pilots will see improvements in pay with an immediate 31% increase, benefits and scheduling. According to the IBT, the contract also includes a 150% increase in Allegiant’s 401(k) matching contribution, up to 4 weeks paid vacation, and the ability for the pilots to fund their union and to defend their contract through dispute resolution. The contract goes into effect Aug 1 for a 5-year term. <br/>
Icelandair has reported a 2016 Q2 net income of US$26.2m, up 17% from a $22.4m profit in the year-ago period; however, the airline has downgraded its outlook because of market uncertainty triggered by Brexit and recent terrorist attacks. “The group’s operations over a challenging period were successful and we have never seen better Q2 results,” Icelandair president and CE Björgólfur Jóhannsson said, adding that this was partly because of the airline’s growth strategy. Q2 revenue rose 12.6% to $331.4m, while expenses increased 14.3% to $279m, producing an EBITDA operating profit of $52.4m, up 4.3% from a $50.3m operating profit in the prior-year quarter. International traffic rose 18% on a 7% increase in capacity to 3.7b ASKs, producing a load factor of 80.8%, down 1.5 points. <br/>
The EU took unprecedented legal action against the US in a bid to enable Norwegian Air Shuttle to serve American destinations from Ireland. The EC triggered arbitration this week aimed at ensuring Norwegian Air Shuttle’s Irish subsidiary can fly trans-Atlantic routes. The step, taken under a dispute-settlement clause in the EU-US “open-skies” agreement, is meant to push the DoT in Washington to give final approval to the Irish unit’s Dec 2013 application for a foreign-carrier permit. “It’s unclear if and when the Department of Transportation will take the final decision,” a commission spokeswoman said Thursday. “Therefore, after consulting the EU member states, we decided to seek a resolution by legal means.” <br/>
Virgin Australia’s full-year net loss has more than doubled from a year ago, hurt by one-off costs of a restructure to cut capacity amid stiff competition. Virgin posted a net loss of AUD$224.7m (US$169m) for the year to June 30, compared with a $93.8m loss in 2014/15. The airline, which competes with Qantas, is cutting capacity, taking on a new major shareholder, eyeing flights to China and seeking to raise capital to help shore up its margins. Its Q4 and annual results included previously announced charges related to efficiency initiatives "with a focus on the simplification of the group’s fleet through the removal of surplus" capacity and aircraft. Without the one-off charges, Virgin said annual pre-tax profit was $41m, contrasting with the previous year's $49m pre-tax loss. <br/>