A strike by Eurowings and Germanwings employees, which canceled hundreds of flights and stranded tens of thousands of travellers Thursday, may continue for 2 more days next week if a deal over pay and working conditions cannot be reached. Cancellations and delays plagued all of Germany's major airports except for Frankfurt and Munich with 393 of the 551 planned Eurowings flights, primarily in Germany, cancelled. Long-haul flights were not affected. The German cabin crew union, UFO, called for the strike from midnight Wednesday to midnight Thursday after talks with Eurowings and Germanwings on pay increases and improved working conditions for part-time employees fell apart. Eurowings has raised the possibility of taking those responsible to the labour court. <br/>
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Sophie Dekkers, EasyJet’s UK country director, has said she is optimistic about a bespoke deal being agreed in the upcoming negotiations to leave the EU. She dismissed concerns airspace would be a sticking point, claiming that an arrangement would be beneficial to both unions. She said: “The risk of reduced access is a technical problem, but I think it will be solved because it's in the interest of both parties. There are a number of EU airlines that are lobbying from their side on it, so Air France, KLM and Lufthansa ... it's in their interest to have access to the UK market, too." Currently, operators can fly across the continent in a deregulated environment, which is likely to change once the UK officially leaves the superstate. <br/>
Aer Lingus Regional operator Stobart Air and Cityjet are poised to announce a deal that will be seen as bringing the 2 airlines’ anticipated merger a step closer. It is understood that Cityjet will fly 4 European routes for Stobart from Southend Airport in London that could boost traffic there by about 600,000 passengers a year. Sources say that the agreement is close to being signed off and will signal “deepening co-operation” between the pair, which have been in talks about a merger for months. Stobart Group, which owns Southend Airport and controls Stobart Air, may confirm details of the agreement when it publishes interim results Thursday. Cityjet will begin flying the routes from next summer and, it is thought, will base some of the new SSJ100 aircraft it has on order from Superjet at the London airport. <br/>
Interjet is in talks to sell an equity stake to American Airlines Group or United Continental Holdings said chairman Miguel Aleman Velasco. Aleman Velasco declined to say how large a stake is for sale or what price it might fetch. No agreement has been reached, he said Thursday. A sale would raise money for Interjet as it looks to keep up with the growth of rival discount carrier Volaris. Delta Air Lines is seeking to increase a stake in Grupo Aeromexico to as much as 49% and to create a joint-venture partnership. That would enable the carriers to collaborate on fares and routes without violating antitrust rules. American has a marketing agreement with Interjet that lets the it book passengers on Interjet flights between Mexico City and 5 Mexican destinations. <br/>
Icelandair has joined A4E. This latest addition takes A4E to 13 airline groups, representing more than 550m passengers and E100b in revenue, or more than 70% of the continent’s passenger journeys. “A4E was very successful the last weeks in welcoming new members, but since most of our key policy issues need more attention in Brussels and the member states, more and more European airline CEs see the benefits uniting behind one association in Brussels,” A4E MD Thomas Reynaert said. Icelandair has historically been a member of the Association of European Airlines (AEA). Since A4E’s formation there has been a reshuffling of the European lobbying landscape, with the closure of low-cost lobby group ELFAA and a decline in AEA’s members.“ <br/>
Allegiant Travel, parent of Allegiant Air, posted Q3 2016 net income of US$45.5m, up 2.2% over the company’s $44.5m net profit in Q3 2015. Allegiant’s Q3 operating revenue increased 11.2% YOY to US$333.5m. Expenses were up 15.2% YOY to $256.6m, resulting in a $76.8m operating profit, down 0.3% YOY. Allegiant’s total ancillary revenue for the quarter was $138.6m, up 18% YOY. “Our Q3 results finished on the high side of guide, which we revised up mid-quarter, and that was primarily due to our performance … [in] our mid-size markets, based on … a slight improvement in the revenue environment … maturity in these markets, and … the secondary destinations that we serve out of these mid-size markets outperformed significantly our expectations going into the quarter,” Allegiant COO Jude Bricker said. <br/>