Ryanair was hit by the first strike in its company history Friday after pilots in Germany staged a 4-hour walkout, days after the airline agreed to recognise unions but talks fell apart. The strike appeared to cause limited disruption to Ryanair’s passengers. The company said that 9 of its morning flights leaving from Germany had been delayed, but that none had been canceled. The union deemed the strike a success, nonetheless, saying that it had put pressure on the company’s management. “They had to work all night to mitigate the consequences of the strike and there were nearly no consequences for the passengers,” a spokesman for Vereinigung Cockpit said Friday. “It was a win-win situation; we hit the company without hitting the passengers.” <br/>
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The only surprise in Ryanair running into the problems that led to it reversing its policy of not recognising trade unions was that it happened almost a year earlier than predicted, according to Evan Cullen, president of the Irish Airline Pilots’ Association (Ialpa). In September Ryanair cancelled flights over the succeeding 6 weeks, hitting more than 300,000 passengers and leaving it with a E25m bill after a holiday roster mix-up left it without enough pilots to fly all its craft. The problem prompted pilots to campaign across Ryanair’s bases for a change to its collective bargaining system, leading to last week’s decision to recognise unions. “Whereas we thought that Ryanair would be into flight cancellations in 2018, it certainly did come as a surprise when the cancellations started happening at the end of summer 2017,” Cullen said. <br/>
EasyJet's new European operation has surpassed the size of the airline's Swiss division having taken its fleet to 28 jets. EasyJet Europe has 25 Airbus A320s and 3 A319s, according to Flight Fleets Analyzer. The Vienna-based operation was established earlier this year in response to EasyJet's need to secure traffic rights following the UK's withdrawal from the EU. EasyJet Europe introduced its first aircraft in July and it says it expects to treble the current fleet to 79 jets by April next year. It states that the acquisition of German aircraft from the Berlin Tegel fleet of Air Berlin will supplement the gradual transfer of its own fleet to the Austrian registry. EasyJet claims the expansion makes the European operation the "fastest-growing airline" on the continent. <br/>
EasyJet has been approached to provide feeder flights from Berlin's Tegel airport for other airlines' long-haul routes, carrier's Europe MD told a German newspaper. EasyJet is taking over some of failed Air Berlin's operations at Tegel, covering leases for up to 25 A320 aircraft. It already operates at Berlin's other airport, Schoenefeld. "We have already had very many enquiries from other airlines that want to use our flights as feeders," daily Berliner Morgenpost quoted Thomas Haagensen as saying Saturday. He did not provide details. Both EasyJet and Ryanair have been looking at so-called feeder flights to attract more customers, and have often said traditional carriers should use low-cost rivals to bring passengers to their hubs. <br/>
South Korea’s transport ministry has rejected license applications from prospective budget carriers Fly Yangyang and Aero K, citing concerns about their financial strength and competition in the market. The rejections followed advice from a committee that recommended the minimum capital requirement for new carriers be raised to W30b (US$27.9m), up from 15, and the minimum number of aircraft rise from 3 to 5. The ministry also pointed to the tough market conditions in the North Asian market, which was the major focus of both Aero K - which was formerly known as KAIR Airlines - and Fly Yangyang. That has been caused by a diplomatic standoff between Beijing and Seoul that has seen new flight applications between the two countries blocked, and tourism slow to a trickle. <br/>
Latin American LCC group Viva Air has firmed an order for 35 Airbus A320neo and 15 A320ceo single-aisle aircraft. The group originally signed an MOU for the aircraft at the Paris Air Show in June. Viva Air said the aircraft will be operated by the group’s airlines VivaColombia and Viva Air Peru and will allow the two all-Airbus operators to modernise their fleets and capture growth opportunities across Latin America. “This order reflects our long-term commitment to our customers lowering fares further due to the benefits of this new fleet,” CE and founder of VivaColombia, William Shaw said. He added that the group planned to accelerate its growth throughout Latin America. <br/>
The govt is considering offering Air Malta pilots a tax-free option on part of their salaries, based on flying hours, in an attempt to break the deadlock in negotiations over a new 5-year collective agreement, informed sources have said. Tourism minister Konrad Mizzi had set an end-of-year deadline for concluding the talks. “Dr Mizzi’s self-imposed deadline is fast approaching, and it is by now clear that the pilots will not accept what’s on the table,” a govt source said. “As a last-ditch attempt, the minister is now trying to lure pilots with an unprecedented offer which, if given, would most probably get Malta in trouble with the EU, because it would amount to state aid.” Source said Mizzi was basing his argument on the fact that most flying hours are performed in international skies and are therefore not taxable in Malta. <br/>
Virgin Australia is working on a new code share agreement with its British cousin that would open new routes for it to the UK. Virgin Australia airline applied to the International Air Services Commission Friday to modify its permit to code share with Virgin Atlantic on flights to Hong Kong and the US. The airline would not comment on its intentions Friday, but if granted the agreement would mean passengers could book flights between Australia and London via Hong Kong or Los Angeles on a single ticket. Virgin Australia sells flights to London from Australia, but they are operated entirely by either SIA or Etihad, which are both code share partners and 20% owners of the Australian airline. <br/>
After 6 years of negotiations, ultra LCC Allegiant Air and its 1,150 flight attendants have a contract. Allegiant’s flight attendants, as represented by the Transport Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO voted to ratify the collective bargaining agreement, their first-ever with the company, which went into effect Dec 21 for a 5-year term. TWU said the contract was ratified by a 70% vote, with over 95% of membership participating. According to TWU, the agreement provides for better wages, sick leave and grievance procedures. “The rank-and-file flight attendants and TWU leadership were determined to win a solid contract from Allegiant Air,” TWU international president John Samuelson said. Efforts to secure a collective bargaining agreement for Allegiant’s flight attendants began in 2011. <br/>
Emirates will stop flying to Tunisia, it said Sunday, after the North African country said it had banned flights from the UAE. The announcement came 2 days after Tunisian govt officials said the UAE had banned Tunisian woman from flying to or transiting through its territory. No reason was given for either decision. Emirates said on Twitter it would stop its Dubai-Tunis connection from Monday following instructions from Tunisia. The Tunisian transport ministry said earlier that Emirates flights would be suspended until the UAE airline found a way to operate according to international law and treaties. The UAE minister of state for foreign affairs, Anwar Gargash, said on Twitter both countries had been in contact about the "security measure information", without elaborating. <br/>