A Pakistan International Airlines aircraft which was intercepted and escorted by fighter jets to Stansted airport northeast of London was diverted because of reports of a disruptive passenger, British police said Tuesday. "This is not believed to be a hijack situation or terror matter," Essex Police said. "The plane is currently at the airport and officers are making enquiries." The Ministry of Defence had earlier said Typhoon jets had intercepted the aircraft, which had been en route to London's Heathrow Airport, and escorted it to Stansted. "The authorities received an anonymous phone call and then followed standard operating procedure by diverting the plane," a PIA spokesman said. "Security clearance is underway and the aircraft will be cleared soon afterwards. All passengers on board are safe."<br/>
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WestJet expects to generate higher revenue at the start of 2017 by flying more passengers while its chief executive said that a recently-announced US travel ban might present a growth opportunity. Canada's second-largest carrier warned that increasing fuel costs are an anticipated headwind after the Calgary-based company reported a higher-than-expected fourth quarter profit by flying more passengers and cost controls. WestJet CE Gregg Saretsky said that the carrier has not seen higher traffic related to the recently announced US travel ban on visitors from seven countries, though he said it could present an opportunity. "As border issues and political issues continue to intensify I think there is perhaps an opportunity for Canada to benefit from increasing foreign tourist arrivals," he said. "We are watching with interest what's going on with the change in political landscape." WestJet expects a rise in revenue per available seat mile to grow between 1 and 3% during the first three months of 2017, as the Alberta economy improves. "For the first quarter of 2017 we expect strong traffic and revenue growth to continue," Saretsky told analysts. Load factor rose to 80.2% in Q4, from 78.4% a year earlier. The rising costs of jet fuel remains a headwind in 2017, with WestJet expecting a price increase in the first quarter of approximately 36 to 40%.<br/>
German cabin crew union UFO and Lufthansa unit Eurowings have agreed to a mediation process over pay and working conditions after talks between management and the union broke down last year, a source familiar with the matter said. Separately, the two sides will hold talks over matters that can't be discussed as part of mediation, such as opportunities for crew to switch to jobs at Eurowings parent Lufthansa, the person added. Eurowings was not immediately available to comment. The union has been trying to agree pay contracts for around 400 cabin crew members at budget airline Eurowings for about three years. Union members went on strike in October, forcing around 400 flight cancellations.<br/>
Spirit Airlines reported its Q4 and full year results showing a fall in net income for both periods. For the fourth quarter to end December 2016, Spirit reported a 34.8% drop in net profit to US$48.5m over the same period in 2015. Operating revenue for the quarter was $578.4m, a rise of 11.3%, while expenses came in at $493m, a 23.4% increase. Spirit said the increase in operating expenses was primarily driven by an increase in flight volume. Aircraft fuel expenses were up 20.3%, due to a 14% increase in fuel consumed. In RPM terms, revenue was up 13.4% on an ASM (available seat miles) capacity increase of 15.4%. The resulting load factor dropped 1.5 percentage points to 81.4%. Costs per available seat mile were up 7%. Spirit took delivery of five Airbus A320neo and one A321ceo aircraft during the fourth quarter. For the full year, Spirit’s net income was $264.9m, a 15% drop on 2015’s total. Revenue was $2.32b, up 8.4% from 2015’s $2.14b, while operating expenses rose 15.1% to $1.88b.<br/>