Ryanair’s razor-sharp focus on costs over the past 30 years has helped make the airline one of Europe’s most profitable carriers. But recent high-profile staffing problems risk undermining the airline’s lean business model, pointing to a longer-term impact on labour costs. Some analysts have already started downgrading their profit expectations for the company over the next few years, ahead of Ryanair’s first-half results Tuesday. “As it stands today, there is still quite a lot of belief among investors that they will get through it and they [Ryanair] will be looking to secure that view. Whether they can, and whether they have to take a profit warning along the way, will be interesting,” said Andrew Lobbenberg, analyst at HSBC. The spotlight is on its pilot relations now and pilots suddenly see it as their moment,” said aviation consultant John Strickland. <br/>
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Aer Lingus is eyeing up to 10 US cities as possible new destinations from Dublin, according to IAG CE Willie Walsh. Operating profits at IAG rose more than 20% to E1.45b for the 9 months to Sept 30th, 2017, up from E1.2b during the same period last year. Walsh said that Aer Lingus’s planned purchase of eight Airbus A321 Long Range craft opened the possibility of it serving 10 new cities in the US within 5 years. “It is unlikely that we would operate to all 10, some would be competing with each other, but we are out there talking to airports that could be served,” Walsh said. He added that US airports frequently approached him saying they “would love to see” Aer Lingus and Level, IAG’s new long-haul airline, flying there. <br/>
Canada Jetlines will begin operations with 4 planes next year instead of 6 as originally planned and has scaled back plans to start flying out of 2 airports in Southern Ontario. The planned June 1, 2018, launch is on schedule, but flights will begin initially from Hamilton only and not Waterloo, Ont., CE Stan Gadek said. Canada Jetlines is one of two ULCCs scheduled to take to the skies in 2018. The other is Swoop, which will be operated by WestJet Airlines. Both airlines believe there is demand for a carrier that will offer rock-bottom fares mainly to leisure travellers who can't or won't pay full fares but might be willing to pay fees for baggage, meals and the ability to change flights. Gadek said the arrival of Swoop at around the same time Canada Jetlines launches might be good for the carrier. <br/>
The former owner of failed Monarch said Sunday it had a moral obligation to repay some of the bill to bring passengers home if it profits from the administration of the carrier. Monarch collapsed Oct 2, causing the cancellation of hundreds of thousands of holidays and marooning more than 100,000 tourists abroad. A repatriation programme was estimated to have cost the British govt about US$79m. Transport minister Chris Grayling had said that Greybull Capital should contribute to the cost of bringing the holiday-makers home, although there was no formal mechanism to demand the investment company did so. Greybull, which bailed out Monarch a year ago, pledged to defray some of the costs in a letter to lawmakers. <br/>
Luxair will launch a fleet development study in 2018 as it considers its future shape. The airline operates a route network covering much of Europe, using a combination of Boeing 737s (4 -700s and 2 -800s) plus 11 Bombardier Q400 turboprops for regional services. “We study the market, aircraft types and new routes on a regular basis,” a Luxair spokesman said Oct 27. “We have stabilised our fleet for the moment. Next year, we will have a new study where we see where we want to go, what are our passengers’ needs, new technologies on the market, and we will see if our fleet is still the right one.” Earlier this year, Luxair said it had postponed a decision on a new regional jet until 2018; if this purchase goes ahead, it will replace the 737-700s. The choice is between the Bombardier CS100 and the Embraer E190-E2. <br/>