Britain must prioritise aviation in Brexit negotiations if it is to avoid major disruption to air travel, budget carrier Ryanair warned on Wednesday, echoing growing concerns across the sector as Britain triggers its exit from the EU. Airlines based in the EU have the right to fly to, from and within any country in the bloc thanks to the single aviation market created in the 1990s, but Britain now has just two years to renegotiate access or come up with an alternative system. "There is a distinct possibility that there may be no flights between the UK and Europe for a period of time after March 2019," Ryanair's chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs said Wednesday. UK-based low cost carriers, especially Luton-based easyJet, are among those most affected by Brexit, because they typically make more use of the EU rights to fly between other member states and not just to and from the UK. They could lose that right after Brexit. EasyJet said on Wednesday it was close to applying for a licence to set up an operating company within the EU to protect its intra-EU flights. Its headquarters and listing would remain in Britain, it added. Jacobs said there was no time to lose to strike an aviation deal between Britain and the EU, as airlines need to finalise their 2019 summer schedules in the first half of next year.<br/>
general
Embraer's biggest passenger jet ever took to the skies more than three months ahead of schedule on Wednesday, giving the world's third-largest commercial planemaker more time to refine the aircraft before it enters service in early 2019. John Slattery, head of commercial aviation for Embraer, said that the Brazilian company was maintaining its delivery timeline after a "very successful" first flight for the E195-E2, which was originally scheduled for the second half of this year. "We do have a lot of buffer, clearly. And we are devoting that to maturing the aircraft before entry into service," Slattery said, adding that he expected the milestone to help sales campaigns for the 120- to 130-seat aircraft. The new E195-E2 offers three more rows of seats and a more efficient engine than the current-generation E195, improving fuel burn by 24% per seat and directly challenging Bombardier Inc's new CS100. Slattery said he saw healthy demand for the biggest member of the re-engined E-Jet family in Southeast Asia, Western Europe, North America and Latin America. He first hinted at the jet's early flight in a Reuters interview earlier this month.<br/>
Morton Shen, a manager at a Shanghai-based company, no longer needs to spend more than 17 hours to fly to Madrid after a layover in Amsterdam. A Chinese airline now can whisk him direct to Spain’s capital in about 13 hours for a cheaper fare. “Most travelers would prefer the direct flight as transfers waste too much time,” said Shen, 29. Air China, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern, the nation’s “big three,” are increasingly ferrying passengers from the mainland to Europe and the US without hopping over in Hong Kong or Singapore. Hundreds of billions of dollars of new aircraft in the past decade have helped the state-owned airlines expand in a market where some 488m people -- or the combined populations of the US, Germany and the UK -- take to the skies every year. “Chinese travelers prefer to fly with Chinese airlines and hence, as the Chinese travel more, their airlines benefit,” said Steve Saxon, a Shanghai-based partner at McKinsey & Co. “Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are all becoming powerful hubs as well, being able to draw traffic from China to Europe and US, increasingly competing with Tokyo, Seoul and Hong Kong.” On Thursday, the carriers will report earnings for 2016 that may validate their strategy of capacity expansion, new routes and cheaper fares. They may report a combined profit of about 19.5b yuan ($2.8b) for 2016, their best since 2010, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Analysts say only currency swings and fuel price volatility have damped their earnings growth.<br/>
Passengers in airports around New Zealand have faced a nightmare day of travel with major delays across the network despite fog lifting and flights resuming in and out of the capital. A marathon effort is under way to clear a massive backlog, with Air New Zealand putting on at least six extra flights this afternoon to get stranded passengers out of Wellington. Flights were grounded for around 24 hours after sea fog rolled in yesterday morning, leaving thousands spending an unscheduled night in the capital. Many were forced to bunk down at the terminal after all hotel rooms were taken and rental cars snapped up. Today the disruption has had a dire knock-on effect around the country, with dozens of flights at provincial airports being rescheduled and passengers facing long delays. Late Thursday morning seven flights in and out of Palmerston North had been rescheduled, one leaving passengers waiting more than six hours for take-off. Passengers have also faced delays at Invercargill airport late this morning, with a least six flights between the capital and Christchurch affected.<br/>Six flights into New Plymouth from Auckland have been delayed, with five flights to Wellington and Auckland delayed and as many cancelled this morning. An Air New Zealand spokeswoman said weather conditions had affected a number of services in the past 24 hours, particularly into and out of Wellington. Operations into Wellington resumed this morning and teams were working hard to get the network back on track and get customers to where they needed to go.<br/>
Brazil may be in the midst of an economic storm, but sitting back in a leather seat on Embraer's latest luxury jet, Gustavo Teixeira says the aviation industry is dodging the turbulence. The crisis "is on our radar but hasn't hurt us," the Embraer executive said in an interview aboard a glistening Legacy 500 jet displayed at the inaugural International Brazil Air Show, held at Rio de Janeiro's Tom Jobim Airport. Brazil, Latin America's biggest economy, may be best known right now for a deep recession, political instability and a mammoth corruption scandal ripping through the political leadership. But the first ever Rio air show, backed by Airbus, Saab, Lufthansa, the IATA travel industry association and other international players, hopes to show that aviation opportunities in Brazil and across Latin America are sky high. "This is the right time. During a crisis, you need to bring people together," said Paula Faria, director of the air show. The country's fleet of commercial planes fell from 727 to 686 in 2016, while the overall stock of planes rose just 0.1% to 21,895. However, the aviation institute's president, Francisco Lyra, said the industry is "resilient" and that Brazil is a sure bet when it comes to air travel investment. "In a continent-sized country the only practical, efficient way of traveling is by plane," he said in a speech.<br/>
The largest window on any passenger aircraft, measuring a whopping 137cm x 45cm, will be unveiled next year. The Skyview Panoramic, developed for Boeing by aerospace firm Fokker Technologies, will offer unrivalled views from 35,000 feet. But not everyone will get the chance to enjoy the vistas – plans are only in place to install them on corporate planes. Following a 2018 launch, all new Boeing Business Jet (BBJ), BBJ2 and BBJ Max aircraft will include the giant apertures, which can sit in multiple locations to the aft of the wing. They may also be added to Boeing's existing corporate aircraft at the request of owners. Fokker first proposed the Skyview Panoramic several years ago but had been waiting for FAA and EASA approval. "We are proud to announce the next step for the Skyview Panoramic window together with Boeing Business Jets," said Peter Somers, President of GKN's Fokker Services business. "The innovative technology applied in the largest window in the market, enhances passenger comfort and is now also available for BBJ MAX airplanes." One of the most notable features of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which launched in 2009, is its larger windows. But at just 45cm in length they pale in comparison to the Skyview Panoramic.<br/>