Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr expects France and Germany to take a hard line in Brexit negotiations concerning UK aviation, threatening to disrupt flight connections across Europe before new agreements take hold. “Brexit means Brexit -- our industry won’t be exempt,” said Spohr, who has accompanied Chancellor Angela Merkel on state visits and discussed the matter with German, French and European Union officials. “The basic approach is for every industry to say ‘hey, let’s pretend that nothing has happened.’ That’s something the governments, and also the EU Commission, won’t go along with. You can be sure about that, from what I hear.’’ Services between the UK and EU nations could require new bilateral agreements once it leaves. In addition, British carriers that fly from one European state to another -- a right enshrined in the bloc’s founding principles, later developed into the so-called Common Aviation Area -- will probably require an operating license based somewhere on the continent. The UK is set to exit the single market two years after the divorce process is officially triggered on Wednesday. It’ll be “virtually impossible” for governments to reach a comprehensive agreement in the time available for talks, said Spohr, who has led Germany’s largest airline since May 2014. That means there’ll be a transition period with likely disruptions as the sector adjusts to new rules, he said. A German transport ministry representative recently told a group of lawmakers at a closed meeting in Berlin that Britain will probably have to forgo the status quo in some aviation arenas, and that new deals will need to be negotiated, according to a person who attended the discussion and asked not to be identified because the gathering wasn’t open to the public. That could include the EU’s Single European Sky air-navigation initiative to unify the region’s airspace -- even though Eurocontrol, which is leading the drive and of which Britain is a member, is not an EU institution.<br/>
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In a bid to take on the “challenging” Asian market, United has designated its Hong Kong-San Francisco route as the first international course for a new aircraft and business class product, a company senior official has said. Walter Dias, United Airlines managing director for Greater China and Korea, said the sector saw plenty of new capacity flowing in last year. He added that in the battle for premium services, the airline would focus on a new business class for the route, called Polaris, and the first class service would be phased out. The airline showcased its new Boeing 777 aircraft Monday. Dias said: “Hong Kong is a matured and sophisticated market, which is not growing fast. This year, Asia also remains a challenging market, that’s why we are bringing Polaris first to Hong Kong.” He said the newly purchased 14-strong fleet of long-range, wide-body Boeing 777-300ER planes will be entirely fitted with Polaris. Improvements include a 180-degree bed and associated premium lounges at key airports such as Hong Kong, London’s Heathrow, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The airline will also offer three daily flights into San Francisco.<br/>
Air New Zealand is cancelling all operations at Wellington Airport for the rest of Wednesday. This will create a flow on effect to other services, an Air NZ spokesperson said. "Fog and low cloud is also currently forecast in the Wellington area for tomorrow morning, Thursday 30 March. The airline will continue to monitor weather conditions on the ground and will look to resume operations tomorrow as soon as possible," they said. Air New Zealand is advising customers to consult the arrivals and departures information on the Air New Zealand website for up to date schedule information.<br/>