Monarch secured a GBP165m lifeline from majority shareholder Greybull Capital on Wednesday, enabling the low-cost carrier to renew a key operating licence and fund new aircraft. The equity investment was agreed only hours before its operating licence was due to expire, allowing the airline, which sells flights and package holidays to tourist destinations, to keep flying. The 48-year-old airline said the investment would fund the replacement of its Airbus jets with more fuel-efficient Boeing 737 MAX-8 aircraft between 2018 and 2021. Monarch warned in September that security concerns and the devaluation of the pound after Britain's vote to leave the EU in June had made market conditions difficult. Based at the southern English airport of Luton, Monarch has been hit by a decline in the popularity of destinations in Tunisia, Egypt and Turkey due to security concerns. The carrier mainly sells holidays and flights to Spain, Italy and France. Monarch Chief Executive Andrew Swaffield said he now had "real confidence" about his airline's future despite the current environment.<br/>
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Southwest and the union for its pilots won’t restart talks over pay provisions in a pending contract even though Delta aviators secured more generous terms, the labor group said. Southwest CEO Gary Kelly and union leaders failed to agree on any of the items the employees wanted to address, the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association said in an e-mailed statement to members Wednesday. Voting on the contract began Oct. 8 and will end Nov. 7. The decision may allay concerns among investors about Southwest’s rising labor costs while potentially ratcheting up tension between the carrier and its pilots. The union said it had succeeded in securing industry-leading pay rates before the Delta agreement was announced Sept. 30. The airline has also reached a tentative agreement with flight attendants and still is in talks with mechanics. Jon Weaks, union president and a Southwest captain, said he would vote in favor of the deal “because of the value and improvements” it offers. Southwest didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.<br/>
Alaska Airlines removed a passenger from a plane after he verbally harassed a female flight attendant during her safety demonstration, according to a customer who was on the plane at the time of the incident. Amber Nelson, a passenger on an Oct. 9 flight leaving from the Seattle-Tacoma Airport, first wrote about the incident on Facebook. She said the male passenger called out "ooh, sexy" while the female flight attendant was demonstrating how to use a life vest. "Before we could do more than glare in his direction, the flight attendant removed her vest, purposely walked up to him and said, 'You need to be respectful,' and started to walk back to her task," Nelson said in the post. "He said, 'C'mon, I'm just playing with you!'" After the safety demonstration concluded, the male who had been catcalling the flight attendant was asked to collect his belongings and leave, according to Nelson. <br/>Nelson told Business Insider that the man was escorted off the plane about 10 to 15 minutes after making the remarks. While walking off the plane, the man said "I didn't do anything wrong," but otherwise left calmly, Nelson said. An Alaska Airlines spokesperson initially confirmed the story to Business Insider, but the company has since changed its statement to say it has not verified the incident. <br/>
Binter Canarias, which operates regional services between Spain’s Canary Islands, has placed an order for six 72-seat ATR 72-600s valued at $160m at list prices. The deal is a new, firm order, which Binter will use for fleet renewal. Deliveries will begin in 2019 and will run until 2021. “It is clearly the best aircraft to continue modernising our fleet, optimizing our network, and ensuring future growth opportunities,” Binter president Pedro Augustin de Castillo said. This the third batch of six ATR 72-600s that Binter has ordered, taking the airline to a total commitment for 18 aircraft, of which four have already been delivered. Binter also operates 14 ATR 72-500s, which are being progressively replaced by the newer -600s, as well as a pair of Bombardier CRJ900s. “By the end of 2021, Binter will have an all-600 fleet,” ATR CEO Patrick de Castelbajac said, announcing the agreement at the European Regions Airline Association General Assembly in Madrid. The deal was done in euros rather than dollars, marking the first ATR transaction done this way since Air Dolomiti in 1999.<br/>