Emirates Airline, which saw a steep drop in profit its latest financials, is deferring delivery of 6 Airbus A380s from 2017 to 2018 and postponing delivery of another 6 A380s from 2018 to 2019. Airbus announced the delivery deferrals Dec 27, saying that agreements had been reached between Emirates and Rolls-Royce and between Emirates and Airbus. In November, Emirates posted its financials for the first half of its 2016-27 financial year and showed a net profit that was 75% down from the year ago period to AED786m (US$214m). Revenue for the period was down 1% to AED41.9b. The airline said the figures reflected increased market competition that resulted in lower fares, together with unfavorable currency movements because of the strength of the dollar. <br/>
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Scots could be able to fly to the US for less than GBP60 from next summer, the CE of Norwegian Air has said. Bjorn Kjos said the airline is investing in new aircraft that is cheaper to run and more fuel efficient. Norwegian will take delivery of 6 new Boeing 737MAX aircrafts in April. These will be used to launch a new direct service from Edinburgh to New York a few months later with prices as low as US$69 (GBP56). Norwegian currently operates services twice a day from Gatwick to New York with prices starting from GBP125 for a single journey. “Our planes are very, very fuel efficient. We have a totally different set up to other airlines. The Boeing 737MAX has a very modern engine, which means it can go for a longer distance. We’ll also be flying to secondary airports in New York.” <br/>
WestJet has been given the go-ahead from its pilots to acquire additional widebody aircraft. WestJet currently operates 4 Boeing 767-300s from destinations in Canada to Hawaii and London Gatwick. The carrier has said its initial widebody, long-haul flights that began in Jan 2016 have been a success. As a result, WestJet has signalled its intention to acquire additional widebody aircraft but the airline’s labour agreement with its pilots did not allow it to do so. In November, the airline’s rank-and-file pilots overwhelming voted to reject a new agreement that would have allowed the carrier to add more widebody aircraft. WestJet negotiated changes, and a revised agreement was put up for a vote in December. The airline said the pilots accepted the new deal in voting that concluded Dec 23. <br/>